Subaru Legacy Wagon JDM

Subaru Legacy Wagon JDM

Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (FHI), the manufacturer of Subaru automobiles, announced the launch of the fully redesigned Subaru Legacy series across Subaru dealerships in Japan.

Under the product concept of "Grand Touring Innovation", the fifth-generation new Legacy offers a comfortable passenger compartment and excellent environmental considerations, while further enhancing its unique driving performance and safety, featuring Symmetrical All-Wheel-Drive (AWD) with a Horizontally-Opposed (BOXER) engine as Subaru's core technology.

Concept

In addition to focussing on enhancing "Driver's fun", a key value carried on consistently since the first generation, the new Legacy was developed to create new values such as "Passenger's fun" and "Eco performance", under the concept of "Grand Touring and Innovation".

* Driver's fun - Superior driveability and the enjoyment of driving which have been pursued since its first introduction.

* Passenger's fun - Spacious and comfortable compartment for all passengers to enjoy while driving.
* Eco performance - Confidence in driving and safety with enhanced environmental considerations.

Exterior

With boldness and presence as a theme, newly designed exterior evokes not only comfortable and ample passenger compartment, but also Legacy's sporty look and high functionality.

Subaru Legacy Touring Wagon: Best balance of functionality and comfortable interior space. B4 (Sedan): Legacy's sportiness inherited from the predecessor. Outback: Enhanced image of boldness and toughness.
For Subaru Legacy Touring Wagon and Outback, the D-pillars were re-envisioned to project freshness, with Legacy's characteristics maintained.
Chrome mouldings around the windows accentuate presence with a quality feel.

Interior

The new interior design imparts a feeling of spaciousness and comfort as well as quality emphasized by shading expressions and material texture.
The seats with wide seating surface and redesigned cushions excel in comfort and support. By increasing the amount of slide and lift of the driver's seat, settings can be more finely tuned to better meet drivers' needs.

Audio and Navigation
Two settings are available for manufacturer equipped options: LEGACY premium sound system with acoustic field tuning, designed specifically for Legacy, and LEGACY McIntosh sound system.
HDD navigation supporting G-BOOK ALPHA is equipped with high-definition VGA8 inch monitor and rear view camera.

2.5-litre SOHC engine
Displacement from the existing 2.0-litre was increased by 500 cc, achieving smooth and comfortable driving with lower-range torque.

2.5-litre DOHC turbo engine
Displacement from the existing 2.0-litre was increased by 500 cc. The peak torque is sustained smoothly from 2,000 rpm to the higher rpm ranges to realize superior driving performance.
The turbocharger unit was placed directly under the forward part of the engine. This layout increases response with smoother turbo-charging and improves fuel economy.
The exhaust system layout including the catalytic converter was optimized, enhancing the exhaust emission control performance.

3.6-litre DOHC engine
Featuring an increased displacement from the existing 3.0-litre engine without significantly growing in size, the new 3.6-litre engine offers excellent driving performance and environmental friendliness with smooth revolution performance and ample torque from the lower rpm ranges. It is also economical by using regular grade fuel.

Transmission - Lineartronic
A chain-type variator (main speed variator) was adopted. The compact design provides legroom in the front seats, while the fuel economy was improved especially in the over-drive range through excellent transfer efficiency.

Transmission - E-5AT
E-5AT with high-density control and a smooth gearshift feeling was adopted. Friction and weight were reduced internally, improving the fuel economy.
The improved downshift blipping control enhances the gearshift response in manual mode. Smooth downshift contributes to reducing shocks when shifting gear.
6-speed manual transmission

Chassis
In line with "Subaru Dynamic Chassis Control Concept" (Subaru DC3), chassis and body were further advanced to provide a feeling of reliable, comfortable and superior driveability.
A new engine cradle was newly designed as a powertrain mounting system. It not only helps reducing noise and providing more refined ride and stability, but also improves front impact safety.
Strut type and double-wish bone type suspensions are used respectively for the front and rear. Excellent driveability and smooth ride comfort were achieved not only through the installation of the front suspension arm to the cradle, but also through the damper structure modification and the optimized geometry.

Body
Use of high-tensile steel in critical body parts contributes to weight reduction and higher overall rigidity.
The cradle structure mounting characteristics provide lightweight, sufficient strength and rigidity around the front body, providing excellent handling control and stability.

Safety
For front impact, the engine cradle frame folds inwards and causes the power unit to slide downwards, thus creating a greater zone of protection for the cabin space. In addition, the structure allows the main frame to absorb the impact more efficiently.
For side impact, the high-tensile steel is used inside the B-pillars and side sills. The energy produced on rear impact is effectively absorbed through the optimized frame construction.
SRS driver's and passenger's airbags, SRS side airbag and SRS curtain airbag are installed (except for 2.5i and 2.5GT).
Newly designed high-strength front seat frames and energy-absorbing headrests provide enhanced protection against whiplash injury in rear-end collision.

Subaru Hybrid Tourer Concept

Subaru Hybrid Tourer Concept

With the Subaru Hybrid Tourer Concept, Subaru has condensed its DNA, developed over many years around the Subaru's core technology of "Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive (AWD)" and "Horizontally-Opposed Boxer Engine", into the integration of a luxurious and high-quality cabin atmosphere and an eye-catching sculpted body. The Subaru Hybrid Tourer Concept features Subaru's latest evolutions in handling agility, riding comfort and superior safety performance. It proposes Subaru's vision of a future grand touring car that excels in environmental friendliness thanks to Subaru's unique hybrid system.

The Exterior
Subaru imagined wings with a feeling of freedom and confidence for driving far and wide in any environment. A luxurious and comfortable cabin, and advanced driving performance are contained within a sculpted aerodynamic form. The design features a combination of bright, open glass areas with a solid, reliable body.

The Interior
The original point of the ideal grand touring car is its interior design, featuring four independent and comfortably positioned seats. Passengers are enclosed within an atmosphere that provides a surpassing feeling of openness and stress-free reassurance, through the further pursuit of a human-centered philosophy, the essence of Subaru car design, and the incorporation of functions that are friendly to passengers.

* The top of the dashboard is movable up and down to provide an optimal driving environment for the driver according to driving conditions.
* A flat floor in the rear seat was achieved even with the implementation of AWD, for improved use and movement inside the cabin.
* Specialized shielding is incorporated in the windshield to reduce eyestrain on the driver.
* New leather covering developed with superior breathability and a ventilation function is used in the seats for improved comfort and texture.

2009 Subaru Impreza WRX: Sorry About Last Year's 'WRX'

The 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX is a bold statement from the Japanese sport compact maker: We admit our mistakes with the WRX, and we at Subaru are listening to you.

When Subaru unleashed a completely redesigned Impreza and Impreza WRX line for 2008, the reaction from their cult-like following, the Subaru tuner community and the general public was mixed at best. The new Subaru WRX, with its softened suspension, better road manners and smoother power delivery was an attempt to bring in fresh faces to the sport compact scene, those who thought the loud, snarly, outgoing 2007 Impreza WRX was for high school kids only.
Sounds great, right? Not so fast. The die-hard Subaru WRX community gave it a big thumbs down. They did not want a budget BMW, or a glorified Toyota Corolla.

They wanted the evolution of the legendary Impreza line they knew and loved. They saw the old Subaru WRX as much more than the sum of its parts, a ready-and-willing canvass for the thousands of aftermarket parts Subaru AWD sport compacts tend to attract. What they got was a larger, bulkier Impreza chassis that was called all kinds of bad names by the automotive press. The word "Corolla" comes to mind.

The Subaru Impreza sport compact sedan in all its variations, ever in competition with AWD offerings from Mitsubishi and losing market share to the likes of the Mazdaspeed 3 and Volkswagen GTI, needed a shot in the arm. Reaching into the Subaru parts bin, the Japanese company that has become synonomous with all-wheel-drive has given the 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX a larger turbocharger and an entirely redesigned Subaru exhaust system, resulting in a huge boost in horsepower for a total of 265.

The other area of attention is in the handling department. Last year's Subaru WRX couldn't even manage the same skidpad and laptime numbers as its predecessor, so for 2009 the Impreza WRX has received some much-needed handling tweaks. The Subaru parts department has made big increases in the rigidity of the suspension, with spring rates tightning up by large factors. Larger stabilizer bars should give the 2009 WRX better composure on the road and on the track.

An all-new standard Subaru WRX bodykit rounds out the package, and while it still looks a little bloated, the new 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX should do more to please fans of the most respected name in AWD sport compacts.

The official Subaru press release, reprinted in its entirety below, makes countless references to each and every way in which the 2009 Impreza WRX is better than the outgoing model. At least they've learned from their mistakes...

Engine

Power bhp: 265

Torque lb-ft: 244

Type: Turbo Intercooled Engine

Source: Rsports Cars

2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI

The new STI was expected to be better this year. But when it cameo ut people were disappointed. The new styling is ugly. It's not a hatchback and not really a true wagon. Although the most important thing was kept, speed and handling. The STI has a turbo charged flat 4 engine and an all wheel drive drive line. The new STI has the spirit to keep up with the Lamborghini Gallardo but it's still $200,000 behind.
Engine
Power bhp: 296
Torque lb-ft:300
Type: Turbocharged Flat-4

Performance
Acceleration 0-60 mph: 4.8 seconds
Top Speed: 155 mph

My Rating ****/*****

Base Price: 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI - $34,995

2004 Subaru Impreza WRX-STI

The Impreza, also called STI or WRX for short, is every teenagers dream. With 0-60 mph in 5.1 seconds you will not have time to breath. Only in between switching gears gives you a break of the action. With all wheel drive it is definitely a winner in the rain or snow. Leave ricer Civics in the dust. But this car doesn't leave your wallet full, but you really do get what you are paying for when comparing to a Porsche or Ferrari.

Engine: Flat 4, turbo charged

265 hp

Performance: top speed is 151.5 mph

0-60 is in 5.1 seconds