2007 Subaru Impreza Wrx Limited Sedan 4-door 2.5l on 2040-cars

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Autoblog Podcast #318

Toyota back on top, Barrett Jackson, Crowdsourcing your Dodge Dart payments, Nissan and Toyota double down on pickups
Episode #318 of the Autoblog Podcast is here, and this week, Dan Roth, Zach Bowman and Michael Harley talk about Toyota regaining the No. 1 sales crown, getting your friends and family to buy you a Dodge Dart, Barrett-Jackson, and Toyota and Nissan remaining committed to their pickup trucs. We wrap with your questions, and for those of you who hung with us live on our UStream channel, thanks for taking the time. Keep reading for our Q&A module for you to scroll through and follow along, too. Thanks for listening!
Autoblog Podcast #318:

NHTSA investigating 33k Subaru Imprezas for airbag sensor flaw

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is beginning an investigation into an estimated 33,500 units of the 2012 Subaru Impreza because of a potential flaw with the sensor for the airbag system. The government agency has 26 complaints about possible faults with the Occupant Detection System for the front passenger seat, and this is the sensor that decides whether a person is an adult, petite, child seat or some other object and adjusts the deployment of the airbag accordingly. However, these reports allege that it was incorrectly turned off when someone was in the vehicle, which caused the airbag not to activate. Subaru put out a Technical Service Bulletin in May 2012 that attempted to address a similar problem. For now, this investigation is classified as a preliminary evaluation and is gathering more data about the potential problem to "assess the scope, frequency, and consequence," according to NHTSA. Related Video: INVESTIGATION Subject : Passenger Front Air Bag Suppression Date Investigation Opened: APR 10, 2015 Date Investigation Closed: Open NHTSA Action Number: PE15012 Component(s): AIR BAGS All Products Associated with this Investigation Vehicle Make Model Model Year(s) SUBARU IMPREZA 2012 Details Manufacturer: Subaru of America, Inc. SUMMARY: The Office of Defects Investigation has received 26 Vehicle Owner Questionnaire reports involving the passenger frontal air bag in MY 2012 Subaru Impreza vehicles. These vehicles use a capacitive type Occupant Detection System, which is intended to classify the occupant of the passenger seat as either full sized, small stature, a child seat or other object. The reports allege that the Occupant Detection System, failed to operate properly and incorrectly suppressed (turned off) the front passenger air bag when the seat was occupied. In a frontal crash sufficient to warranty deployment, a suppressed air bag may increase the risk of injury to the occupant of the seat. Additionally, ODI notes that Subaru published a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) No. 17-16-12 on May 29, 2012 to address conditions with the Occupant Detection System that can lead to suppression of the passenger air bag when the passenger seat is occupied. ODI is opening this this investigation to assess the scope, frequency, and consequence of incorrect air bag suppression and any connection that may exists to the TSB.

Toyota to offer sedan version of GT 86?

Sources in Australia are reporting that we'll be seeing a small, rear-drive sedan from Toyota, based on the GT 86/Scion FR-S. Yes, a convertible variant is still in limbo, but a four-door sedan is in the works. It's unclear if the rumored GT 86 sedan would spawn Scion and Subaru variants (it's hard to cross all ten fingers while you type, but we're having a go).
Working with remarks made by the car's chief engineer Tetsuya Tada in his blog and a rendering from Japanese magazine Holiday Auto, the Australian site Motoring is claiming that the new model's wheelbase will grow about four inches over the current GT 86's 101.2-inch wheelbase.
Besides the larger overall space between the axles, the sedan will offer a more potent engine option over the current 2.0-liter, flat-four. Promising 268 horsepower, which is a big jump over the current car's 200 ponies, the new powertrain will be derived from the Hybrid R setup, shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show. If, like us, you're reaching for the salt, and we don't blame you.