2008 Subaru Impreza Sti on 2040-cars

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Autoblog Minute: Redbull Global Rallycross makes its first ever stop in Detroit

Red Bull Global Rallycross makes its first ever visit to Detroit halfway through the 2015 season. Autoblog's Chris McGraw and Eddie Sabatini report on this edition of Autoblog Minute. Show full video transcript text [00:00]It's halfway through the 2015 season as Red Bull Global Rallycross makes its first visit to Detroit, I'm Chris McGraw and this is your Autoblog Minute. For the uninitiated, Global Rallycross or GRC is mixed surface, sprint style auto racing; like World Rally Cars vehicles are heavily modified production models tuned to racing spec. We sent Autoblog's Eddie Sabatini to the track on Belle Isle for a closer look. [00:30] [EDDIE SABATINI INTERVIEW] [01:00] With multiple auto manufacturers, numerous press outlets, and scores of Michigan based race fans, Detroit proves to be a crucial stop for the GRC tour. For Autoblog, I'm Chris McGraw. Autoblog Minute is a short-form news video series reporting on all things automotive. Each segment offers a quick and clear picture of what's happening in the automotive industry from the perspective of Autoblog's expert editorial staff, auto executives, and industry professionals.

Subaru beefs up new Exiga Crossover 7 in Japan

While we wait for Subaru to roll out a replacement for the troubled Tribeca crossover here in North America, in other markets the Japanese automaker continues to introduce other wagons of varying heights and capacities. Like the Levorg wagon offered in Japan and soon to be introduced in Europe, or the new Exiga Crossover 7 announced for the company's domestic market. We first caught a glimpse of the Exiga in concept form way back at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show, and the seven-seat wagon entered production the following year. What sets this version apart is its higher stance, transforming it into a pseudo-crossover in similar fashion to how the Outback transformed the Legacy or the XV Crosstrek builds upon the Impreza. It's based on the same platform as well, and retains the existing Exiga's seven-seat cabin, with three rows of seating that fold down to make the interior volume adaptable to whatever needs might arise. The crossover version also rides higher on 17-inch wheels, with reinforced lower bodywork, a larger front grille and roof rails to give it a more rugged look. Power comes in the form of a 2.5-liter boxer four, mated to a continuously variable transmission and driving 171 horsepower to all four wheels in typical Subaru style. Fuji Heavy figures it will sell around 600 of these every month in Japan, but it looks unlikely to export it to other markets - least of all our own. Jacked up and ruggedized though it may be, our sources at Subaru tell us this vehicle is too small to have anything to do with the Tribeca replacement we've been waiting for and which promises to be a fair bit larger to suit American tastes. (Google-translated) Subaru new "CROSSOVER 7 (crossover Seven)" released April 16, 2015 Fuji Heavy Industries, the crossover model "CROSSOVER 7" of the new genre of "urban SUV x multiplayer car" (official name: "EXIGA CROSSOVER 7") the will be released today. CROSSOVER 7, the interior and exterior that incorporates elements of fashion and authentic SUV, all-weather AWD performance of Subaru unique, combines the 7-seater of packaging full of airy, is the new crossover model. You can also use in a variety of applications, and new proposal as "7-seater SUV" to achieve an active lifestyle.

Subaru takes another look back, this time at the 2004 WRX STI

Here we have the followup to the rally-mimicking Impreza 22B STI that Subaru recently chronicled in its Vintage Garage series: the 2004 Impreza WRX STI. Displacement for the boxer four was upped from 2.2 liters to 2.5, and after noticing how many buyers had installed larger turbochargers on their WRXs, Subaru decided to bolt on one in-house. That gave the final product 300 horsepower and a 0-to-60 mile-per-hour run of just 4.6 seconds.
It was stiffer, it's body from nose to front doors was penned by Peter Stephens, he of the McLaren F1, it came with a driver-controlled center differential, driver-activated cooling spray for the turbos and 300 pound-feet of torque. This is a curio from a time when, after a new WRX STI came out, you started poring through magazines to see how the Mitubishi Evo was going to respond. You can find out more about it in the video below.