2002 Subaru Impreza Ts Wagon 4-door 2.5l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Edmunds ranks the best used cars for 2013

When people ask us what car we would recommend for them, it's usually not easy to answer. To make a useful recommendation we must consider which of the numerous vehicle segments fits their needs best, and then choose one of the many vehicles offered in each segment. For some people, new cars don't meet their expectations of value, because they lose so much of it the moment they are purchased and driven off the dealer lot. For them, there's always the used-car market, where great deals can be found, but cars' histories of reliability and maintenance records - and perhaps that Certified Pre-Owned warranty - become ever-important factors playing into purchase choice.
To help out, Edmunds has done us the favor of assembling a list of the best used vehicles money can buy, covering model years 2006-2011, according to what it considers the most important criteria when shopping for used autos: reliability, safety, value and availability. That means unreliable, unsafe, super-expensive or limited-edition models don't appear on the list, but instead cars from each segment that are more likely to satisfy the general population.
There are some real goodies on the list, including but not limited to vehicles such as the capable Honda Fit, the cultish Honda Accord coupe (which can be had with a 240-horsepower V6 and a six-speed manual transmission some years), and the powerful Chevrolet Corvette. While Edmunds' choice of the Volvo C70 for best used convertible baffled us at first (not that it's a bad car), it redeemed itself by stating that the Mazda MX-5 still is an unofficial top choice if you don't require more than two seats.

Next-gen Subaru WRX STI spotted at the N"urburgring

Subaru has been busy testing the next-generation WRX STI. Well, it may be the STI. The big wing out back lends some credence to that theory, but it could be that the basic WRX is getting new action in the back section. Time will tell.
In either case, spy photographers nabbed a few shots of the heavily camouflaged sedan running around the Nürburgring. Unfortunately, it looks as if Subaru has taken some of the sexy out of the WRX Concept we saw at the New York Auto Show, leaving this car looking more derivative of the current model than a revolution in design. The bold power bulge has disappeared from the vehicle's hood and the lower fascia looks far more demure than the the wild concept. Likewise, the muscular rear fenders have been toned down substantially.
The result is a car that looks more like a mildly warmed over version of the current model than a production version of the WRX Concept. Still, engineers and designers may have a long way to go before the finished product hits the market, so we'll reserve final judgement for now. After all, the early BRZ mules were nothing short of a travesty to look at, and we know how that turned out. Hope springs eternal.

Subaru SVX to be resurrected with hybrid power?

Salt. Get the salt. A new report out of Australia is claiming that Subaru is working on a new SVX. Yes, seriously.
Now, this is not feasible for a pair of huge reasons. First, the demand for a two-door Subaru, as we've seen with the BRZ, has not been tremendous. Second, the original SVX was a pretty horrible seller. Could the world be ready for a revival, though?
According to an unnamed source that spoke to Motoring.com.au, the reborn SVX will be based on the Viziv 2 Concept that was shown at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, but it will be a considerably more aggressive design, arriving as a low, wide shooting brake. According to the Aussies, the reborn SVX would ride on a new Subaru Global Platform, which will underpin the next-generation Tribeca, because of that platform's support for hybridization.