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2018 Subaru WRX and WRX STI pair updated looks with performance upgrades

For 2018, Subaru has given the WRX and WRX STI a mild refresh on the outside, and a few significant tweaks under the skin. Starting with the exterior, the lower grille openings on both models have been enlarged and given a bit of extra black trim for a more aggressive look. In fact, the change is a bit reminiscent of the dearly departed Mitsubishi Evo, with the black trim of the lower center grille extending to the bottom of the bumper. The WRX Limited and all STI models also get turning LED headlights, and the STI gets bigger 19-inch wheels. The interior also features subtle tweaks including a larger screen in the instrument panel for all models, as well as thicker door glass and foam in the windshield header to the make the car quieter. Both models also now come with roof rack mounting brackets, a new rear armrest with cupholders, and, according to Subaru, improved interior materials. And the WRX and STI are also now available with eight-way power adjustable Recaro seats. The Recaros are standard on the top trim STI, optional on the standard STI, and available in the new Performance Package for WRX models. This brings us to perhaps the biggest update, that aforementioned WRX Performance Package. In addition to the Recaro seats, it comes with upgraded brake pads covered in bright red calipers. The package also eliminates the moonroof, which hardcore enthusiasts know will save weight up high. The STI gets a notable brake upgrade. New Brembo brakes feature six-piston calipers at the front, and two-piston units at the back, and they're all painted a vivid yellow hue. Those calipers act on bigger, drilled rotors using equally enlarged brake pads. Subaru also retuned the car's Driver Controlled Center Differential (DCCD). Both the WRX and STI also have retuned suspension all around. If this all sounds great to you, you should be able to pick one up at your local Subaru dealer this spring. Related Video:

Junkyard Gem: 1990 Subaru XT

Back in the 1980s, Subaru decided that the futuristic-looking, gadget-packed Alcyone would go over well in North America, and so the XT became available for the 1985 through model years. They were reasonably popular in California, and I saw this discarded example awaiting its fate in a Los Angeles wrecking yard. Because the boxer engine in the XT was so low, the car could have an extreme wedge-shaped body and a very low coefficient of drag. Inside, an asymmetrical steering wheel, gearshift that looked like it had been torn from the cockpit of a Mitsubishi F2, and Mars Base-style controls made Toyotas and Hondas of the era look staid and sensible. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. When you adjusted the tilt steering wheel, the instrument cluster moved with it. If you were really serious, you could get an XT with a video-game-style digital instrument cluster. You could get an XT Turbo (with 115 horsepower), or an XT6 (with six cylinders and 145 horsepower). Four-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive systems were available on some models for some years. This car here is an ordinary front-wheel-drive XT with naturally-aspirated 90-horse four-cylinder. Not a speck of rust, pretty straight, but nobody was willing to save it. Next stop: the crusher! Related Video: Featured Gallery Junked 1990 Subaru XT View 10 Photos Auto News Subaru

2018 Subaru Crosstrek First Drive | Tall in stature, short on power

When the first-generation Subaru XV Crosstrek launched a few years ago, I was skeptical that more ground clearance and fender flares is all it would take to get more buyers. But sell it has. According to Subaru representatives, it's the company's third-best-selling line, and is second in the country for compact and subcompact crossover sales (first is the Jeep Renegade). Most Crosstrek sales are in America - 60 percent of them. So if lifting an Impreza can yield such impressive sales results, it's no surprise that Subaru kept the formula the same for the new Crosstrek. The end product is served well by all the improvements to the new-generation Impreza, while equally hampered by its issues. One of the few ways the Crosstrek is distinct from the Impreza is on the outside. Though the main body is the same, the front and rear bumpers are a little chunkier, and the front grille is different. It also features the tried-and-true addition of black plastic fender flares to signal its crossover and dirt road intentions. Every Crosstrek comes standard with roof rails and alloy wheels with a machined finish and black-painted accents. Those wheels are available in either 17- or 18-inch varieties. The body sits atop a raised suspension that brings ground clearance up to an impressive 8.7 inches over the Impreza's 5.1 inches. That also matches the Jeep Renegade Trailhawk for clearance. The Crosstrek's fresh bod is propelled by the same 2.0-liter flat-four as the Impreza, which, at 152 horsepower, makes four more ponies than the old engine. Torque remains the same at 145 pound-feet. The engine, which Subaru says is 80 percent new, is much less coarse and clattery than its predecessor, letting more of the pleasant boxer engine's rumbling noises through. You'll likely hear those noises plenty, because you'll need to work the car hard to get anywhere. Just as we found in the Impreza, what power the engine makes is all high in the rev band. And even when you're in the meat of it, it still takes an agonizingly long time to get up to speed. There were a number of overtaking episodes on two-lane roads during the test drive, and each was a nerve-wracking experience. Even with the foot to the floor, the Crosstrek took the tortoise's approach to forward momentum, and I was constantly fearful of a hare coming up the other lane. Brutally slow acceleration isn't particularly out of the ordinary in the subcompact and compact crossover class.