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Daily Driver: Long-Term 2015 Subaru WRX

In successive weeks the middle west and eastern coast of our country were blanketed in snow. Thankfully for my fellow Michigan-based Autoblog editors and I, our long-term 2015 Subaru WRX was fitted with Dunlop SP Winter Sport 3D tires before the first flake even fell. I stole the keys and ran out of the office was loaned the WRX for a week recently, and made good use of a sunny Saturday to take the car out for a proper, winding road drive. In the video you see here, I happened to have great weather and dry roads for the test, but rest assured that it had been snowy and gross up to that point. We're going to have lots more to say about our gold-footed 'Rex before we give it back, but in the meantime believe me when I say that the car is well-sorted for the worst that Winter '15 will throw at it.

Subaru XV concept: Just more wishful thinking?

Subaru has long been criticized as being rather weak-kneed when it comes to styling. That's not entirely true. In recent years they have displayed some really attractive-to-stunning concepts. The last-generation Impreza concept was very attractive, as was the most recent Legacy concept. The WRX concept shown a couple of years ago was a visual knockout, and the same can be said for the most recent Impreza concepts—as well as this new XV (Crosstrek) concept. The problem has been much of the visual excitement of those concepts got lost in the translation from concept to production. So we know that Subaru has great design talent; the concepts have proven that. The problem, as I see it, is those in a position to approve design for production don't seem to understand design. Now I'm sure it's a lot more complicated than just that. It involves marketing folks, engineers, as well as those suits that call the shots at FHI. Many of those in decision-making positions just don't seem to get it. However I do have to say that each succeeding generation of Subaru has got better looking. So slowly (very slowly) they are making progress. The problem is, the competition has gotten better too — much better. Hyundai, Kia, Honda and Mazda have been hitting it out of the park when it comes to styling; all the while Subaru has been hitting solid singles along with a few walks. That said I do have a good feeling about this new XV concept. It really does look close to being production-ready. The proportions are right, there is nothing outrageous or impractical here. There are even small non-roll-down (visually distracting, but absolutely necessary) side windows, which I rarely if ever see on concepts. The proof will be in the pudding when the new Impreza debuts at the New York Auto Show later this month. Fingers crossed.

Custom-built Subaru Impreza is set to break Isle of Man record

Last week Prodrive showed off the 2016 Subaru WRX STI it built for a record attempt at the Isle of Man TT's Snaefell Mountain Course. And now Subaru is officially going back to the Isle of Man to break its own record. Once again Mark Higgins will drive the Impreza around the 37.7-mile road course. Higgens piloted record runs in 2011 and 2014. The most recent run established the current 19-minute, 15.9-second best time. This new car "will be considerably faster than the previous car," according to Dominick Infante, Manager of Product Communications for Subaru America. That's because the previous attempts were in mostly-stock versions of the Impreza WRX STI. The new car is a completely rebuilt, track-only special. Details on the engine and other specifics like aerodynamic tweaks are being held until the car's official launch. The Isle of Man Tourist Trophy is an annual time-attack motorcycle race on the small island located between the United Kingdom and Ireland. This year the event runs from May 28 to June 10. There are no sanctioned automotive races on the Isle of Man, so Subaru is essentially running the course for our entertainment. And as you can see in the video below from last year, it's riveting. We can't wait to see if the new car will break the 19-minute barrier. Subaru Racing Vehicles mark higgins