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The next Subaru three-row will be the biggest Subaru ever

Subaru's trying to fix what hobbled the too-small, too-odd Tribeca, the company's last attempt at a three-row SUV, with a truly American-sized vehicle that will resemble the Viziv-7 Concept the company showed off at the LA Auto Show. We caught up with Dominick Infante, National Manager of Product Communications, to get the story about what that future SUV will be like. While he couldn't talk about engines ("[W]e'll have big news on that coming up," he said), Infante told us that the production SUV would be based on the new global architecture, a version of which underpins the new Impreza. That car, and its architecture, were "designed to meet crash testing out to 2025, so it's very overbuilt which is why we can go to something as large as this," Infante said. It's also coming soon. Infante told us that the production version be on the road in 2018, which we assume means it'll be a 2019 model year vehicle. Don't expect it to diverge from the company's general styling themes, either. Infante mentioned that the Tribeca, "was a very stylized vehicle ... [it] kind of didn't fit with the brand." We'd say that's an accurate assessment of a vehicle that always stood apart from the rest of the lineup. Subaru will play it safe to avoid that problem, making sure the production version of the Viziv-7 will be immediately identifiable as a Subaru. As Infante put it, "It's not going to be overly fancy or pretty; it'll be rough and tumble. We're going to stick with our Subaru DNA." And it'll also fix the Tribeca's other problem, which was size, particularly in the third row. Infante promised us that adults would fit in the Viziv-7's rear seats, although a quick glance in the Concept didn't confirm this because there wasn't an interior at all. So we'll have to wait and see, and note that there was no discussion of the size of those adults. Infante also promised configurable seating and cargo arrangements that would go beyond anything Subaru's done before – and since Subaru's only done one proper three-row, that means the Tribeca. Since it's debuting in 2018, it's a safe bet we'll see a concept that's much closer to production form next year. Stay tuned.Related Video:

2015 Subaru WRX teased ahead of LA debut

After bringing a seriously hot concept to the New York Auto Show earlier this year, Subaru will finally reveal the production 2015 WRX at the Los Angeles Auto Show later this month. And while we've seen spy shots of the hotter Impreza (including the winged STI variant), Subaru has now released this teaser image, showing the bulging, scooped 'Rex that's nearly ready for its world debut.
What we can see is a car that's clearly been toned down from the conceptual version - we aren't surprised, really. But it appears that the added aggressiveness over the standard Impreza will make for a pretty hot-looking little sedan. Of course, WRX models have never exactly been pretty cars, and we don't expect this one to be, either. No matter - assuming this car follows in the footsteps of WRXes past, it should still be plenty good.
Subaru hasn't released any details about the WRX as of this writing, but again, we don't expect it to stray too much from the formula we know. Expect a turbocharged boxer engine underhood, all-wheel drive, and - hopefully - a manual transmission. Rumor has it the WRX and STI will lose their hatchback variants and go sedan-only for the 2015 model year, but we'll have to wait until the official LA debut to know that for certain. Stay tuned.

Racey Subaru BRZ spied on New York Auto Show floor [UPDATE]

UPDATE: Subaru had the same BRZ out on the show stand this morning, so we added a full gallery. Turns out the car is called Subaru STI Performance Concept... full info available later this afternoon. Subaru is doing something very interesting with the BRZ at the New York Auto Show. Unfortunately, actual details about it are nonexistent at this point, but a user with the screenname The359 posted these two photos from the floor of the event on the FT86 Club forums, by way of an Instagram page. This BRZ appears to get a pretty thorough makeover with big, L-shaped LED running lights on the edges of the more aggressive front air dam, widened fenders and a rather nicely integrated hood bulge, which suggests the possibility of a more powerful engine underneath. The profile photo provides an even better look at the body kit, and it's practically impossible to miss the massive wing at the back that should keep the coupe sticking to the ground. In all, it bears a striking resemblance to the Subaru BRZ Concept STI that was shown at Los Angeles way back in 2011. It's not currently clear whether this is just a high performance concept to tease us, or the more powerful BRZ that many people are looking for. Regardless, the car definitely piques our interest. Related Video: