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2015 Subaru WRX: Accident, wheels and tires

I'm sure this thing is going to be a total hoot in the snow. I am not a morning person. At all. Thankfully, the Autoblog team knows this – I rarely get bothered before 8:30 AM unless it's seriously important. So when associate multimedia producer Chris McGraw started blowing up my phone at 6:45 AM on a Thursday, I knew it wasn't going to be good. "I got rear-ended in the WRX," McGraw informed me, a shaken-up tone emanating from the other end of the line. Poor guy was on his way to the gym, for his pre-office morning workout, and an older gentleman in a Chevrolet S-10 struck the back of the Subie while trudging through a traffic jam on I-696 just northeast of Detroit. Everyone was fine, and McGraw says that the dude's pickup was in significantly worse shape than our dear Subaru. But the WRX was still pretty banged up, and later that day, it was delivered to the body shop for what turned out to be a lengthy repair process. What you're looking at is $4,620.83 worth of damage. What you're looking at is $4,620.83 worth of damage, but thanks to Autoblog parent company AOL's fleet insurance policy, we were only on the hook for our $1,000 deductible. Nearly all of the rear body panels had to be replaced, as did the bumper and taillight assembly, and after several weeks of being put under the knife at Suburban Collision in Troy, MI, our Subaru has mercifully emerged good as new. The day after the 'Rex came home, I dropped it off at our trusty Subaru dealer – Hodges, in Ferndale, MI – for some routine maintenance, including finally getting its broken fuel door repaired. The whole pull-the-door-open-with-your-fingernails thing had become increasingly annoying, and I'm happy to report that everything now works as it should. And since it was part of a technical service bulletin, no money changed hands for this service. If there are any 2015 WRX owners in the greater Autoblog commentariat, I'd love to know if your cars have experienced the same issue. While at the dealer, I also signed the WRX up for one very special, very important update: the fitment of winter tires and – yes! – gold wheels. I have a strong personal belief that WR-Blue Subarus should come standard with gold wheels from the factory (like the Launch Edition STI), but since the Japanese automaker doesn't even offer these rollers on anything but the aforementioned, limited-edition STI, I took matters into my own hands.

Cosworth teases upgrades for Subaru BRZ

Subaru may or may not produce an STI version of the BRZ. Things seem to go back and forth on the subject. But Subaru Tecnica International isn't the only company with a history of tuning Subies. So does Cosworth, and now the British racing firm appears to be turning its attention to the BRZ and its Toyota- and Scion-badged siblings.
For those unacquainted, Cosworth is more than your average tuning company. It's a racing firm first and foremost, having made F1 engines under its own name as well as Ford's (chief among them the all-conquering DFV 3.0-liter V8 of 1960s and 70s fame), not to mention engines for Indy, rally and even high-performance, road-going versions of the Ford Sierra, Chevy Vega and Mercedes 190E. The list goes on and on, but you get the point.
Now withdrawing from Formula One, Cosworth is focusing its attention on tuning road cars again with the launch of the Cosworth Power Package line, the first of which will focus on the Toyota GT86 (aka Scion FR-S) and Subaru BRZ. We don't know just yet what will be included in the packaged dubbed FA-20, but from the video teaser below, it seems there'll be upgrades to the exhaust, suspension, aero and - if we're lucky - maybe a super- or turbocharger for the 2.0-liter flat-four engine. We'll have to wait and see, but we get the feeling that with Cosworth on the job, it'll be worth the wait. Check out the minute-long video below in the meantime.

Subaru shows racing versions of STI and BRZ

While we gear up for next week's Detroit Auto Show, the 2015 Tokyo Auto Salon is currently on going, and Subaru has marked the occasion by trotting out a pair of new racers. First up, we have the car shown above, with the company's entry to the 2015 Nurburgring 24 Hour Race. Subaru is entering a WRX STI in the grueling endurance race, which runs from May 14 to May 17. The left-hand-drive racer has received a fair crop of upgrades for endurance duty, although Subaru didn't really bother to elaborate on them, unfortunately. Next to the N24 car, Subaru introduced a striking version of its rear-drive BRZ, destined for the Japanese Super GT series. The team campaigning the BRZ will be led by Subaru's Hideharu Tatsumi, who will also be one of the drivers for the Nurburgring effort. Again, Subaru hasn't offered any info on technical changes for the BRZ GT300. Scroll down for the brief press release, and then check out the galleries of both cars. 2015 SUBARU Motorsport Activities Tokyo, January 9, 2015 – Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (FHI) - the maker of Subaru automobiles and Subaru Tecnica International Inc. (STI)* unveiled the new racing car developed from the WRX STI for 24 Hours Nurburgring endurance race in 2015 and announced an outline of Subaru Motorsport activities for 2015 at the Tokyo Auto Salon 2015 with NAPAC (Japan Car Parts and Aftermarket Promotion Association). *: Subaru Tecnica International Inc. (STI; President Yoshio Hirakawa; located in Mitaka, Tokyo) Nurburgring 24-Hour Race STI will participate in the Nurburgring 24-Hour Race (from 14 to 17 May in Germany) for eight consecutive years, with a vehicle whose performance has been enhanced from its base car – the Subaru WRX STI. The race car's performance such as aerodynamics, stability, body rigidity and engine output have been enhanced compared to the previous model. In addition, visibility for racing flags has also been improved by introducing a left-hand drive car. Like last year, Hideharu Tatsumi will take the helm of team operations as team manager, in addition to the development of the car. The drivers are Sasaki (Japan), Lasee (Germany), van Dam (Netherlands) and Tim Schrick (Germany), the winner of 2014 VLN endurance racing championship who newly joins the team. SUPER GT Series Subaru, with the "SUBARU BRZ GT300" race car, will participate in the SUPER GT series this year as well, widely regarded as Japan's top motorsports category.