Subaru cars

2013 Subaru BRZ by Bee Racing

An aftermarket turning company often finds ways to make its programs stand out from the rest of the competition. In some cases, it’s for the better but there are those times when the result is just plain weird.

Bee Racing’s program for the Subaru BRZ is a combination of both.

The program is impressive because Bee Racing not only installed an aero kit, but then combined it with a modified interior, a new set of wheels, an DG5-built suspension, an aftermarket header, a custom-built muffler, and a Tomei limited-slip differential. More importantly, though, is that Bee Racing acknowledges that the project is still far from a finished product.

The body kit, which comes courtesy of Rocket Bunny, required the Bee Racing to tweak the BRZ’s front end to look more like a Toyota GT 86 just so it could install the aero kit. While doing that, Bee Racing also installed Bride racing seats and a Drift Works steering wheel.

Here’s where it gets weird, though. We get the part — to a certain degree — about giving the BRZ a facelift to make it look like a GT 86. What we don’t get are the Scion badges slapped into the BRZ. Did Bee Racing want to run the full gamut of all three sports cars sisters in one vehicle?

If you’re prepared to let that one go, you have to admit that this project car actually looks pretty amazing. We can’t wait to see Bee Racing add a little more performance to this package.

2012 LA Auto Show Design Challenge Competitors Announced

Back in September, Los Angeles Auto Show organizers announced the theme for this year’s Design Challenge contest: contenders needed to design a law enforcement car for the year 2025. Today, they have finally announced the six competitors coming from BMW, General Motors, Honda (two entries), Mercedes-Benz and Subaru.

BMW’s entry will be the E-Patrol (Human-Drone Pursuit Vehicle), which is a concept built on a modular structure with three different drones. In the case of a pursuit in heavy traffic, the patrol officer can deploy either the flying drone or one of the single-wheel drones to chase the suspect and report back to the officer.

General Motors entered the contest with a Volt Squad — a three-vehicle fleet designed around the concept of observe, pursue and engage. Honda has two entries for 2012: the CHP Drone Squad, a vehicle-based-system for 2025, which is designed to work efficiently and seamlessly in the harsh environment of California highways. Honda’s second entry is the "CHiPs" 2025 Traffic Crawler, a vehicle that has the ability to adjust to changes in the traffic environment.

Mercedes is entering the contest with Ener-G-Force, a vehicle based on the G-Class and designed as an environmentally friendly SUV. And finally Subaru’s entry is the SHARC (Subaru Highway Automated Response Concept) highway patrol vehicles. They are capable of providing an innovative, affordable and environmentally conscious solution for 24-hour highway monitoring, protection and rapid emergency response.

The winner of the contest will be announced on November 25.

Click past the jump to read the press release on each vehicle.

2013 Subaru Legacy 2.5i EyeSight tS

Subaru has announced the limited edition 2.5i EyeSight tS. It will be limited to only 300 units and, despite its fancy name, is just a Legacy that is specially customized by STI (Subaru Tecnica International). In Japan, the model is priced at 3,528,000 or about $45,000 at the current exchange rates and will be offered in both sedan and wagon versions.

The model is being offered with special STI front and rear bumpers, a roof spoiler, “STI” and "tS" badges, honeycomb upper and lower grilles, and chrome exhaust tips. The car sits on a set of 18-inch alloy wheels combined with an STI-tuned suspension.

Inside the cabin, STI adds a leather-wrapped steering wheel with red contrast stitching, sports seats covered in Alcantara, a "Nick Toro" gear lever and an STI “Start” button. The interior can be ordered in either a black or a titanium gray trim and offers a revised instrument panel with a 260 km/h (161 mph) speedometer.

Under the hood you will find a 2.5-liter four-cylinder boxer engine that delivers a total of 173 horsepower and mated to a continuously variable transmission and an all-wheel drive system.

SEMA was BRZ and FR-S Heaven, as 50 Different Images Emerge

Okay, we all pretty much figured that the BRZ and FR-S would likely have a strong presence in SEMA this year, as it was only one of the most talked about cars all year. To boot, with Toyota and Subaru dragging their collective feet about releasing higher-performance models, aftermarket companies have been working double-time to develop performance parts to hop up its 200-horsepower 4-banger engine.

Our colleagues over at Rides magazine managed to compile a gallery chock-full of just about every BRZ and FR-S at SEMA. We’re not too sure if this is a complete list of the examples at SEMA, but the total count in the gallery is 50 different examples – all but one or two are of the FR-S. We’re not too sure exactly how many cars showed up for SEMA this year, but we can say with some confidence that the FR-S takes the trophy for most heavily represented at the show.

Check out our gallery to see all of the examples that Rides provided us.

2013 Subaru WRX and WRX STI Special Edition

With the 2012 SEMA Show kicking off, we’ve seen a number of vehicles dressed to impress, including Subaru and its WRX and WRX STI Special Edition featuring an "Orange and Black" custom paint scheme. It will be limited to only 200 WRX sedans and 100 WRX STI sedans and will go on sale in spring of 2013.

The WRX’s Tangerine Orange exterior paint is combined with jet black custom wheels, black front fender badges, and black exterior mirrors. On demand, customera can also get black exterior graphics. The same paint scheme continues on the interior where the black trim is combined with orange stitching on the seats, doors, shift boot, and custom trimmed floor mats.

Both models are powered by a Subaru Boxer engine, with the WRX delivering a total of 265 HP and the WRX STI pumping out 305 HP. Both models are also offered with Subaru’s Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system.

UPDATE 02/05/2013: Subaru announced today prices for the 2013 Subaru WRX and WRX STI Special Editions set to be put on sale in spring of 2013. The standard WRX Special Edition will be priced at $28,795 – an additional $500 compared to the WRX Premium; while the WRX STI Special Edition is priced at $34,795 - an increase of $500 compared to the WRX STI.

2014 Subaru Forester

Back in September we announced that the all-new 2014 Subaru Forester was just about finished and that a few leaky valves had allowed some information to be released. We knew that the Forster was going to hit showrooms riding on a revised version of the Impreza’s platform and that this would result in a few extra inches here and there. We also outlined the rumored engines that the new Forester would feature.

Well, no more speculation and links, as Subaru has officially lifted the veil off of some of the Forester’s key details just before its official unveiling at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Surprisingly – or maybe not to those that know how leaks work – the information we received was actually pretty accurate, save for a few horsepower from the engine.

So, what exactly is Subaru offering us with its all-new part-SUV, part-station-wagon that it has offered up since 1998?

Updated 11/29/2012: The new generation Subaru Forester made its official debut at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show, and this was the perfect opportunity for us to add a new set of high res images. The 2014 Forester will go on sale on the U.S. market next spring in two trims: 2.5i available in base, Premium, Limited and Touring versions and 2.0XT offered in the Premium and Touring versions.

Updated 01/18/2013: Subaru announced today prices for the 2014 Forester that will go on sale in base, Premium, Limited and top-line Touring versions. Pricing for the Forester begins at $21,995 for the base model 2.5i and from $27,995 for the Premium versions.

Click past the jump to read all of the details and find out.

2014 Subaru BRZ STI

Ever since Subaru dropped the new BRZ onto the market, we knew that an even hotter STI version was sure to follow. Now, British magazine AutoExpress is offering a few details on this new model, set to arrive sometime next year.

The future BRZ STI will feature a more powerful version of the current 2.0-liter flat-four cylinder ’boxer’ engine. The output will be raised up to somewhere in the 250 HP area (an addition of about 50 HP) thanks to the modifications made to the engine’s variable valve control system. That will also allow for an even higher rev limit of around 7,500rpm with the help of a new freer-flowing exhaust.

Next to the extra power, the new STI will also be even lighter than the standard BRZ. It will also be distinguished by a dramatic bodykit, a stiffened and lowered suspension, lighter but larger 18-inch alloy wheels, and upgraded brakes.

One downside to the BRZ STI is that there will be no turbocharged version offered. Subaru says there is no space for it in the engine bay and they are reserving these version for models like the WRX STI.

When the BRZ STI does debut, Subaru would have taken the next step in their playful game of one-ups-man-ship. What say you, Toyota?

UPDATE 10/23/2012: Just a few days ago, Subaru unveiled a Subaru BRZ equipped with STI upgrades at the 2012 Australian Motor Show in Sydney. We knew this wasn’t this wasn’t the real Subaru BRZ STI deal, but it confirmed the fact that great things were going to be coming from Subaru in the near future.

Now we hear that Subaru is preparing a turbocharged direct-injection version of the horizontally opposed, 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine used in the standard BRZ. This engine will feature a single twin-scroll turbocharger and straight direct-injection developed in-house and not the DI/port-injection system developed in cooperation with Toyota.

This engine could deliver up to 280 HP and 250 lbs-ft of torque, transforming the upcoming BRZ STI into a real competitor in the sports car market. (AutoNews)

2013 Subaru BRZ with STI Upgrades

We are all waiting to see the STI version of the recently announced Subaru BRZ when it comes out in the next year or so. We’d rely on the BRZ STI Concept that was unveiled at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show for design inspirations, but we all know how concepts sometimes exaggerate the look of the production car. Instead, we are going to take a look at Subaru’s latest STI preview in the form of a Subaru BRZ equipped with STI upgrades. This is not the real STI version, but it still allows us to get a pretty good idea as to the production version’s final look.

The model displayed at the 2012 Australian Motor Show in Sydney was equipped with an aerodynamic kit that includes a front chin spoiler, side skirts, a rear diffuser, and a bootlid spoiler. The model sits on a new set of 17-inch light alloy wheels combined with a set of lower and stiffer coil springs.

Other updates include a low-restriction exhaust muffler, a short-shift gear linkage for manual-equipped BRZ, a wheelnut set, an STI gearknob, an STI push-button starter, and unique interior trim highlights.

2013 Subaru BRZ Race Car by Possum Bourne Motor Sport

The 2012 Australian Motor Show has been a pleasant surprise to us, largely because of the number of models that made their debuts Down Under.

One vehicle that caught our eye comes from Subaru and what appears to be a partnership with New Zealand-based racing outfit Possum Bourne Motor Sport involving the BRZ.

The BRZ Race Car was customized to be a club-level race car and comes in three track-ready packages. For the entry-level package, the features include a number of carbon fiber parts, including the mirror caps and the door panels, a full-on roll cage kit with Recaro motorsport seats, Sabelt six-point harness, and fuel system modifications.

The second package comes with more added components. First, there’s the new set of 18" Enkei lightweight wheels wrapped in Pirelli P-Zero Trofeo R motorsport tires. From there, PBMS also added driveline and suspension modifications, highlighted by a new Cusco height and damper adjustable coil over suspension system. There’s also a brake package that includes AP front and rear rotors and calipers and an STI handbrake, as well as an electrical kit that comes with wiring and circuit breakers. Last but not least, lightweight battery Recaro winged-HANS seats round out the upscale package for the BRZ race car.

Then there’s the third option, which includes a complete performance parts package, including engine and gearbox enhancements, all of which catered to the customer’s unique requirements.

Talking about the car, Subaru Australia Managing Director, Nick Senior, said: “We’re delighted to display the PBMS BRZ motorsport project car. This car will take the BRZ thrill to a whole new level for those that want some serious trackwork.”

“From day one we have always imagined the BRZ would appeal to the ‘weekend warriors’ - people who enjoy club level motorsport activities. PBMS has developed packages that will appeal to these enthusiasts.”

Clearly.

Subaru BRZ to star in Fast & Furious 6

The sixth installment of the Fast & Furious franchise, aptly titled "Fast 6," will see the return of franchise mainstays Paul Walker and Vin Diesel. It’ll also have Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in it. Clearly, there’s no lack of Hollywood star power in the movie.

But if there’s one thing the Fast & Furious franchise has shown us, the artists aren’t the only stars in the movie; the cars play a pretty important role too. We saw that in the last movie when a pair of Dodge Chargers took over the latter parts of the movie.

For Fast 6, producers have turned to Subaru to have its new sports car, the BRZ, play a starring role in the film. In response, the Japanese automaker sent over five BRZs to the set, all of which will probably be beaten to oblivion during the course of filming.

Starring in such a high-profile blockbuster like Fast 6 could end up being a huge marketing coup for the BRZ, especially if it appears decked in full-tricked out glory, akin to what you expect to see in a movie that’s heavily influenced in the aftermarket auto scene.

Fast Six is set to hit theaters on May 24, 2013. Here’s to hoping the BRZ gets enough camera shine in the film!