Having fallen in lust with the Subaru WRX Concept from earlier this year, I'm not entirely sold on the styling direction of the production version quite yet. But after seeing this photo of the 2015 Subaru WRX on some dirt, well, maybe I can be convinced to come around.
The new 'Rex — no longer a part of the Impreza line, though it is definitely Impreza based, unlike those crazy rumors that claimed it would become an entirely different model — will be officially unveiled at the LA Auto Show this week. But we got a quick sneak peek at a press photo in a promo video from Edmunds.
To recap what we already know, the new WRX will have a 2.0-liter turbo boxer four with 268 horsepower, hit zero to 60 in 5.4 seconds, and finally dump its ancient five-speed manual box for a six-speed. Or a CVT, if you want to hate yourself for as long as you own the car.
I'm not sure if anyone has mentioned this, but if Subaru's 0-60 time is accurate, then this will be slower than the outgoing car, which did it in 4.7 seconds in most tests. On the bright side, according to that spread in Car and Driver, the interior should be much improved as well.
Oh well. If past WRXes are any indication, people will look past its bulldog looks if it drives awesomely. I know I did when I owned mine.