Check out the Top Used Subaru Models

So, how do you get into the Philadelphia Auto Show for free to check out the future of Subaru for yourself? We are giving away 3 sets of 4 tickets each! Simply go to Reedman-Toll Subaru’s Facebook wall and answer some trivia about this legendary car manufacturer! See you at the show!

Subaru’s goal is to gain the ultimate amount of traction onto the road. Better traction expands a vehicle’s versatility and capability. It creates better handling and control. It can be the difference between you avoiding a dangerous situation. Keeping a sure grip of the road increases the confidence you feel behind the wheel. Subaru has spent almost forty years developing their driving systems.  The result is Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive. Its unique design keeps more power routed to all four wheels and keeps the vehicle exceptionally balanced for poise and tight handling.

Many all-wheel drive systems found on other vehicles don’t start as all-wheel drive. These systems are adapted from 2-wheel drive to be all-wheel drive. Each Subaru model, unlike most other vehicles in its class, starts out as all-wheel drive. Power is fed directly from the engine, through the transmission, then to the driveshaft and then delivered to each wheel in the most direct route possible.

Subaru has managed to sharpen both the WRX and the WRX STI for 2011, but in different ways. The base WRX now wears a body befitting a budget performance heathen while the mighty WRX STI has been given some much needed focus for the first time in years. The big news on the WRX STI front is what’s under the car. Subaru has built in sway bars that are about 30 percent more rigid, stiffer springs (16 percent in the front and 55 percent in the rear), stiffer bushings and a lower ride height for 2011. The company has even moved to steel-ball type bushings where the front control arm meets the body for added rigidity, though it’s surrounded by a rubber bushing to keep noise and vibration down.

For more details, pictures, and video, read our 2011 Subaru WRX in Philadelphia review!

Helping to raise the handling prowess in both wagon and sedan versions, Subaru reworked the suspension tuning, which was previewed on the 2010 Impreza WRX STI Special Edition. Ride height is lowered, spring rates increase, antiroll bars are thicker, and front pillow-ball bushings and rear subframe bushings are stiffened. The standard 18-inch wheels are also new and weigh 17.6 pounds less than the previous wheels. All of this results in reduced body roll, more neutral handling response and better lateral grip capability.

Subaru says it sports a new grille, unique two-tone paint job, flared wheel arches, a roof rack, and a rear spoiler. Power will come from your choice of either a 2.0-liter gasoline or turbo-diesel flat-four.

It may sound similar to the Subaru Outback, and in fact will borrow some key design traits. Regardless, it’s likely a niche Subaru wants filled in Europe as soon as possible, seeing as Mitsubishi is launching its new RVR/ASX/Outlander Sport in the market this year. Subaru has yet to release any official images or details of the Impreza XV yet, and it is unknown whether this new Impreza crossover will reach stateside in the coming years. It will officially debut at the motor show, which runs in Geneva for the 80th consecutive year on March 4-14. Should be interesting to see what Subaru’s come up with.

The new option packages will be available in February and further demonstrate the market agility that allows Subaru to respond quickly to customer trends.  The Forester has a NHTSA 5-Star Ratings and IIHS Top Safety Pick. The Forester 2.5X with Special Edition Package adds 16-inch alloy wheels and roof rails for a discounted package price of $400 over this model’s $20,295 MSRP.

The Forester 2.5X Limited, already luxuriously equipped with leather appointed interior, 10-way power driver’s seat, automatic transmission, panoramic power moonroof and other amenities, offers a new Navigation System and Convenience Package for $2,300. At $500 more than the regular Navigation System, the new option also includes the Forester line’s first-ever HID headlights, plus a tilt/telescopic steering wheel, one-touch folding rear seats and a cargo area cover.

In addition to the new option packages, the Forester also features other enhancements for 2010, including a standard 10-way power driver’s seat for the 2.5X Premium and Bluetooth wireless capability for the available navigation system in Limited trim lines. Forester is offered in five trim lines for 2010. The Forester 2.5X, powered by a 170-hp 2.5-liter 4-cylinder Subaru Boxer engine, is one of the best values in the crossover SUV segment. The 2.5X Premium adds a 10-way power driver’s seat, large panoramic power moonroof and interior enhancements and offers an available All-Weather Package (heated front seats, heated side mirrors and windshield wiper de-icer). The Forester 2.5X Limited includes the All-Weather Package and offers more luxury and an available navigation system. For powerful, sporty performance, the 2.5XT Premium and 2.5XT Limited are powered by a 224-hp turbocharged/intercooled Boxer engine.

The 2010 WRX STI Special Edition is aimed at the driving enthusiast who is willing to trade a few amenities to gain an extra measure of handling performance over the already extraordinary WRX STI. Suspension for the new version of this high-performance machine is adopted from the Japanese domestic market WRX STI spec C model, which adds a 1-millimeter thicker rear stabilizer bar, stiffer rear sub-frame bushings plus upgraded springs. The front springs are 16-percent stiffer, while the rear springs have been stiffened by 29-percent.

Available in early spring, only 125 units of the 2010 WRX STI Special Edition will be painted in exclusive Aspen White. The WRX STI Special Edition will also be available in Obsidian Black Pearl, WR Blue Mica and Dark Gray Metallic colors. All models will be set off by the charcoal-colored 18 x 8.5 in. 14-spoke alloy wheels from the JDM WRX STI spec C.

Compared with the standard 2010 WRX STI, the WRX STI Special Edition features halogen rather than HID headlights; a single-disc CD player / 4-speaker audio system instead of the 6-CD / 10-speaker system; manual air conditioning in place of automatic climate control, and side mirrors without integrated signals.

Subaru recorded winners with the Subaru Legacy, Outback and Impreza cars and Tribeca and Forester SUVs. Subaru was the only automaker with an IIHS winner in all four vehicle classes in which it competes. The automaker, which has bucked the brutal U.S. sales market with a 13 percent increase during the first 10 months of 2009, attributed its safety success to a unique engine design that sits low in the vehicle chassis and moves down and under occupants in a frontal collision. Tom Doll, executive vice president and COO of Subaru of America, said the awards were a “tribute to the engineering that goes into Subaru products.”

The awards are based on the best front, side and rear crash tests based on Institute evaluations during the year. The vehicles are required to have electronic stability control, or ESC, to qualify for the award. Earlier this year, the Institute said vehicles would need to receive its highest score in its roof strength evaluation to qualify the safety pick designation.

SPT started by taking one Forester and one STI, stripping each to the metal, and adding STI pieces to the Forester bit by bit. Since the two cars share a platform, the engine, six-speed manual transmission, and STI drivetrain weren’t too difficult to swap over. The new exhaust system freed up another 10 hp and 10 lb-ft of torque compared with the stock STI, so the XTI is good for 315 hp and 300 lb-ft.

Subaru estimates that the XTI can hit 60 mph in five seconds or less.  With the chassis and drive settings in their most aggressive positions—the SI-Drive system in Sport Sharp and the Driver Controlled Center Differential (DCCD) set for maximum rear torque bias—the XTI can keep up with stock WRX STI. Although the Forester XTI may never go into production, it is one exciting SUV.