Subaro Levorg

SUBARU LEVORG

The 2024 Subaru Impreza has been teased yet again ahead of its debut next week.

One week after releasing a cryptic teaser image of the 2024 Subaru Impreza's silhouette, the automaker has returned with a more revealing image. Subaru also confirmed that the all-new compact hatchback will make its debut at the 2022 Los Angeles Auto Show on November 17.

The latest teaser reveals a significant portion of the front bumper, indicating that the new Impreza will be a road-focused version of the recently updated Subaru Crosstrek. The headlights appear to be identical to those on the Crosstrek, but the grille is different and the bumper has less plastic cladding. We also anticipate a lower ride height in comparison to the crossover a more traditional hatchback appearance.

Subaru has been tight-lipped about the details, but the company says the new Impreza will "take the model's up-for-anything versatility, capability, and style to new places." The model will be built on a revised version of the Subaru Global Platform, which also underpins the new Crosstrek, as well as the larger WRX and Levorg, resulting in increased rigidity and improved NVH. An electrified 2.0-liter e-Boxer and possibly a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter unit are expected as engine options.

The 2024 Subaru Impreza will be streamed live from the 2022 Los Angeles Auto Show on Thursday, November 17. Bucky Lasek, a professional skateboarder and rallycross driver, and his daughter Paris Lasek will co-host the event.

A BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Introduction to the Subaru Levorg It's not immediately obvious what most of us think of when we think of a Subaru these days. It would have undoubtedly been an Impreza Turbo tearing through a forest rally stage two decades ago. Some may envision an SUV, while others may recall a bygone niche performance special, such as a tuned WRX hatchback or a Forester STI. However, Subaru claims that most people, particularly those in larger markets for the company than ours, such as Japan and the United States, would think of a four-wheel-drive estate: the Legacy. The firm is hoping to capitalise on the Legacy's old template with the oddly named Levorg. This car's identity is derived from a collision of the words 'Legacy,' which was previewed as a concept at the 2013 Tokyo show 'Revolution' and 'Touring' (as you probably guessed). The design brief is mercifully simple: create a size and price successor to the last-but-one, fourth-generation Legacy, and bring the Subaru 'AWD' waggon concept up to date with a downsized turbocharged engine, a sophisticated cabin, and a 'grand touring' blend of dynamic sure-footedness, handling precision, and ride finesse. All of this is supported by a British touring car racing programme that has already won races. Now we'll see how well that brief was followed through on. After all, it's easy to talk about cramming big-car cabin space into a smaller package, but doing so is much more difficult. And aiming to pick up where one of Subaru's most popular passenger cars left off off may make sense for the company's management, but can the same success be replicated ten years later? Maybe - but if so, Levorg's support will have to come from way out in left field. The car is only available in the UK with one engine and one transmission: an all-new 1.6-litre turbo petrol flat four and a Lineartronic continuously variable transmission, neither of which is what a typical European buyer would expect in a new sporty waggon. So, what else does the Levorg have in store for us? And will it be able to provide something both appealing and unique Design.

Subaru UK only sells the current sixth-generation Legacy as a hacked-up Subaru Outback crossover estate, so The context into which the Levorg fits will be murkier for British buyers than for others.

The Levorg is about six inches shorter at the kerb than its bigger brother, but it is said to have more passenger space than the fifth-generation Legacy, as well as a 522-litre load bay that expands to nearly 1500 litres with the back seats folded.

The swept-back silhouette, tapering roofline, rising beltline, muscular surfacing, and imposing details all clearly aim to evoke the visual impact of a sports car from the outline of a five-door estate.

However, in our testers' opinion, they appear to do so only moderately successfully, leaving the Levorg in a position where it can more accurately (and possibly) To put it mildly, he is distinctive rather than attractive.

Underneath the divisive styling is an all-steel body-in-white that is identical to the WRX hot hatchback from the B-pillars forwards and new from there aft, while being 50% stiffer than a Legacy.

The suspension has been improved over the previous Legacy, with MacPherson struts in the front and double wishbones in the rear, as well as stiffer springs, upgraded dampers, stronger anti-roll bars, stiffer bushings, and slightly altered geometry.

According to Subaru's own testing, the resulting car has a lower roll rate and sharper handling responses than most of its competitors.

The 1.6-litre twin-scroll turbocharged 'FB16' boxer petrol engine buried beneath the Levorg's bonnet hood is the big mechanical debut .

Although it produces an ordinary-sounding 168bhp at its peak, its 3000rpm-wide spread of 184lb ft of torque is said to provide the Levorg with the same level of performance as one of the company's old EJ-series 2.5-litre flat fours.

It's Subaru's first engine to combine automatic stop-start and direct fuel injection, it has an efficient-sounding 11:1 compression ratio, and it's sure to be a key powerplant for the manufacturer's future smaller models new. It's an adaptation of the one sold alongside Subaru's larger engines, and its installation means that, instead of the proper centre differential used by Subaru's manual transmission models to split power between the axles, the Levorg uses a multi-plate clutch. Braking torque vectoring is also part of the drive-juggling mix.

INTERIOR

Subaru's interior design language appears to have coagulated around a decade ago and then set like concrete.

Anyone who is familiar with any Impreza from the era will feel right at home, as much of the architecture and aesthetic appear to have been transplanted virtually wholesale.

According to Subaru, the improvements are in the quality of the trim materials, with a greater proportion of them now being soft-touch furnishings.

True, but the addition of some piano black finish on the fascia and blue stitching on a new-look flat-bottomed steering wheel doesn't significantly elevate the Levorg's cabin above Subaru's usual humdrum standard - and it won't be enough to entice customers away from Germany's premium-brand cars.

However, the benefits of the cabin are well known. The rudimentary feel has an undeniable robustness to it, and the Levorg's fittings, like those of most of its stablemates, exude an indeterminate toughness. Similarly, the layout of the fascia is sensible and largely ergonomically sound, helped no end in the modernisation stakes by the introduction of Subaru's latest technology.

The engine is also driven by a continuously variable transmission 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system.

Spaciousness could also be listed as a benefit of the Levorg. Although it is not a particularly large car, the road test tape measure suggests that it has more rear leg room than a well-proportioned family hatch like the Audi A3 Sportback.

The head room under the boxy awning is also surprisingly good, meaning that adults will fit comfortably in the back.

The load bay is spacious enough, with 522 litres of space available with the rear seats up, which is slightly more than a Ford Mondeo estate.

The claimed 1446-litre capacity with the rear seats folded is, of course, less than that of the Ford Mondeo, but with a lower price tag With a load bay length of nearly 1.9m, Subaru's claim of "high practicality from a compact footprint" is not an empty one.

Subaru's previous lack of a competitive infotainment system was effectively addressed with the current Subaru Outback, and the Levorg shares its ritzy-looking 7.0in touchscreen with its larger sibling.

The display, which is standard in UK cars, suffers from being overly reflective, but its responsiveness and clarity are both adequate.

While the software lacks polish, its functions — including sat-nav — all passed the usability test (despite presenting DAB stations in ensembles rather than a real-time list of what's available). The navigation mapping detail is good, and the directions are clear and easy to follow.

The stereo is a six-speaker setup of acceptable quality, and connecting to a smartphone provides additional functionality if you download the apps to pair with Subaru's Starlink system.

With only one trim level, the Levorg's standard equipment list is fairly extensive, with dual-zone climate control, cruise control, a rear-view camera, four USB ports, sat nav, LED headlights, leather upholstery, and electrically adjustable and heated front sports seats being the standouts.

PERFORMANCE

For those of us who grew up with Subarus, the Levorg is an odd proposition.

We're more familiar with its turbocharged engines, which produce horsepower beginning with a '2' and are mated to manual transmissions or conventional automatics.

But here we are: downsizing is imminent Nothing is more obvious than a 1.6-litre turbo four-pot engine mated to a continuously variable transmission.

At the very least, it's still a horizontally opposed four-cylinder engine, though there's little indication of that aurally - and certainly not in the familiar Forester/Impreza fashion.

Instead, it's just a smooth machine that spins away quietly and effectively. The Levorg's 0-60mph time of 8.4 seconds would be competitive if there was a clear competitor.

The previous car we drove of comparable size and power - a Ford Focus waggon with a 148bhp 1.5-litre engine - couldn't be coaxed to 60mph in less than 10.0sec, even with a manual gearbox

Certainly, the fact that the Levorg offers a wide range of torque - and at only 1800rpm - can make the engine appealing feel larger and more vivacious than its size suggests

A small engine with boosted output can often feel a little laggy as the turbocharger takes a moment to spin up, but adding the CVT to the mix completely masks this characteristic.

Throttle response is thus hardly sharp, but given what it's mated to, we suspect it wouldn't matter much how quickly the engine picked up.

If you're just going about your business, the transmission is in its continuously variable mode, which is as smooth and unobtrusive as any transmission in Christendom.

However, there are six preset ratios that allow it to do a passable impression of a conventional automatic, providing a more naturally accelerative feel than when it is in manual mode maintaining the disheartening constant drone of peak power

There are two options. To get the transmission to behave like a normal auto, you'll need to push past 35 percent accelerator travel in I while in's,' you only need to push past 30 percent throttle, not that any of our testers could tell the difference.

You can also ask it to lock up into a specific ratio by assuming control with the steering wheel paddles in either mode - which it does fairly well, except when the slurring ratio changes initially.

HANDLING AND RIDE

When we say the Levorg feels mostly like a Subaru, we mean it as both a compliment and a criticism of the car's long-established Subaru handling characteristics.

Let's start with the negative, because it's not a big deal: on some poor surfaces, the ride is a little edgy - less isolated and noisier than, say, a Skoda Superb that's

all.

And the Subaru-ish Levorg is well-equipped, with its permanent four-wheel drive system providing good traction and a strong sense of agility despite weighing 1590kg. The 225/45 tyres on 18-inch wheels provide plenty of traction as well.

Those who live in the country and prefer their Subarus to feel like Subarus will be pleased with what they find: a secure, stable-handling, and moderately capable estate.

Where the Levorg deviates from Subaru's norm, However, it becomes a less appealing proposition. Owners accustomed to the way Legacys, Foresters, and Imprezas steer will find nothing in the Levorg's electric power steering to remind them of their older vehicle's engaging rim.

The Levorg's rack is quick enough and well weighted at 2.8 turns from lock to lock, but there's little indication of what the front wheels are up to.

And they're likely to keep going because the drivetrain is set to send 60% of power to the front axle as standard. The ability to shift that around a little is available, but only up to 50% to each axle, so the Levorg remains a car dominated by its front end.

It occurs on occasion On our wet handling circuit, it threatened to become a little more playful, but an ESP system that disables traction but not stability control doesn't let much of the chassis' adjustability shine through.

The Levorg brakes well, with a solid feel from the left pedal's central location and good retardation in both wet and dry conditions. And when Subaru talks about a limited roll rate, it's not joking.

The Levorg retains strong control of its body movements when compared to traditional family cars, as befits a vehicle with an Impreza WRX-derived front end, but there's little more excitement to be had — which is a shame if you had even a cooking variant of the old Legacy.

Nonetheless, turn-in is quick and willing, and cornering is solid. In the dry, you won't put much strain on the stability control, but in the wet, it gets a workout.

MPG AND OPERATING COSTS

The Levorg lineup is as straightforward as it gets. There is only one model available: the GT, though Subaru's 292bhp 2.0-litre variant will be available in overseas markets.

It's thus well-equipped (keyless entry and start, heated leather front seats, sat-nav, 18-inch alloy wheels, and automatic wipers are all standard), but not cheap.

A recent price increase has also pushed the Levorg to the point where Ford would sell you a top-spec Ford Focus ST3 Estate for £1780 less than its on-the-road price - a car that produces far more power (247bhp) than the Subaru, while emitting 5g/km less CO2.

Predictably, the four-wheel-drive Levorg does not fare any better than Ford's equivalent engine. The automatic version of its 148bhp 1.5-litre Ecoboost unit in the regular Ford Focus Estate (costing £27,735 for a top-spec Titanium X model) is nearly as quick while capable of a claimed 50.4mpg combined - a significant improvement over the 1.6-litre boxer's official 39.8mpg In the UK, it is still a rare sight.

There was a time when you knew what you were getting with a Subaru: something deliberately out of the ordinary, with engaging dynamics to satisfy the purist.

The Levorg retains some of its allure. It's more fun to drive than the average family estate and comes with the security of four-wheel drive.

The interior feels familiar, but with a welcome nod to modernity. It's also more spacious on the inside than cars of comparable size on the outside.

However, that is about the extent of its appeal. Dynamically, it's not sufficiently different from an average estate car to sway those who would otherwise settle for a Scout variant of a Skoda Octavia, and while its 1.6-litre engine produces respectable performance, it's mated to a transmission that's far from ideal its enthusiasm and economy are sapped.

As a result, the Levorg doesn't feel quite as wilfully different as a Subaru traditionally would, nor do its more conventional aspects outperform those of the cars it competes with. As a result, the new Subaru Legacy replacement trails the Ford Focus ST-3 Estate, BMW 3 Series Touring, Seat Leon Cupra Estate, Skoda VRS 230 Estate, and Audi A3 Sportback e-tron.

To compete with this formidable line up, the next facelifted Levorg, which is still some time away, will need to have lower running costs, a manual gearbox option, and an entry-level trim.

True MPG testing reduced the Levorg's figure to 34.1mpg, indicating that running costs are far from ideal.

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