A biweekly roundup of automotive news, good, bad and just plain weird:
New WRX leaks out
If you've been wondering, as I have, how much the new WRX is going to deviate from the current Impreza, then wonder no longer. Just ahead of its scheduled reveal at the Los Angeles Auto Show, the images are hitting the interweb, and the changes are stupefying.
What Subaru's done this time is so revolutionary, so gamechanging, such a complete about-face, it's going to blow your mind. See, what they've gone and done - wait for it - is put a hood-scoop on a sedan.
*crickets*
OK, so this is pretty much what the WRX always was, but permit me at least to breathe a sigh of relief. As a family man with the irrational need to get from point-to-point as quickly as possible, the thought that the WRX might get all weird and impractical was a sad one.
When my old bucket kicks the, er, bucket, I'm just going to stuff another one of these cars in the driveway. They're safe, they fit the child seat - it's basically all of that rally car sideways crazy stuff in a nice practical package you can sneak past the Ministry of Finance (i.e. one's spouse).
Details about what's going on under the hood are still not out yet, but expect the Imprezabased hot-rod to have the ubiquitous Subaru symmetrical all-wheel drive and a 2.0-litre turbocharged engine making around 270 horsepower, with a bit better fuel economy than the outgoing car. I can't wait to strap in a car seat and start coating the interior with cat hair.
Hyundai executives get the axe
Embarrassed by two major recalls regarding the braking systems of the Genesis sedan (nothing too major, just internal corrosion), Hyundai's head of R&D stepped down this week, joined by two other executives. "Resigned" is the word used, though there's occasionally little choice given in these circumstances.
A face-saving measure as the recall expands to include nearly 50,000 vehicles? Perhaps, though there's something to be said here for a corporate culture that actually presents consequences for quality failures.
All too often in the automotive industry, someone's failures just get them transferred to ruin a different part of the company. Kudos to Hyundai for being tough on its leadership.
Toyota readies rally racing GT-86
Speaking of rally rockets, Toyota's motorsports wing just revealed their intent to take the rear-drive Toyobaru coupe rallying. Built by Subaru, but with some Toyota DNA in there too, the GT-86 is Toyota's version of the Scion FR-S. Changes will include suspension toughening and a sequential gearbox, but the GT-86 will remain rear-drive and probably a great deal of fun to thrash through the gravel.
The World Rally Championship has a class perfect for this sort of thing, and hopefully the competition leads to some interesting special editions, as it did last time Toyota went rallying in earnest.
Mercedes-Benz readies inline-six
Think of a German-made straight-six, and the image of a blue-and-white roundel immediately pops into mind - you tend not to think of the three-pointed star.
Even so, Mercedes-Benz is reportedly in development with a new inline-six-cylinder engine to fit under the hood of the new E-Class. They already have a series of V-6s as well as four-cylinder turbodiesels or twin-turbo V-8s, so the obvious question is: why bother? It's not so much to do with the inherent balance of an inline-six, as much as the potential for a modular engine that can be cut back to four or even three cylinders. That's right, the premier Germanic luxury marque is moving towards a future where some of its cars sport three-bangers.
That's not luxury.
That barely qualifies as "entry-level." However, if a three ever shows up in a M-B outside of European taxicab specials, it might be as just a range-extender on some electrically propelled limousine.
Italian police clamp down on counterfeit scooters
As far as copyright goes, the Far East is something of a Wild West, with blatant infringements and cheap knockoffs everywhere you go. There's not much anyone seems to be able to do about it.
However, if you have the effrontery to bring a knockoff Vespa to a trade show in the country where the real thing is made, expect some consequences. At the Italian International Motorcycle Exhibition, the financial crime arm of Italy's police swooped in and started confiscating.
At least 11 faux-Vespas were seized, and you can expect some pretty hefty fines to come down the pipelines. Piaggo Group, the company with rights to the original raspy scooter, was understandably delighted by the action.
Watch this space for all the best and worst of automotive news, or submit your own auto oddities to brakingnews@gmail.com. Follow Brendan on Twitter at @brendan_mcaleer.
