The Five Coolest Subarus to Celebrate Parent Company Fuji Heavy Industries’ 60th Birthday

Subaru—both the name and the company—has been around for decades, but it's slightly outlasted by its parent company, Fuji Heavy Industries, which is celebrating 60 years of business. Created from the pieces of several Japanese companies that survived World War II, Fuji Heavy Industries (FHI) branched out into a number of manufacturing enterprises, but the most visible of its creations, at least here in the U.S., is Subaru. So what better way to pay tribute to FHI on its big six-oh than to call out five of the coolest Subarus of all time. Subaru 360 (1958–1970) The 360′s reason for being is a familiar one: it was designed as a "people's car" for the economically strained post-war Japanese populace. Much like Volkswagen's Beetle or Ford's Model T, the 360 aimed to put a generation on wheels cheaply and reliably, and a big (pun intended) part of that design was the car's miniscule size. It fit into Japan's "kei car" footprint bracket, similar to modern small rides like the Honda Beat and Suzuki Cappuccino. As such, the 360′s simple name had less to do with its circular look and more to do with its 360-cc engine size. Setting the stage for the, er, unique-ness of later Subarus, the rear-mounted, air-cooled engine featured two cylinders arranged in a line—sweet. Subaru BRAT (1978–1993) If the 360′s odd engine layout was a sliver of a precursor for Subaru's quirkiness down the road, the BRAT was confirmation that the automaker was something different. Based on Subaru's relatively pedestrian GL neé Leone, the BRAT was a small, two-door pickup truck with four-wheel drive and a wholly dangerous-looking pair of rear-facing seats welded to the bed floor. Those chairs—which effectively placed occupants' heads above the highest portion of the roof—were put back there to circumvent the U.S. government's 25-percent "Chicken Tax" on imported trucks. Roll-over protection? Who needs stinkin' roll-over protection when you're driving an awesome small truck with awesomely terrifying rear seats whose name is an acronym for Bi-Drive Recreational All-Terrain Transporter? Subaru SVX (1991–1997) Despite naming it one of the biggest sales flops of the past 25 years a few years ago, we maintain that the SVX is one sweet ride. The odd-looking, futuristic coupe featured genuine Italian design penned by none other than Giorgetto Giugiaro. A 230-hp flat-six lived under the hood and powered all four wheels through an electronically controlled all-wheel-drive system. To achieve that sleek, wraparound-glass look, only portions of the side windows actually rolled down, which is neat if you think the DeLorean's similar treatment was just the bees knees. It might have been slightly too forward-thinking for its time and far too expensive, but the SVX was a triumphant tribute to Subaru's engineering prowess wrapped in its signature outside-the-box thinking. Subaru Impreza WRX / WRX STI (1992–) The WRX first launched in 1992 as the performance extension of the humble Impreza economy sedan, and was later followed by even-higher-performance STI variants. Here in the U.S., we didn't see WRX action until the 2002 model year, when Subie finally sent us the turbocharged, all-wheel-drive sports sedan—and awesome five-door wagon—in friendly looking bug-eye guise. The WRX and STI were and are unerringly cool not just because of their sports-car-shaming capabilities, but also for their relatively affordable price tags and ability to tear it up off road. As such, we've been in love with the 'Rex ever since we took a spin in a 2002 WRX sedan and played out our every WRC rally fantasy. Comparison Test: 2014 Subaru Forester vs. 2014 Mazda CX-5, 2013 Toyota RAV4 Instrumented Test: 2013 Subaru XV Crosstrek 2.0i Road Test: 2013 Subaru BRZ Limited Subaru BRZ (2013–) Hold up—a Subaru without all-wheel drive? Indeed, when the rear-drive BRZ came along last year without the signature feature that defines every modern Subaru, we wondered whether it'd fit in. Precisely one tail-out drift later, that feeling evaporated. The BRZ, which was co-developed with Toyota, utilizes a 200-hp flat-four mounted low and far back in the chassis to return an insanely low center of gravity and decent power. Combined with the well-tuned suspension and sharp steering, it makes for a car that's easy to drive fast or go sideways in. Mix in a mid-$20,000 base price and a standard six-speed manual, and you get what amounts to a Mazda MX-5 Miata coupe with a penchant for oversteer. from Car and Driver Blog http://blog.caranddriver.com

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