The Subaru Levorg wagon concept unveiled at last month’s Tokyo Motor Show, hasn’t gone into production, but Subaru is already customizing it.
At January’s Tokyo Auto Salon – think Japan’s version of SEMA – Subaru will unveil not one, but five customized wagons. Talk about overachieving.
The Levorg Premium Sports Concept will feature accessories from Subaru’s own catalog, showing customers what they can do to class-up their cars without resorting to the aftermarket.
Similary, the Levorg STI Performance Concept will feature parts from Subaru Tecnica International, the company’s performance division. Those parts will include a front strut-tower brace and spoiler. Hopefully, though, STI will work its magic on the Levorg’s boxer engine as well.
Alongside the company-built concepts, Subaru will also display three customized Levorgs from prominent aftermarket parts manufacturers.
The name may sound strange, but the Levorg is essentially a new Legacy wagon. It’s roughly the size of the current Outback, but lacks that model’s ground clearance. Power comes from 1.6-liter and 2.0-liter boxer-fours, mated to Subaru’s trademark Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system.
In fact, Subaru North America admitted to us that it’s the Levorg’s name that’s keeping it from the U.S. “Grovel” backward was too distasteful for Subaru’s American counterparts. And if you’re wondering: Yes, Subaru corporate refused to rename the Levorg for global markets.
In terms of the styling, the Levorg takes more than a few cues from the recently-unveiled WRX, indicating that this pugnacious mug could be the new face of the brand. While wagons are always great, it would have been even better to see something more like the Legacy concept unveiled at last month’s Los Angeles Auto Show.
According to Subaru, the Levorg is a thinly-veiled version of a production wagon that will go on sale next spring. Since the current Legacy wagon isn’t sold in the United States, this one might not be either.
Residents of Massachusetts and Oregon will surely be awaiting the new Legacy with bated breath, but but a production Levorg STI would be even better.
Whether it takes the form of a forbidden fruit wagon, Outback, or Legacy sedan, such a car would make a great a combination of speed and practicality, and would make an interesting rival for the upcoming Volvo V60 Polestar.
