Last year comprised a series of exclamation marks that punctured an otherwise uneventful twelve months. In times of recession industry hunkers down to protect what it has, and in a double-dip recession the temptation becomes even stronger; financial meltdown is an ever-present threat for the meek and bold alike with mass-market manufacturers feeling the pinch especially keenly; the squeezed middle is a very unhealthy place to be at the moment and…

There has been an unfeasible amount of excitement surrounding the Toyota GT86/Scion FR-S/Subaru BRZ – and we aren’t immune. We’ve driven the BRZ and were mightily impressed, a state of affairs that this GT86 advert has done nothing to alleviate…   Definitely Blu-ray!

We like the BRZ/GT86 here at Motoring Journo. We like its low centre of gravity, light weight, skinny tyres, rear-wheel-drive, and simplicity. We aren’t alone. Jaded and cynical motoring journos across the world get a catch in their voice when they have a set of keys pressed in their sweaty hands – and no-one has a bad word to say about ‘em afterwards. The BRZ/GT86 is, as you’ll have realised,…

The classic car car business is a funny old game; residual values can be affected by the most arcane factors and are subject to the vagaries of whim and whimsey. Take the Ford Consul GT, which wasn’t a good car when it was new and hasn’t been improved by age. You can pick up a very nice example for around a grand, which is about right for a car that…

Have you ever wondered how Alfa Romeo manage to sell as many cars as they do in the UK? Or why customers are so loyal towards Porsche and Subaru? Or which marque on sale today is the envy of all others? Well, we have the answers to all these questions, and many more besides. There has been significant research into why people behave in particular ways when they are considering…

This one came via our friends at smoked out; a Subaru being washed by half-naked attendants. It’s a great video featuring a great car, put out by a manufacturer who is confident enough about their product that they don’t have to take themselves too seriously… Definitely Blu-ray.

The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X FQ-300 GSR SST (or ‘Evo’) is a car that troubled me more than anything I’ve driven this year. Not, I hasten to add, because it is a bad car, because it isn’t. In fact, I was troubled precisely because it’s such a very good car in so many ways. But I’m getting ahead of myself. The first Evo, built way back in 1992, boasted ‘only’…

Let’s assume that you’ve got about £23,000 to spend on a medium-sized family car. Your requirements aren’t too onerous but include four-wheel drive for snow or muddy tracks, room for four people, a decent boot and the ability to tow a small caravan or boat. Two of the cars that might appear on your shortlist are the Subaru Forester 2.0D X and the Skoda Yeti 2.0 TDi CR 140 Elegance…

The Subaru Legacy 3.0 Spec B defies the convention that a cool car can be communicated in just one word. Think of words like: ‘Evo’, ’911′, ‘WRX’, ‘MX5′. None need further explanation. You don’t need to specify the precise model to avoid ridicule. They speak for themselves. Others might disagree with your choice of car but they understand why you bought it. The Spec B (I can’t keep writing ‘Subaru…