It's a Subaru estate, and officially it's a concept, but the Levorg shown at the Tokyo Motor Show is near-production ready - and it could fit into the model range between the Impreza and Legacy, rather than replacing either car.
Exterior
The good news is that this is a sharp-looking Subaru, with some of the firm's design heritage proudly on show, such as the bonnet intake and its great big boxy wheelarches. In terms of size, it's 4,690mm long, 1,780mm wide and 1,485mm tall, with a 2,650mm wheelbase - hence why it might not replace either Impreza or Legacy, as it is physically slap bang between the two.
Interior
A typically modern dash design features display screens - in this case, one centrally mounted for infotainment/satnav and a top-mounted example under a cowl, presumably for things such as a reversing camera display. There are blue dials in the dash, another Subaru signature.
The company promises that this will be a premium cabin, with the concomitant fit and finish required to convince customers of that fact, and that it will be 'roomy and comfortable'. There'll be plenty of technology for the Levorg buyer too, such as the lane-keeping assistance system 'Eyesight', plus Subaru's own versions of industry-wide features like adaptive cruise and hazard avoidance. Safety is also paramount, with high-tensile steel in the Levorg's structure, plenty of airbags inside and a specific emergency stop signal.
Mechanicals
There are two turbocharged petrol engines with direct injection for the Levorg, one a new 1.6-litre unit and the other a 2.0. Both are mated to Lineartronic CVT gearboxes, with no word on a proper manual version, and the 2.0-litre's transmission is known as Sport Lineartronic. The two models transmit 170- and 300hp to the tarmac via Subaru's all-wheel drive system, meaning the 2.0-litre promises to be properly quick. The 1.6 has 268Nm and can achieve 49mpg, while the 2.0 has 400Nm but only returns 37mpg.
Anything else?
A production version of the Subaru Levorg is already under way and should be on sale in Japan in spring 2014. No word on it making it to this part of the world as yet.