A special web anime movie created in collaboration between Fuji Heavy Industries and GAINAX

Of all the automobile manufacturers created web specials that made car enthusiasts interested for more such as BMW Korea's BMW Meets Truth starring Rain, Lexus CT 200h's Dark Ride, Toyota Mark X Samurai Code drama starring Koichi Sato, True Power Should Be Shared starring the Aston Martin Rapide, Audi A1's The Next Big Thing starring Justin Timberlake, Kia Motors' The Lotze Identity starring Kim Joo-Hyuk, Nissan Note's Teinenpi Shoujo Heidi, and other web specials made possible by automobile manufacturers, it seems that Fuji Heavy Industries joined the bandwagon for a very special web special to keep fans of the Subaru brand alive and kicking by offering a short anime film titled Houkago no Pleiades (日本名：放課後のプレアデス)

Subaru and GAINAX presents Houkago no Pleiades

Created in collaboration between Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (behind the Subaru brand), and GAINAX, this special web movie made its debut in February 1 ,2011 and wow! This is the first time a famous Japanese carmaker team up with a famous Japanese anime studio for a surprise treat for Scooby fans all over Japan. I guess its true that Love is what makes a Subaru, a Subaru, especially this web special!

When I first peeked on this web special, it was like OH MY! This web special is a sweet as a full tank of 100-octane gasoline! As a web special created in partnership between Fuji Heavy Industries and GAINAX, there are some Subaru-related references on this 4-part short anime film;

1) The main character, Subaru (すばる) is from her namesake, the brand itself.

2) The opening of a door using a key is somewhat like you're turning the ignition key on

3) Hear the engine start-up on the magic staff? That's the sound of the boxer engine, the pinnacle of Subaru engineering.

4) The shafts Subaru, Aoi, Itsuki, Hikaru, and Nanako used were derived from Subaru models. Look closely at their shafts on this short film and it has something similar from the Subaru trademark grille.

Subaru's shaft was derived from the Fifth-generation Subaru Legacy

2010 Subaru Legacy Touring Wagon

Itsuki's shaft was based on the Forester

2011 Subaru Forester

Aoi's shaft was based on the third-generation Subaru Impreza

2011 Subaru Impreza 1.5i-S Limited (Special Edition)

Nanako's shaft was based on Subaru's Touring 7-seater, the Exiga

2009 Subaru Exiga

Hikaru's shaft was based on Subaru's latest compact, the Trezia

2011 Subaru Trezia

5) The areas marked on the bus stop were the names of areas Subaru manufacturing plants located, most notably, Ota, Gunma.

My impressions about this Subaru x GAINAX collaboration short film is tremendously superb. Two worlds combined to create something sweeter than a full tank of 100-octane petrol! Most Scooby fans wowed upon peeking at the web special, Houkago no Pleiades. This short anime film reprises the new Subaru slogan "Confidence in Motion" to a completely new level. I guess Houkago no Pleiades is the automotive web special that ends all automotive web specials since 2009's Nissan Note Teinenpi Shoujo Heidi and 2010's Toyota Mark X Samurai Code drama!

Thank you Fuji Heavy Industries and GAINAX for making this short anime film possible! I guess the words "Love is what makes a Subaru, a Subaru" came to reality! (Applause)

The Iron Wing...

2011 Subaru WRX STi (GRB) Spec C

2011 Subaru WRX STi (GVB) tS

No, they're not made of iron, but these two special edition, Japan-only, WRX STi models truly have a iron heart inside.

First off, the Subaru WRX STi GRB returned the special edition Spec C by popular demand. The WRX STi Spec C looks like an ordinary WRX STi, only extraordinary because of its reduced weight, extraordinary front bumper, and a 2.0L 16-valve Dual AVCS twin scroll turbo which has the same power output as the normal WRX STi. It offers two rim sizes (from 17-inch to 18-inch) and its available only in 5 door hatchback form.

For the 4-door sedan, the WRX STi GVB and GVF received an exclusive limited-edition WRX STi tS. The term "tS" stands for "tuned by STi" and the WRX STi (GVB) and the WRX STi A-Line (GVF) is armed with the carbon roof. A Carbon Roof? Awesome but where's the wing? This somewhat be redundant but the carbon roof on the WRX STi 4-door looks fine to me.

Those Subaru fanatics living in Japan finally had something for this Christmas season; two souped up special edition WRX STi variants, but those special editions won't last long!

Scoop (Japanese only)

WRX STi Spec C: http://www.fhi.co.jp/news/10_10_12/10_12_21_3.html

WRX STi tS: http://www.fhi.co.jp/news/10_10_12/10_12_21_4.html

Subaru WRX STi 4-door (GVB) at GT5

I love this kind of WRX STi! Even at Gran Turismo 5, it still runs like the real thing! The Subaru WRX STi 4-door is truly an eye-catching Subaru built for thrill-seekers. I gotta admit it, I love the rear wing of the GVB. It represents tradition from the past Impreza STi models from the first to second generation (the generation underwent two facelifts).

Driving the WRX STi 4-door (GVB) on GT5 feels like I'm driving the real thing! I even try to beat the car's Nurburgring Lap Time of 7:55:000 by myself, but everyone wants to beat that time with that car.

I really love to say that the WRX STi 4-door is much better than the original 5-door WRX STi!

CR-Z or WRX STi 4-door? For me its...

Honda's first hybrid sports car, the CR-Z

and Subaru's return of the WRX STi 4-door

Both of these cars were JDM, both are sports cars, and both targeted for thrill-seekers. But as for me, which would I rather prefer?

CASE ONE: Since I was getting irritated by the noise coming out of those heavily modified Honda Civics, the CR-Z could be my perfect companion. Most men don't like the CR-Z because of its hybrid drivetrain, sports mode not good enough, and the question of "whatever happened to Honda's sport and specialty cars?" As for me, I like this sports car because its quiet. I don't want to modify this sport hybrid because with those, it will make the CR-Z too noisy and the noisy Hondas irritate me like a disturbed sleeper. I want to keep the CR-Z simple. Even when this sports car is boring, I still going to enjoy it because of its manual transmission. While Honda Cars Philippines has yet to decide when will this car hit our shores, I hope that Emperor Motorsports got the memo and bring the CR-Z as a grey market. If I own it, I promise not to mess it up, because the noise keeps it worse for me, especially the HKS Supercharger for the CR-Z.

CASE TWO: I am a huge fan of the Subaru WRX STi because of its boxer engine, Symmetrical AWD, manual transmission, and everything Scooby fans has to offer. I used to have fun with the WRX STi hatchback because this is fairly unique, but now with the return of the 4-door, things have change. The hatchback version's getting too old for me as the new 4-door version truly kicks it up! With the Nurburgring lap time of 7:55:000, there's no doubt that this is the fastest Subaru ever built. If I had one, would I keep the wing or not? You see, the huge spoiler on the WRX STi sedan truly shows its true self, while the WRX STi 4-door without the wing can be a total blah blah blah, but represents its luxury status.

Verdict: I only like the CR-Z because of its silence but I strongly prefer the WRX STi 4-door because of its awesome performance. I guess when someone reads this, he/she may go for the WRX STi 4-door because its fun to drive than the CR-Z. But let them decide. Its their call.

Subaru WRX STi GRB/GRF Minor Change and New WRX STi GVB/GVF 4-door

When the feud between the Subaru WRX STi and the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution rages on, it seems that, the hatchback version of the WRX STi is not finally alone in the battle against the Evo, even when the hatchback is now facelifted. This time, the hatchback's minor change welcomes the return of the WRX STi sedan. It seems that the MItsubishi Lancer Evolution is now outnumbered by two Subaru WRX STi variants. This will leave loyal Subaru fans screaming "venceremos" all the time but how "hasta la victoria siempre" can the redesigned STi hatch and the new STi sedan is?











From its world premiere at New York, from the beginning of sales in Japan starting now, there are so many reasons how Subaru loyalists love to take advantage on these two WRX STi variants. Considering the hatchback gaining a new bumper and a strikingly aggressive face, the new sedan variant boasts a striking poise and a cool beauty beyond limits. Without the wing on the STi sedan, it looks somewhat redundant, but with the wing attached, the WRX STi sedan shows its true self. Now, all that is left are the gold rims to complete the entire puzzle, but never mind. Oh, and one more thing, the interior of the WRX STi remains intact.

There are two performance types available on both the hatchback and the new sedan, a 2.0L BOXER DOHC Turbo engine with 6-speed manual transmission and the 2.5L BOXER DOHC Turbo Engine with Subaru Dynamic 5AT and Paddle Shifters. Every WRX STi loyalist knows that the 2.0L variant is better than the 2.5L variant because of the power output and the transmission. All variants are equipped with Subaru's finest SI-DRIVE that allows the driver to choose from three modes depending on ride, comfort, and power. Both are not complete without Symmetrical AWD, which is the main skeleton of all Subaru models.

My thoughts about the WRX STi:
A JDM sports car's redundancy is not the main objective for the new WRX STi variants, its main priority is to show who has the right judgment to say "judgment desu no (judgment indeed)" to the JDM fanatics. There is no wonder how this star of the show gained the Nurburgring Nordschleife lap time of 7:55:00 and henceforth dubbed as the fastest Subaru ever made. This will surely rock the hearts of every Subaru loyalists in the world and henceforth this will start a revolution where you are here to drive this hand-made beast. Once you tried, you might scream yourselves "venceremos" while running with the heart of the Pleiades.

Photo: Fuji Heavy Industries