[Matador]

Originally Posted by aspera

All wheel drive is better than half wheel drive all the time. Just like brakes on all of your wheels is better than brakes on half of your wheels. One could argue that the weight, expense, complexity, etc...of rear brakes isn't worth it because front brakes do most of the work. If a person made that argument about brakes they'd get laughed at. But the two things are the same...apples to apples.

Subaru could easily modify the oilpan so that a driveshaft could go right up the middle to a front mounted diff. If you look at the way they mount the new engines, it would be a cinch. They moved away from a firewall mounted pitch rod to a mount on the front of the engine. The Lambo has an offset rear diff, but that allows them to mount the engine lower. A Subaru boxer has to sit up high because the exhaust ports point straight down.

Now, if Subaru went to a head design like Ford's latest diesel engine and made it a dry sump...they could drop the whole thing about SIX INCHES. Oh, and the turbo would sit right on top of the engine for perfect oiling, perfect exhaust port balance, perfect intake route, perfect downpipe route, and easy maintenance. My 2 cents.

You fail to realize no matter how much you bitch and moan, this car is going to debut rwd. You also fail to realize that the setup you are talking about is Expensive, and will not happen in a car at this proposed price point.