[LetItSnow]

My guess? The first thing that nukes mainstream use of the boxer engine is that it won't fit well in a transverse-mount, FWD platform. There are so many ways that it would be a revolutionary format change that the potential improvements would take a good while to have returns, and right now, a lot of companies simply aren't in a position for massive retooling.

IIRC, GM was at one point flashing around a somethin'-or-other with a Subaru boxer pushing it around...

...and not for nothin', but I think taking the boxer away would significantly hurt Subaru's fanbase. Transverse engines, to me, are simply unnatural. Ease of assembly and cost cutting are fantastic on the other side of the dealership, but I'm not interested in that kind of sacrifice. Whether it's that the horizontal format is uncommon, sensible, peculiar, or just appeals to my engineering side, it's a big part of the soul of the cars. I'm surely not the only person to feel this way.