[LetItSnow]

Three weeks dead, and I bump it anyway? Yeh, and I'll probably be stoned with failed wheel bearings at Reading for it, but I offer my take...

Thinking in the car last night, I've pretty much resigned myself to the idea that any return of the SVX to the market right now would probably involve a Legacy shortened to a coupe. With the market's interest in two doors right now, they might shoot for the 2+2 door thing like the RX-8, which would also save them some alteration in the transition.

Split windows? Gone forever. Our beloved "what is THAT" mystery? Not a chance. Italian design? It's possible that you'd see some extra-Subaru influence, but I don't think it would be much more than (apologies to our local owner) Maserati's influence on the LeBaron, way back when, just because there's only so far to go while retaining the Legacy frame. I suppose the front and back lamps and bumpers could be redone, with skirts to suit, but it would be easy enough to see what's really under there. Incidentally, considering the outside influence they've had lately, I'd think that many of us would be hesitant to see what winged pig-nose front end we'd wind up with...

That being said, sure enough, we could see a shortened Legacy stuffed to the gills with creature comforts, AWD, a 6-speed or auto, and possibly a choice of the H6's, all surrounded by some massaged bodywork, should Subaru decide to take the chance again. How much? Let's take (loaded Legacy) + (exclusivity) + (over the top goodies) = $40-$43k, just as a ridiculously bad guess?

Consider: You'd get your SVX by formula, but not necessarily the spirit we're familiar with. The price tag is in a much different echelon than that which we've paid for our cars, so most of its fans would probably spend more time seeing them than owning them. It sounds like a great idea for a car, but would you want it to wear the SVX name? How do you think old-school Nova and Malibu fans felt when they saw their FWD successors? Remember how long the Wranglers with square headlights lasted before they went back to round ones? Remember when Mustang taillights were assaulted until Ford turned them back to three vertical bars instead of horizontal ones? Remember how the 928 tanked because the 911 faithful wanted nothing to do with it?

Asking me, I'd say that the SVX fans who expect an appropriate successor to their car would be disappointed. Just look at what the GC fans think about each new Impreza/WRX. The GC will be revered as the best Impreza ever, even if they could produce a new generation that was ridiculously much more fast, economical, comfortable, safe, affordable, and so on. I'd venture to say that the same would ring true among the SVX faithful.

$40k, then. I'd take my $40k, buy my current SVX, spend much of the rest on a conservative ground-up restore, sock the remaining cash away, and wind up with the car we'd want instead of the one we'd get.