Category: Subaru

After the rumours, Subaru has confirmed the Exiga will be unveiled on the 17 June of this year by launching a dedicated website.

The micro-site sates our appetites by displaying different views of the Exiga. The new estate/crossover seems to put the emphasis on luxury like the concept car did at the Tokyo Motor Show. You’ll find all the details in this previous post.

Click here to see the website

Here is an unexpected video from Subaru intended to spice up the new Forester on the American market which reinterprets the car wash phantasm.

A shadow of the forthcoming Subaru Exiga has emerged on the Internet giving Petrol-Head the opportunity to reveal more details about this new model.

At 4,780 mm long and 1,700 mm wide, the Exiga will be a 7-seater estate with similar dimensions to that of the Subaru Legacy SW . However, the Exiga will be higher by 200mm at 1,630 mm which is only 40 mm higher than the former Forester. The overall design will be close to the eponymous concept car seen at the last year Tokyo Motor Show.

On the Japanese market, the Exiga will be available with two petrol engines, a 150bhp 2.0-litre unit seen on the Impreza and a 230bhp turbocharged engine reserved for the domestic market. If imported to Europe, the turbocharged 2.0-litre unit will be replaced by the 2.5-litre engine from the Impreza WRX. The Exiga would also likely be available with the new diesel engine delivering 160bhp.

The Exiga raises concerns regarding the carmaker’s ability to manage its lineup. The Exiga seems to be the heir of the former Forester. Why did Subaru execs name the new vehicle Exiga? Why did they put the Forester moniker on a SUV set to compete with the Toyota RAV4?

Source: Best Car

When you’re a Subaru dealer, selling the first diesel engine of the carmaker represents quite a challenge when customers only think of the Impreza when they hear ‘Subaru’. An inventive Subaru dealer has devised a see-through car to promote the new Boxer Diesel engine.

The selected model is the Outback which appears to have a bonnet made of glass, with every engine detail meticulously replicated on a vinyl wrap. Equally startling is the side of the car which shows the engine plus Subaru’s famous symmetrical all-wheel drive system and even the exhaust silencer.

Ian Armstrong, Dealer Principal of ‘Stan Palmer Sales’ of Carlisle says the idea came to them while seeing a cutaway picture of the engine in the brochure. The car was imaged up in one day after a photograph was taken of the engine using a high-resolution eight mega-pixel camera. He adds that "the reaction has been fantastic, with people almost tripping up as they walk past."

This is the first time a dealer has a cost-effective idea to advertise a new model However Subaru UK advertised the Impreza in a similar way last year.  A car transporter toured the UK carrying three new cars upside down on its lower deck and three the corre

Only weeks after going on sale, Subaru is bringing accessories to the new Forester.

In Japan, when you buy a car, you generally have a look at the accessories brochure and buy a few of them to personalise your tame new toy. The Forester has for example a 20 pages brochure devoted to accessories ranging from navigation system to wooden panels. Subaru GB decided to import some accessories to our shores.

Typical style-orientated accessories include a front under guard for £350, rear under guard for £275 and roof spoiler at £240.01. Other items range from fog lamp mouldings for £35 to door mouldings at £195. Popular on the previous model was the stainless steel bumper protector at £85 and foldable cargo tray at £60. Other items include towbars and carpet mats and carry a full and comprehensive three-year warranty.

The new coupé developed for Toyota and also sold under the Subaru badge cause concerns for the future of the Japanese carmaker.

The new coupé currently in development might become a marketing nightmare for the tiny carmaker. Until now, Subaru differentiates itself by featuring unique technologies on its models such as all-wheel drive transmission and boxer engines. Subaru Australia even promotes the all-wheel drive architecture in its slogan. How to justify the difference for the future coupé when it will also be sold by Toyota?

Company executives are aware of the problem. In an interview with Automotive News, Fuji Heavy Industries overseas sales chief, Mat Nagato, said "We may lose our long standing territory, or we may lose the great niche brand image. The potential risk is there. We have to be very smart on marketing strategy."

The coupé might become the beginning of the end for the Japanese carmaker.

Subaru will display the world’s first boxer diesel-engined passenger car in the form of the Legacy varied variants, saloon, estate and Outback.

The new 2.0 litre horizontally-opposed turbo-diesel will have an output of 148bhp and will emit 151 g/km CO2. The engine is reported to be extremely compact and light with a low centre-of-gravity which will likely make the Legacy one of the most pleasant diesel to drive on the market.

The new engine will help the Japanese car maker to boost its sales in Europe where it has been rather quiet and not to rely only on the Impreza WRX model anymore.