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2004 DETROIT AUTO SHOW: Subaru counts on front end to elevate status

By Diana T. Kurylko
Automotive News / January 07, 2004


Subaru is hoping a new front-end design will help move the brand upscale.

The new grille and fascia debuted on two concepts at the show, the two-seat B9SC roadster and the R1e city car.

The front end will appear on a production car in 2005 with the launch of a seven-seat vehicle.

"It will be on every single Subaru vehicle that we make, so that when you are going down the road, you will recognize that is a Subaru product," said Fred Adcock, executive vice president of Subaru of America Inc.

"We think that is a driver in our attempt to become a premium brand."

The "common look" is prominent on premium ranges that Subaru is striving to emulate, he said.

Andreas Zapatinas, a former Alfa Romeo designer responsible for the 166, penned the new face of Subaru. He joined Subaru in fall 2002.

"Our cars must be recognized," Zapatinas said. "They can have common values but their own charisma." Adcock said Subaru isn't likely to alienate existing owners with a new design because all vehicles still will be all-wheel drive and have a horizontally opposed Boxer engine. "The core values are still in place," he said.

The seven-passenger vehicle will be larger than Subaru's current vehicles, and it will compete with the Acura MDX and Chrysler Pacifica, Adcock said.

The new-generation Legacy and Outback, which go on sale in May, don't have the new look but are more European in exterior and interior design, he said.

The 2005 Legacy models were shown with a 2.5-liter turbocharged engine.

The replacement Outback, which is on the same platform, debuts at the Chicago show.

Subaru expects Legacy sales to increase between 10 percent and 12 percent with the redesign, Adcock said.

The automaker also reported its 2003 sales, which rose to 186,819 from 180,020 vehicles in 2002 and set a record.

Subaru's previous U.S. high was in 2001, when it sold 185,944 vehicles.

Adcock said the Forester was a major driver in sales after it was named the best SUV last year by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

"The day after, there was an increase in interest for the Forrester," he said.

Forrester sales grew 10.8 percent in 2003.


Source: Auto News