Note to Subaru: whoops, your agency doesn't know your product

It's a fact that the English language is currently being sliced to ribbons. Spelling and grammar have gone out the window, and elocution is such a lost art that we're amazed when a speaker can manage a paragraph. It's interesting to see where these shortcomings manifest themselves. One would assume that an advertising agency, being in the business of communicating, would double- and triple-check a message before sending it out for the world to see. Imagine our surprise, then, when across our digital desks slid a memo from Carmichael Lynch trumpeting the Minneapolis, MN agency's relationship with Subaru of America.
It didn't start well. The subject header of the email read: "Subaru 360 Goes Airbourn (sic) To Find Home on 10th Floor." Interesting capitalization, and a very creative spelling of airborne. Bush league for an agency that handles Harley Davidson, Jack Link's, Cargill, and Toys 'R' Us, to name a few. Intrigued by the mention of a 360, Subaru's diminutive first stab at automobiles, we read on. Carmichael Lynch, upon landing the Subaru of America account in 2007, located a 360 and had it spiffed up for display in the company's 10th floor lobby. While small, the only way to get the little Subie ten stories up was a crane, which hoisted the car through a window last Saturday. Delightful little story, and we were inclined to give the wacky subject line a pass until we read the last sentence, which started: "Today's Subaru Forrester..." Whoa. If we were SoA, we'd be incensed. Spelling bee time: Forester. F-o-r-e-s-t-e-r, Forester. Forest is a chronically misspelled word, but it's still intolerable when it's the very firm being paid to represent the actual product.
Well, now we feel better. Check out the pictures of the 360's crane ride in the gallery, and hit the jump to see the original text of the email from Carmichael Lynch.

[ Via: Autoblog (Subaru) ]
[ Tag: carmichael lynch subaru, CarmichaelLynchSubaru, forester misspelling, ForesterMisspelling, subaru 360 crane, subaru forester misspelling, subaru misspelling, Subaru360Crane, SubaruForesterMisspelling, SubaruMisspelling ]

Subaru considers entry into World Touring Car Championship

We're going to play this little game again. Close your eyes and think "rally". (Not picket lines and protest signs, but tail-sliding, dirt road heroics behind the wheel of turbocharged four-wheel-drive monsters.) Now what company comes to mind? If you're a sentimentalist you might be thinking Audi or Lancia, but anybody who hasn't been living in a cave for the last decade or so (with apologies to all our cave-dwelling readers) will almost invariably think of Subaru. Never mind that its WRC team hasn't been doing that well recently: pumped up Imprezas like the WRX and STI are nearly synonymous with rallying. But now reports indicate that Subaru is considering confusing us by entering to World Touring Car Championship.The news is sparked by a forthcoming arrangement between the WRC and the WTCC that could see them adopting a common set of rules, not unlike the more practical Super 2000 formula that has both rally and touring car series. Now we're always encouraged by news of carmakers – especially ones with such well-established motorsport pedigrees – going racing, but we can't help but wonder if Subaru's venture onto paved tracks wouldn't confuse the message and dilute its hard-earned brand identity. Conversely, the oil-ification of the WTCC could give Subaru a chance to prove its mettle with its new diesel engines. Either way, execs from Fuji Heavy and Subaru Tecnica International are expected to visit the touring car championship when it visits Japan on October 24 to scope it out.Just because we love you, our loyal readers, ever so much, here's a gallery of studio-quality, high-resolution images of Subaru's current rally contender.

[ Via: TouringCarTimes ]
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Paris Preview: Subaru debuts boxer diesel Forester and Impreza

Subaru debuted its new 2.0L diesel boxer engine earlier this year in the Legacy and Outback, and soon it will also be offered in the Forester and Impreza, though only in Europe. These two latest models to feature the unique horizontally opposed oil-burning engines will debut at the Paris Motor Show next month. The Forester 2.0D will offer 147 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque while returning 44.8 combined mpg in the European cycle, which is class-leading for a small CUV over there, while the Impreza 2.0D offers 148 hp and 258 lb-ft (fuel economy for the Impreza 2.0D was not released for some reason). The diesel Forester will hit showrooms later this month while Euro shoppers will have to wait until January for the diesel Impreza. While we certainly hope Subaru is tweaking its 2.0L diesel boxer engine to meet emissions standards in all 50 U.S. states, we haven't heard one word about it.

[ Via: Autoblog (Subaru) ]
[ Tag: diesel forester, diesel impreza, diesel subarus, DieselForester, DieselImpreza, DieselSubarus, subaru forester 2.0D, subaru impreza 2.0D, SubaruForester2.0d, SubaruImpreza2.0d ]

Japan's Subarus get Stereoscopic Vision

Both Honda and Toyota have been toying with laser-based Active Cruise Control systems for over a decade now, while the German luxury car makers have offered more expensive radar-based gizmos for almost as long. The premise of both is that an electronic copilot keeps an eye on the road ahead maintaining a safe distance from the car in front, even slamming the brakes at the last moment in an emergency should the driver fail to react.
Now, Subaru has come up with a third system, which while not quite as advanced as KITT, is as close as we've ever seen. For a premium of $3,000 a new JDM Legacy or Outback can be fitted with twin cameras, one on each side of the rear view mirror, that use human like stereoscopic vision to judge distances and generally keep tabs on the driver. Not only does "EyeSight", as the system is called, can help you keep your distance on the highway (which would have been handy for the McRae convoy on Sunday) and in stop start traffic, but also incorporates a lane departure warning system, a wake up call should everyone pull away from the lights but you (put your iPhone down), and even keeps an eye out for pedestrians while you look for that illusive break in traffic at a T-junction. Best of all, EyeSight will stop you driving through your own garage door because you selected Drive instead of Reverse – a shockingly common occurrence according to Subaru.

Click through to Subaru's Japanese website to see a cool Flash presentation and video of the system in action. First click "Pick Up – EyeSight" then the engine start button, then (once the Intro finishes) EyeSight TECHNOLOGY Movie.

Three thousand bucks may sound like a lot of money, but how much do garages charge to repair even a minor fender bender these days?

[ Via: Autoblog (Subaru) ]
[ Tag: active cruise control, ActiveCruiseControl, auto stop, autonomous cruise control, AutonomousCruiseControl, AutoStop, eyesight, jdm, subaru ]