2009 Subaru Tribeca Limited

Add the Tribeca to the list of vehicles I completely forget about, but actually like once I'm behind the wheel. This has to be Subaru's nicest interior, and the 3.6-liter boxer-six provides plenty of power. I'd complain that the looks of the Tribeca are just as bland as the rest of Subaru's current lineup, but bland is much better than the Tribeca's previous design, which was universally chastised.The Tribeca never feels quite as large as it is, which is a good thing on country roads. It's not nearly as athletic as the cars in the Subaru family, but that's to be expected. I like the seating position and there's pretty good visibility.Looking at the price and fuel economy for this Tribeca, my interest starts to wane. My main complaints about the Ford Flex are the price and fuel economy, but the fuel economy for the Tribeca is virtually the same as an AWD Flex and this tester's $37k sticker pushes it almost to the price of a luxury vehicle, which is certainly not how I'd describe the Tribeca. Not that the Tribeca is a bad choice, it just works better when you're not optioning it to the max.
[ Via: Automobilemag ]
[ Tag: ]

Detroit 2009: Subaru Legacy Concept shows its face

The official unveiling doesn't take place until later this afternoon, but Subaru has already released the details on the Legacy Concept it's introducing this year at Detroit. We only have the head-on shot at the moment, but what you're seeing here is likely the new face of the Legacy, complete with funky-shaped headlamp lenses and a trapezoidal theme to the prow. According to Subaru's, that paint color is called "Ultimate Silver" and the overall design theme is "High Definition," for what that's worth. Power comes from the automaker's 3.6L six-cylinder boxer mated, of course, to an AWD system.
Inside, you'll find a technology carnival, with a multitude of displays available to the four occupants, including the driver. The instrument panel gets a multifunction touchscreen display instead of a traditional center control stack -- no mechanical controls are present -- and those teensy side mirrors house cameras that display the view aft on the widescreen rearview "mirror" in the cabin. Rear passengers get their headrest-mounted LCD screens and their own touchscreen control interface. Outside of the obvious show-car tech, the shapes you see inside are likely what to expect when the production car makes its eventual debut.
[ Via: Autoblog (Subaru) ]
[ Tag: breaking, detroit 2009, detroit auto show, detroit auto show 2009, Detroit2009, DetroitAutoShow, DetroitAutoShow2009, legacy concept, LegacyConcept, naias 2009, Naias2009, subaru ]

Subaru to buck trend, report overall sales increase for 2008

The year is finally drawing to a close, and most automakers will look back at 2008's dismal sales figures with disdain. Crumbling market share for domestic U.S. brands led to the year's biggest story -- that of a Federally-funded automotive bailout. Import brands didn't fare much better, with Toyota, Nissan and Honda all posting distinctly lackluster sales figures towards the end of the year.

At least one automaker is set to buck the overall negative trend, as Subaru executive vice president Tom Doll says that its U.S. arm will post a modest sales increase for 2008, and incentives weren't a big part of Subaru's success. New products like the Impreza and Forester led the way, and an increased marketing push helped the aging Legacy improve on its 2007 numbers. Regardless of its minor victories for '08, the Japanese automaker isn't expecting any miracles in 2009 with its New Year's resolution of simply maintaining current levels. Good luck.

[ Via: Automotive News ]
[ Tag: subaru, subaru sales, SubaruSales, us subaru sales, UsSubaruSales ]