2001 Subaru Forester S Wagon Awd Clean Carfax Runs Good No Reserve Economical on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Subaru CEO expects record U.S. sales in 2020 despite market slowdown

TOKYO  - Subaru expects its U.S. vehicle sales to rise to a record high in 2020, as demand for its crossover models helps it buck the trend of slowing car sales in the Japanese automaker's biggest market. The company has been growing rapidly in the United States, the world's No. 2 auto market, roughly doubling the number of vehicles sold over the past six years, thanks in part to a ramp-up in local production capacity and a marketing strategy focused mainly on affluent and liberal-minded consumers. Japan's smallest automaker said that ongoing U.S. demand for its Forester and Outback models would likely boost overall sales in the country to 720,000 to 730,000 units next year, up by as much as 4.3% from the around 700,000 vehicles it expects to sell by the end of this year. "We expect the U.S. market to slow only slightly next year, so we're planning to see more growth in our sales. We think we can achieve this," CEO Tomomi Nakamura told reporters in Tokyo. He added that he saw room for the automaker to expand its share of the SUV market, which stands at around 7% at the moment, given that Subaru's SUV models outsell its Legacy and Impreza sedan models. "If competition in the U.S. SUV market continues, that segment will keep growing even as the overall market slows," he said. U.S. sales account for around 65% of Subaru's total global sales of around 1 million units. By the end of November, sales of the Forester this year had climbed 6.4% from a year ago, while sales of the Outback, its best-selling model in the country, were up 0.9%. However, the rapid growth in the country has coincided with a jump in global quality-related issues which has sapped profitability in the past year or so. (Reporting by Maki Shiraki; writing by Naomi Tajitsu; Editing by Kirsten Donovan) Earnings/Financials Subaru Crossover SUV

Junkyard Gem: 1998 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport Wagon

Ever since the 2005 model year, only the Subaru Legacy-based station wagon has worn the Outback name. That makes it tough to recall that not only did Subaru sell Legacy Outback sedans (through 2004, although by that time the Legacy badges had been dropped from the Outback wagon) but Impreza Outbacks as well. This isn't as confusing as Oldsmobile selling three unrelated models badged as Cutlasses at the same time, or Toyota calling the Tercel a Corolla Tercel for a few years, but it's a bit of automotive history that can be illuminated via a junkyard visit. Because you'll find examples of just about every vehicle Subaru built during the last 25 years in every Denver junkyard, it didn't take me long to find this Acadia Green Impreza Outback here. The Impreza Outback wagon had been around since the 1995 model year, becoming the Impreza Outback Sport in 1997. All North American Subarus went to all-wheel-drive for 1997, so the Impreza and Legacy Outbacks became more outdoorsy-looking at that point, to distinguish themselves from the non-Outbacks. While the advertising for this car called it just the "Outback Sport" (to distinguish it from the Legacy Outback), the Impreza name appeared on the rear bumper and in all the documentation. This sort of airport-gate-carpeting pattern became very popular on cars that were supposed to appeal to young people during the late 1990s. You'll see similarly busy fabric in Volkswagens Jetta Trek Editions and Plymouth Expressos from around the same period. I've always admired Subaru's hood scoops of this era. This one appears to have been lifted from the Japanese-market WRX. This 2.2-liter boxer-four made 137 horsepower. If you wanted the 150-horsepower 2.5 engine in an Impreza in 1998, you had to buy the RS Coupe. With the 5-speed manual transmission in a 2,835-pound car (the current Impreza doesn't weigh a whole lot more, which is unusual in our era of Model Bloat), the 1998 Impreza Outback Sport was quick enough to be fun. The automatic version was… well, not quite as much fun. This appears to be a genuine 1990s Jack in the Box antenna ball. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. When pursued by baddies in a RAV4, the Outback Sport had you covered. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

2019 Subaru Ascent First Drive Review | A three-row do-over

McMINNVILLE, Ore. — The brand-new 2019 Subaru Ascent could very well be called the Mulligan. You may have heard the term used by amateur golfers as a sort of do-over for an egregiously bad first shot. But in the case of the Ascent, Subaru's largest-ever vehicle, it means that the Japanese automaker gets one more chance to build a successful three-row crossover for America. Instead of trying to forget the unloved and slow-selling Tribeca, we get the sense that Subaru wants to keep that massive failure at the top of its collective mind. And we also got the sense that Subaru's engineers and product planners are confident that this time, they've hit a perfect drive off the tee — if not at Pebble Beach, then at least at one of the thousands of reasonably priced golf courses dotting the landscape of suburban America. All the pieces of the crossover puzzle are in place: seven- and eight-passenger seating options, a sizable cargo area, standard all-wheel drive, and class-appropriate fuel mileage estimates. But, this being a Subaru, the manner with which the Ascent hits its targets varies a great deal from many of its competitors. In place of a naturally-aspirated V6, as found in the Honda Pilot or Toyota Highlander, is a turbocharged four-cylinder. And instead of sleek styling meant to attract eyeballs at the expense of usability, the Ascent is boxy, upright, and, well, kinda boring. In person, the Ascent looks like an Outback-shaped balloon that's been blown up a bit too much. An oversize grille is flanked by big headlights at the top of the fascia and faux air intakes molded from matte black plastic at the bottom. It's bland, sure, but it's also not at all surprising that Subaru would err on the side of inoffensive after the design tragedy that was the face of the original B9 Tribeca. And while it definitely shares a strong family resemblance to the Outback, it's sufficiently different enough that buyers aren't likely to confuse the two on the showroom floor. There are some interesting creases and bends in the Ascent's bodysides that add visual interest to what would otherwise be big, flat, sheetmetal stampings. And we have to commend Subaru for its restrained use of plastic underbody cladding, especially since the original Outback helped popularize that trend in the mid-1990s. There's a reasonable glass-to-metal ratio that helps the interior cabin feel airy and bright. Getting into the Ascent's third row is made easier by a large, squared off rear door.