Subaru is internationally known for their use of the boxer engine layout in most of their vehicles above 1500 cc as well as their use of the all wheel drive drive-train layout since 1972, with it becoming standard equipment for mid-size and smaller cars in most international markets as of 1996, and now standard in all North American market Subaru vehicles. The lone exception is the BRZ introduced in 2012, utilizing RWD. They also offer many turbocharged versions of their passenger cars, such as the Impreza WRX.

 

Fuji Heavy Industries, the parent company of Subaru, is currently in a partial partnership with Toyota Motor Corporation, which owns 16.5% of FHI.

 

Subaru is the Japanese name for the Pleiades star cluster (M45, or "The Seven Sisters"), which in turn inspires the Subaru logo and alludes to the companies that merged to create FHI.

 

Subaru in the United States

Subaru of America was established in 1968 in Philadelphia by Malcolm Bricklin and Harvey Lamm. It relocated to Pennsauken, New Jersey shortly thereafter and moved to its current headquarters in Cherry Hill, New Jersey when Fuji Heavy Industries acquired full ownership. Subaru of America operates Regional office, Zone offices and Parts Distribution Centers throughout the United States. Subaru of America also operates Port Facilities on both the West and East coast.

 

In 1989, Subaru and then-partner Isuzu opened a joint factory in Lafayette, Indiana called Subaru-Isuzu Automotive, Inc., or SIA, which initially manufactured the Subaru Legacy and Isuzu Rodeo. In 2001, Isuzu sold their stake in the plant to FHI for $1 due to flagging sales and it was renamed Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. SIA has been designated a backyard wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation and has achieved a zero-landfill production designation (the first automotive assembly plant in the United States to earn that designation).

 

Marketing efforts

In the 1970s, the company decided to expand its model range from small kei class vehicles like the Rex and Sambar and begin to develop larger, mainstream passenger cars like the Leone, and when Subaru continued in their efforts, and introduced the Legacy in 1989, it was a sales success and a new direction for the company. Subaru decided to offer more products due to the Plaza Accord agreement of 1985 which made the value of the yen stronger in exchange rates to the dollar, which had an effect on Subaru sales in the USA. The creation of the Legacy was influenced by Subaru's desire to compete with successful Japanese carmakers Toyota, Nissan and Honda, and the Legacy was targeted against the Camry, Stanza, and Accord. The Legacy was considered mainstream in its appearance and a departure from previous vehicles, which had earned a reputation of being "quirky". Subaru continued their new direction with the controversially styled Alcyone XT (1985), the GT six-cylinder SVX (1992), and the Impreza (1993).

 

From 1995 to 2000, Subaru ran a series of advertisements for the newly developed Subaru Outback which starred Paul Hogan as his "Crocodile Dundee" film character. The advertisements were intended to highlight Subaru's all wheel drive, and depicted the Outback in a number of rugged Australian locations. The tagline "the world's first sport utility wagon" was successfully used by Subaru, though the AMC Eagle had tried much the same idea, with less success in the 1980s.

 

Before the Outback was introduced, Subaru sold a badge engineered Isuzu Trooper in Japan as the Subaru Bighorn.

 

Some of the advertising slogans Subaru has used in the past include, "Inexpensive, and built to stay that way", "The World's Favorite Four Wheel Drive" (in the U.K.), "Plus on y pense, plus on a le gout de la conduire" (Literally: "The more one thinks, the more one has the taste (or desire, impulse, drive) of driving it") in French Quebec,[9] "We built our reputation by building a better car", "What to Drive", "The Beauty of All-Wheel Drive", "Think, Feel, Drive", and currently "Love. It's what makes a Subaru, a Subaru" in North America, "All 4 The Driver" in Australia, and "Uncommon Engineering, Uncommon Stability, Uncommon Roadholding, Uncommon Sense" in the UK.[10] "Confidence in Motion"

 

As a result of this refocused advertising campaign, Subaru products began to attract a following among the young and educated, who saw the car as a practical alternative to the SUV craze. Subaru has historically been popular in the Northeastern United States, as well as the Pacific Northwest. According to Automotive Lease Guide, Subaru ranked second place in vehicles that have the highest overall predicted resale values among all industry and all luxury vehicles for MY 2009.[11] The awards are derived after carefully studying segment competition, historical vehicle performance and industry trends. According to a study done by J.D. Power and Associates, for the 2008 Customer Retention Study, Subaru ranked at 50.5%, which was above the national average of 48%.[12]Harman Kardon is currently the audio supplier for Subaru products worldwide.