Tokyo Preview: Subaru Hybrid Tourer looks ready to take flight

[Giannis]

PRESS RELEASE

SUBARU HYBRID TOURER CONCEPT (Concept car)

1. Concept
Subaru has condensed its DNA, developed over many years around the Subaru's core technology of "Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive (AWD)" and "Horizontally-Opposed Boxer Engine", into the integration of a luxurious and high-quality cabin atmosphere and an eye-catching sculpted body. The concept car features Subaru's latest evolutions in handling agility, riding comfort and superior safety performance. It proposes Subaru's vision of a future grand touring car that excels in environmental friendliness thanks to Subaru's unique hybrid system.
2. Design and packaging

(1) Exterior
Subaru imagined wings with a feeling of freedom and confidence for driving far and wide in any environment. A luxurious and comfortable cabin, and advanced driving performance are contained within a sculpted aerodynamic form. The design features a combination of bright, open glass areas with a solid, reliable body.

(2) Interior
The original point of the ideal grand touring car is its interior design, featuring four independent and comfortably positioned seats. Passengers are enclosed within an atmosphere that provides a surpassing feeling of openness and stress-free reassurance, through the further pursuit of a human-centered philosophy, the essence of Subaru car design, and the incorporation of functions that are friendly to passengers.
The top of the dashboard is movable up and down to provide an optimal driving environment for the driver according to driving conditions.
A flat floor in the rear seat was achieved even with the implementation of AWD, for improved use and movement inside the cabin.
Specialized shielding is incorporated in the windshield to reduce eyestrain on the driver.
New leather covering developed with superior breathability and a ventilation function is used in the seats for improved comfort and texture.

3. Mechanisms
In addition to refinements to Subaru's core technology such as Symmetrical AWD and Horizontally-Opposed Boxer Engine, further enhancements were made for improved environmental friendliness, driving performance and high safety performance by offering a next-generation power unit system and advanced safety technologies.
(1) Next-generation power unit system
2.0-liter Horizontally-Opposed direct fuel-injection turbo gasoline engine
The Horizontally-Opposed turbo gasoline engine, with a reputation for powerful acceleration, is combined with a direct fuel-injection system for improvements in fuel efficiency and reduced emissions, and improved torque and response in practical range. This evolution in Subaru turbo technology excels in both environmental friendliness and engine performance.

Lineartronic (CVT)
Lineartronic, Subaru's new generation automatic transmission, achieves further improvements in both fuel efficiency and driving performance by reinforcing parts for use with the high-power output of a turbo engine.

Hybrid system
To further enhance the appeal of the Symmetrical AWD system, this unique hybrid two-motor system features a power/drive motor in the front and a drive motor in the rear.

* At start-up and extremely low speeds when fuel efficiency is low, such as when driving the car into a garage, the rear motor is used primarily to allow driving without utilizing the power of the engine.
* During normal driving, the front engine is primarily used. The direct fuel-injection turbo gasoline mated with the Symmetrical AWD offers a whole new, Subaru driving experience.
* During acceleration, the rear motor assists the driving power of the engine to achieve advanced driving performance.
* Further, when accelerating uphill, the front motor, which is normally used as a power generator, assists to drive the front axle for improved performance.
* The implementation of a non-idling function that stops the engine when the car comes to a halt reduces unnecessary fuel consumption.
* The use of a high-performance lithium battery is based on experience and know-how achieved with the Subaru Plug-in STELLA electric vehicle, launched this summer. This includes the use of a precise energy management system and regenerative brake controls, for improvements in excellent fuel efficiency.


<Major specifications>
Length x Width x Height: 4,630 x 1,890 x 1,420mm
Engine type: 2.0-liter Horizontally-Opposed direct fuel-injection turbo
gasoline engine
Max output of Motor: 10kW (Front) / 20kW (Rear)
Transmission type: Lineartronic
Drive train: Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive with 2 motors assist
Battery type: Lithium-ion battery

Autoblog

 

[Osnabrueck]

It's comforting to see that Subaru is starting to find some kind of styling equilibrium after so many false-starts. It's really a shame that they, of all brands, have not managed to tackle the issue as expertly as Mazda, Infiniti and Hyundai have in the same amount of time.

 

[NarutoRamen]

That is one SEXY looking MOFO car right there.

It's comforting to see that Subaru is starting to find some kind of styling equilibrium after so many false-starts. It's really a shame that they, of all brands, have not managed to tackle the issue as expertly as Mazda, Infiniti and Hyundai have in the same amount of time.

I agree with you and I don't. The problem really is people's perception of Subaru, or rather the clientèle they were trying to target. The first STi that came over here was beastly looking and then they refreshed it. The refreshed version, the one with the Fuji Heavy Industries signature Grille, was hated by the press and normal people but Subaru fanatics loved it because they know what it meant. The problem became, and kind of is right now, that to survive Subaru needs the "normal" folks' dollars but if they make their car for the enthusiasts who spend a whole lot of money, then they will lose the normal people. That's why the new STi only came in the Hatchback configuration because they knew the fanatics would buy it, but the normal folks are just buying the regular sedan version.

That's my take on the situation, but I will say that their new cars look better in the flesh than pics, especially the new Legacy.

 

[Shining Star]

Looks nice; but I don't like the concept of the left side having one door and the right side having another...

 

[martinbo]

Subaru faces a number of challenges when it comes to solidifying its design language. Hanging a Boxer engine ahead of the front axle doesn't help matters at all - especially in the light of ever more stringent crash safety requirements.

What is also very obvious to me as a customer is that there simply is no leader in the organisation that is capable of "selling the design DNA" to top management and upholding the strategy. I have been closely associated with the brand for almost 10 years now and I've come to have an intimate recognition of the styling details over the years. Subaru have actually had some terrific styling successes at a detail level over the years, but a) these were discarded by an over-zealous European designer and b) no one else had the inclination to run with these successes.

Here's an example: look at the pretty grill on this car - it's very much a development of the highly attractive hexagonal grill first seen on the previous generation Legacy. It together with falcon-like headlights gave the Legacy a handsome yet understated air of accomplishment when viewed in the metal. Here, at last, we're seeing Subaru embracing and evolving this DRG success.

Subaru has had a tendency toward knee-jerking at the first hint of stylistic criticism and rushing out an equally, if not more, ill-resolved facelift. Case in point, Bug-eyes Impreza's transition to the truly hideous and pointless, Blob-eyes. Funny how true Scoob afficionados go all misty-eyed for Bug-eyes now - because it was so different and had such a unique on road persona. Subaru's quirkiness grows on people but it takes time. With a few clever styling tweaks, Bug-eyes would've had the longevity to retain its unmistakeability and solidify it's image as the premier representation of WRC thrills for Joe Public. Instead, we got the abomination that was Blob-eyes.

In order to be taken seriously as a car maker, follow-through on design is essential; consumers need to see conviction on the part of the design team to commit to a design theme and run with it. Not flip-flop all over the place with inconsequential facade upgrades of an otherwise unchanged bodyshell.

The same happened with Forester Mk 2. The pre-facelift car had a fabulous, squared off front that was in keeping with its boxy image. Then the horrific facelift (BigMinorChange in FHI-speak can you imagine) was introduced which, gratefully, added Xenons to the XT but also came with the daftest, curved front-end treatment pasted to the identical boxiness from the front wheelarch back! I told Subaru SA's marketing man that it was "fugly" and then still bought one.

I like this concept for what it presents at the front of the car - but the rear looks too much like an Alfa Brera's to me. And that annoys me.