gfxdave99 Posted September 20, 2006 Share Posted September 20, 2006 http://www.theedgedaily.com/cms/content.jsp?id=com.tms.cms.article.Article_c4d5cd22-cb73c03a-19214b10-45fdf806 19-09-2006: Fuji Heavy sees 2009 Europe sales at 100,000 units Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd, the maker of Subaru cars, is aiming to boost European sales by 60% from last year to 100,000 units in 2009 with the planned addition of diesel and compact cars, raising the importance of the region for its overall business, a top official said on Sept 19. The niche car maker best known for its flat-four engines has been counting on its overseas operations to offset tough competition at home, where more than half of its sales come from low-profit minivehicles. "So far this year, we're on track to achieve our target for record-high sales in Europe," Tomohiko Ikeda, a corporate vice president who heads Fuji Heavy's overseas sales and marketing division, told Reuters in an interview. At 42,000 units, Subaru sales in Europe are up 7% for the first eight months of 2006 from the year-earlier period, as better-than-expected sales in the burgeoning Russian market made up for sliding sales in Britain. For the whole year, Subaru has targeted sales of 64,500 units, up 3.8% from 2005. But Ikeda said real growth in Europe will come over the next several years when Subaru rolls out its first diesel cars around spring of 2008 starting with the flagship Legacy model. Subaru is also drawing up a blueprint for a B-segment car to enter a sector that commands almost one-third of the European market, he said. "To survive as a brand in Europe, we'll need to play in these major segments of the market," Ikeda said at Fuji Heavy's headquarters in Tokyo. Ikeda said Fuji Heavy has yet to decide whether to build the new B-segment model on its own or with Toyota Motor Corp, its biggest shareholder with 8.7%, adding that a decision would have to come by the end of this year. The maker of the Forester and Tribeca models has no products in the B-class range, which typically refers to cars with engines of around 1,300cc, and developing a new platform on its own would incur costs beyond what volumes in Europe would be able to sustain. But Ikeda noted that such cars were gaining a foothold even in the SUV-loving US market with the launch of Honda Motor Co's Fit and Toyota's Yaris, for starters, raising the possibility that development costs could be balanced with bigger global volumes. Still, to sell smaller cars in North America would require stable sales of high-margin models such as the B9 Tribeca, Ikeda said, admitting that demand for its premium SUV had fallen far short of expectations. With US sales dogged by a fierce price war - Subaru was spending about US$3,000 per car in sales incentives for the 2006 model year - Ikeda said the European and Australian markets would have a bigger role in Fuji Heavy's car business and profit structure. "The ratio of those two markets as a proportion of total sales is growing," he said, adding combined sales was expected to reach 150,000 units in 2009, compared with a forecast of 250,000 units for the United States. Unlike in the United States, Subaru has been able to stay away from severe discounting in Europe thanks to the strength of its products, which are based on the unique symmetrical all-wheel-drive powertrain, Ikeda said. The strong euro has also been a boon for Subaru, which exports its vehicles from Japan. "Profitability in Europe has been quite stable since 2002, since the euro has remained strong and our pricing is high," Ikeda said. Subaru plans to add more than 300 sales outlets in Europe, mostly in the emerging markets of the former Soviet states, bringing the number of dealerships to 1,370 in 2009, Ikeda said. - Reuters If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough. - Mario Andretti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gfxdave99 Posted September 20, 2006 Author Share Posted September 20, 2006 My comments - The diesel isnt dead and demand for the tribeca is less then expected because its buttfuck ugly If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough. - Mario Andretti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enlight Posted September 20, 2006 Share Posted September 20, 2006 I'm happy that the flagship model on the European side is the Legacy, so design changes will eventually trickle down to our American cars. muFreight.co A JDM Container Sharing Service from Japan to NYC Website | Instagram | Email Bessie II's Thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KA81 Posted September 20, 2006 Share Posted September 20, 2006 My comments - The diesel isnt dead only in europe fixed.. :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gfxdave99 Posted September 20, 2006 Author Share Posted September 20, 2006 fixed.. :lol: well yeah the EPA has made it damn near impossible to sell a diesel in the US If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough. - Mario Andretti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vet Posted September 20, 2006 Share Posted September 20, 2006 My comments - The diesel isnt dead and demand for the tribeca is less then expected because its buttfuck ugly I think sales of the Tribeca would be rather low, compared to Subaru's estimates, even if it looked better. There are just too many choices in that vehicle segment right now. Subaru was way too late to get into this segment. On top of that you had fuel prices spike which drove buyers toward more fuel efficient models. Manufacturers are having to be very cut throat to try to keep sales volumes from tanking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forester04XT Posted September 20, 2006 Share Posted September 20, 2006 Is the 2.5 being dropped from the Legacy for 2008? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubieDriver Posted September 20, 2006 Share Posted September 20, 2006 Is the 2.5 being dropped from the Legacy for 2008? Huh? The 2.5 is the ONLY motor for the Legacy. I don't think they'd drop it. We're seriously hoping they'll be putting some 3.0 H6 motors in for '08, but they surely won't be dropping the 2.5. It's their bread-and-butter motor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forester04XT Posted September 20, 2006 Share Posted September 20, 2006 Huh? The 2.5 is the ONLY motor for the Legacy. I don't think they'd drop it. We're seriously hoping they'll be putting some 3.0 H6 motors in for '08, but they surely won't be dropping the 2.5. It's their bread-and-butter motor. In the 2008 picture thread, I only saw references to the 2.0. I guess that was the japanese version? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubieDriver Posted September 20, 2006 Share Posted September 20, 2006 In the 2008 picture thread, I only saw references to the 2.0. I guess that was the japanese version? Yes, you are correct. They have a 2.0 in Japan and Europe, but not USA. We only have the 2.5 in Impreza and Legacy, though the Outback is lucky enough to have a 3.0 option. I think they need to spread the H6 to the Legacy and Impreza. Edit: There is a rumor that we will get the 3.0 in the Legacy for '08, but it's just a rumor so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gfxdave99 Posted September 21, 2006 Author Share Posted September 21, 2006 Yes, you are correct. They have a 2.0 in Japan and Europe, but not USA. We only have the 2.5 in Impreza and Legacy, though the Outback is lucky enough to have a 3.0 option. I think they need to spread the H6 to the Legacy and Impreza. Edit: There is a rumor that we will get the 3.0 in the Legacy for '08, but it's just a rumor so far. Dont forget about the rumors of the 3.0 turbo :) If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough. - Mario Andretti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubieDriver Posted September 21, 2006 Share Posted September 21, 2006 Dont forget about the rumors of the 3.0 turbo :) Oh yeah, can't forget about that! I would really, really love to have one of those! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fzanetti Posted September 21, 2006 Share Posted September 21, 2006 My comments - The diesel isnt dead and demand for the tribeca is less then expected because its buttfuck ugly Not only that but the poor gas mileage.. Only 15's if so!!!! Flavio Zanetti Boston, MA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MOTOP Posted September 28, 2006 Share Posted September 28, 2006 well yeah the EPA has made it damn near impossible to sell a diesel in the US Perhaps it has also something to do with the lack of Euro diesel fuel here in the US. Slight O/T. I drove MkIV SDI Golf in Europe and had a chance to fill it up with both Euro Diesel and "regular" diesel found in Croatia - just the stink difference was staggering. I can imagine same difference would apply to emissions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gfxdave99 Posted September 29, 2006 Author Share Posted September 29, 2006 Update on the diesel http://www.gizmag.com/go/6235/ September 29, 2006 Subaru Europe President Hiroyuki Ikeda dropped an unexpected announcement in his Paris motor show speech when he mentioned that the company was working on a SubaruBoxer Turbo Diesel and that development is nearly complete. The horizontally opposed engine layout made famous by Volkswagen has long been favoured by Subaru and has been the mainstay of its fleet for more than three decades with its latest effort winning first place in the 2.5-liter class of the International Engine of the Year Awards. Though it’s logical that the company would develop the world’s first horizontally opposed diesel engine, there are many technical difficulties to overcome, so it was by no means regarded as a given. Anyway, we have the drawings in high res and we suspect it’ll be a beauty. The superb rotational balance of the horizontally-opposed engine allows low vibration because the pistons counteract each other to cancel it out. Moreover, with its firmly supported crankshaft, the crankcase construction is strong enough to resist huge combustion pressure. The horizontally-opposed engine’s character is proving an excellent match for a diesel engine. Ikeda said, “the adoption of a thin journal for the crankshaft and turbo charger placed under the cylinder block enhances all the advantages of the Boxer Engine, which are a low center of gravity, lowvibration, high rigidity and compactness.” Ikeda said he anticipated unveiling the Subaru Boxer Turbo Diesel engine next year at Geneva Motor Show. If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough. - Mario Andretti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 29, 2006 Share Posted September 29, 2006 Update on the diesel http://www.gizmag.com/go/6235/ Diesels FTW. Before I moved to the U.S from Europe, I had a diesel/ Old 1989 Nissan Sunny 1.7L NA diesel. Great engine, despite being 100 years technologically behind current diesels. Great mileage, lots of torque at low end, super reliable. If SOA ever offers Legacy Diesel Wagon w/manual transmission here, I will be first to buy it. Diesels RULE. Wake up, America! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubieDriver Posted September 29, 2006 Share Posted September 29, 2006 Diesels FTW. Before I moved to the U.S from Europe, I had a diesel/ Old 1989 Nissan Sunny 1.7L NA diesel. Great engine, despite being 100 years technologically behind current diesels. Great mileage, lots of torque at low end, super reliable. If SOA ever offers Legacy Diesel Wagon w/manual transmission here, I will be first to buy it. Diesels RULE. Wake up, America! The American car companies tried converting gasoline engines into diesels in the '70s (rather than designing real diesel engines), and they had serious reliability problems (as well as being noisy and dirty). It's no wonder the American public has an aversion to diesels. Hopefully the Japanese and Germans can introduce Americans to what real diesels are all about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 29, 2006 Share Posted September 29, 2006 The American car companies tried converting gasoline engines into diesels in the '70s (rather than designing real diesel engines), and they had serious reliability problems (as well as being noisy and dirty). It's no wonder the American public has an aversion to diesels. Yes, I know about it, and irks me that this thinking persist for 30 freaking years! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erito Posted September 29, 2006 Share Posted September 29, 2006 The diesel will come and will sell great volumes in Europe. Here we have the 2.0R Legacy at 165 BHP, and 3.0R and 3.0 Spec.B The Outback versions are 2.5i VDC and 3.0R VDC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.