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Subaru ups US sales projections to 500k units

Subaru is going absolutely gangbusters so far in 2014, with growing year-over-year sales every month this year adding to the streak of 33 consecutive months. The prognosis is so positive that the Japanese brand is revising its 2014 forecast to 500,000 vehicles or more, from a previous estimated 460,000. If it reaches the goal, it would be the first time that the automaker hit the half-million mark here.
Subaru has been growing steadily in the US for a while now. Annual sales have increased for the past five consecutive years with 2014 not indicating for that to change. For August alone, the company moved 50,246 vehicles, up 22.37 percent year-over-year, and the business proclaimed it as the best month in its history.
According to Subaru, it believes that the growth for the last two years has been fueled by the latest Forester and XV Crosstrek last year and the new Legacy and Outback this year. "The market is telling us that we are delivering products that consumers want at the right prices," said Thomas J. Doll, president and chief operating officer at Subaru of America. Scroll down to read the company's full announcement.

Subaru Levorg: Forbidden fruit

For Subaristas, the Levorg needs no introduction. Fans of the marque have been begging Subaru of America (SOA) to bring it over here from the moment it was first introduced. First introduced in Japan a year or so ago, and now making its way across the globe, it is one delicious wagon that SOA refuses to let Americans taste. Why? Wagons don't sell in America, so they say (some Euro-brands might disagree with that). Plus they seem to think they have the wagon market pretty well covered with the Outback, Forester, and to a lesser degree, the Crosstrek. First a bit of history Unlike here in America, at least in recent years, a Legacy wagon continued to exist in other markets. At some point Subaru decided to also delete it from their global portfolio, and to replace it with the smaller, sportier and well-equipped Levorg. The thinking was that the Levorg would be more distinct from the Outback than a Legacy wagon, and would be less likely to step on the Outback's toes in terms of searching for customers; makes sense. Another point needs to be made: Subaru is selling at record levels. They just can't make them fast enough as they are constrained by lack of production capacity. That will improve soon as the next-gen Impreza will be built in their Indiana plant this fall once the Toyota Camry production moves out. So, at the moment, they don't need the Levorg to improve sales. Down the road that may be a different situation, but for now adding another model line would be tough and of little benefit. Why America needs the Levorg When Subaru introduced the current generation WRX they deleted the hatchback — which accounted for 50 percent of WRX sales. Needless to say WRX 5-door owners were outraged — and continue to be so. The Levorg wagon could be the perfect answer for these folks, as shares many parts with the WRX. In Japan it's available with a new 1.6L direct-injection turbo as well as the same 2.0L direct-injection turbo found in the WRX. Other markets, to date, only get the 1.6L engine. All Levorgs have CVTs, with the 2.0 versions getting the high-torque CVT found in the WRX CVT. The chassis setup, while a tad softer, is very close to that of the WRX. So it is definitely a car that's cut out for canyon-carving. It's also more upscale than the WRX, with an interior more akin to luxurious trim levels of the Legacy and Outback. In its defense Subaru has claimed that the budget did not allow for developing both the Levorg and a 5-door WRX.

2015 Subaru WRX: Accident, wheels and tires

I'm sure this thing is going to be a total hoot in the snow. I am not a morning person. At all. Thankfully, the Autoblog team knows this – I rarely get bothered before 8:30 AM unless it's seriously important. So when associate multimedia producer Chris McGraw started blowing up my phone at 6:45 AM on a Thursday, I knew it wasn't going to be good. "I got rear-ended in the WRX," McGraw informed me, a shaken-up tone emanating from the other end of the line. Poor guy was on his way to the gym, for his pre-office morning workout, and an older gentleman in a Chevrolet S-10 struck the back of the Subie while trudging through a traffic jam on I-696 just northeast of Detroit. Everyone was fine, and McGraw says that the dude's pickup was in significantly worse shape than our dear Subaru. But the WRX was still pretty banged up, and later that day, it was delivered to the body shop for what turned out to be a lengthy repair process. What you're looking at is $4,620.83 worth of damage. What you're looking at is $4,620.83 worth of damage, but thanks to Autoblog parent company AOL's fleet insurance policy, we were only on the hook for our $1,000 deductible. Nearly all of the rear body panels had to be replaced, as did the bumper and taillight assembly, and after several weeks of being put under the knife at Suburban Collision in Troy, MI, our Subaru has mercifully emerged good as new. The day after the 'Rex came home, I dropped it off at our trusty Subaru dealer – Hodges, in Ferndale, MI – for some routine maintenance, including finally getting its broken fuel door repaired. The whole pull-the-door-open-with-your-fingernails thing had become increasingly annoying, and I'm happy to report that everything now works as it should. And since it was part of a technical service bulletin, no money changed hands for this service. If there are any 2015 WRX owners in the greater Autoblog commentariat, I'd love to know if your cars have experienced the same issue. While at the dealer, I also signed the WRX up for one very special, very important update: the fitment of winter tires and – yes! – gold wheels. I have a strong personal belief that WR-Blue Subarus should come standard with gold wheels from the factory (like the Launch Edition STI), but since the Japanese automaker doesn't even offer these rollers on anything but the aforementioned, limited-edition STI, I took matters into my own hands.