Subaru Viziv 2 Concept Debut at Geneva Motor Show

With the 2014 Geneva Motor Show winding down to a close, there are just a few Japanese cars left that we haven’t covered. Today, we’re going to take a look at the newest vehicle from Subaru – the eco-friendly Viziv 2 Concept.

Fittingly, we saw the original Subaru Viziv Concept at last year’s Geneva Motor Show, so the concept has effectively come full circle. As we discussed in our preview post, the Subaru Viziv 2 Concept is likely to eventually replace the outgoing Subaru Tribeca.

The Subaru Viziv 2 Concept is a very ‘green’ vehicle with enormous consideration for fuel economy. It’s a plug-in hybrid that adopts an efficient all-wheel-drive system, which uses a low-displacement 1.6L diesel engine and a single electric motor to power the front wheels, with two independent electric motors for each rear wheel. Not only does this allow for some interesting driving dynamics, it also allows the Subaru Viziv 2 Concept to operate solely on electric power at low speeds.

But, the fuel economy extends beyond just the engine and the motor. The concept also uses a highly efficient stop-start system to sip fuel only when needed. In addition, it features a new “Eco Cruise Mode” which automatically detects road conditions to ensure optimal use of the diesel engine.

So, clearly the new Subaru Viziv 2 Concept is a technologically advanced car with excellent fuel economy. But, what about the rest of the car? After all, good gas mileage only goes so far with today’s drivers.

As you can see, the Viziv 2 also adopts an aggressive aesthetic, much more pronounced than the original Viziv Concept. Both the front (above) and the rear (below) feature an interesting LED configuration that almost look like some sort of futuristic jet-thrusters, the kind you’d see on a space ship or Iron Man.

Everything from the tires to the headlights to the windows and beltline have been adjusted from the original Viziv, and we have to say, we like the overall direction that Subaru is going. Unfortunately, with the aesthetics in particular, we have to take everything with a grain of salt. Subaru is notorious for showcasing extremely impressive looking concepts that become droll and drab on their way to production. Let’s hope that that isn’t the case with the Subaru Viziv 2.

In addition to the design, Subaru has also given considerable thought to the car’s interior. One of the biggest complaints with the Subaru Tribeca was its cramped rear seating… Subaru has clearly put effort into the Viziv 2’s interior to make sure that’s not a problem with this vehicle.

All in all, the Subaru Viziv 2 Concept certainly lives up to the hype set by the original teaser images. However, we can’t help but be the slightest bit skeptical when it comes to Subaru. After all, the new WRX ended up quite a bit more boring than the original concept, although Subaru did make it substantially more affordable than the outgoing WRX, so perhaps it evens out. Either way, we will likely see the production-ready variant of the Viziv 2 by the end of the year, so stay tuned to see how this one pans out.