Subaru's First Hybrid Soon

For the past two years we’ve been waiting for Subaru to release their first hybrid vehicle. Subaru’s parent company officially announced that a hybrid would be developed back in July of 2011. Aver since then there has been much speculation about what exactly Subaru’s hybrid will be.

For example, we don’t know whether or not Fuji Heavy Industries – Subaru’s parent company – will manufacture their own hybrid technology. Rumor among most automotive news sources would suggest that Subaru will instead borrow from fellow Japanese manufacturer Toyota to skip the technology development phases entirely.

We also don’t know which model will receive the hybrid treatment. Subaru teased us with the Hybrid Tourer concept back in 2009, and again with an Advanced Tourer station wagon in 2011, but neither of these vehicles resembled a current Subaru model. It’s quite possible that the new hybrid will actually be its own model, but again, we really don’t know for sure. Until last week, we didn’t even know whether this Japanese hybrid car will make it to the US market… Turns out, it will.

The Detroit Bureau rolled out a report last week detailing Subaru’s plans to debut their new hybrid vehicle as early as the New York International Auto Show this March. They also speculate that due to Subaru’s pledge to reduce emissions across its fleet an astonishing 30% by 2015, we will see hybrid iterations across several different vehicles.

Stat-loving readers will appreciate that Subaru sold more cars in the US last year than it ever has. In fact, their success extends beyond the US, too – they had the third largest growth in the industry with a massive 26% increase in sales. So, it’s about time that Subaru added a hybrid to the lineup in order to further expand their customer base and appeal to hybrid-hungry markets. Who knows – it wouldn’t be surprising if a strong Japanese brand like Subaru could dominate the many different hybrid segments.

Either way, be sure to stay tuned here for further updates on Subaru’s first hybrid and any other developments relating to the New York Auto Show.

In the meantime, what do you think about Subaru’s hybrid? Which model will get the hybrid treatment first? Which model would most benefit from a hybrid option, or should Subaru produce an exclusively hybrid vehicle? Let us know below:

Source: The Detroit Bureau