Subaru is the automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate Subaru Corporation (formerly known as Fuji Heavy Industries), the twenty-first largest automaker by production worldwide in 2017.

Subaru cars are known for their use of a boxer engine layout in most vehicles above 1500 cc. The Symmetrical All Wheel Drive drive-train layout was introduced in 1972. Both became standard equipment for mid-size and smaller cars in most markets by 1996.

In Western markets, Subaru vehicles have traditionally attracted a small but devoted core of buyers. The company's marketing targets those who desire its signature engine and drive train, all-wheel drive and rough-road capabilities, or affordable sports car designs. Subaru is the Japanese name for the Pleiades star cluster M45, or the "Seven Sisters" (one of whom tradition says is invisible – hence only six stars in the Subaru logo), which in turn inspires the logo and alludes to the companies that merged to create FHI.

1500

1954

The P-1 was water-cooled and used two different 1.5 litre OHV four-cylinder inline engines. The original version, code named "FG4A", was sourced from Peugeot's 202 and built by Fuji Precision Technology (this later became the Prince Motor Company). The FG4A engine was related to the Prince GA4 with some modification, and was shared with the Prince Sedan introduced in 1952. Prince had not agreed to Fuji Precision Technology providing this engine to a competing car and Fuji Heavy Industries found themselves obliged to develop a different engine in-house. This was code named "L4-1"; it was also a 1.5 litre OHV engine but it was 20 percent lighter than the previous engine used. Maximum power is 48 PS  for the FG4A, 55 PS  for the L4-1.

Only 20 P-1's were built, all in 1954, with 11 vehicles using the FG4A engine, with the remaining nine cars using the updated L4-1 engine. 14 of the 20 cars were built for private use, while the other six units were provided to the taxi companies in Isesaki, Ota and Honjo Cities for private testing, with successful results. Subaru had been very confident in the car's abilities, but with both Toyota (Corona) and Prince (Skyline) about to release new cars in the 1500 cc class they considered the market situation impossible without a very large investment in mass manufacturing capabilities.

It was Subaru's first and (until the introduction of the BRZ in 2012) only front-engine/rear-wheel drive vehicle.

340/360

The Subaru 360 is a rear-engined, two-door city car manufactured and marketed from 1958 to 1971 by Subaru. As the company's first automobile, production reached 392,000 over its 12-year model run.

Noted for its small overall size, 1,000 lb curb weight, monocoque construction, swing axle rear suspension, fiberglass roof panel, and rear-hinged doors, the inexpensive car was designed in response to the Japanese government's light car or Kei car regulations and its proposal for a larger "national car," both intended to help motorize the post WWII Japanese population. The 360's overall size and engine capacity complied with Japan's Kei car regulations.

Nicknamed the "ladybug" in Japan, and ultimately superseded by R-2, the 360 was one of Japan's most popular cars and was available in a single generation in two-door, station wagon ("Custom"), "convertible" (a sedan with a roll-back fabric roof) and sporting variants. The two-door sedans' model code is K111, while the wagon is known as K142. Ten thousand were sold in the United States, imported by Malcolm Bricklin and advertised as "Cheap and Ugly." The nameplate 360 derived from its tax-limited engine displacement: 356 cc.

As with the two-stroke Saab 93s and other small two-stroke gas engines, oil needed to be premixed with the petrol (gasoline), with the fuel tank lid serving as a measuring cup. In 1964, the "Subarumatic" lubrication system provided automatic mixing via a reservoir in the engine compartment. Equipped with a 3-speed manual transmission, the 360 had a top speed of 96.6 km/h.

g

The Subaru FF-1 G (also sold as the 1100 and 1300) was a compact car from the 1970s, replacing the FF-1 Star. It was a front-wheel drive vehicle with a typical Subaru EA61 or EA62 flat-4 engine. A fully independent torsion bar suspension and rack and pinion steering were impressive for the time. The inboard front drum brakes were an oddity. Also strange were the dual radiators – the car used only a small radiator (which was also the heater core) on starting, hastening warm up. Even in 1972, Subaru boasted about the foul-weather handling of their cars, and they were quite successful.

The 1.1L EA61 and 1.3L EA62 engines had no cooling fan, only an electric fan on the small radiator cooled the engine. The 1.1L was shared with the Subaru FF-1 Star, however the 1.3L engine was unique to this model and the only Subaru engine to have rear-facing exhaust ports. Most 1972–73 models were equipped with the 1.3L EA62 engine and dual carburetors was an available factory option. The transmission was also borrowed from the Subaru FF-1 Star.

leone

The Subaru Leone is a compact car produced by the Japanese car manufacturer Subaru from 1971 to 1994. The word leone is Italian for lion.

It was released as a replacement to the Subaru 1000 and was the predecessor to the Subaru Impreza. All Leones were powered by the Subaru EA boxer engine. Most cars were equipped with optional four-wheel drive. At the time of its introduction, the Leone was Subaru's top model until 1989, when the larger Legacy was introduced.

Although released in Japan and some export markets as the Leone, for many years, this was the only vehicle sold internationally by Subaru where the smaller kei cars Rex, Vivio, R-2, 360, and Sambar were not commonly sold. As a result, in major markets such as Australia, Europe and North America, it was instead identified with a trim level designation, some of which included: DL, GL, GLF, GLF5, GL-10, and RX. The car is thus often referred to simply as the Subaru GL or the Subaru L series.

In August 1968, Subaru entered into an alliance with Nissan Motors. The appearance of the new Leone was influenced by the design efforts from Nissan, especially the long hood and short trunk appearance that Nissan was using at that time for their own products.

In June 1979 the Leone saw its first complete model update. This generation was released with a two-door hardtop coupé, four-door sedan, station wagon and a three-door hatchback. The earlier two-door sedan was replaced by a three-door hatchback design.

The Subaru BRAT (a backronym for Bi-drive Recreational All-terrain Transporter) was a coupe utility version of the Subaru Leone originally introduced in 1977. The BRAT was developed directly from the company's four-wheel drive station wagon model and was first introduced as a 1978 model – following the concept of coupe utilities such as the Chevrolet El Camino and the Ford Ranchero. The Brat was also known as Brumby, MV or Shifter depending on where it was sold.

xt/xt6

The Subaru XT was a 2-door coupé that was produced from 1985 to 1991. The XT was sold as the Alcyone in Japan, the Vortex in Australia and New Zealand, and the XT (with the EA-82 four-cylinder engine) or XT6 (with the ER-27 six-cylinder engine) in North America and Europe. All were available in front-wheel drive or four-wheel drive, depending on the year.

By the time the XT was launched, Subaru had already produced vehicles with very different styling compared to other vehicles of the time period. The XT  was a wedged-shaped departure from the 1970s-influenced curves of the previous models, aimed directly at the styles emerging in the 1980s. The XT Turbo 4WD made its European debut in 1985. When introduced, the New York Times called it "the ultimate in jazzy design", in contrast to Subaru's older "cheap and ugly" offerings. The XT was the first Subaru to stray from earlier models that offered a practical application, in that the XT wasn't designed to carry loads or for commercial uses. The 2.7-litre flat-six sold in Japan was the first Subaru to exceed government engine displacement regulations due to the engine being over 2000 cc, and as such was regarded as a luxury vehicle. It also obligated an elevated annual road tax due to the engine's size.

Although the XT was available with a turbocharged engine, performance from the 111 hp  powerplant wasn't very competitive internationally. In 1987, Subaru introduced the XT6 as a 1988 model with the 145 hp  2.7 L flat-six ER27. The XT6 received additional upgrades, including heavier suspension to handle the larger engine and 5-bolt hubs and wheels to accommodate the extra torque. Both the regular XT and the XT6 were discontinued after 1991 and were replaced by the much larger Subaru Alcyone SVX. The SVX continued the tradition of surprising gadgetry in a sporty coupe, albeit in a much heavier and more powerful package.

alcyone/svx

The Subaru Alcyone SVX, marketed outside Japan as the Subaru SVX, is a two-door, front-engine, all- or front-wheel drive coupé manufactured and marketed by Subaru from 1991 to 1996 over a single generation. As Subaru's first entry into the luxury/performance market, the SVX was noted for its aircraft-inspired 'window-within-a-window' side-glass configuration.

The nameplate "Alcyone" refers to the brightest star in the Pleiades constellation, stylized in the Subaru company logo. The suffix "SVX" is an acronym for "Subaru Vehicle X". The Subaru Alcyone SVX debuted as a concept at the 1989 Tokyo Auto Show with styling by noted Italian designer Giorgetto Giugiaro of ItalDesign. The SVX debuted with and remained available with only one engine, the EG33 model 3.3-liter boxer horizontally opposed flat-six. This engine was the largest engine produced by Subaru for its passenger cars until the introduction of the 3.6-liter EZ36 engine in the 2008 Subaru Tribeca. The previous generation Subaru Alcyone had a turbocharged four-cylinder engine, but the larger EG33 was more powerful and so a turbo was not installed.

Sales of the SVX reached 14,257 in the United States and a total of 24,379 worldwide. 2,478 SVXs were sold in Europe (with 854 headed directly to Germany and 60 to France). The SVX was also developed and released during Japan's "bubble economy", and as the economic condition in Japan continued to decline, it had an effect on sales in Japan.

impreza

The Subaru Impreza is a compact car that has been manufactured by Subaru since 1992. It was introduced as a replacement for the Leone, with the predecessor's EA series engines replaced by the new EJ series. It is now in its fifth generation.

Subaru has offered 4-door sedan and 5-door body variants since 1992. The firm also offered a coupe from 1995 until 2001, and a 5-door wagon from the Impreza's introduction in the form of a hatchback. Mainstream versions have received "boxer" flat-four engines ranging from 1.5- to 2.5-liters, with the performance-oriented Impreza WRX and WRX STI models uprated with the addition of turbochargers. Since the third generation series, some markets have adopted the abbreviated Subaru WRX name for these high-performance variants. The first three generations of Impreza were also available with an off-road appearance package called the Outback Sport, exclusive to the North American market. For the fourth generation, this appearance package was renamed the XV (Crosstrek in North America), and is sold internationally. Colloquially, the car is sometimes referred to as Scooby.

Subaru has offered both front- and all-wheel drive layouts for the Impreza. Since the late-1990s, some markets have restricted sales to the all-wheel drive model—therefore granting the Impreza a unique selling proposition in the global compact class characterized by front-wheel drive. However, Japanese models remain available in either configuration.

2017-  series V

wrx

The Subaru WRX is an all-wheel drive sport compact car manufactured by Subaru, originally based on the Impreza created for the World Rally Championship in 1992. Subaru claimed the name WRX stands for "World Rally eXperimental". Since 2014, the WRX lineup has been split from the Impreza, with a different body style also being used for WRX models. After this point, there has been an absence of a hatchback/wagon body style.

For the VA series WRX released in 2014 for the 2015 model year, Subaru decided to move away from marketing the WRX and WRX STI under the Impreza name. This time, the Impreza name was dropped in all markets in which the new model is named simply as the WRX, as had been the case in North America with the previous model, while in Japan it was sold as the WRX S4.  It uses the 2.0L EJ207 for Japanese models and the 2.5L EJ257 for international models, which have direct injection and  twin-scroll turbocharger.

The WRX is slated to be redesigned for the 2021 or 2022 model year and moved to the Subaru Global Platform. It is reported that the next generation STI will have an FA24 motor making over 400 hp.

world rally team

The Subaru World Rally Team (SWRT) was Subaru's World Rally Championship (WRC) team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow colour scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003, although less prevalent since 1999 due to BAT's participation in Formula One with British American Racing. Subaru's WRC efforts date back to 1980, however, the team, in its current form, has existed since 1989, when the British firm Prodrive took over its operations, and its base moved from Japan to Banbury, England.

Subaru used the team to showcase its symmetrical all wheel drive technology. It has credited the increased sales of its vehicles, especially the Subaru Impreza, with its success in the World Rally Championship, in addition to popularizing its all-wheel-drive system.

Its 2008 season drivers were Petter Solberg with co-driver Phil Mills, and Chris Atkinson with co-driver Stéphane Prévot. David Richards was the team's Principal, and a founder and chairman of Prodrive. Paul Howarth was the team's operations director and team manager. He replaced David Lapworth in 2006. Richard Taylor is the team's managing director.

The team was historically an extremely strong one, competing in the WRC longer than any other manufacturer team in their current form. It has won the manufacturers' championship three times in 1995, 1996, and 1997, and the drivers' championship three times, in 1995, 2001, and 2003 World Rally Championship season. Its Impreza model won a record 46 rallies. The team withdrew from WRC competition at the end of the 2008 season due to widespread economic downturn.

The Subaru World Rally Team (SWRT) was Subaru's World Rally Championship (WRC) team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow colour scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003, although less prevalent since 1999 due to BAT's participation in Formula One with British American Racing. Subaru's WRC efforts date back to 1980, however, in 1989 British firm Prodrive took over its operations, and its base moved from Japan to Banbury, England.

Subaru used the team to showcase its symmetrical all wheel drive technology. It has credited the increased sales of its vehicles, especially the Subaru Impreza, with its success in the World Rally Championship, in addition to popularizing its all-wheel-drive system.

The Subaru 1235 was a motor racing engine designed and built by Motori Moderni for Subaru's Formula One program in 1990. A 3.5-litre boxer-12, it was used by the Coloni team for the first eight races, but proved to be very unsuccessful and the team reverted to using the old Cosworth DFR V8 engine. Alba also used it in the World Sportscar Championship in 1990, but were similarly unsuccessful and switched to a 4.5-litre Buick V6 midway through the season.

After seeing fellow Japanese manufacturers Yamaha and Honda enter Formula One as engine suppliers, Subaru decided to follow suit in 1989. They contracted the Italian firm Motori Moderni to build the engine for them; Motori Moderni had previously built a turbocharged V6 engine during the turbo era in the mid 1980s. This engine had been primarily used by the Minardi team from 1985 to 1987, although AGS briefly used it in 1986, but never saw any real success. For Subaru, Motori Moderni came up with a 3.5-litre, 60-valve flat-twelve engine in the boxer configuration that the Japanese firm's road cars utilised. Although the flat-twelve design had proven successful for Ferrari in the mid-to-late-1970s in their multiple championship-winning 312T series of cars, it had fallen out of favour from 1980 onwards due to the advent of the ground effects cars, which the wide flat engine configuration did not suit.

Although Subaru intended to provide the Minardi team with the engine, they instead opted to partner Minardi's Italian rivals, Coloni, for the 1990 season, even purchasing half of the team. The Coloni C3, which had been used the previous season, was extensively modified into the "C3B" specification to be suitable for use with the Subaru 1235, and Bertrand Gachot was hired to drive it. The engine made its début at the 1990 United States Grand Prix, but it was not a happy one; Gachot finished dead-last in pre-qualifying, having been unable to even complete a single lap before a gear-linkage failure. Things would not improve for the Coloni team, as the Subaru engine proved to be fragile as well as underpowered.

Following a falling-out between Coloni, his team and Subaru, the Japanese firm opted to end their involvement after the 1990 British Grand Prix, just eight races after the engine had made its début, and without the C3B pre-qualifying once. The Coloni team promptly reverted to the Cosworth DFR in their updated C3C model, but, although they were often able to pre-qualify with this package, they never qualified for a race again and folded at the end of the 1991 season