Subaru says it will invest $140 million into its production facility in Lafayette, Indiana, to ensure assembly of the 2019 Ascent goes off without a hitch. The cash will go toward helping the automaker meet the growing demand for SUVs in North America and provide 200 additional jobs for the region.
Subaru of Indiana Automotive (SIA) currently produces the Impreza, Legacy, and Outback. But it’s scheduled to add the Ascent early next year. The investment covers a factory expansion, new equipment, and tooling to support higher production volume.
According to Inside Indiana Business, the state’s economic development group has confirmed it will provide up to $500,000 in training grants due to SIA’s job creation efforts. The city of Lafayette is also supporting the expansion, with Mayor Tony Roswarski stating that the facility has shown itself to be an employer that “offers jobs that can translate to lifetime careers.”
Almost $1.5 billion has been invested into the plant over the past five years. With the inclusion of the new hires, Subaru of Indiana Automotive will have around 5,800 full-time employees. The automaker expects the factory to assemble around 364,000 vehicles for this year and forecasts annual output to reach roughly 400,000 units once Ascent production is at full steam in 2018.
[Image: Subaru]
Is it me, or do ALL of these things look exactly alike?
It’s almost like you could build the same car, change the grille and the headlights and the taillights, and spread them among different car lots.
@jalop1991 – And the dealership owner when asked why his inventory of Subaru vehicles all look the same replies, “Gee, yeah they do. They all look like guaranteed sales to me.”. Subaru probably doesn’t care.
As a Subaru salesperson, I’m just glad that Subaru finally has a cohesive styling language that works on all their models.
That this is a mashup of Outback and Forester styling = homerun.
People don’t buy Subarus for looks.
Everyone is stoked for the Ascent- Subaru knows they effed up the Tribeca, plus it was a little too early for a $40k+ Subaru. The time is now.
The exact argument could be used for all cars from the Model T up to the ’70s Brougham era.
Strip the grille off, and you can hardly tell the difference between a 1939 Ford, Plymouth, Chevy, etc. Same with 1927s, 1900s, etc. Big 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s cars all seem to resemble each other from the same decade/era. A few stick out, like the Edsel, but it still isn’t wildly different than other late 1950s cars aside from the horse collar grille.
Same with FWD hatchbacks of the 80s, the Golf, Omnorizon, Tercel, etc all looked the same to people who don’t know cars that well, or don’t care much about those cars in particular. Square 3 box cars of the era tend to resemble each other, too.
And there in lies the issue. If one isn’t that interested (and so not deeply familiar), lots of cars run together and a lot of them tend to look alike.
Someone the other day said all midsize sedans look the same, and almost instantly, another commenter began counting the differences between models. If you don’t care about, and therefore pay little attention to midsize FWD mainstream cars, sure, they all kinda look alike. If you follow them closely, its easy to tell a Fusion from an Accord and a Sonata from a Camry. To someone who doesn’t care, they’re all the same, just a slight variation from one to another.
Likewise, if you don’t care much about CUVs, and few of us do, they all pretty much look like one anonymous blob of mediocrity and compromise. Most of the B&B can recognize different models because we’re car obsessed, at least I know I am. That even goes for cars I’d never buy in a million years.
I’m sure to the truck hater crowd, all pickups look alike, whereas people like me and DenverMike, Scoutdude, etc can spot a Ram, Silverado or F-150 from a mile away. Admittedly, Nissan seems to be trying to confuse itself with previous F-150s, but it still doesn’t look *exactly* the same, not in the least, just has a vague resemblance.
+1000
Of course anyone paying attention can tell them apart, but we are far from the days when German, Japanese, and America cars were distinct, and you could tell the “nationality” of a car without ever having seen it before. There was no mistaking a Japanese car for either a German or American car in the 70’s. Today, it would be understandable if someone made this error.
JohnTaurus: for Cars pre 50’s. I can better guess the year more than the make. So yes, nothing has changed. However, it is easy to tell the difference between a 73’ Fleetwood, Town Car and Imperial.
Its easy for you, but someone who’s never seen them? They’d be as agnostic as jalop is about crossovers.
There are cars that radically changed the landscape when they debuted. Its very easy to tell the difference between a 1986 LeBaron and a 1986 Taurus, for example. One could hardly be confused for the other. Fast forward a decade, and once again, they all seem to blend together. To the untrained eye, that is, and that’s a very important qualifier that most of us who love and study cars find hard to understand.
I’m reminded a few years ago when a friend thought my 1996 Aerostar and her other friend’s 1980s Astro were the same vehicle. A month later, a cousin sitting in my parent’s brand new Taurus (2012) thought it was a Chrysler. Never underestimate the ignorance of the general public.
I remember when all GM sedans used the same “Body by Fisher” shells, in two sizes, using varied front and rear clips to differentiate, say, Chevys from Buicks. Us kids could spot them a mile away.
Aw, JohnTaurus…if youcouldn’t tell the difference of all fords from 1960 to 66, you’re not the ford man i thought you were.
when it comes to the suv of today, i lost control. who’s grill came first, Hyundai or the Ford edge?
Is that a Lincoln MKS or Jaguar rear light.
finally subaru is getting a decent and shared look to go along with their fab outward visibility.
one thing i can say…i pine for the simplicity of the pick up trucks of the sixties, even their pastel color options. these monsters today are just joy killers.
I’m not saying I can’t tell them apart. I’m saying someone who isn’t familiar with them would surmise that most cars of a given era “all look the same”.
If you break it down to individual styling elements, yes, a Cornet and a Galaxy and an Impala all share a lot. No, they aren’t copies of each other by any means. Neither are the Pilot, Ascent, Explorer, Traverse, etc. They do all seem to share a lot of characteristics, though, despite each one having a family resemblance to their maker’s other products.
It’s called “aerodynamics, crash regulations, and costs of repairs.”
I am waiting for the generic version of the crossover sold at Walmart under the Faded Glory label. How about an Amazon Prime version. Of course both of these will proudly bear the “Hecho en China” label.
The Faded Glory version could also be made in India, just like the Echo-sport.
The Buick Envision is calling your name.
Nahh, it’d fit better under the Ozark Trail brand, lol.