Subaru Seeks to Broaden Appeal With New Designer

Washington DC July 13, 2010; The AIADA newsletter reported that when Subaru arrived in the United States in the 1960s, its ads used the unflattering slogan "cheap and ugly." Since then the brand has come a long way.

But to critics, the concept of "Subaru styling" is still an oxymoron. Even loyalists describe it as "quirky." Subaru is one of the few brands that have been unscathed, even growing stronger, during the U.S. recession – and now it wants to build on its success.

Automotive News reports that the company is getting serious about design, and is turning to an outsider as the new point man. Osamu Namba joined Subaru in 2008, hired from an independent styling studio he had founded a decade earlier. His mission is to unify the Subaru look across models and win new fans.

"We want to broaden the appeal to make it accessible to more than a small, loyal crowd," Namba, 54, said last month in an interview at the Tokyo headquarters of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd., Subaru's parent company. "We need to add a more contemporary element."

2011 Subaru Impreza

Namba's creations for Subaru have yet to hit the street. But his Hybrid Tourer Concept, designed for the 2009 Tokyo motor show, foreshadows the clean lines and bold look he is seeking. His first production design will be the 2011 Impreza, which was last overhauled in 2007.

Click here for Automotive News' extensive review of Namba’s plans for Subaru’s future styling.