Corporate Information

Senior Management:

Managing Director: Blair Read
General Manager Marketing: Amanda Leaney
National Sales Manager: Scott Lawrence
General Manager Ownership Experience: Mark Robinson
General Manager Network Development & Capability: Bernie Smith

Subaru Australia

Subaru Australia is the exclusive Australian importer and distributor of vehicles manufactured by Subaru Corporation in Japan.

They have been imported by Subaru Australia since 1973. Subaru's range includes the multi-award winning BRZ, Forester, Impreza, Outback, WRX and XV.

Subaru Australia vehicles were exclusively All-Wheel Drive (AWD) from 1998 until confirmation in late 2011 that the rear-wheel drive BRZ would join the line-up during 2012.

The brand has experienced impressive growth in Australia and now commands one of the greatest market shares of any major Subaru market worldwide.

Australia is also the fourth biggest market worldwide for Subaru vehicles, after Japan, the United States and Canada.

Subaru's philosophy is based on high quality engineering, active and passive safety, reliability, a fun driving experience and value.

Subaru's success is highlighted by its many Australian and World Rally Championship titles, with the legendary WRX.

Subaru Rally Team Australia won 10 consecutive Australian Rally Championships before disbanding at the end of 2005 as the most successful team in the history of the domestic competition.

After a 10-year break, the re-branded Subaru do Motorsport Team returned to domestic rallying to win the 2016 Championship.

SUBARU AUSTRALIA TIMELINE

1973
Subaru Australia becomes the exclusive importer of Subaru vehicles

1975
Subaru Australia launches its first 4WD, the 1.4 litre station wagon

1978
The 4WD Brumby goes on sale in Australia

1979
Cumulative Subaru vehicle sales in Australia reach 25,000

1980
Australian sales increase 70 per cent over the previous year, making it a top 10 brand

1985
Vortex launched in Australia

1987
More than 100,000 Subarus now in Australia

1989
Liberty launched in Australia

1991
10,000th Liberty sold in Australia and RS Turbo version launched. Subaru wins its first motoring organization Best Cars award - the first of many over the coming years.

1993
Impreza launched in Australia

1994
Impreza WRX launched in Australia. All Libertys get dual front airbags. Impreza AWD Sportswagon is the first vehicle built by Fuji Heavy Industries especially for Australia.

1995
Liberty wins Wheels Car of the Year

1996
Outback launched in Australia - the original crossover vehicle. Possum Bourne wins the first of Subaru Rally Team Australia's 10 consecutive Australian Rally Driver's Championships.

1997
August - Forester launched in Australia - the original compact SUV

1998
August - The Subaru Australia range becomes exclusively symmetrical All-Wheel Drive. The turbocharged Forester GT is introduced.

1999
October - Impreza WRX STI two-door coupe limited edition launched in Australia. November - Liberty wagon wins Wheels Car of the Year.

2000
November - Impreza wins Wheels Car of the Year.
October - Six cylinder Outback introduced.

2003
December - For the first time, a single Subaru vehicle (Forester) sells over 10,000 in a year.

2004
July - Every Forester, Liberty and Outback achieves a five star crashworthiness rating for occupant safety from the Australian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP).

2005
October - Subaru Rally Team Australia wins 10th consecutive Australia Rally Driver's Championship and announces withdrawal from Australian rallying.

2006
October - Tribeca is launched, becoming the fifth and largest vehicle in the range. It immediately achieves a five-star ANCAP crashworthiness rating.

2007
August - New generation Impreza is launched and achieves a maximum five-star rating for occupant protection in crashworthiness testing by the independent Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP), plus the highest possible four-star pedestrian rating. This makes it the first locally tested Australian specification vehicle to achieve the ultimate double star rating.
December - Revised Tribeca is launched with Subaru's largest yet production engine, the 3.6 litre horizontally opposed boxer. Subaru achieves 10 consecutive years of record sales.

2008
February - New generation Impreza WRX STI and Forester are launched to critical acclaim.
July - With the launch of Model Year 2009 Liberty and Outback variants, every Subaru now has electronic stability control as a standard feature and a five-star ANCAP rating.
December - Subaru achieved its 11th consecutive years of record sales, of 38,492 vehicles.

2009
November - Subaru launches its first diesel variant in Australia, the turbocharged Outback 2.0D, plus the versatile six-seat Liberty Exiga.

2010
June - Forester now available with a turbocharged diesel engine.
December - all-time annual record sales of 40,025 vehicles represent the 12th record in the past 13 years.

2011
February - turbocharged Forester S-Edition introduced.
November - Subaru tops the J.D. Power's Australian Customer Service Index.
December - Forester retains status as Australia's best-selling Compact Sports Utility Vehicle for the fourth consecutive year.

2012
January - Subaru introduces the sophisticated EyeSight™ driver assist system in Liberty and Outback 3.6R Premium variants.
January - Subaru's entry into the small SUV market, the All-Wheel Drive XV, is introduced in Australia.
February - fourth generation All-Wheel Drive Impreza launches.
July - Subaru's new rear wheel drive BRZ sports coupe goes on sale online, proving a massive success, with the car sold-out after just three hours of going "live" on the web.
August - BRZ wins motoring.com.au "recommends" awards in the Performance cars under $100,000 category.
November - BRZ voted the carsales People's Choice Best Performance Car Under $100,000.
December - BRZ is the News Limited Carsguide Car of the Year.
December - BRZ wins Wheels Car of the Year on the 50th anniversary of the prestigious award.
December - Subaru achieves record annual sales of 40,189 vehicles.

2013
January - BRZ named Fun-est Car of the Year in TopGear Australia magazine.
January - BRZ named the Best Buy for 2012 by Australian automotive website themotorreport.com.au (TMR).
January - BRZ wins the News Limited Carsguide People's Choice Award.
February - Fourth generation All-Wheel Drive Forester launches.
February - Celebrating its 40th year in Australia, Subaru marks another milestone, with the sale of its 700,000th vehicle locally.
March - Subaru is adds flagship automatic diesel variants to its Outback All-Wheel Drive crossover line-up, offering outstanding range, fun driving and efficiency.
August - BRZ wins motoring.com.au "recommends" awards in the Performance cars under $100,000 category.
November - Forester 2.5i named Best Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) under $45,000 in the Australia's Best Cars awards.
November - BRZ voted the carsales People's Choice Best Performance Car Under $100,000.
November - Subaru wins the Canstar Blue Most Satisfied Customers Award for SUVs and 4WDs.
December - Subaru achieved a new annual sales record of 40,200 vehicles.

2014
March - Fourth generation All-Wheel Drive WRX launched.
April - Subaru launches the fourth generation of its ultimate performance car, the All-Wheel Drive WRX STI.
August - BRZ, WRX and WRX STI win motoring.com.au "recommends" awards in the Performance cars under $100,000 category.
November - Subaru retained its Canstar Blue Most Satisfied Customers Award for SUVs and 4WDs, for the second consecutive year, recording perfect five-star ratings for overall satisfaction, value-for-money, point of sale service, after sale service, reliability and performance. Subaru also beat 11 other leading brands to win Canstar Blue's Most Satisfied Customers Award for Performance, incorporating all vehicle models. The brand again achieved a perfect five stars.
November - WRX STI named Best Performance Car Under $100K in the carsales.com.au Car of the Year Awards.
November - Forester 2.5i has again been named Best All-Wheel Drive (AWD) Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) under $45,000 in the Australia's Best Cars awards.
December - sixth generation All-Wheel Drive Liberty and fifth generation Outback launched.
December - Subaru achieves record annual sales for the 15th out of the last 17 years, with a total of 40,502.

2015
March - Forester sales in Australia pass 200,000.
March - The revised Model Year 2015 Forester line-up adds diesel automatic Lineartronic CVT variants.
April - Subaru's new generation EyeSight driver assist system won an innovation excellence award from respected researcher, Canstar Blue.
May - Just weeks after achieving its highest ever monthly sales tally, Subaru's evergreen All-Wheel Drive Outback passed the 90,000 cumulative sales mark in Australia.
September - Subaru passed the 800,000 sales milestone in Australia, 42 years after starting operations here.

2016
January - Subaru set a new annual sales record of 43,600 in 2015, according to official VFACTS figures.
February - Subaru's new generation Outback 2.5i Premium was been named Australia's Best All-Wheel Drive Sports Utility Wagon under $50,000 by the nation's motoring organisations.
February - After a break of more than 10 years, Subaru announced its return to the Australian rally scene, with an exciting new team aiming to build on the brand's record-breaking success in the domestic championship.
June - Subaru's turbocharged Levorg All-Wheel Drive launched, offering style with substance and sophistication in a sports wagon package.
November - Subaru do Motorsport team driver Molly Taylor became the first female – and at the time youngest - winner of the Australian Rally Championship (ARC) after the tightest title tussle in 25 years.
December – Fifth generation Impreza launched, packed with new features and sitting on the new Subaru Global Platform.

2017
January - Subaru achieved a new sales record of 47,018 vehicles in 2016, according to official VFACTS results – the brand's 17th record in the last 19 years.
February - Subaru's All-Wheel Drive Outback 2.5i Premium was been named Australia's Best All-Wheel Drive Sports Utility Wagon under $50,000 by the nation's motoring organisations, for the second consecutive year.
June - Subaru's second generation XV All-Wheel Drive Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) launched, combining style and substance to deliver a highly capable high-riding package. Upper range XVs launched with two all-new features on Australian Subarus: Lane Keep Assist and Reverse Automatic Braking, underlining the brand's five-star safety credentials.
August - Subaru boosted its Model Year 2018 All-Wheel Drive Levorg line-up with the addition of turbocharged 1.6-litre variants, plus an STI Sport model at the head of the pack.
October - Subaru Australia continued its commitment to removing barriers for customers by offering a mobile test drive program. Subaru dealerships in the Sydney metro area offered customers the opportunity to 'do' a test drive where it suited them best.

2018
January - Subaru established a new annual sales record of 52,511 vehicles in 2017, according to official VFACTS figures.
June - Subaru's All-Wheel Drive Outback 2.5i Premium was named Australia's Best All-Wheel Drive Sports Utility Wagon under $50,000 by the nation's motoring organisations, for the third consecutive time.
September – Fifth generation Forester launched, featuring fantastic new technologies, including the brand's first-ever driver recognition system, enhancing convenience and safety.
November - Subaru's new generation All-Wheel Drive Forester 2.5i-S was named Best Small SUV for 2018 by Drive, in Fairfax print outlets and online at drive.com.au

2019
January - Subaru Australia announced that five year manufacturer warranty would become standard across its entire new vehicle range from January 1.
February - After a successful pilot in the Sydney metro region, Subaru Australia expanded its mobile test drive program, 'Test Drive at Yours', nationally at participating retailers.
October - Subaru customer Jennie Truong became the brand's 1 millionth new vehicle owner in Australia after purchasing an All-Wheel Drive Forester 2.5i-S from McGrath Subaru Liverpool, New South Wales. 

2020
February - The launch of Subaru All-Wheel Drive hybrid Forester and XV variants brings even greater customer choice in the brand's best-selling model ranges.
May - Subaru Australia launched two new "do" initiatives: home delivery of new Subaru vehicles and complimentary collection and drop-off for vehicle servicing.
September - After 31 years as a cornerstone of its range, Subaru Australia announced the end of the Liberty era. 
September - Subaru's best-selling Forester range expanded, with the addition of a 2.5i Sport variant.
December - Subaru's ultimate performance icon, the turbocharged All-Wheel Drive WRX STI, achieved 10,000 sales in Australia.

2021
February – sixth generation All-Wheel Drive Outback launched, with a formidable list of new technology, refinement and crossover ability.
June - Subaru's WRX, the car that established the "pocket rocket" club and a fan following the envy of many, set a new sales record in Australia, passing the 50,000 total.