Subaru Sings The Lights That Don't Light Recall Jingle for More Than 633,000 Cars

The first automotive recall of the New Year goes to Subaru, which has discovered a potential problem with puddle lights that could lead to smoke or fire on 633,842 models sold in the United States.

Subaru told U.S. safety regulators that the recall concerns certain 2010 and 2011MY Legacy and Outback vehicles, 2006-2012MY Tribeca crossovers sold before January 2012, and some 2009-2012MY Forester crossovers, also sold before January 2012.

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Massachusetts Subaru Dealer Turns Tribeca into a Solar-Powered EV!

After successfully installing close to 400 solar panels on the roof of its dealership in Hannover, Massachusetts, Planet Subaru is once again pushing the envelope of lime-green innovation with the presentation of the Tribeca SPT 588QW DRX EV, powered exclusively by the sun.

The single solar panel is mounted on the Japanese crossover's roof feeding a Di-Lithium Crystal Transductor that serves as a capacitor and a very powerful electric motor that replaces the Tribeca's traditional boxer engine.

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For $75,000, You Can Fit All Your Friends in a Subaru B9 Tribeca

To say that the original Subaru B9 Tribeca's looks are polarizing, would be an understatement, which may explain why the Japanese took a 180 degree turn and rearranged its face to look as a bland as a Chrysler Town & Country a few years back.

What we can't explain is why anyone in the limousine industry would opt to transform the Tribeca into a sausage dog.

If you find the Tribeca stretched limo's looks hard to swallow, then you are sure to choke at the asking price of $75,000. More pictures follow after the break.

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Saab 9-6: Subaru-Based Crossover Prototype Comes out of the Closet

Back in the corporate heydays of GM, before the Detroit automaker went bust, the General would re-badge just about anything it could get its hands on if it were to make a fast buck without breaking a sweat.

This lazy corporate mentality was not only limited to GM’s American products but it spread throughout the entire company. Saab and even Subaru were subjected to this crude process, which was mostly limited to swapping badges and grilles.

When GM controlled the fate of Saab and held a 20 percent share of Subaru, the Detroit company's executive gurus came up with the bright idea of re-badging Subaru models as higher-end Saabs and selling them for a premium.

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Mazda6 and Subaru Tribeca to be Axed, According to Report from Japan

Mazda and Subaru may soon be forced to axe two of their models in the US market, the Mazda6 mid-size vehicle and the Subaru Tribeca SUV, due to low volumes that undermine the efficiency of the U.S. plants that they are built in, according to a newspaper report from Japan’s business daily Nikkan Kogyo. It should be noted though that spokesmen for both companies declined to comment on the report.

Nikkan Kogyo wrote that Mazda is planning to discontinue production of the Mazda6 at the Flat Rock, Michigan plant, which it operates as a joint venture together with Ford Motor Co., as sales missed expectations. When Mazda introduce the latest generation of the mid-size model in 2008, the company expected an annual production of around 100,000 units, but last year, the plant churned out just 45,168 Mazda6s. In April, Mazda6 posted an increase of 7.8 percent but sales reached just 2,734 vehicles.

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Subaru to Update its Lineup to help welcome the Toyobaru Coupe into the fold

Besides adding its upcoming unnamed coupe to the lineup, Subaru will be working to get a little pep back in its step by bringing out some new designs over the next few years. What can we expect from the all-wheel drive anti-SUV brand? Autoweek had an interesting article charting the upcoming changes in Subaru's lineup.

Starting with the chunky-monkey Legacy and Outback models that are relatively new, the only update to be expected is a mild refresh/facelift coming in the next three or four years.

Hopefully Subaru will decide on a corporate face that doesn't look like 'meh' and throw it on those two, because right now they're as beige as a Camry. I mean, if Volvo and Audi could make their crossover cars (the Cross Country and Allroad) look cool, why can't Subaru?

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