Subaru celebrates production of 20 million multi-use vehicles

Subaru is about to unveil the all-new 2015 WRX STI and they do it just after they have reached a major milestone in their history. It’s a great accomplishment for Subaru as they celebrate the cumulative production of Subaru vehicles in Japan has reached 20 million vehicles. It all started in 1958 as the first Subaru rolled off the assembly line in Japan. The Japanese automaker is a subsidiary of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd (FHI). Last week they held a ceremony at Gunma Yajima Plant which was attended by honored guests and alumni to celebrate the big accomplishment.

Subaru is known today for their multi-use all-wheel drive vehicles. But they didn’t start out producing vehicles like the 2014 Forester SUV and performance WRX STI. Subaru began domestic production in 1958 at its then Gunma Isesaki Plant with the Subaru 360 minicar. As production models and units increased, FHI set up operations at Gunma Main Plant and Gunma Yajima Plant, both located in Ota city of Gunma prefecture.

It also established the Gunma Oizumi Plant to manufacture engines, transmissions and other automotive parts. In the earlier days, production models included mini-vehicles, Subaru 1000, Leone and Justy and later moved on to Legacy, Impreza and Forester, that we are familiar with today. In the 56 years Subaru has been producing vehicles, the production total has just recently reached 20 million units.

FHI President Yasuyuki Yoshinaga spoke at the ceremony, "This remarkable achievement of 20 million-unit domestic production would not have been possible without our esteemed customers and the years of diligent work by our employees, past and present. I am humbled and sincerely grateful. From here, we enter a new phase of our adventure, a new challenge. We will aim for further improvement in every aspect of our operation, in safety, quality and productivity."

Subaru reached their first million vehicle production in 1970, 5 million in 1983, 10 million in 1992 and 20 million units this year, 2014. Subaru ended the Mini-vehicle production in 2012 with total vehicle production of 7,967, 801. Today, Subaru is selling their multi-use vehicles and have created a niche market with their all-wheel-drive SUV’s and crossovers.

The performance division of Subaru, STI, produces performance vehicles like the Subaru WRX and high-performance WRX STI. The all-new 2015 WRX STI is set to be unveiled at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan tomorrow January 14. The U.S. market is the most successful for the brand and just reached a milestone of over 400,000 vehicles sold in 2013. Stay tuned to Torque News for the latest news from Subaru.