How Subaru Keeps Pace With Luxury Brands Lexus, Porsche and BMW

Subaru ranks above luxury brands Lexus, Porsche and BMW. How does Subaru keep pace with the top brands?

Subaru makes the best cars according to Consumer Reports, and they say you don’t have to spend a lot of money to get top quality. In the recent Consumer Reports 2016 annual Report Card, Subaru was ranked number two for making the best cars. Only behind Audi who was number one, tiny Japanese automaker Subaru was ahead of more opulent luxury brands like Lexus, Porsche and BMW who finished three, four and five respectively.

Consumer Reports gives Subaru a 100% Report Card

CR tabulated scores on 30 global brands with road test scores, and predicted reliability results for each tested model of a brand. CR’s auto experts averaged the scores at the brand level as an indicator of which brands make the best cars. Consumer Reports is currently recommending 100 percent of Subaru’s models.

By global standards, Subaru is still tiny among the big players, and isn't even among the top 15 global automakers. Subaru is small compared with the large luxury global automakers like Lexus, Porsche and BMW. How are they keeping pace?

Subaru sticks to the basics

Subaru stays with their core values that have made vehicles like the Forester SUV, Outback wagon and Crosstrek crossover a success. Their vehicles start with core values of good visibility, cargo carrying ability and versatility. Subaru has remained true to those core values with all their multi-use vehicles, and they won’t be changing now as they build a new 3-Row crossover in 2018.

The secret to Subaru’s success has been for them to stick to the basics, and then keep improving on them every year and with every new generation. Another core value is staying with their excellent Symmetrical all-wheel-drive that comes in every Subaru vehicle except for the two-door BRZ sports car. Their all-weather capabilities serve consumers well.

Safety first

Another core value is their top safety ratings. Their new vehicles come with safety technologies like the new-generation Subaru EyeSight Safety system. It will integrate Adaptive Cruise Control, Pre-Collision Braking and Vehicle Lane Departure Warning. This advanced safety system uses Subaru-developed stereo camera technology that was rated highest in front crash prevention system by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

The 2016 Subaru Forester, Outback and Crosstrek are top sellers for the brand and keeping pace with the more opulent luxury brands because of the brand’s core values. “It’s not enough to make cars that drive and handle well. Consumers are best served when those vehicles are also highly reliable and safe,” said Jake Fisher, Consumer Reports director of automotive testing.

Source: Consumer Reports