How Tiny Subaru Scores Best Overall Brand, Most Trusted and Best Performance Brand in America

In Subaru of America’s 50th anniversary year, they score big again in Kelly Blue Book’s 2017 Brand Image Awards. It’s the second straight year Subaru is the Best Overall Brand, and the third straight year they are the Most Trusted Brand and Best Performance Brand in America. The small Japanese automaker, with a lineup of only seven cars, has once again won in three major categories in KBB’s annual awards.

How does tiny Subaru keep doing it?

KBB’s Brand Image Awards recognize automakers’ achievements in creating and maintaining brand attributes that capture the attention of the new-vehicle buying public. KBB winners are chosen based on new car buyer perception data. This is where tiny Subaru seems to be leading much larger automakers. Their brand is well-received by consumers, and they have a loyal following of happy customers that keep coming back to the brand when they are ready for another vehicle.

Subaru stays true to their core values

Subaru’s core value of building all-wheel-drive vehicles sets the brand apart. They also build vehicles that rank at the top every year in safety ratings. It’s also the brand’s ability to build recreation-purposed crossovers with a “go-anywhere” attitude that are fun-to-drive. Buyers use the vehicles for daily commuting and for getting away from civilization on the weekend. Subaru also picks up the Best Performance Brand award that sums up why the brand is so popular.

Subaru’s performance cars

Subaru Tecnica International (STI), the brand’s motorsport partner, helps Subaru get the Best Performance Brand award from KBB for the third straight year. The 2018 Subaru WRX and WRX STI sport-tuned performance sedans and the BRZ rear-drive sports coupe are “bona fide driver’s cars” that ramp up the fun-to-drive meter. Subaru builds the rally-bred WRX and WRX STI sedans that are arguably the best performance car values on the planet.

Tiny Subaru scores a hat trick and they beat large automotive giants like Toyota, Honda and Ford in the US. It’s because of their vehicle’s all-weather capabilities, top safety ratings and superior driver engagement. Subaru’s 2017 Outback wagon, Forester SUV, Crosstrek crossover and WRX/STI sport-tuned sedans are four cars in their lineup that keep scoring big for the brand.

Photo credit: Subaru