Friday 26 / April / 2024
Muscat: Subaru Corporation and OTE Group unveiled the all-new 2018 Subaru XV in Oman recently.
The car was unveiled by Makoto Inoue, general manager, Sales & Marketing Dept 1 Overseas Sales & Marketing Division 2, Subaru Corporation, Japan and Sheikh Salim Saad Suhail Bahwan, in the presence of officials from Subaru Corporation, Japan and OTE Group. Combining a compact body with real SUV capabilities underpinned by Subaru’s original Symmetrical AWD System and a rugged and sporty design, the Subaru XV is a crossover SUV suited to a multitude of settings, from urban driving to the great outdoors.
The new XV offers distinctive design and enhanced drivability on poor road surfaces while adopting the all-new Subaru Global Platform to achieve world-class collision safety and superior hazard avoidance as well as dramatic advances in driver-responsive handling and ride comfort.
All-new XV has been launched in select markets across the globe and is well accepted. In Japan, orders for the all-new Subaru XV Surpass 10,000 units in first one month of its launch.
Design package of the all-new XV is distinctively rugged and sporty while remaining true to the Subaru identity. Distinctive design unique to the rugged and sporty Subaru XV reflects Subaru’s Dynamic & Solid design philosophy. The quality of the interior and exterior finishes shows a sharp eye for detail, while Subaru’s signature functionality has been taken to all-new levels.
The Subaru look is seen in the wide & low stance with its sporty impression, and in the unified three-dimensional structure extending from the hexagonal grille that symbolises the Subaru identity to the hawk-eye headlights. The front face plays the role of starting point from which the front flows via the sides to the rear, with each part uniting into a solid form.
The rich inflexion of the character line extending from the front fender to the door panels and rear shoulder, and the line rising energetically toward the rear of the lower door panel, give dynamism to the solid body surface. The powerfully extended fender flares express the reliability of Subaru All-Wheel Drive. The matte-black cladding running from the front bumper over the wheel arches and side sills to the rear bumper creates a dynamic form expressing all the enjoyment to be expected from a crossover vehicle.
The rear combination lights sharing the same motif as the headlights express a wide & low stance similar to the front. The tightened cabin silhouette and powerful shoulders thrusting above the rear combination lights create a nimble, sporty design. Its contrast with the rugged flavour imparted by the black rear spoiler and matte-black cladding on the rear bumper emphasises the distinctive character of the Subaru XV, which is equally at home in a range of settings.
The new model also combines the Subaru performance essentials of superior aerodynamics and visibility with advanced styling. The aluminium wheels feature a new design embodying the sporty, casual, and rugged character of the Subaru XV. New exterior paint schemes offer a choice of two fresh solid colours: Cool Gray Khaki and Sunshine Orange. Both tones set off the matte-black cladding to maximum advantage, spotlighting the active and functional image of the Subaru XV.
The combination of sporty and advanced design and sophisticated construction delivers an interior that far surpasses its class. The spacious design flows from the instrument panel through the door trim for a feeling of refinement. The seats’ structures that are made more fitting to the bodies of passengers have been revamped to far surpass the quality of its class. Moreover, breathable seat covering and varying shades of grey emphasise the active character of the Subaru XV. In the centre of the instrument panel is an 8.0-inch touch-screen display for the infotainment system, which can connect with smartphones.
The multifunction display offers a comprehensive range of content. New screen design clearly communicates fun, useful information to all passengers. Detailed orange stitching on the instrument panel complements the quality feel while expressing the model’s active character.
In addition to the enhanced interior design, signature Subaru functionalities have been further strengthened including the excellent all-round visibility, spacious cabin, and cargo room. A new, smaller-diameter steering wheel delivers ease of manoeuvrability and snappy steering.
The new platform dramatically increases rigidity throughout the body and chassis, incorporates substantial improvements to the suspension system, and achieves a lower centre of gravity, bringing about highly responsive steering that allows drivers to control the vehicle precisely as they want. The eradication of unnecessary movement in handling offers superior straight-line stability and cornering performance to grip the road surface while maintaining the ample 220 mm road clearance required of an SUV.
Optimized frame structure and stronger joints between parts allow the new platform to improve overall torsional rigidity. This distributes the resonance and distortion throughout the body, greatly reducing vibrations from the steering wheel, floor, and seats. It achieves a quietness that goes beyond vehicle class.
The new platform increases the rigidity of the suspension mounting, improving the absorption of the suspension without warping the body of the car, and providing a smooth and comfortable drive. By mounting the rear stabiliser directly to the body, the new platform reduces the body roll of the vehicle significantly. The steering gear ratio has been quickened, further enhancing the Subaru XV’s characteristic strengths as an SUV with agile manoeuvrability. Active Torque Vectoring enhances turning and steering performance. An electronic parking brake boosts convenience.
In addition to Subaru’s unique Symmetrical AWD system, the new Subaru XV is equipped with X-MODE, capable of enhancing driving performance on poor roads through optimised integrated control of the engine, four-wheel drive, braking, and other functions on slippery surfaces. The hill descent control setting gives drivers greater peace of mind by maintaining low speeds on downhill slopes.
A 2.0-liter direct injection Boxer engine has been completely revamped to deliver more power and fuel economy. The improved Lineartronic transmission boosts acceleration and fuel economy. As well as employing auto-step shift control on all models, the Subaru XV features a 7-speed manual mode function that allows the driver to accelerate as desired.
Noise and vibration are greatly reduced on both the engine and transmission, for more pleasant sounds and a dynamic feel.
Subaru’s safety performance has continuously been highly rated by third-party organisations. The new Subaru XV has adopted technologies to further enhancing its safety including the new platform and the advanced preventive safety system. The new platform achieves a centre of gravity that is 5 mm lower than present models. Together with the major improvements in rigidity and the evolution of the suspension system, this lower centre of gravity offers outstanding hazard avoidance capabilities on a level with a high-performance sports car.
Available in select trims, EyeSight, Subaru’s innovative and highly acclaimed driver assist technology, delivers extremely reliable preventive safety and reduces driver burdens through features such as pre-collision braking control, adaptive cruise control, and lane keep assist function.
High Beam Assist technology, which uses a monocular camera, is integrated into the interior rearview mirror. It detects preceding and oncoming vehicles and automatically switches headlights between high and low beam. The automatic antiglare function on the interior mirror uses a sensor to detect strong light from sources such as the headlights of following vehicles and automatically adjusts reflectivity to reduce glare and make night-driving safer.
Steering Responsive Headlights moves the beam right or left when turning at corners and intersections to illuminate the direction of travel. The Subaru XV employs the two headlight controls for the first time, dramatically improving nighttime visibility and recognition capabilities of EyeSight.
The Subaru Rear Vehicle Detection has been newly employed, offering blind spot detection, lane change assistance and reversing assistance to enhance all-round preventive safety.
Subaru has a strong presence in the passenger vehicles category in Oman and the current line-up of Subaru include Impreza, Legacy, Forester, Outback, XV and WRX, models.
OTE Group is the distributor for Subaru in Oman with sales & aftersales outlets spread across the Sultanate, offering excellent service.
