Cars and trucks

Subaru has introduced the 2005 Outback which will be classified as a truck according to federal fuel economy and emissions rules. Environmental activists are charging that Subaru is exploiting a loophole in the regulations to avoid having to improve the overall fuel economy of its product line.

"Instead of making more gas guzzlers, Subaru should pledge to bring its fleet average fuel economy up to 40 miles per gallon," Katherine Morrison, an attorney with the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, said in a statement. "By using currently available technologies, they can start improving the fuel economy of their best-selling vehicles and reduce global warming pollution and oil dependence."

Actually, Suburu "should" not do anything of the kind provided it doesn't violate the rules. The company is in the business of selling vehicles and they will do what they legally can to maximize their sales.

Jim Murphy, general manager of governmental affairs for Subaru, said the change from car to truck was a consequence of other decisions to make the Outback wagons more closely resemble sport utility vehicles, and was not a goal for Subaru.

“If we had wanted to make it a truck, we would have made it much closer to the standards,” Murphy said. “In today’s world, there’s no benefit.”

Of course, he could be lying but he does have a point. It's the styling that people care about. I personally wouldn't take most SUV's off road. Dirt roads, sure, but not totally off the road. For that I'd use a vehicle that has been specifically designed to do that, a true 4x4. This is reflected in the fact that more and more "SUV's" are being designed to handle more like cars. The Outback and Outback Sport models were among the first to have this design philosophy. The Toyota RAV4, built on a car frame (the Camry as I recall), is another one.

I personally own my second Subaru vehicle. My current one is a 2002 Impreza 2.5 RS. It's the next step down from the WRX, the only differences that I know of are that it has the less-powerful, non-turbocharged engine, and the transmission is an automatic. Even so, it has plenty of performance. When I bought it, I traded in my 1997 Outback Sport, which is based on the Impreza wagon.

Murphy and Adcock said the new Outback will have about a 5 percent improvement in fuel economy over the current model and average about 27.5 mpg, despite an increase in horsepower.

That number is the average fuel economy for cars required by federal regulations. My Outback Sport had a very consistent fuel economy of about 25 mpg. My new car actually averages a bit less, about 23. I do a considerable amount of driving in town, though, and the mileage goes up noticeably if I go on a long trip; the Outback Sport once did 29. This new Outback, which is larger than both my Subarus, gets better average mileage. It sounds to me like Subaru is doing a good job. More and more people are becoming conscious about fuel economy and desire cars that get better mileage, if only because fuel costs are reduced. For Subaru, or any other company, to make a profit, they have to give the people what they want.