Subaru mulling expanding Indiana plant for Forester, Impreza

Jeffrey N. Ross — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 18:31:00 EST

Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Plants/Manufacturing, Subaru

Thanks to currency fluctuations and their impact on the bottom line, a growing number of Japanese automakers are starting to increase vehicle production in the US, and it appears Subaru could be the next to do so. According to Bloomberg, Subaru is looking into expanding production capacity at its Lafayette, Indiana assembly plant, which currently builds the Outback, Legacy and Tribeca as well as the Toyota Camry.

Subaru's Indiana plant currently has an annual maximum capacity of 310,000 units, but the automaker is expecting to far exceed that figure this year, with year-to-date sales of 299,788 units through November (not including Camry) - an increase of almost 30 percent over 2011. The report indicates that Subaru could expand the plant to add as many 50,000 additional units to the plant, likely in the form of either the Forester or Impreza.

Subaru mulling expanding Indiana plant for Forester, Impreza originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 07 Dec 2012 18:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Subaru "doubles down" on North America after faltering in China

Zach Bowman — Mon, 14 May 2012 13:29:00 EST

Filed under: China, Plants/Manufacturing, Subaru

Automotive News reports Subaru no longer plans to manufacture vehicles in China in the near future. The company had originally planned to begin building cars in the country by 2016, but has re-shifted its focus back toward North America. Subaru will now increase production at its Indiana facility while also investigating other ways to up capacity in NA. That could mean adding a new line in Indiana or building an entirely new facility.

It's only been 10 months since Subaru announced it planned to build a manufacturing plant in China in just five years. Last year, the company said it planned to build 150,000 units per year in the People's Republic and import an additional 30,000 vehicles. Those numbers have been slimmed to a more modest 100,000 units, all of which will be imports. While Yasuyuki Yoshinaga, the president of Fuji Heavy Industries, says he would still like to see Subaru have a factory in China, he doesn't expect it to happen by 2016.

In the meantime, Subaru has also increased its North American sales targets from 380,000 units to 410,000.

Subaru "doubles down" on North America after faltering in China originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 14 May 2012 13:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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