Photo: Subaru
In May 1987, Japanese carmakers Subaru and Isuzu started building a joint production facility in Lafayette, Indiana. Two years later, the facility started rolling out its first models, the Subaru Legacy and Isuzu Pickup. Fast forward 30 years after that, and we've got the 6 millionth vehicle assembled there rolling off the production lines.
This happened just a few days after the facility celebrated its 30th anniversary, when a 2020 Subaru Legacy entered the site’s history books as the 6 millionth car to be made there.
“Achieving both milestones within a week of each other is both exciting and humbling,” said in a statement Scott Brand, senior vice president at Subaru of Indiana Automotive.
“Thanks to our dedicated associates, we have come a long way in the last three decades.”
For the better part of its existence, the Lafayette plans manufactured cars for a variety of carmakers, not only for the two that started it. The most prominent names are the Honda Passport and Toyota Camry. That changed in 2016, when Subaru took over the facility completely.
Of the six million total output in three decades, 4 million have been Subarus, a milestone the carmaker reached earlier this year. And that’s a milestone that will be quickly surpassed, as from the initial production output of 67,000 cars in 1989, the facility now spits out 390,000 vehicles per year.
The Subaru nameplate is continuing to gain traction in the U.S. Earlier this month the carmaker announced the sale of the 10 millionth vehicle in the country, a number that includes cars manufactured abroad.
There are now a total of eight cars in Subaru’s American lineup, starting with the good-old Impreza, going through the more recent SUVs and ending with the high-performance BRZ and WRX. The cheapest of them, the Impreza, starts at $18.595, while the most expensive is the Ascent, which starts at $31,995.
“Achieving both milestones within a week of each other is both exciting and humbling,” said in a statement Scott Brand, senior vice president at Subaru of Indiana Automotive.
“Thanks to our dedicated associates, we have come a long way in the last three decades.”
For the better part of its existence, the Lafayette plans manufactured cars for a variety of carmakers, not only for the two that started it. The most prominent names are the Honda Passport and Toyota Camry. That changed in 2016, when Subaru took over the facility completely.
Of the six million total output in three decades, 4 million have been Subarus, a milestone the carmaker reached earlier this year. And that’s a milestone that will be quickly surpassed, as from the initial production output of 67,000 cars in 1989, the facility now spits out 390,000 vehicles per year.
The Subaru nameplate is continuing to gain traction in the U.S. Earlier this month the carmaker announced the sale of the 10 millionth vehicle in the country, a number that includes cars manufactured abroad.
There are now a total of eight cars in Subaru’s American lineup, starting with the good-old Impreza, going through the more recent SUVs and ending with the high-performance BRZ and WRX. The cheapest of them, the Impreza, starts at $18.595, while the most expensive is the Ascent, which starts at $31,995.
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