Subaru employees in Indiana marked the occasion of the first new Ascent rolling off the production line.
Subaru has begun production of its new Ascent, a three-row sport utility vehicle with seating for eight passengers, at the company’s assembly plant in Lafayette, Indiana plant.
The addition of the new ute to the production mix created 200 jobs, following an investment of $140 million in equipment and expansion investments.
“The Subaru Ascent is a great addition to our production line-up,” said Tom Easterday, senior executive vice president of Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc., or SIA.
“Production of this outstanding new family vehicle allowed us to create hundreds of new jobs at SIA, and also at our suppliers in Indiana and across the country,” he said. The all-new 2019 Subaru Ascent will be available for sale to consumers in mid-2018 and will be the largest vehicle in the Subaru line-up.
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The new Ascent is Subaru's first eight-passenger utility vehicle.
SIA is building on nine consecutive years of sales growth. Sales have doubled in the just the past five years, Tom Doll, Subaru of America president, said during the introduction of the Ascent last year. The addition of a three-row SUV, the largest vehicle Subaru has ever built, will help maintain the company’s sales momentum next year, he added.
The Ascent draws on Subaru’s history of delivering a solid driving experience while the Ascent also offers a spacious interior, comfortable and flexible seating options and a host of new safety, driver assist and in-vehicle technologies.
The new model is built on a strengthened and extended version of the Subaru Global Platform with extensive use of high-strength steel and a focus on durability, rigidity and vibration resistance, making for a smoother ride under all types of conditions. The wheelbase is 113.8 inches long and comes with room for seven passengers and 19 standard cup and bottle holders, every passenger’s beverage is secure and close at hand.
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It is powered by an all-new 2.4-liter Boxer engine and comes standard with a new version of Subaru’s high-torque CVT or continuously variable transmission. Subaru’s Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system is also standard.
The interior of the new Subaru features plenty of space, plenty of soft-touch materials and 19 cupholders.
Ascent joins three other Subaru models produced at the plant including the Outback, Legacy and Impreza.
SIA has tracked the growth of the company’s sales in the last five years, adding more than 2,000 employees to the team during that period. To prepare for Ascent and Impreza production. SIA invested nearly $1.5 billion during the past five years.
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The company will produce about 400,000 vehicles annually with the addition of the Ascent, and Subaru has built more than 5 million vehicles since SIA’s start of production in September 1989. The company employs more than 5,600 people.