Slow death for Subaru dealers??

[rastapasta]

They are having a bumper year again here in switzerland. The banning of VW diesels for a time has played into their hands in areas like Central Switzerland where their market share has gotten even bigger. They are ubiquitous out here. Every town has a subaru dealer and they are known as the farmers porsche. Its strange on the one hand how the swiss have taken them to their hearts, but on the other hand they are ideally suited to the conditions. The offering of only CVT hasnt harmed the brand in the slightest it seems, I actually think alot more people buy them now as they are easier to manage in traffic with this type of gearbox. Its unfortunate for the UK but same time if your market primarily is the US, Japan and Australia, then you have to focus on these areas.

[rovermorris999]

I'm really happy with the CVT in my Forester, it's very responsive and pretty smooth. My old one was an auto anyway by choice so I wasn't going to buy a manual anyway. The Sti on the other hand....

[Suzaru]

Hi everyone, my very first post on this forum

I've had a Forester for 10 years now (non-turbo) and cannot fault it but agree with your observations on the way the brand is heading here in the UK.

The car has never failed me but the dealer prices for parts are ridiculous - £1,100 for an exhaust

I'm looking to replace it now but the new Forester is too big for my needs. I had high hopes for the new XV, and was impressed with the CVT box on my test drive, but the engine is not competitive, the boot is ridiculously small, there is no spare wheel and with all that sensor technology the cost of replacing items such as the windscreen or a door mirror will be astronomic.

Such a shame.

[vxr2010]

That much for a exhaust you can get a custom stainless one for much less , there are various part suppliers like import car parts or Megazip where original parts can be sourced at a normal price , the good thing is the cars are normally quite reliable any way so not as many parts needed , and there are lots of service items at good prices too

[Suzaru]

You're right, I didn't pay that but got my local family-run exhaust place to fit an aftermarket one for half the price.

To be fair, the original had lasted 11 years. I've just replaced the original Panasonic battery too, even though it was still going well as winter started.