We believe in providing our customers with safe and reliable products and are committed to delivering exceptional customer service. Below we outline our ongoing efforts to improve our products and customer experience. See the Recognition for What We Do section to view the accolades we’ve received for our efforts.
Subaru STARLINK Safety and Security services further customer satisfaction with SOS Emergency Services, Roadside Assistance Enhancements, and Diagnostic Alerts in our vehicles. This available option is a complimentary subscription for three years from initial activation. In 2023, we helped 300,155 customers receive emergency services and support through STARLINK. Subscribers also receive maintenance reminders on vehicle touchscreens when drivers are safely stopped, adding further convenience for our customers.
STARLINK brings multimedia content, smartphone connectivity, seamless navigation, extra safety, and everyday convenience to Subaru vehicles. This suite of on-board technology helps make every drive more entertaining, confident, and enjoyable. Our multimedia services include voice recognition and large touchscreen interfaces to help our customers access their digital content safely while behind the wheel.
* Not currently available to residents of Massachusetts.
The Subaru DriverFocus® Distraction Mitigation System is like having an attentive co-pilot along for the ride, ready to give a helpful alert if a driver becomes distracted or drowsy. DriverFocus® can be engaged by the driver and automatically activated by the car. These features help minimize distracted driving with “eyes-off-road alert” and “eyes-closed/drowsiness alert” features in select Subaru vehicles.
Subaru was one of the early adopters of an automatic emergency braking system. All our vehicles produced between March 1, 2022, and December 31, 2023*, were equipped with automatic emergency braking, keeping us ahead of the curve on imposing a 95% or higher installation rate by production year beginning September 1, 2022. This initiative was agreed upon by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and 20 automakers.
* According to the IIHS. Does not include manual transmission models. Under the terms of the voluntary commitment, automakers may defer equipping vehicles with manual transmissions with automatic emergency braking until the production year that begins September 1, 2024.
Our Rear Seat Reminder feature helps prevent children or pets from being left behind in our vehicles. Approximately 98% of our vehicles produced between March 1, 2022, and December 31, 2023*, are equipped with this feature, far ahead of the auto industry’s 2019 voluntary agreement that specifies a 95% or higher installation rate of these reminders by production year beginning September 1, 2024.
* These vehicles: MY2022–23 Ascent and Forester (standard on all model trims), MY2022-23 WRX (standard on all model trims), MY 2022–23 Legacy and Outback vehicles (standard on all model trims), MY2022–23 Crosstrek (standard on continuously variable transmission equipped model trims), and MY2022–23 Imprezavehicles (available option on base trims; standard on all other trims), MY2023 Solterra (standard on all trims).
Genuine Subaru Parts and Accessories are designed and manufactured to deliver the same safety, quality, and reliability that customers expect when they purchase one of our vehicles.
Using genuine parts provides peace of mind for customers during repairs and protects them from the significant safety risk of counterfeit products. Furthermore, Subaru proactively combats counterfeit threats through collaboration with law enforcement and participation in the Automotive Anti-Counterfeiting Council. Our anti-counterfeiting focus is on products that can cause the most harm to consumer safety, and in 2023, we identified and took down more than 23,921 e-commerce listings of non-Genuine Subaru parts. We also take the extra step of informing our engineering decisions for each vehicle accessory through customer feedback.
We are proud of our best-in-class accessories program. By partnering with our suppliers towards these high standards, we utilize the IATF 16949 quality management system and ISO 14001 environmental standards by performing quality audits, process reviews, risk analyses, and detailed monthly warranty reviews. New accessories suppliers are also required to be ISO-9001-certified to do any business with Subaru.
2023 saw some exciting upgrades in our vehicles that are now the new standard. Moving forward, all 2024 model year Subaru vehicles sold in the U.S. are equipped with our advanced driver assistant systems, EyeSight® Driver Assist Technology, which uses multiple advanced active safety systems to act as an extra set of eyes on the road and, if need be, an extra foot on the brake.
Below are some notable upgrades and highlights from our 2024 models.
In support of the 2015 Paris Agreement toward achieving the 1.5°C global warming limit target, Subaru Corporation (SBR) has set clear and attainable long-term decarbonization goals to help turn this into reality. SBR has also committed to a long-term goal of reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from new passenger vehicles, with a goal of at least 40% of Subaru global sales coming from battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) by 2030. We plan to apply electric powertrain technology to all Subaru vehicles sold worldwide by the early 2030s, while also reducing well-to-wheel* CO2 emissions by 90% or more compared to 2010 levels.
We’re proud of the progress we made in 2023, including the steps we took to further the electrification of our vehicles by the mid-2030s.
* Well-to-Wheel: Approach to calculating CO2 emissions, including emissions produced by the generation of electricity to be used by EVs and other vehicles.
We strive to reduce emissions and build more efficient vehicles. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), our fuel economy has improved by 5.4 miles per gallon and decreased by 75 grams of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per mile since 2009. This makes Subaru one of the most fuel-efficient car brands in the U.S. The EPA has also shown that Subaru is one of the only automotive manufacturers to comply with national GHG emissions standards strictly on vehicle performance. This progress is helping us further the electrification of our vehicles, which includes hybrid and plug-in cars, by the mid-2030s. For more information on these decarbonization goals, please visit SBR’s Path to Future Growth and Environmentally Friendly Automobiles pages.
The launch of the Subaru Solterra boasted many firsts — the first fully electric, zero emission vehicle from Subaru, and the first ever all-electric SUV with standard Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive, creating uniform stability and delivering an optimal distribution of power for maximum traction. Named from the Latin words “Sun” and “Earth,” the Solterra maintains the high standard of safety and go-anywhere capability that Subaru is known for. We are committed to furthering the electrification of our vehicles, which includes hybrid and plug-in cars, by the mid-2030s.
The 2023 Solterra is built on our electric vehicle architecture called the e-Subaru Global Platform, specifically designed for all-electric vehicles and with the most rigid vehicle platform we’ve ever built. The e-Subaru Global Platform features strategic crumple zones and a reinforced structure for secure crash protection. Like our other models, the Solterra comes standard with EyeSight Driver Assist Technology, plus extra peace of mind with Solterra Connect linking drivers to cloud navigation, Intelligent Assistant, and additional assistance features. Safety and security are further bolstered through the Solterra’s Panoramic View Monitor for 360-degree camera views when parking and reversing and All-Around Awareness Technologies for blind spots and rear cross-traffic. The Solterra is also equipped with Parking Support Brake and Safe Exit Assist, which alerts a driver of an approaching object when opening a door.
To fulfill our promise to increase the production of our EV fleet and help lower global emissions, the plug-in hybrid EVs we sold in the U.S. market in 2023 have driven 311,974,678 miles in their lifetimes. Hybrid vehicles helped Subaru owners save 3,689 tons of CO2 in 2023.
According to the EPA, this is equivalent to:
415,106 gallons
of gas consumption saved
728 homes
worth of annual electricity usage saved
Measuring the durability and environmental impact through a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) helps us analyze our products and how they are manufactured, transported, used, and discarded. This is done through Subaru Corporation’s LCA process that examines which life cycle stages account for the largest amount of CO2 emissions and the necessary steps to reducing the product’s carbon footprint in the future. Read more about this in our Environmentally Friendly Automobiles webpage.
Subaru is focused on properly recycling Subaru batteries at end-of-life. Our partner’s proprietary process helps ensure correct recycling so that no hazardous waste is generated during the end-of-life processing for all Subaru high-voltage batteries and helps recover and reuse more than 92% of materials in new battery manufacturing.
Subaru is committed to reducing our emissions when possible during the transport of our vehicles to distribution centers. In 2023, we reduced our transport-related emissions by approximately 50–80% depending on the product. We have also made strides to reduce emissions produced by our transportation carrier for vehicles being shipped by sea to Alaskan retailers.
We are now working with a carrier partner who powers their ships with liquified natural gas (LNG) rather than ultra-low sulfur diesel or heavy fuel oil. Our carrier partner’s vessels on LNG have a GHG emissions reduction of up to 21% and are positioned to surpass the International Maritime Organization 2030 emission standards, helping advance sustainability goals in our supply chain.
Subaru is proud to remanufacture some vehicle parts, which benefits the environment through an extended life cycle of materials throughout the supply chain and helps reduce costs for our customers. Our remanufacturing process for new and recycled parts includes replacing every seal and gasket, which fit and perform the same as new Genuine Subaru Parts that are installed at the factory.
2 million pounds
of extended life cycle
7 million kWh
of energy saved
5,000 metric tons
of CO2 saved
We are committed to enhancing accessibility in our vehicles for customers with physical disabilities and will support owners by reimbursing qualifying vehicle modifications to help those in need. Some examples of these modifications include left-hand gear selectors, hand and foot controls, steering devices, and turn-signal modifications. In 2023, we processed 249 requests and spent almost $220,000 under the Subaru Mobility Assist program.
For more information, visit the Subaru Mobility Assist webpage.
TechShare is our vision for supporting technicians through the maintenance and repair of Subaru vehicles. TechShare also enhances the standard of Quality Monitoring Reports (QMRs), allowing technicians to create and submit QMRs via a mobile app to monitor product quality and respond to customer concerns more efficiently. The app offers features that include automatic vehicle identification number (VIN) identification, photo and video editing, speech-to-text notetaking, and more.
Our attention to quality across the Subaru brand is enhanced with our Advanced Quality Assurance review process at our vehicle processing centers. This means delivering high-quality vehicles to our end customers and retailers through our rigorous Pre-Delivery Inspection (PDI) and accessory quality assurance programs. Through a detailed checklist, our teams help ensure that the highest product quality standards are maintained throughout the vehicle processing and accessory installation of the units until the product is delivered to the end customers.
