Automotive design censorship is running amock on our roads today. An underlying conspiracy is mitigating design freedom in in effort to improve sales by offering the road going public absolute vehicular conformity. When the mind retreats to the design successes and failures of yesteryear very little can compare today when your senses return to the present. Except for a minority of rebel vehicles it seems that the vehicles present on any given day in a Walmart parking lot are as unique as laptop computers on a table, eventually only nameplates will tell the difference. A perfect case of such "stylistic censorship" comes in the form of the 2008 Subaru Tribeca. The Tribeca was Subaru's first venture into the realm of the SUV's bringing the best of Subaru's trademark AWD engineering to a larger vehicle. The Tribeca was ,for the most part, a successful mixture of "road and trek" but did not see that success mirrored in sales figures. Sluggish sales were mainly blamed on Subaru's new design scheme that focused around an oval grille similar to the original Subaru's. This design theme even found it's way onto the WRX that sprouted the oval "corporate grille" from it's front fascia. The media's total dismissal of the design theme only seemed to correlate with the ideas running in consumers minds when they first saw the Tribeca. The Tribeca is different, that's for sure, but is it repulsive? It seems in light of other major automotive companies fiasco's, such as the third generation Taurus that received negative design praise from day one or GM's Pontiac Aztec that tried to create a unique image only to have it laughed away from the streets, other companies are clutching their collective wallets in fear "pumping out" design with the daring of the nightly news. What has seemed to happen is that daring design, much like daring written commentary, is slowly going the way of the dinosaur in favor of bland "nicey nice" politically correct "visual" prose . The 2008 Tribeca will offend no one , that is for sure, it will not raise an eyebrow or risk any form of "vehicular judgement" for or against it's driver, and more than likely will finally put Subaru on the SUV pie chart. The biggest change to the Tribeca formula however is far deeper than sheetmetal. The signature boxer engine will enjoy a boost in power and more importantly torque addressing the main Tribeca complaint of lethargic acceleration. The added benefit of this reworking will be a much needed increase in fuel efficiency along with a larger fuel tank that will greatly increase the Tribeca's range, a major shortcoming that has had owners to constantly refuel the small Outback carry over tank. The dash will enjoy a freshening as well as the rear flanks that will permit greater rear seat head room. These tangible changes create a more cohesive package that we all knew Subaru was capable of building, a true Toyota and Honda fighter that still stays true to it's Subie roots. It is unfortunate that Subaru didn't address these problems sooner because the inevitable sales gains will be linked to the new face over the benefits of it's driveline enhancements. The unfortunate side effect of this is that it will only give ammunition to the "penny counters" at automobile companies everywhere when a risky design is placed on their desk. It is true that the Subaru Tribeca has a face only a mother could love but then again so do many of us and that's what makes life interesting. If designers had not pushed the envelope of design throughout the history of the automobile many of today's most important automotive achievements would never have been discovered, let's hope that design innovation continues even if every once and a while the public winces at the product of that innovation. The bottom line is that the Tribeca is a confident polished ,reliable, safe vehicle that currently offers a little something for the non-conformists and will, come the end of summer, offer a little something for the mainstream. For the non-conformist the current Tribeca is offering some good lease options that will surely erode as banks become aware of the more politically correct '08 model on the way. The best I have seen of late is the $343 a month lease with $1,695 down for 36 months currently advertised in the News Times today the 13th of April available at Smith Cairns Subaru in Brewster NY. That particular model comes well equipped with a MSRP of $33,029 and includes a moonroof and the third row seating option. I'm sure other Subaru dealers will provide similar savings near you. Now keep in mind that for the same price you can also take home the previously reviewed Mazda CX-9, so be careful in your negotiating. As time passes the current Tribeca will become as desired on a dealers lot as a rabid pitbull at the pound so those looking to buy will find the deals getting better as the summer progresses. Currently it seems that a $3000 dollar rebate seems about the norm. Colonial Subaru of Danbury is currently advertising A base Tribeca 5-seater at $26,490 marked down from $30,698 so this gives you an idea of the savings potentiality. So if gas mileage is not paramount to you and you are looking for a unique SUV at a great price then give the Tribeca a look, if you desire a more fuel efficient mainstream SUV then the new Tribeca may be just the ticket,but be warned you may find a Highlander owner trying to use their key to open it in the supermarket lot.
