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Is that a Subaru Tribeca or a Chrysler Pacifica?

May 28, 2008

I'm a Subaru fan... have been for years. I love their cars because they are practical and can't be stopped in the snow. The Subaru Outback has been wildly successful in snowbelt areas and with mountain-folks alike. I'm sure most of their sales come from Utah, Colorado and Washington State, but with the release of the Impreza WRX earlier this decade, Subies are all the rage with the rice rocket crowd as well. Because Subaru owners are loyal (I've owned 5 of them), Subaru introduced the B9 Tribeca for the 2006 model year with the intent of wooing Subie owners who have outgrown their Outback wagons. The result has been less-than-stellar for the bottom-line of Subaru corporate. Sales have been sluggish because of the polarizing front-end styling. Some love it... others hate, hate, hate it. I fell into the LOVE IT camp because it was unique and different. I thought it made the B9 Tribeca stand out and it looked much sportier than Subies of the past. This styling was also mated to the last two years of the old Impreza body style. Again, I loved the aviator look on the Impreza. Apparently, the powers that be at Subaru have listened to the haters out there for the 2008 model year because they turned the Tribeca into a Chrysler Pacifica. All you haters... rejoice! Subaru has effectively turned the cool-looking Tribeca front-end into a Chrysler Pacifica. Take a look for yourself... the styling is eerily similar. 2006 Subaru B9 Tribeca 2008 Subaru Tribeca (no more B9 necessary) 2008 Chrysler Pacifica So, all you haters can now be satisfied... you effectively took a unique and cool-looking vehicle and turned it into one of the most vanilla, "me too" vehicles on the road. I wouldn't be surprised if Subaru sells even fewer of the new Tribeca as a result. What are your thoughts? Am I completely off my rocker here? Did you like the old B9 Tribeca's styling or hate it?

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