Accumulated Strengths and Business Model
Universal Philosophy
Human-centered Monozukuri
The universal philosophy underpinning our car-making is to focus on people and pursue safety. This idea can be traced back to our DNA and origins as an aircraft manufacturer. The most important aspect of aircraft development is safety. The required safety performance and technical standards to prevent emergencies are extremely high, and we took the approach of pursuing people-focused aircraft design to achieve this. This philosophy of prioritizing safety above all else has been passed down from generation to generation in our development of vehicles. SUBARU’s DNA is the consistent pursuit of high levels of safety, excellent driving performance, and rational design in every era.
Constant Refinement of Safety Technologies
Ever since before the SUBARU 360 was released in 1958, we have long been committed to developing vehicle bodies for collision safety in order to effectively absorb shock from collisions in all directions and protect the driver and passengers with a cabin structure of robust strength. At that time, safety was not yet considered an important value of vehicles, and even the concept of Passive Safety was not common. Yet, we voluntarily began frontal collision tests in 1965. Even without crash test dummies, our engineers conducted their own research on the vehicle’s body structure and the impact of collision on the human body, pursuing better Passive Safety through trial and error, one step ahead of the time.
Since then, based on the safety concept of protecting not only the driver but also passengers and pedestrians, we have continued to develop proprietary Passive Safety technologies. In this process, we have accumulated various types of Passive Safety data, including overturn and rear-end collisions, as well as designed vehicle structures that prevent the engine from penetrating the cabin in a frontal collision and have a space to absorb impact if a pedestrian were to come into contact with the hood.
In addition to these efforts, we have been developing driver assistance systems using stereo cameras and radar for more than 30 years, leading to the development of EyeSight and other advanced safety technologies. EyeSight uses stereo cameras for recognition and control to perform its primary functions. The cameras constantly monitor the road ahead and can measure distances in a way similar to human vision. It offers superior recognition capabilities, identification of vehicles, pedestrians, and lane markings, while providing wide viewing angles, long detection ranges, and accurate brake lamp identification through color imaging. The software, which functions as the “brain” of the system, takes this information and the state of the vehicle’s operation to determine the necessary controls, resulting in the execution of these in a manner that fits the situation like the “hands and feet” of each vehicle unit. The new-generation EyeSight uses newly developed stereo cameras with a much wider field of view and enhanced software to enable more precise recognition of the traffic conditions and a wider range of responses in various situations at intersections. Models equipped with a wide-angle single lens camera, electric brake booster, and four front and rear radars provide 360-degree sensing to support collision avoidance in a wider variety of situations, even in low-visibility conditions. Furthermore, the acceleration or deceleration function for following a vehicle ahead and steering assist have been refined for smoother and more natural control. This has evolved EyeSight into a driver assist system that can be used with even greater confidence.
Achievement of Zero Fatal Traffic Accidents in 2030
SUBARU is working to achieve zero fatal traffic accidents in 2030. SUBARU will enhance the safety performance of its cars from every perspective as we aim to achieve zero fatal traffic accidents in 2030. We will do this by making the five areas of Primary Safety, Active Safety, Preventive Safety, Passive Safety, and Connected Safety even better.
* Zero Fatal traffic accidents among occupants of Subaru vehicles and people involved in collisions with SUBARU vehicles, including pedestrians and cyclists.
Business Model
Strengthening Competitiveness through Selection and Concentration of Management Resources
Most Important Market
Initiatives in the U.S. Market
In 2025, our goal is to reach sales of 675,000 units (up 1.1% year on year), and over the medium to long term, we will work to grow our market share to 5%.
1.Love as a Key to Communication
SUBARU’s unique AWD technology has earned a strong reputation for enabling our cars to handle snow-covered roads in the snowbelt with ease. In addition, SUBARU vehicles are widely recognized as enjoyable cars that provide a high level of stability and peace of mind in a wide variety of environments, including ordinary roads, unpaved roads, and rainy weather, even outside the snowbelt, thanks to high hird-party ratings for Passive Safety performance. While customers experience SUBARU’s safety and value in different ways, what truly makes SUBARU unique is that many express genuine “love” for their vehicles. With love as the keyword, we have been engaged in the Love Campaign, a marketing campaign that asks customers about their life with their SUBARU. It creates a personal story for each customer, deepening their attachment to SUBARU as a unique expression of individuality and encouraging them to share this passion with others. This deepened attachment and resonance have led to the strength of the SUBARU brand.
2.The SUBARU Group’s Strong Sales Network
We refer to the businesses that meet customers in-person and provide our products and services as “retailers” instead of “dealers.” As members and representatives of the SUBARU team, they work with each customer in each region with sensitivity to their feelings and values. Since retailers are important partners to us, we have focused on supporting their activities, from new car sales to after-sales service, and have grown together with them. Through these efforts, we have built a strong trust and deepened ties with those who share SUBARU’s intended direction, resulting in our competitive advantage in the U.S. market. As of March 31, 2025, we have a total of 641 retailers, with plans to expand this to approximately 650 in the future. However, rather than simply increasing the number of retailers, we are prioritizing profitability by expanding sales per existing retailer, followed by reinvestment from retailers into the SUBARU business.
3.SUBARU’s Unique Initiatives: Committed to Customers and Communities
In addition to products, each retailer is rooted in the local community, and each staff member carefully builds relationships with customers, which fosters trust, resonance, and love for the SUBARU brand and leads to SUBARU's growth. Our Love Promise is tailored to local communities to realize a better society together with our retailers, with the vision that everyone involved with SUBARU will feel love and respect. This initiative helps our customers understand the retailer’s thoughts and attitude toward the community and each staff member’s personality and values, fostering a stronger and deeper relationship of trust. Participation in the Love Promise helps to motivate each staff member and to recruit and retain human resources. Today, more than half of our retailers have now signed on, resulting in even larger activities that utilize local networks. Love Promise has come to generate more significant impacts both internally and externally. The relationship between SUBARU, retailers, and customers is what gives us our distinctive presence that sets us apart from other brands, and an important element in generating SUBARU’s uniqueness.
