AIMS: Impreza delay

First unveiled at the New York International Auto Show, Subaru's new Impreza was originally scheduled to appear in Australian showrooms late this year. But due to the impact of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan in March the arrival of the new mid-size range has been delayed.

Exactly when "is still to be announced at the moment but we'd be hopeful by early next year," Subaru Australia spokesman David Rowley told the Carsales Network. He admitted the estimated time of arrival was "as broad as that" but due to "ongoing issues in Japan we're still awaiting instructions from FHI [Fuji Heavy Industries]."

In Subaru Australia's favour is that "FHI has pulled out all the stops for us, given that Australia is about their third biggest market in the world," said Rowley. "They've been very kind to us by diverting production [allocation] to Australia.

"One of the slight issues we have is that the model mix we'll [initially] get from Japan isn't necessarily what we'd entirely like but we're happy to receive whatever we can."

Rowley wouldn't confirm the models that would be made available to the new Impreza range in Australia but was "confident we'll get the full lineup when we're ready to launch."

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