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Subaru has confirmed that its new XV crossover will beat the new Impreza range to an Australian debut, with the high-riding hatch due to hit local showrooms in early January.
The news follows the XV's unveiling in production trim at last week's Frankfurt Motor Show, after appearing as a concept April's Shanghai Auto Show.
Subaru Australia Managing Director Nick Senior said today that unlike the current Impreza XV name, the XV will join the Forester, Outback and Tribeca as a "standalone" offering in the brand's SUV range.
He added that the XV will kick off a number of new Subaru launches in 2012 (likely including the BRZ entry-level sports coupe, developed in partnership with Toyota).
While the XV might look like a jacked-up Impreza, it offers a centre of gravity 39mm lower than the Nissan Dualis and 22mm lower than the Volkswagen Tiguan - while offering 32mm and 25mm greater ground clearance, respectively.
In Australia, the XV will be offered exclusively with Subaru's third-generation 2.0 litre boxer engine, sending 110kW and 196Nm of torque through Subaru's 'symmetical' all-wheel-drive system.
The engine will be paired with either a Lineatronic CVT automatic transmission with paddle shifts, or a traditional six-speed manual.
Local fuel consumption figures are still to be confirmed, but at Frankfurt, Subaru confirmed 6.9 l/100km for the manual transmission, and 6.6 l/100km for the CVT.
Pricing for the XV will be announced closer to launch.
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This info and more can be found at: http://www.themotorreport.com.au
