The many faces of Tribeca

Subaru’s first “real” SUV, has received some serious plastic surgery for 2008, with both a nose job and implants at the rear end. It also had its name shortened, from Tribeca B9 to just Tribeca. Since the Tribeca B9 went on sale in May 2005 it sold only 35,000 copies, which is puny for a mass-market automaker. Subaru should get credit for restyling the sheet-metal so soon after its introduction. A lot of people seemed to hate the looks of the B9. Subaru executive Tom Doll called the new styling “less polarizing.” But you’ll never please everybody.

Observers in the blogosphere say the new grille reeks of Chrysler, and they have a point. I’d add that the Tribeca now reminds of the Hyundai Santa Fe. And a lot of other cars, including the Subaru Legacy. So let’s admit that no one has a monopoly on geometric shapes. If the new Tribeca looks somewhat like some other SUVs, so what? Wouldn’t most folks prefer to look like the girl next door than that weird kid with the funny clothes?

The other major upgrade was a revised six-cylinder “boxer” engine that grew to 3.6 liters from 3.0, picking up just six more horsepower in the process. Hopefully it will have more oomph than the minor horsepower boost would suggest. More significantly, the 3.6 uses regular fuel rather than premium, and it’s said to get a five-to-10 percent improvement in fuel economy. The Tribeca might need more than that to get it out of the starting blocks. We clocked the old engine at just 16 mpg on average, so a boost to 17 or 18 mpg is not much to write home about.

The up side, from our previous testing, gives the Tribeca good marks for agility and a quiet, comfortable ride. Rear seating remains a little tight, though. The IIHS gave the Tribeca B9 top marks in crash testing front, side, and rear, and we wouldn’t expect that to change. It has also proven to have above-average reliability, and unless something fundamental goes wrong with the revised engine, then reliability should remain on the right path, as well.

Click here for another perspective on the Tribeca’s new beak.

--Gordon Hard