Subaru Signs MoU to Manufacture Compact SUV

Subaru’s parent company Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (FHI) today announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Tan Chong Group for the local production of an unnamed compact SUV in Malaysia.

The only compact SUV in Subaru’s current range is the Forester, though the vehicle in question may be the upcoming Impreza-based crossover that was previewed by the XV Concept (pictured above) at the 2011 Shanghai Auto Show in China this past April.

The Japanese automaker said an initial assembly of 5,000 vehicles per year will begin in October 2012 at an existing production facility of Tan Chong Motor Assemblies Sdn. Bhd (TCMA). The vehicles will be sold in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia through the Tan Chong Group’s Subaru network.

FHI established a partnership with Tan Chong Group in 1987 when the latter was appointed the Subaru distributor in Singapore. The Tan Chong Group has since expanded the sales and distribution network of Subaru vehicles across ASEAN countries that now include Cambodia, Southern China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

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