Subaru XT - Market Appeal and Production

Market Appeal and Production

Overall production of the XT remained low throughout its lifespan. Although the fuel crisis of the late 1970s and ever-tightening emissions regulations had severely limited power figures from all manufacturers in the mid 1980s, the XT's paltry 111 hp (83 kW) wasn't enough to attract serious attention from the automotive racing crowd. One of Subaru's ads from the 1980s read, The kind of car Mercedes might have built if they were a little more frugal and a lot more inventive. The car's extra features, which certainly had some novelty appeal, were uncharacteristic of this class of car and may not have contributed much to the XT's sales. In the 1980s, consumers with surplus cash in search of a better-equipped vehicle did not generally start shopping at Subaru.

Subaru produced 98,918 XTs, XT6s, and Alcyones. Surprisingly, only 8,170 of these were sold in the Japanese market.

While the XT exists as a very interesting design exercise, it did little in terms of market development for Subaru. The company has seen much more widespread success in the significantly more mainstream Legacy, Legacy Outback and Impreza WRX models introduced in recent years.