Subaru bring the Ascent to the Philippines!
The majority of vehicles you see on the road are typically larger SUV's with an available 3rd row seating, ie: Montero Sport, Toyota Fortuner, Ford Everest, Isuzu DMax, Nissan Terra and Mitsubishi Pajero. So the question is, why doesn't Subaru bring the Ascent here?
The Subaru Ascent was introduced to the US market in 2018, after years of Subaru's growing fan base asking for a larger SUV. The Forester and Outback were amazing but customers who needed more space were forced to go elsewhere.
The Ascent is powered by a 260HP turbocharged 2.4liter boxer engine. And of course it comes with Subaru's symmetrical all-wheel drive system and Subaru's latest and greatest safety technology like eye-sight, lane keep assist and blind spot detection.
In the US you can pick an Ascent that sits 7 or 8, depending if you want captains chairs in the second row or not. But here in the Philippines it would only make sense to bring in the 8 seater, since we all have that one family member that likes to tag along.
The interior is really spacious and the materials used for the interior panels feel high quality and definitely feels more luxurious compared to cars within the same price point. I personally love the infotainment system which has Apple Car Play and Android Auto. The control button layouts is simple and intuitive, unlike other manufacturers that makes you through the infotainment system to turn on something simple like your AC, Subaru stuck with old school knobs. For me, this better because I can keep my eyes on the road and know exactly what Im adjusting. Kinda hard to do that on a screen.
When I had the opportunity to drive the Ascent a few weeks ago during my visit to the US, I immediately feel it love with it. The Ascent has everything my Pajero has and so much more. The infotainment system alone is worth making the change. Its just as wide as the other SUV's on the market, which is great for the tight street of the Metro, visibility is fantastic, the panoramic sunroof is awesome and at the end of the day its a Subaru.
Price in the US starts at $31,995 ( approximately PHP 1.6M) and the fully loaded Ascent starts at $34,395 ( approximately PHP 1.7M) not sure how the Ascent would be priced here but I cant imagine it being more than PHP 2.5m.
With the majority of SUV's on the road having an available 3rd row seating, why doesnt Subaru take a bite of this segment?
The question is, if you had PHP 2.5M to spend on a car, would you buy the Subaru Ascent?