Subaru Exiga to get seven seats

The Exiga, the quietest Subaru with sales of about 150 this year - by comparison, 462 Tribecas have been sold - gets seven seats from July, up from the current model's six.

Subaru Australia managing director Nick Senior says the extra seat was added in response to demand from Australian customers. "Ever since we launched Exiga we've had feedback that people loved the size and flexibility of the cabin, but some felt a seventh seat would be the icing on the cake," he says.

"So that's exactly what Fuji Heavy Industries (Subaru's parent company) have now delivered." The Exiga, part of the Liberty model line-up, was first announced at the 2007 Japan motor show with its seating arranged as two rows of two individual seats plus a third-row bench seat.

The wagon's unusual seating was partially in response to the six-seat, three-row concept cars from companies including Mercedes-Benz that aimed to find a market niche away from the people-mover category.

At its launch in 2009, Subaru Australia expected 50 to 75 sales a month. Subaru says it's now selling about 50 a month but sales accuracy is difficult because the Exiga is combined with Liberty sales. Subaru will also add a new 17-inch alloy wheel design and door mirrors for the Premium edition of the seven-seater.

"It was only in January that we announced that entry-level Liberty Exiga  2.5i was adding a reversing camera plus dusk sensing headlights and steering wheel Bluetooth controls, voice command, audio streaming, USB connectivity and an auxiliary jack," Senior says.

The 2.5i has a 110mm LCD screen display for the audio and the reverse-camera image. Subaru also upgraded the Premium model in January with dusk-sensing headlights. "So it's fair to say that the Liberty Exiga range is undergoing considerable change that makes it an even better value proposition for families.

''Subaru has yet to announce prices for the seven-seat model. The 2.5i now sells for $37,990 and the Premium for $42,490, up $500 each on their November 2009 launch pricing despite the subsequent lift in features. Pricing is expected to remain similar to current levels.