For one heady moment, it looked like Subaru was going to bring a diesel engine to the U.S. Then the company not only abandoned the plan, but the engine, too.
IN 2008, automaker Subaru unveiled its EE20, a 2.0L flat-four common-rail turbodiesel engine, as an option in European versions of popular models like the Outback and Legacy. The engine offered 148 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque, which kicked in at 1,800 rpm. Even more impressive was the estimated fuel economy of 49 highway miles per gallon. The automaker planned to release this option in the U.S. around 2010, but by 2016, not only had Americans failed to get their hands on Subaru’s EE20 diesel, but further development on it had ceased.
«With diesel it is too difficult to keep the exhaust gas clean», Masahiko Inoue, project manager over the Impreza, told WhichCar.com.au in 2016. «But in future I think we will not have diesel.» Inoue added that the manufacturer was instead going to focus on gas engine turbocharging and hybrid technology.
The main reason Subaru never launched its diesel boxer engine stateside was stringent U.S. emission standards that the manufacturer strained to reach. But even if the automaker had brought its EE20 to America, it likely would’ve faced some challenges, as it was plagued by a serious flaw that garnered it negative perceptions in Europe.
