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  #31  
Old 07-13-2009, 07:03 AM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

Here is an interesting design sketch:



The drawing is interesting as much for its inherent mistakes as for the design it shows.

The two images in the rear are standard SVX. The one in the far background purports to be a Version E, which would imply the designs are Japanese market models, because this is the only market the term Version E was used.

Yet, if you look at the hood badge they are not Alcyone badges like on Japanese cars, they are Euro or US oval types .

Look further and the mystery deepens. The writing reads:

S4 - II, prototype
{the 30th Tokyo Motor Show}


The chronology is all wrong in this description. What's wrong?, did I hear you ask??

Well the 30th Tokyo Motor Show took place in late 1993. The S4 was the run-out model for the SVX, and did not come into being until 95-96.

Now there was a Subaru SVX S40 - II, I know this because I have one, and they were available around late '93. So this part of the written description may just be a misprint by the artist.

The inaccuracy just calls the Subaru provenance of the term "prototype" into question. This drawing could be, and probably is, a design study from an aftermarket bodykit manufacturer.

Joe
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  #32  
Old 07-14-2009, 09:52 AM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

But Joe, couldn't the sketch have been made and proposed but then the car was never actually manufactured in the year suggested?

Plus maybe that sketch did make it into a show car (the first picture in this thread), but then the actual S4's came out without the show car body mods. Just like the original SVX prototype came out in 1989, but didn't show up in showrooms until 1991, also altered from it's prototypes.

Who really knows?

I do tend to agree though that the bumper seems aftermarket, especially looking at the famous Pearl picture we've seen the most. But if it was aftermarket, why have we never seen it for sale or even mentioned on any Japanese web sites like all of the others? And certainly by now at least one Japanese owner would pass through here or we'd see a picture of a meet over there or something with at least one car having this aftermarket part? For that matter all the JDM cars our members in other countries own, or are for sale through the importers sites, etc, etc.

And the green SVX on the beach definitely looks like an official car manufacturer type photo, not so much an aftermarket company's photo (since it doesn't even focus on the part). Could be one of these elusive owners with the aftermarket bumper took the shot, but pretty professional looking with that location and everything.

The car in the show also looks beyond just an aftermarket company's display. It has the official "Alcyone SVX" license plate in place, the modified interior colors Mike mentioned, and to my eye the headlights even look like they may have 100% clear (as in Smallcar style) lenses.

I could go either way on this still.
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  #33  
Old 07-14-2009, 10:40 AM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

The dark green one is the prototype that Subaru was going to make into production, but terminated i believe. At least it made an appearance at some show...I've never seen that picture before.

The white one below used to belong to Cloud. It was originally black, but he repainted to white. Lowered, and has Schneider rims.
I'm not 100% sure but his bumper is one off based on that prototype design. He now drives the silver S4 as we know, and I believe he still has that bumper on his car. He just deosn't like to share the photos of the front view as you can see...

The pencil sketch Joe was showing was also done by Cloud. He did for one of the SVX gathering.

All in here...probably many of you have seen this already??

http://www5a.biglobe.ne.jp/~cloud/svx-car.htm

Ah btw, it's been a while to post something here!
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  #34  
Old 07-14-2009, 11:32 AM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

Off topic, the Prova spoiler HERE is the best I've seen on an SVX
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  #35  
Old 07-14-2009, 12:57 PM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

Well official or one-off aside, either way, I want one

I think it has a different look than stevesbys but I've never seen his in person so I could be wrong there.
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  #36  
Old 07-14-2009, 01:21 PM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

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Originally Posted by SilverSpear View Post
Off topic, the Prova spoiler HERE is the best I've seen on an SVX
Don't think it works for what the cars really are.

Keith
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  #37  
Old 07-14-2009, 01:28 PM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

Quote:
Originally Posted by SubaRyu View Post
Ah btw, it's been a while to post something here!
Hi Ryu.

Nice to see you around again. Thanks for elucidating about the front spoiler, what you say seems to fit the facts.

Looking through your friend Cloud's site it's interesting to see Japanese owners doing some of the exact things US owners do. They seem to love going for the oval badge instead of the Alcyone horns, just like the way US guys go mad for the Japanese badges to be different.

[That explains the oval badges in the design sketch. ]

I have also seen where they fancy the rear lit-up side reflectors, in place of the plain jdm ones.

My favourite is the Delta speed front grille on the green car, it mentioned 2000 as the year and Delta no longer have it listed.

Also I LOVE the side skirt, brilliant job.

Joe
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  #38  
Old 07-14-2009, 05:55 PM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

What ever happened to the SKC PACE CAR?
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  #39  
Old 07-17-2009, 05:08 AM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Green1995SVX View Post
The rear bumper really looks different too. I wish there was a picture of the rear of the car somewhere. Unfortunately, I've never seen one.
It does have a different profile, like they brought the rear sides dowm to hide the view of the exhaust tips from the side.

Anyone know where this may be in japan? It may be here along with the SVX concepts, Rioma, SRD-1, ACX-II, F9-X and estremo. See the prototype link on this page
http://poyo.biz/svx/menu.htm
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  #40  
Old 07-17-2009, 10:05 AM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

From being around the industry for awhile now I thought I might share some information about how the japanese usually do things, as I have heard it. Typically, after the initial launch and mass reception of the model, during the first model year, several suggestions for the mid life freshening are made. These are shelved and blueprinted, and then selected from when the manufacturer is ready to do the change, based on which one they think would freshen the design best after a few years run and they have analyzed public impression of the car. I would bet everyone a dollar that the SVX had a few of such drawings presented to the big wigs for evaluation in 92-93, if only as a formality. I am and have always been surprised that the SVX was still sold in the US after 1995. The OBDII was quite a refit, which happened at substantial cost. especially considering that it only exists on less than 2000 SVXs. Of course, they probably had it ready and it was being approved by the US in 93 or 94, before they had accepted that the SVX would be a dismal sales failure. This has always led me to believe that, for some odd reason, there was at least a consideration to continue the alcyone line beyond the CX (svx) model life cycle. Again, I believe that there would have been several conceptual drawings that were presented to the people who made the decision to discontinue that line. If we had seen a 1998 model, I believe it would have been a major redesign, not a freshening. 5 years is the end of a run usually, especially from a japanese manufacturer of that time. (remember, the legacy of that time period only lived 4 model years), especially for a halo car like the SVX. I do not think what we are seeing is a factory prototype. I believe that it is a modification made to an existing model, because I don't think that is the direction that they would have gone with it. Like has been said earlier, the wider front bumper totally clashes with the overall design of the car.

Having said that, I think that there could have been a redesign of the SVX model that would have freshened the shape and extened it to still look modern up through the early 2000s. Changing the linear nature of the lights would have done alot, and of course different wheels. The "wrap around" light fad was over, and I think the center finish light would have been deleted and the side lights made more angular, sort of like the current Lexus IS, along with the hood and headligts being changed so as not to have such square shapes. I also think the interior would have needed to be substantially redone to maintain the original concept of the vehicle, but I don't really know how they would have gone about that.

Had the SVX model continued as per the original design concept, I think we would have had a really nice second generation. But I think the cost would have been very high.
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  #41  
Old 07-17-2009, 10:16 AM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

Quote:
Originally Posted by NiftySVX View Post
From being around the industry for awhile now I thought I might share some information about how the japanese usually do things, as I have heard it. Typically, after the initial launch and mass reception of the model, during the first model year, several suggestions for the mid life freshening are made. These are shelved and blueprinted, and then selected from when the manufacturer is ready to do the change, based on which one they think would freshen the design best after a few years run and they have analyzed public impression of the car. I would bet everyone a dollar that the SVX had a few of such drawings presented to the big wigs for evaluation in 92-93, if only as a formality. I am and have always been surprised that the SVX was still sold in the US after 1995. The OBDII was quite a refit, which happened at substantial cost. especially considering that it only exists on less than 2000 SVXs. Of course, they probably had it ready and it was being approved by the US in 93 or 94, before they had accepted that the SVX would be a dismal sales failure. This has always led me to believe that, for some odd reason, there was at least a consideration to continue the alcyone line beyond the CX (svx) model life cycle. Again, I believe that there would have been several conceptual drawings that were presented to the people who made the decision to discontinue that line. If we had seen a 1998 model, I believe it would have been a major redesign, not a freshening. 5 years is the end of a run usually, especially from a japanese manufacturer of that time. (remember, the legacy of that time period only lived 4 model years), especially for a halo car like the SVX. I do not think what we are seeing is a factory prototype. I believe that it is a modification made to an existing model, because I don't think that is the direction that they would have gone with it. Like has been said earlier, the wider front bumper totally clashes with the overall design of the car.

Having said that, I think that there could have been a redesign of the SVX model that would have freshened the shape and extened it to still look modern up through the early 2000s. Changing the linear nature of the lights would have done alot, and of course different wheels. The "wrap around" light fad was over, and I think the center finish light would have been deleted and the side lights made more angular, sort of like the current Lexus IS, along with the hood and headligts being changed so as not to have such square shapes. I also think the interior would have needed to be substantially redone to maintain the original concept of the vehicle, but I don't really know how they would have gone about that.

Had the SVX model continued as per the original design concept, I think we would have had a really nice second generation. But I think the cost would have been very high.
Perhaps the front end of the Amadeus would have been closer to the next SVX front.

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  #42  
Old 07-17-2009, 10:23 AM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

By the way... I love when w have threads like this!
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  #43  
Old 07-17-2009, 10:39 AM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Green1995SVX View Post
By the way... I love when w have threads like this!
Me too, I really wish we could all do some design sketches, but sadly I am not an artist. Maybe someone could volunteer? It would be a great thing to show at the 20th meet.
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  #44  
Old 07-17-2009, 01:04 PM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

Does that says a 280 hp EG33?
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  #45  
Old 07-17-2009, 01:43 PM
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Re: 98 FACE LIFT ever existed?

Quote:
Originally Posted by STeeL25T View Post
Does that says a 280 hp EG33?
Actually yes... Interesting though
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