The first thing you're likely to notice about
Tribeca is its peculiar, three-part grille, which we are told suggests the nose and wings of an oncoming aircraft, and therefore reminds us of parent company Fuji Heavy Industries' heritage as an aircraft manufacturer. Only not everyone who looked the '06 Tribeca square in the snout saw an airplane, necessarily; instead we've heard it compared to all manner of things. The Tribeca front end looks to us like a poorly executed knockoff of a classic Alfa Romeo (a design said to be inspired by medieval heraldry).
Undoubtedly aware of this difficulty, for 2007 Subaru has changed the Tribeca's grille from body color to black, claiming that the resulting contrast will better define an aircraft silhouette. Well, if they say so, but we still don't particularly like it. Of course that's a personal opinion. Some of our colleagues do like the Tribeca design. Others found it grew on them with time. Of course, we have better taste than they do. In any case, we don't consider the Tribeca's grille a deal breaker.
Overall, there is an undeniable aero-sleekness to the flow of the various surface planes and sculpting. Headlights are integrated into the leading edges of the front fenders. In plan view, the front end's curvature can be seen to ease the movement of the Tribeca through the air. The steeply raked windshield and A-pillars pull the eye up and over the tall glass house to a spoiler laid atop an acutely angled back window.
Body side panels are mostly vertical, not quite slab-like; their expanse broken by mild fender blisters circling properly proportioned tires and wheels. Beginning at the trailing edge of the front door and even with the door handles, a soft crease grows as it moves rearward, giving the rear portions substance before ending in the wraparound taillights. An understated character line etched into the doors and running between the wheel arches draws attention to the matte-black rocker panels and subtly reminds the observant of the Tribeca's 8.4-inch ground clearance.
As unsatisfied as we are with the Tribeca's front end, the back end leaves us wondering what exactly the theme was supposed to be there as well. The top half, above the continuation of the waist-high side crease, comprising the rear window and spoiler and looking rather light and airy, looks as if it came from a different vehicle than the bottom half, comprising most of the liftgate, the license plate surround, the bumper and lower trim panel and looking somewhat ponderous. Perhaps it's a consequence of having to package sufficient interior room for a third-row seat, but like the front end, it's a departure from the Subaru look we've come to know and will require some acclimation. And as fondly as we recall the previous century's hot rod era, the dual exhausts don't quite fit.
By the way, the B9 designates the platform. Why did Subaru find it necessary to plug this into the name? We didn't have much luck getting that out of them. So we'll just call it the Tribeca, a name that goes well with Forester, Outback and Impreza. next page