The Alcyone SVX, also known in the United States as the Subaru SVX, was a mid-sized, high-performance sports-touring coupé sold by Subaru from 1991 to 1997. It was Fuji Heavy Industries first attempt to enter the luxury/performance car market. Image File history File links 1996_SVX.jpg‎ I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Automakers, also known as carmakers, automobile manufacturers, motor manufacturers, or the automobile industry are companies that design and manufacture automobiles. ... For other uses, see Subaru (disambiguation). ... Fuji Heavy Industries, Ltd. ... For other uses of Alcyone, see Alcyone (disambiguation). ... Car classification is subjective since many vehicles fall into multiple categories. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Hot hatch. ... Cars can come in a large variety of different body styles. ... The Peugeot 406 Coupé, designed by Pininfarina 1990 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC coupé, noted for its large, angular design 1980s Volvo 480 two-box coupé 1997 Rover Vitesse Coupe, club coupe Mercedes CLS, a modern four-door coupé Gala-Coupé of Leopold II, Brussels 1970s Sunbeam Alpine fastback coupé A coup... In automobile design layout is the place where both the engine and driven wheels are. ... In automobile design, an FF, or Front-engine, Front wheel drive, layout places both the engine and driven wheels at the front of the vehicle. ... Four wheel drive or 4x4, is a type of four wheeled vehicle drivetrain configuration that enables all four wheels to receive power from the engine simultaneously in order to provide maximum traction. ... The flat-6 engine of the Honda Valkyrie motorcycle A flat-6 is a 6 cylinder configuration of a flat engine or boxer engine. ... Transmissions provide a speed-power conversion known as gear reduction (in speed) to a higher torque (rotational force) using gearsets. ... The automatic gear selector in a Ford Five Hundred vehicle An automatic transmission is an automobile gearbox that can change gear ratios automatically as the vehicle moves, thus freeing the driver from having to shift gears manually (similar but larger devices are also used for railroad locomotives). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Peugeot 406 Coupé, designed by Pininfarina 1990 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC coupé, noted for its large, angular design 1980s Volvo 480 two-box coupé 1997 Rover Vitesse Coupe, club coupe Mercedes CLS, a modern four-door coupé Gala-Coupé of Leopold II, Brussels 1970s Sunbeam Alpine fastback coupé A coup... For other uses, see Subaru (disambiguation). ... Fuji Heavy Industries, Ltd. ...

History and Sales

Subaru introduced the SVX in the United States in July of 1991 (as a 1992 model), following up the U.S. debut with a Japanese market introduction in September of that same year. The model was designed and marketed as the replacement for their aging Alcyone XT and Alcyone XT6 coupes. For other uses, see Subaru (disambiguation). ... For other uses of Alcyone, see Alcyone (disambiguation). ...

The MSRP of the base model 1992 SVX-LS was $24,445, with the top of the line model with touring package, the LS-L, listing at $28,000. By the end of its production run in 1997, the price had risen to $36,740 for the top-of-the-line LSi.

Despite its high price, sales in the United States were good; 5,280 cars for 1992 and 3,859 cars in 1993, although it is reported that Subaru intended to sell 10,000 SVXs each year. However, sales dropped significantly for the next few years before falling to just 640 units in 1997, at which point Subaru discontinued production.

Total sales of the SVX numbered 14,257 in the United States and a total of about 25,000 worldwide. 2,478 SVXs were sold in Europe (with 854 headed directly to Germany). Roughly 7,000 of all SVXs sold were right-hand drive models. [1]

During the early 2000's, prices have stabilized, and it has become one of the more popular cars to collect from the 1990s, especially among Subarus. Many well-preserved and maintained examples are still on the road today and available at a fraction of their original price.

Body

Alcyone SVX Hood Emblem

In stark contrast to the boxy, angular XT, the SVX had curvy, almost futuristic, lines designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro of ItalDesign and an unusual, aircraft-inspired "glass-to-glass canopy" with 2-piece power side windows. The windows are split about 2/3 of the way from the bottom, with the division being parallel to the upper curve of the door frame. These half-windows are generally seen on exotic vehicles with "scissor", "gull-wing", or "butterfly" doors, such as the Lamborghini Countach, De Lorean DMC-12, and the McLaren F1. The SVXs aerodynamic shape allowed it to attain a very low drag coefficient of only .29cd. Image File history File links Alcyone_emblem3. ... Giorgetto Giugiaro Giorgetto Giugiaro (August 7, 1938) is an Italian car designer. ... Italdesign-Giugiaro S.p. ... Scissor doors, also called Jackknife doors, are automobile doors that rotate up and forward on a hinge near the front of the door. ... A De Lorean DMC-12 with its doors open A Bricklin SV-1 with its doors open The term gull-wing door is used to describe automobile doors which are hinged at the roof. ... 1996 McLaren F1 with butterfly doors Butterfly doors, also called vertical doors or dihedral doors, are a type of door often seen on high-performance automobiles. ... The Lamborghini Countach was a supercar produced by Italian automaker Lamborghini from 1974 to 1990. ... The De Lorean DMC-12 is an American sports car that was manufactured by the De Lorean Motor Company from 1981 to 1983 in Northern Ireland. ... The McLaren F1 was the fastest street legal production car in the world of its time. ... The drag coefficient (Cd, Cx or Cw, depending on the country) is a dimensionless quantity that describes a characteristic amount of aerodynamic drag caused by fluid flow, used in the drag equation. ...

Drivetrain

EG33, quad cam, 24 valve engine

Unlike the previous model, which had been available with either a turbocharged 4-cylinder (as XT) or a naturally-aspirated 6-cylinder (as XT6), the SVX debuted with and remained available with only one engine, the EG33 model 3.3 liter "BOXER" horizontally-opposed Flat-6 or H-6. The engine, internally, is essentially a six-cylinder variant of the EJ22 found in the first-generation Legacy and Impreza. The new 3.3 liter variant was equipped with dual overhead camshafts and 4 valves per cylinder, and had an increased compression ratio of 10.0:1, bringing power up to 230 hp (172 kW) at 5,400 rpm and 228 ft.lb (309 Nm) of torque at 4,400 rpm. Image File history File links 97engine. ... Image File history File links 97engine. ... Air foil bearing-supported turbocharger cutaway made by Mohawk Innovative Technology Inc. ... The flat-6 engine of the Honda Valkyrie motorcycle A flat-6 is a 6 cylinder configuration of a flat engine or boxer engine. ... The flat-6 engine of the Honda Valkyrie motorcycle A flat-6 is a 6 cylinder configuration of a flat engine or boxer engine. ... A cylinder head sliced in half shows two overhead camshafts—one above each of the two valves. ...

The exhaust system consisted of headpipes from each bank of cylinders with their own pre-catalytic converters, which entered a dual-inlet / single outlet main catalytic converter. A single 2.5" exhaust pipe exited the main converter and went into a resonator, and onto the main, transverse, single inlet muffler with twin exhaust tips in the bumper.

The All Wheel Drive system, identical to the All Wheel Drive system found on other Subaru models of the period, had a variable clutch pack center differential using a 90% / 10% power split front to rear, which could transfer up to a 50% / 50% power split for maximum traction if the front wheels started to slip. This superior AWD system was offered throughout the entire production run.

In addition, a Front Wheel Drive version was offered on the SVX during the 1994-1995 model year.

Performance

Acceleration from 0-60mph is 7.3 sec, with a 1/4 mile time of 15.4 sec. @ 92.5mph. The top speed of the 1992/1993 SVX is 154mph, while in later models (1994-1997) the top speed is electronically-governed at 143mph.

Although it was considered to be a very powerful vehicle at its debut, the SVX was heavy, weighing in at 3580 pounds (1624 kg). It was only available with the 4EAT 4-speed automatic transmission, which adversely affected performance. A manual transmission, capable of handling the horsepower and torque of the EG33 engine, was not available at the time of production and was never made available as an option.

Common problems

Transmission failure in the early models, brake rotor warping and wheel bearing failures were all common problems with the SVX. At first glance, it is tempting to blame these failures on the weight of the car, but in actuality, these failures are mostly due to Subaru engineering errors (that in many cases Subaru fixed).

• Automatic transmission failures in the early models (1992-1993) were caused by a fine screen filter installed in the transmission cooler, which was located inside the radiator. Debris from normal wear would build up and clog the screen, reducing or stopping automatic transmission fluid flow, thus killing the transmission through overheating. Subaru later corrected this by removing the screen entirely and installing a proper external filter in the automatic transmission fluid circuit to catch any debris from the transmission, before it entered the cooler.

• Warped brake rotors were due mainly to poor choice of pad material (and possibly inadequate rotor ventilation).

• Rear wheel bearing problems seemed to be due to either defective wheel bearing grease seals or improper bearing assembly when the car was manufactured. The WRX STI uses the same rear wheel bearing and that car weighs in at 3350 lbs., which is not much less than the SVX at 3580 lbs.

• The Subaru SVX is one of the few vehicles that requires an external E-ZPass transmitter. This is because the titanium dioxide coating on the windshield blocks the signal from the RFID transponders.

The Subaru Impreza is a compact car that was first introduced by Subaru in 1993. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... An EPC RFID tag used for Wal-Mart Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is an automatic identification method, relying on storing and remotely retrieving data using devices called RFID tags or transponders. ...

External links

• SVX World Network - The most comprehensive source of information on the SVX
• Subaru SVX Information Warehouse - Valuable SVXipedia and FAQs on maintenance of the SVX
• Research Everything SVX - Specifications on sales, models, options, colors and prices by year
• Jamsvx Subaru SVX - Detailed information on SVX history and variants in the JDM market
• Subaru SVX.com
• 1992 SVX Technical Service Bulletins - Official factory information addressing early problems
• History | Subaru Global - Subaru's official history site
• History | Subaru USA - History of Subaru in America, 1968-present
• Subaru VIN codes