Even if Subaru is quite busy developing their next hybrid-engine in cooperation with Toyota, the first to arrive on the market will be the diesel engines. Europe gets diesels next year and later onn the US market.

“There are many opinions. But currently, the voices calling for diesels are stronger than the voices for hybrids,” Ikuo Mori, president of Subaru parent company Fuji Heavy Industries, told Automotive News Europe.

The Outback and Legacy will be the first models to get the engine. The diesel versions of the large-segment cars will debut at the 2008 Geneva auto show, a Subaru spokeswomen said.