You could callit gilt by association, and it is popular with car companies trying to givetheir SUVs a certain cachet in the minds of upscale buyers.
The car corporationfinds a firm that sells stuff of an outdoorsy nature and rents the name andsome of its design direction and applies it inside and outside one or more ofits SUVs. The most famous relationship belongs to Ford with its Eddie Bauermodels, and Jeep tried it a couple of years back with the less famous Orvisfishing gear firm.
It was indeed a reviewof a Jeep Grand Cherokee Orvis edition that lead to one of my favoriteheadlines of all times, in the New York Times, that also caught the tone of thepractice perfectly: ''A Logo Runs Through It.''
Now comes SubaruCanada with its Forester 2.5XS L.L. Bean Edition, which should pretty muchbring these deals to a conclusion unless Volvo or someone decides to do aPopeil Pocket Fisherman line.
L.L. Beancertainly brings the right kind of forest cred to the relationship, since theMaine-based outfitters have been cataloguing the outdoors to urban householdsfor many years. If you go to its website today, for example, you will see anice selection of balsam wreaths, a family snowshoe guide, and things like (sic) ''jodphur'' boots that can bedelivered to your home in time for Christmas.
But, really, ifyou don't know this about L.L. Bean it's not likely you'll be attracted to thenotion of spending $36,595 for a Forester sport-cute with the Maine firm's nameemblazoned on it.
Emblazoning,after all, is in large part what the L.L. Bean Edition of the Forester is allabout, with the logo on the rear hatch to explain to trailing drivers somethingof what you feel about life, and on the floormats and seats to makewho-knows-what connection with the driver. Something about these kinds ofmodels must be important to people, however, or we wouldn't have these modelsto buy.
True fans wouldprobably feel that access to the L.L. Bean mystique and the right to wave it intheir friends' faces would be enough for the $1,100 more that this model coststhan a similarly equipped Forester 2.5XS model. So they may feel they aregetting a bonus when they hear that the package also includes a hard surfacecargo area (which would be a good place to leave those muddy ''jodphur''boots), 16-inch aluminum alloy wheels with a 10-spoke design, and aself-leveling rear suspension.
In any world onany surface, that self-leveling rear suspension will come in handy, since itshould keep the Forester at a pretty good attitude in most situations, andthat's an important safety issue when you're on public roads since it helpsdecide the handling, turning and braking ability of the vehicle.
Beyond that andthe logo-flaunting, the L.L. Bean Edition is pretty much just a well-equippedSubaru Forester, and that's not a bad thing to be.
Sport-cutes arethe modern version of the family station wagon, so they deliver a nice balanceof utility and comfort. Being taller than a sedan makes sport-cutes easier toget into, but it also results in a higher centre of gravity that makes iteasier for them to roll over in extreme moments.
None of thesport-cutes are particularly lush, so the Forester's pretty much as good as itgets in this price range. It's not as quiet as I like a vehicle to be, but it'shard to keep noise out of something this shape. Otherwise it's fairlycomfortable around town or on a long drive.
It's also fairlyresponsive, thanks to its 2.5-litre, horizontally-opposed, four-cylinderengine, which is tuned to deliver 165 hp at 5,600 rpm and 166 lb-ft of torqueat 4,000 rpm. This delivers a pretty good stream of power through the model'sfour-speed automatic transmission, though it can get a little thrashy-soundingif you've got some weight in the vehicle and you're pushing it hard up a rampto get safely into traffic. It gets you there alright, but with maybe moredrama than necessary.
The car corporationfinds a firm that sells stuff of an outdoorsy nature and rents the name andsome of its design direction and applies it inside and outside one or more ofits SUVs. The most famous relationship belongs to Ford with its Eddie Bauermodels, and Jeep tried it a couple of years back with the less famous Orvisfishing gear firm.
It was indeed a reviewof a Jeep Grand Cherokee Orvis edition that lead to one of my favoriteheadlines of all times, in the New York Times, that also caught the tone of thepractice perfectly: ''A Logo Runs Through It.''
Now comes SubaruCanada with its Forester 2.5XS L.L. Bean Edition, which should pretty muchbring these deals to a conclusion unless Volvo or someone decides to do aPopeil Pocket Fisherman line.
L.L. Beancertainly brings the right kind of forest cred to the relationship, since theMaine-based outfitters have been cataloguing the outdoors to urban householdsfor many years. If you go to its website today, for example, you will see anice selection of balsam wreaths, a family snowshoe guide, and things like (sic) ''jodphur'' boots that can bedelivered to your home in time for Christmas.
But, really, ifyou don't know this about L.L. Bean it's not likely you'll be attracted to thenotion of spending $36,595 for a Forester sport-cute with the Maine firm's nameemblazoned on it.
Emblazoning,after all, is in large part what the L.L. Bean Edition of the Forester is allabout, with the logo on the rear hatch to explain to trailing drivers somethingof what you feel about life, and on the floormats and seats to makewho-knows-what connection with the driver. Something about these kinds ofmodels must be important to people, however, or we wouldn't have these modelsto buy.
True fans wouldprobably feel that access to the L.L. Bean mystique and the right to wave it intheir friends' faces would be enough for the $1,100 more that this model coststhan a similarly equipped Forester 2.5XS model. So they may feel they aregetting a bonus when they hear that the package also includes a hard surfacecargo area (which would be a good place to leave those muddy ''jodphur''boots), 16-inch aluminum alloy wheels with a 10-spoke design, and aself-leveling rear suspension.
In any world onany surface, that self-leveling rear suspension will come in handy, since itshould keep the Forester at a pretty good attitude in most situations, andthat's an important safety issue when you're on public roads since it helpsdecide the handling, turning and braking ability of the vehicle.
Beyond that andthe logo-flaunting, the L.L. Bean Edition is pretty much just a well-equippedSubaru Forester, and that's not a bad thing to be.
Sport-cutes arethe modern version of the family station wagon, so they deliver a nice balanceof utility and comfort. Being taller than a sedan makes sport-cutes easier toget into, but it also results in a higher centre of gravity that makes iteasier for them to roll over in extreme moments.
None of thesport-cutes are particularly lush, so the Forester's pretty much as good as itgets in this price range. It's not as quiet as I like a vehicle to be, but it'shard to keep noise out of something this shape. Otherwise it's fairlycomfortable around town or on a long drive.
It's also fairlyresponsive, thanks to its 2.5-litre, horizontally-opposed, four-cylinderengine, which is tuned to deliver 165 hp at 5,600 rpm and 166 lb-ft of torqueat 4,000 rpm. This delivers a pretty good stream of power through the model'sfour-speed automatic transmission, though it can get a little thrashy-soundingif you've got some weight in the vehicle and you're pushing it hard up a rampto get safely into traffic. It gets you there alright, but with maybe moredrama than necessary.