September 1989. Subaru-Isuzu Automotive employees gathered in the Lafayette plant to celebrate the first Subaru car and Isuzu pickup to roll off the line. (Photo: Journal & Courier archives)
With little fanfare, Subaru of Indiana Automotive and its 3,898 associates on Thursday will observe the 25th anniversary of the first vehicles produced at the automaker's Lafayette plant.
The day will pass much the same as it did on Sept. 11, 1989, when two vehicles, a beige Subaru Legacy sedan and a bright red Isuzu light truck, rolled off the production line without public celebration.
On Sept. 15, 1989, state and local government leaders and about 800 associates and executives from Subaru parent company Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. and Isuzu Motors Ltd. celebrated the Japanese partnership to build and operate the 2.3-million-square-foot facility at 5500 Indiana 38 East.
A company archive photo shows about 800 associates gathered around the vehicles on the production floor. Both windshields bore the message, "Subaru Isuzu Automotive, Job 1, Sept. 11, 1989, Team Up For Tomorrow."
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