CarGene
Katsuro Tadaki

Katsuro Tadaki

SubaruDevelopment lead

PGM who brought together the sixth-generation Forester, taking on a development process in which designers draw first, ahead of the engineering requirements

Timeline

  1. 1995

    Joined

    Subaru

  2. 2020

    Project General Manager (PGM)

  3. 2025
    Forester 6th generation
    Forester 6th generation

    2025–presentDevelopment lead

    Design first

    In past development, engineering requirements and dimensions were decided first, and design started afterward. Drawing within so many constraints made new designs hard to come by. With the sixth-generation Forester, Tadaki and his team removed those constraints and took on a development process in which designers first show what they want to express, and then the team discusses how to achieve it.

    Visibility even with a raised bonnet

    To convey strength, the bonnet was raised to give it thickness, and the headlamps and grille were made to look like one piece. The hard part was reconciling the raised bonnet with good visibility, which SUBARU will not compromise on. The team kept thinking persistently from the customer's point of view, and achieved clearer visibility than ever while keeping the design they had aimed for.

Connections

Katsuro Tadaki

Katsuro Tadaki

    Profile

    Project general manager (PGM) of the sixth-generation Forester. He was responsible for bringing the team together on the development project.

    Translated from Japanese sources.

    Subaru engineers

    All Subaru engineers