Subaru Australia names top national dealership technician

Eblen Subaru Glenelg technician Richard Ferguson has beaten four other finalists to take out the 2023 Subaru Australia technician competition.

Those four were James Daly – Eblen Subaru, Graham Dell – Subaru Aspley, QLD, Brodie Rogers – Key Motors, QLD and Nathan Rowney – Hunter Subari, NSW.

Ferguson has also won a coveted spot at the Subaru World technician competition in Japan which is hosted bi-annually by the Subaru Corporation

After a four-year hiatus (due to the COVID pandemic) Subaru Corporation will be holding the 8^thconsecutive competition. 

There are 13 Subaru distributors that will be competing, including Australia. 

To find the best Subaru representative in Australia, the five finalists were challenged to diagnose electrical and mechanical issues pre-programmed into multiple ‘stations’, including a written test, at the Subaru Academy Training Centre in Melbourne. 

Time constraints applied for diagnosis, and Subaru Australia’s expert Technical and Training team oversaw the competition, so contestants faced significant pressure. 

After a challenging competition, Fergusson was named the winner. 

“It was a really tough competition and I’m really happy to win,” he says. “I’m really looking forward to representing Australia in Japan and competing against the world’s best Subaru technicians.”

As the winner, Ferguson was presented with the Gary Mathews Memorial Award trophy. 

This award commemorates Gary Mathews, who passed away in 2011 after a battle with cancer. Matthews was also a long-term employee at Eblen Subaru Glenelg and was a Subaru Master Technician who was held in very high regard with his peers and Subaru Australia. 

Subaru Australia ownership experience general manager Mark Robinson, congratulated the five technicians on make it to the finals of the 2023 competition. 

“It was an incredibly difficult competition, and all five finalists were challenged and stretched on the day,” Robinson says. 

“A big congratulations to Richard who has demonstrated exemplary skill and proved the best Subaru Technician in the country to represent Australia on the world stage. We wish him the best of luck in Japan in June,” he says.