TOKYO, JAPAN --- Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (FHI), the manufacturer of Subaru automobiles, may introduce a gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle by 2012 to help meet stricter emission rules in the U.S., Japan and Europe, according to a Bloomberg report. 

Company President Ikuo Mori discussed the plan to reporters May 20, but did not specify which model might get a hybrid version. 

Subaru will license and adapt Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive system to its current drivetrains, Autoblog reported. The company apparently plans to mate Toyota's hybrid system to Subaru's flat-oriented engines. 

The Obama administration recently announced regulations that will require automakers to meet average efficiency standards of 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016. That's four years sooner than previous rules had required.

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