2023 Subaru Solterra Australian launch timing confirmed

The 2023 Subaru Solterra – the Japanese firm's first electric vehicle – will launch in Australia next year, it has revealed.

Wheels understands Subaru has secured a production slot for the first half of the year, making a mid-2023 or third quarter arrival likely.

Blair Read, Managing Director of Subaru Australia, said: “We are excited to confirm Subaru Australia will continue its electrification journey with the introduction of our first battery-electric vehicle, the Solterra, in 2023.

“Solterra starts a new era for Subaru by combining electric vehicle technology with Symmetrical All Wheel Drive. This delivers the all-terrain capability Subaru owners have enjoyed for decades.

“We look forward to sharing more about the Solterra with Australians soon.”

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Although Australian spec has not yet been revealed, in its Japanese domestic market, the Solterra features the brand's X-Mode AWD system, a hexagonal grille and a choice of 18- or 20-inch wheels.

The Japanese five-seat model is 4690 millimetres long, 1860mm wide, and 1650mm high, with a 2850mm wheelbase and 210mm of ground clearance, and weighs in at 2020 kilograms. That makes it larger than the Forester, but smaller than the Outback.

It's electric driving range is a claimed 460 kilometres coming from a 71.4kWh lithium-ion battery pack, and the Japan-spec version has two motors capable of churning out a combined 160kW of power – though there will also be offered a front-wheel-drive option with a single 150kW motor.

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In fact, the addition of front-wheel drive to the Subaru line-up makes the Solterra its first FWD since the late-1990s' Liberty, and only the second two-wheel-drive offering from the manufacturer this decade after the BRZ – also developed alongside Toyota's 86.

It's unlikely the FWD Solterra will be offered in Australia, however, with Reid indicating all-wheel drive makes the most sense for our market.

While the Solterra's AC charger has a maximum output of 6.6kW, the DC fast-charger's 150kW output will allow the battery to be taken from a 0-80 per cent state of charge in roughly 30 minutes.

The Solterra will be based on the collaboratively created e-TNGA EV platform that we’ve already seen forming the basis for Toyota’s upcoming bZ4X electric SUV.

However, Subaru has given its version of the skateboard-style electric chassis architecture a different name – the e-Subaru Global Platform (e-SGP).

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Asked whether the Solterra will come to Australia in one high-spec variant or whether there will be a more affordable option offered too, and what his hopes for a volume-selling model might be, Reid remained tight-lipped.

"We haven’t finalised spec and features completely yet, we still have some time to do that. So we’ll watch what customers are looking for in that space, at how the landscape for those vehicles might change, as well as what the latest offering from the factory is in terms of what we can include in that vehicle," he told Wheels at the recent launch of the brand's WRX.

"Symmetrical AWD has been an iconic part of the brand since its inception, and combining it with an EV powertrain allows for some really exciting developments in how those two come together – as well as how electric power generation can be used, not just from a powertrain perspective, but in terms of ride and handling and how you distribute power.

"It’s a dynamic market…when we get to 12 months from now it could be very interesting."