In November last year, Subaru opened its order books for its first EV, the Solterra SUV, in the Australian market.
Along with this news, the recommended retail price of its two variant offerings was announced, which surprised many as to how expensive it was relative to other EVs in the market.
Now some interested drivers who had inquired about the Solterra are starting to receive emails from dealerships revealing drive-away pricing. One of these is Jeremy, a regular reader of The Driven.
In the email, Subaru requests a deposit on the car, subject to seeing it and a test drive: āAre you interested in doing a $500 deposit to secure an allocation, subject to sighting and test drive etc.?ā
Deposits on cars through dealerships is a standard practice when purchasing a vehicle. Brands like Tesla, Polestar and BYD also take deposits but this tends to be online without a prompt from these brandās experience centres.
The email continues with detailing the driveaway pricing for both variants of the model along with their specifications.
The Solterra AWD starts at $82,200 drive away, while the Solterra AWD Touring is priced at $88,014.Ā
The Subaru Solterra is based on a platform engineered by Toyota. It shares many stylistic looks and underpinnings with the Toyota bZ4x EV which is yet to arrive in Australia. The imminent arrival of Toyotaās equivalent is pencilled in for February.
For the Solterra, both variants with the AWD powertrain deliver 160 kW of power and 337 Nm of torque. This powertrain is paired with a 71.4 kWh battery pack that can deliver up to 414 km of range.
On the charging front, there is 7 kW AC charging on offer while up to 150 kW of DC charging helps the battery get from 20-80% in 30 minutes.
There is Subaruās safety suite available on the Solterra as well with Vision Assist offered as standard across both available variants.
A 12.3-inch infotainment screen is found on the inside along with a 7-inch screen behind the steering wheel.Ā
There are 18-inch wheels while the Touring variant bumps these up to 20 inches. The range with the 20-inch wheels on the Touring is likely to be lower than the standard AWD version.
With driveaway pricing now being introduced, itās only a matter of time before the first customer deliveries start to take place.Ā
In a market with more affordable options, and even Australiaās best-selling EV, the Model Y, having a similarly priced AWD long-range variant with improved range, itās unlikely that the Solterra will be a huge seller in our ever-changing market.
Indicative specifications of variants from the dealership
Solterra AWD – From $82,200 driveaway
- Complimentary 5 Year/75,000km Subaru Service Plan*
- 5 Year Subaru Roadside Assistance*
- 2kW/8Amp AC charge cable to suit Australian standard wall socket
- Carpet mat set and cargo tray
- Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive (AWD)
- Total 160kW power / 337 Nm torque
- Lithium-ion battery with a WLTP test range of 414km*
- Up to 150kW DC fast charge input*
- X-Mode (2 mode ft grip control function)
- 210mm of ground clearance*
- S Pedal Drive
- Subaru Safety Sense ft Pre-Collision System, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, Emergency Driving Stop System, Emergency Steering Assist, Lane Departure Alert, Lane Tracing Assist, Low-Speed Acceleration Suppression, Road Sign Assist & Speed Limiter
- Driver Monitoring ft Distraction Warning & Drowsiness Warning *
- Vision Assist technology including Adaptive High Beam System, Blind Spot Monitor, Panoramic 360 Degree View Monitor, Parking Support Brake, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Rear Parking Sensors & Safe Exit Assist
- Digital rear view mirror
- 8-way power seat with lumbar support – driver
- Heated front and rear outboard seats
- Heated steering wheel
- 12.3″ infotainment touchscreen system
- 7″ digital instrumentation
- 18″ alloy wheels with wheel caps
- LED Headlights with front fog lights
- Powered tailgate
Solterra AWD Touring – From $88,014 driveawayĀ
Features build upon Solterra AWD:
- 20″ alloy wheels
- Panoramic glass roof
- Synthetic leather seat trim
- 8-way power seat – passenger
- Intelligent Park Assist*
- 10 Harman KardonĀ® speakers, subwoofer and amplifier*
- Memory setting – driver seat and door mirror
- Wireless Qi charger*
- Two tone paint options*
RizĀ is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.