Subaru’s Solterra EV starts at $44,995

Subaru has introduced the pricing of its first all-electric automobile, the Solterra SUV. The automobile, which comes normal with all-wheel drive like most Subarus, will begin at $44,995, with the “Restricted” and “Touring” trims beginning at $48,495 and $51,995, respectively. All fashions may have an additional $1,225 vacation spot and supply cost, bumping their price out the door up a bit extra.

The Solterra may have an “as much as a 228-mile” vary, in response to Subaru, and can be capable of cost 80 p.c of its battery in beneath an hour. Whereas the Restricted and Touring fashions add options like roof rails, wi-fi charging, and a glass roof, there’s at the moment not an possibility so as to add extra vary to the automobile — one thing that many different producers provide.

As somebody loyal to their Subaru Outback, that’s a bit tough. The corporate touts the Solterra’s “go-anywhere functionality,” however my favourite backpacking spot is 108 miles from my home, with a single stage two charger out there wherever alongside the two-ish hour route. I merely couldn’t belief this automobile to get me there and again once more.

Picture: Toyota

Picture: Subaru

The Solterra relies on the identical platform as Toyota’s bZ4X, which begins at $42,000 for a front-wheel-drive mannequin. If you would like the bZ4X with all-wheel drive, you’ll must pay an additional $2,000 — including as much as nonetheless be $1,000 lower than Subaru’s mannequin.

After all, the Solterra and bZ4X aren’t precisely the identical automotive. Sure, they’ve the identical or almost similar vary (when evaluating the AWD fashions, anyhow), X-Mode off-road help, and infotainment techniques, however Subaru’s automobile has 0.2 additional inches of floor clearance. There are additionally not less than just a few stylistic variations between the 2 automobiles (past them being out there in numerous colours), particularly across the entrance; I personally favor the Solterra’s headlights and grille, although I’m unsure I may level to precisely why. And whereas I’m not saying I’d pay $1,000 to have the ability to say “I drive a Solterra” as a substitute of “I drive a B4… no, bZX… wait,” it could not less than be a consideration.

There’s a complication when evaluating costs between the Solterra and bZ4X. Subaru says its EV will probably be eligible for the $7,500 federal tax credit score. Whereas that’s at the moment out there for consumers attempting to get their arms on a Toyota, it in all probability received’t be for for much longer, due to what number of different electrified automobiles the corporate sells. Toyota executives have predicted that by October 2022, anybody seeking to purchase a bZ4X could solely be eligible for a $3,750 tax credit score and that the motivation might be gone utterly a 12 months later.

Provided that Toyota is estimating extraordinarily restricted availability for the bZ4X, it could be robust to get it earlier than these tax incentives are gone. If that’s the case, it may make the Solterra’s larger beginning worth barely much less of an element.

Map: ChargeHub

After all, realistically, folks will even in all probability evaluate Subaru’s providing with EVs just like the $40,900 Kia EV6, $33,500 Chevy Bolt EUV, the $42,690 Tesla Mannequin 3, and probably even the Rivian. None of those are good comparisons — the Mannequin 3 doesn’t get the tax incentive, and it’s a must to spend one other $9,000 to get AWD (although that additionally boosts it as much as a snug 334-mile vary), and the Kia and Chevy aren’t as rugged. However given how costly the Subaru is, consumers would possibly suppose lengthy and laborious about what they actually need from an EV earlier than shopping for.

It’s additionally value noting that whereas many producers do technically have EVs, really shopping for one is usually a little bit of a ache for the time being. The widespread shortages that make it troublesome to seek out automobiles in inventory additionally apply to electrical choices, and we’ve seen sellers making use of egregious markups. At this level, although, it’s laborious to inform whether or not the identical will occur with the Solterra.

Subaru says the Solterra will “start arriving in restricted numbers at Subaru retailers this summer time.”