Already partners in the field of sports coupes, Toyota and Subaru have also collaborated to create their first 100% electric SUV with a global vocation. The new Solterra is therefore a close cousin of the bZ4X, from which it is distinguished above all by its specific facies.
If there is a manufacturer who suffers from the penalty in France, it is Subaru. Even its recent hybrid versions are heavily penalized, the fault of an appetite still far too high. But with the Solterra, which will be marketed in mid-2022 after being revealed as a prototype very close to the series, the Japanese brand will finally be able to claim a bonus. This family SUV, 4.69 m long, will indeed be 100% electric. Does its silhouette already remind you of something? This is normal: it is identical to that of the Toyota bZ4X, unveiled a few days before. After the GT86 / BRZ duo, which has since become GR86 / BRZ, the two partners are therefore rewriting the “clone wars” for us!
Some differences in style
This time, the aesthetic distinction is still (a little) more pronounced. Instead of the thin black stripe of the bZ4X, the Solterra gets a faux hexagonal radiator grille that may be reminiscent of the Ford Mustang Mach-E. It adopts more imposing headlights, even if their outline is in reality identical: it is the presence of a body color element at Toyota and the different light signature that blurs the tracks. Two tips that can be found in the rear lights, Subaru preferring here a black strip rather than running lighting across the entire width.
However, the shape of the windows, the two mini-fins at the top of the rear window or the wheel arches surrounded by black are a good reminder that these two SUVs are closely related. Inside, it’s even more obvious. The dashboard is strictly identical, except for materials and colors. Not to mention the logo on the steering wheel, which is however for the moment necessarily round at Subaru. It is not yet known whether the manufacturer plans to also offer the funny aviation-style steering wheel that the bZ4X will first reserve for the Chinese market.
A very familiar technical sheet
The technical chapter does not reserve any surprises. The two manufacturers have in fact jointly designed a dedicated 100% electric platform, like the Volkswagen MEB or the Renault group’s CMF-EV. The only difference is that it’s called e-Subaru Global Platform on one side and e-TNGA at Toyota. On the other hand, we find the same promises of a low center of gravity and high rigidity. For this, the 71.4 kWh lithium-ion battery is housed under the floor and is an integral part of the structure. On the base version, it only drives one 204 hp electric motor, with a range given for 530 km on the Japanese WLTC cycle.
A Solterra with two 109 hp engines, one in front, the other behind, will also be available. It will display a slight increase in weight, to the point of exceeding two tonnes, and will see its range go down to 460 km. But with its four-wheel drive, it is he who will be the most faithful to the Subaru tradition. You just have to get used to the fact that its 218 hp, a power close to that of the first Impreza GT Turbo, is not accompanied this time by the sound so characteristic of the flat four-cylinder dear to the brand.
