Subaru, like most other automakers are being dragged kicking and screaming to electric vehicles. In January the company announced at least 40% of global sales would be EVs or Hybrids, one of the least ambitious timelines in the industry.
Today Electrek are reporting that a new SUV EV named the Subaru Evoltis, could premiere next year with production in 2022.
The car was previewed in Tokyo back in January, in partnership with Toyota. While the specs are still unknown, we do have a good idea of the design direction Subaru are heading.
Websites Response.jp and Carbuzz provide some photos that show off the aggressive angular designs to the body panels. The front grill section definitely reminds me of the Mustang Mach-E and in many ways this car will be competing directly with it.
The big challenge will be catching up with the specs and sales of the Tesla Model Y which is already shipping to customers in 2020 and in 2 years, it’s likely to be the top selling EV on the planet.
Building a company’s first all-electric vehicle is a fairly monumental challenge and one that’s incredibly expensive. Given the current drop in sales, finding that opporutnity to spend on R&D while the income continues to decline is an incredibly difficult.
The problem is, there’s no option to stop development, or hold on to the good old days. The cat is out of the bag, we know EV is the future, so manufacturers have to suck it up, find the cash and get it done. It is smart to share platform costs with other auto makers and then differentiate on design and the infotainment / tech layers.
Regardless of when it actually arrives, more EVs on the market is ultimately a good thing and if Subaru are going to make it through this transition to new powerplants, they’re going to have to plant the foot firmly on the accelerator.
Would be more appropriate if it’s named “Subaru Revolting”!!
Definitely not everyone’s cup of tea. I do wonder about how aero efficient it’ll be.