Subaru Solterra

The Subaru Solterra is like a late arriving guest. Everyone else has been at the party for ages, and the Solterra has slipped in almost unnoticed.

The party in question is the big switch from petrol and diesel to electric power. Most manufacturers have had an EV in their showrooms for some time, many now have an extensive range of electric cars. The Solterra is Subaru’s first EV.

Rather than going it alone, Subaru has worked with Toyota to create the Solterra. Underneath the edgy styling, the Solterra is much the same as the Toyota bZ4X. Toyota has contributed its battery know-how, Subaru its expertise with all-wheel drive.

You can order the Toyota with a four-wheel-drive system as an option, but every Solterra is a 4×4. That suits Subaru as a brand that’s popular with rural drivers, but it does mean the Solterra is quite expensive to buy compared with other similar EVs. The likes of the Kia EV6 and Skoda Enyaq have much lower starting prices.

The Solterra goes some way to justifying its cost with a long list of standard equipment, whether you go for Limited spec or the more expensive Touring. For maximum range it’s best to stick with the Limited model, with a claimed range of 289 miles. That drops to 257 miles for the high-spec Touring.