2024 Subaru Solterra electric SUV due in Australia before the end of this year

Subaru Australia has confirmed it will start taking orders for its first-ever electric vehicle in October ahead of deliveries before the end of the year.

Subaru Australia is about to open the order books for its first-ever electric vehicle, the Solterra mid-size SUV, which is due in Australia before the end of the year.

Subaru Australia’s managing director Blair Read told Drive the company expects to start taking orders for the electric SUV in October with local deliveries due to start before the end of the year.

That would mean Subaru is scheduled to beat the Solterra’s near-identical Toyota BZ4X twin to the punch, with Toyota confirming deliveries of its version are not due to start until February 2024.

The Subaru Solterra and Toyota BZ4X electric vehicles are twins under the skin. Both are built in the same Toyota factory with the only differences the badges, lights and bumpers.

Both vehicles are likely to have been delayed as they wait for a technical update said to unlock more driving range and faster charging in the high-tech electric SUVs.

Toyota detailed a series of updates earlier this year following real-world independent testing in Europe that showed the Toyota BZ4X could only achieve 65 per cent of its laboratory-tested driving range – further from its claimed figure than other electric cars tested in similar conditions.

Toyota Australia has promised an “upgraded spec compared to what is currently available” for Australian models, believed to refer to software updates designed to increase the driving range. Those updates are expected to flow onto the Subaru Solterra.

Mr Read said interest for the Japanese brand’s first-ever electric vehicle remains high.

“We’ve had a lot of interest and a lot of customers going into dealers or coming to us asking for more information or wanting to place an order,” Read told Drive.

“Orders haven’t officially opened. There are a number of customers who have said as soon as that happens, they want to know and want to place an order. So, there’s been great interest.”

Prices for the Subaru Solterra are still to be confirmed: “That will come between now and October,” said Mr Read.

However, it’s likely the Solterra will become the most expensive four-door Subaru ever sold in Australia with Mr Read previously telling Drive it would be priced commensurately with its main rivals.

Those rivals include the Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia EV6 and Tesla Model Y. All three have models in their respective line-ups priced in the $70,000 to $85,000 range.

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