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When the Rivian R3 appeared on the scene in Orange County, car enthusiasts saw a nod to the past. The truncated EV revamped Twitter and Automotive Threads of shaped off-road sedans: the Lancia Delta, the AMC Gremlin, the Lada Niva and even the maligned Yugo. He recreated for me, in his brain more than in his silhouette, the Subaru Outback of a quarter of a century ago.
Remember the old Outback? Before it exploded and became just another crossover in a sea of indistinguishable cars, the Outback was a two-tone granola pickup truck with lesbian credibility and font styles borrowed from Raiders of the Lost Ark. It was an original legend, cobbled in combination for express needs. Tribes, especially those seeking the steep roads and highways of the American interior. Its slow acceleration couldn’t compare to a futuristic torque monster like the R3 will be, yet it has fostered a cult following among the generation of road atlas adventurers that Rivian hopes to mirror in the era of big touchscreens.
Although its cars have become more generic and in the 21st century, Subie has maintained its marketing efforts aimed at outdoor enthusiasts and dog lovers, who have become unwavering with the brand. However, while its enthusiasts are the kind of people who obviously have a vested interest in tackling climate change, the global automaker “we love parks” has been slow to sign up for the electric vehicle revolution that hopes to reduce carbon emissions from the auto industry. Subaru’s aversion to electricity has left a giant void in the adventure EV market, Rivian is looking to fill a void.
We were Toyota to build on the Prius’ reputation for durability. The world’s largest automaker has been content to tout its “electrified” lineup consisting primarily of hybrids and plug-in hybrids, waiting for electric vehicle generation and infrastructure to mature before taking the plunge. . Subaru, for all its mother-brand Earth training, did the same.
Admittedly, Subie has ensured that most of its cars meet “partial zero-emissions” standards, reflected in the PZEV badge seen on the rear of a modern Forester. This means that the engine burns fuel overall, but is built with features that reduce smog-forming air pollutants. The PZEV generation does nothing to reduce a car’s greenhouse gas emissions, but it’s the most a normal, non-hybrid combustion car can do.
But Subaru never bothered to build even an MPG maximizer like the Prius. And it has been even more reluctant than its partner Toyota to join the battery revolution. Subaru’s only entry, the now-cancelled plug-in hybrid variant of the Crosstrek, boasted a negligible 17-mile electric diversity before going back to gas. According to Green Car Reports, the Crosstrek Hybrid was truly a “compliance car”: anything that automakers built to meet strict regulations like those in the state of California, not because they were in the vehicle. .
The Crosstrek PHEV could die because Subaru finally has an electric vehicle: the Solterra, built on the generation platform evolved by Subaru in collusion with Toyota. It’s the same vehicle as Toyota’s first electric vehicle, the bZ4x, but with Subaru badges. The angular look of the Solterra will actually appeal to someone, and the car will satisfy superfans’ preference for an all-electric Subaru. But the Solterra is a boring crossover with a diversity of 228 miles that can’t compare to the existing generation state. This in fact did not provoke a reaction from the R3.
For those willing to forget about the climate crisis, the economic case for the existence of a zero-emission generation is clear. Even as the era of electric cars unfolds around them, less electric car brands are promoting many cars. more than 15 million cars in 2023, of which 632,000 were Subarus, up 14% from last year. Subaru hasn’t lost money on electric vehicles like Ford as it tries to identify its battery business. Now that EVs are caught between early adopters and the general public, it’s arguable that those resisting are cynical, but smart.
It’s also not easy to build an electric car that does what a Subaru is meant to do. I drove through the empty expanses of the American West in a two-wheel-drive Tesla Model 3 that began life with a 240-mile drive, according to the EPA. It’s a challenge. Freezing temperatures in Bryce Canyon took a toll on the battery. The steep, icy road to Canyonlands National Park pushed the dubious ground distance to its limits. The diversity was light enough to tempt fate by going off-road and driving through Utah’s rugged interior. , a resolution that made me end up borrowing (you guessed it) an old Subaru Outback from a frifinishly stdiversityr while my Tesla charged.
You’d need a small electric vehicle designed for adventure to drive higher and go further. Well, they didn’t build one anymore. The rally-car-inspired R3 promises to combine fat tires and promising ground clearance with exterior-focused main points such as folding seats, a roof tent with film projection, and a rear-mounted shipping box. The Rivians are expected to have a distance of at least three hundred miles, which will be enough to reach most of the farthest places as the map of fast-charging stations continues to fill up.
This is not to say that Subie has set himself up for failure by procrastinating. For all the excitement around Rivian’s new offerings, the R2 is at least two years away from completion, and the smaller R3 even more so. Also, Rivian’s biggest obstacle is rarely Very Subaru, but survival. The startup spends billions of dollars every year and will have to continue selling its giant and beloved R1 SUVs and trucks until mainstream models go on sale.
In the meantime, Subaru could launch a battery-powered Crosstrek and sell several of them to other people who have been buying fossil-fuel Subies for decades. It looks like the plan: The logo now announces that it will launch a quartet of electric crossovers (possibly the existing Crosstrek-Outback-Forester-Ascent lineup, but electric) through 2026, just in time to rival the R2 and R3, and build 400,000 EVs consistently with the year through 2028.
However, all is lost. Every time Subaru introduces a new gasoline-powered vehicle to a level meant to mimic the upper desert or announces its corporate contributions to the national park system, it tries to enhance its prestige as a car for those earth-minded. It was a simple business decision, but the logo showed the enthusiasm he might have had if he had launched an electric vehicle in the spirit of that quirky old Outback.
Or make an Impreza Hot Hatch EV. As R3’s reaction showed, we’re ready.
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