Subaru Solterra | Test Drive | Auto Class Magazine

Subaru Solterra | Test Drive

29 May 2023 Redazione News, Tested

No longer able to experience the thrills of the legendary WRX STI, Subaru excellence focuses in its unstoppable all-wheel drive skills. The Solterra has the delicate task of introducing 100% electric propulsion in a context where freedom of movement is everything. We have decided to challenge electron autonomy, where there is no sign of charging stations.

Words Tommaso Mogge / Photos Gian Romero

Just a few days ago the European Parliament established that from 2035 all manufacturers will have to exclusively produce 100% electric propulsion cars. As an enthusiast, the first thought is that it is no longer just a matter of numbered days, but a strong fear that the possibility of leaving just to enjoy our petrol sports car will almost certainly have to deal with taxes, an increase in fuel cost and who knows what else. The second thought, even if in 12 years there is time to adjust the infrastructure situation, instead turns to something even more important, such as the need to be able to continue to move freely. I have to clear my mind from these bad thoughts, I need to do it away from the oppressive city traffic, far from the world and get lost at the end of a dirt road where I will certainly never find charging stations. And I decide to do it with an electric car.

Subaru’s first electric, to be precise. It’s called Solterra and it’s the twin born from the partnership with Toyota, which as history teaches, already gave the world an exciting sports car like the BRZ, or GT86. This time the music is different and plays the silence of a shared green engine that carries forward a joint venture that sees Toyota take care of electrification and Subaru of driving dynamics and traction, obviously on all four wheels, a flagship that for Pleiadi’s family turns 50 this very year. I talked about twins, but to tell the truth, the two Japanese brands have clearly differentiated their models, in fact it is not just a mere question of badges. As far as the Solterra, we have a work that underlines how much electrification does not necessarily have to make you give up driving precision and therefore steering, set-up and brake pedal feeling are more marked on the Subaru than on the Toyota.

Today is not time for comparisons though, but to recharge the 71 kWh battery pack, with a port that is capable of receiving up to 150 kW and going from 20% to 80% in just 24 minutes. With fully charged batteries, the range varies from something like 330 km in urban cycle to 230 on motorway sections, for a final average of around 280 km. Certainly not a value that allows you to escape the city in total relax, given that I will most likely need to recharge before coming back home, especially bearing in mind that the top-of-the-range 4E-xperience+ trim with 20″ rims loses a bunch of kilometers in terms of overall mileage.

Two engines therefore, each to take care of the respective traction axle and capable of distributing the torque in a millimetric way, a factor that makes the experience on rough roads even simpler than what already is at the wheel of a Subaru. But the Solterra is the one that sits at the top of the list, an SUV with a sloping tail and a refined design that raises the quality level with an all-new passenger compartment that features a small diameter steering wheel just below the digital instrumentation and a large central tunnel that incorporates a generous 12.3” touch display, equipped with a fast software and an excellent satellite navigator. There are also numerous physical buttons, including those for the climate control and those for the driving modes, but we’ll talk about this when the asphalt gives way to gravel and stones.

The Solterra is a refined and eco-friendly SUV – we said that – but as it should be, it doesn’t fear getting dirty, protecting the bodywork thanks to the large plastic bands running all over the wheel arches. That’s why I tackle the first dirt section with total ease. I continue on what to all intents and purposes has by now become a road immersed in the woods, with the pointer of the navigator following a thin line that soon disappears completely. There isn’t a single noise, except for a few birds flitting among the bare branches and a couple of foxes running across the narrow road covered with a few dry leaves and mud. The cameras are very useful, not only when maneuvering, because they allow you to see what’s in front and behind, but above all to keep the overall dimensions of the car under control, showing it transparently on the large central display. The lack of an internal combustion engine allows reduced overhangs and in this case the Solterra boasts a 21 cm ground clearance, 17.7 cm of front angle attack and 25.4 for the rear one, roughly the same you get on the Outback. Add that the electric traction is instantaneous and does not waste even one of the 168 Nm available and it moves forward with unthinkable ease for over three quarters of SUVs of the same category.

A couple of bends and several kilometers later, I notice that the range left drops gradually but proportionally to how the throttle pedal is used. If on more traditional roads it is possible to choose between the 3 different driving modes: Normal, Eco and Power, the climb that awaits me beyond the bonnet suggests engaging X-Mode, equipped with 2 different programs (Snow/Gravel/Mud and Mud/deep snow), in turn adjustable to maintain between 2 and 10 kph along the most demanding downhill sections. All too easy. Yes, because the Solterra is an infallible and silent weapon. It drives smoothly and rewards a completely relaxed drive, but also knows how to swallow overtakes and show off the stiffest set-up available in the Subaru range today.

I am literally pampered in a very spacious and infinitely bright passenger compartment, thanks also to the panoramic roof. The materials are good and while I’m not a fan of delicate, scratch-prone piano black surfaces, the Solterra is Subaru’s future at your fingertips today. No gear lever, but a pressure wheel through which to engage D, N or R, while you can set different levels of energy recovery from the paddles on the steering wheel, just to gain a few kilometers during braking. It’s comfortable for those up front, but those behind also enjoy plenty of space, thanks to the flat floor, while the electronically operated trunk holds up to 421 l of cargo, with a useful bottom for stowing the charging cables. Under the front bonnet you find the electric motor.

The fog brings with it a few drops of rain and the gravel under the wheels turns into mud. The X-Mode has no problem and accompanies me to the end of the road, at the foot of the gigantic wind turbines that represent one of the many ingenious ways in which we try to respect a planet to which we have maybe asked too much. The future and the electric cars that they are imposing on us are after all the consequence of all this and if in recent years we have had the opportunity to get to know them well, appreciating their qualities and real possibilities of use, the fact that we do not consider them ready to replace thermal engines is mainly due to the lack of efficient and fast enough recharging stations that still force us to plan the next day’s journeys with advance. There are 12 years to resolve and commit making electric cars an acceptable reality.

In its own way, the Solterra is probably the first electric SUV capable of taking you to the top of the world and then returning home with the knowledge that you have not damaged the surrounding environment and this is due to the badge on display up front. The return to the city, with the bodywork dirty with mud, leaves people wondering about the fact that probably not all electric cars are limited to the home-work commute, or to live enclosed in the city’s quadrilaterals, within reach of power sockets of all kinds. Maybe there is a way to approach the electrified world as if we didn’t depend on electrons, getting used to the eco-chic transition and continuing to do what we would have done with a petrol or even a diesel engine. The Solterra has the great advantage of not making you waste time asking too many questions and taking into account that the mileage is not among the best in its category, it demonstrates that it is enough to have great skills that represent what really matters at the end of the day. With 50 km of range left, just as the residual charge alert begins to warn me, I reach the charging station we usually use and in 56 minutes I charge 42.552 kWh, more than enough to go home after a beautiful day immersed in nature, in which I have not even once looked at the terrifying juice left.