Subaru Solterra - Let's Pretend It Doesn't Exist (ENG) - Test Drive and Review
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 พ.ค. 2024
- Subaru Solterra is the Japanese brand's first EV. Solterra and its Toyota Bz4x sibling are both made on Toyota's EV platform e-TNGA. The name Solterra is a combination of two Latin words: sol - sun and terra - earth. They are meant to emphasize Subaru's commitment to delivering traditional SUV qualities in a responsible and environmentally friendly manner. How is the Subaru Solterra different from the Toyota bZ4x? And is there any Subaru left in the Solterra? Watch this to find out!
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↔ Subaru Solterra dimensions:
✔ length: 4690 mm
✔ width: 1860 mm
✔ height: 1650 mm
✔ wheelbase: 2850 mm
✔ boot/trunk: 441 L
💲 Subaru Solterra starting price: 57 490 euro
💲 Subaru Solterra Platinum Plus price as tested: 60 990 euro
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#MarekDrivesENG #SubaruSolterra #ToyotabZ4x
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Chapters:
0:00 intro
0:30 what is the Subaru Solterra?
1:15 Solterra vs. bZ4x
2:50 off road test
6:00 range
7:50 route planning
8:20 charging
9:10 driver aids
9:50 driving impressions
10:10 performance
10:35 cockpit
12:30 rear seat
12:58 boot
13:20 pricing
13:30 conclusion - ยานยนต์และพาหนะ
I think that on paper there are better vehicles than the the Subaru Solterra. As an owner of one, I can tell you that after looking at comparable EVs in the market place, it was actually easy to pick it for the purchase.
For starters, the Tesla Model Y is more expensive ( I got the Touring with everything, got a discount from the dealer, and got an interest rate under 2%) I also got a more traditional vehicle with door handles and displays on front of the steering wheel. Also, I have a baby so I need to be able to close the sunshade so she goes to sleep, something I can't do in most EVs in the class.
Ok, sure, so there is the Mach-e... almost purchased one until the one they had listed used had been at the ford dealership for repairs awaiting parts for a month... and I found a local dealer that has 10+ lemon law buybacks from California for sale... so not going to be sending any money Ford's way. There are the offerings from Kia... again, aesthetically they didn't make a good impression inside or out. So what's left...
Actually impressed by Polestar, but they are entirely too small for my frame and the Polestar 3 is more than $100k. As far as an ID4, I sold an Athlas at a loss because it had so many electronic problems, we weren't going to wait until the warranty ran out on that. the app never worked properly and it would randomly turn off when you stopped the car. not sending VW any money their way ever again.
So I hope this helps anyone, I don't know if this can be your ONLY car, we have a Suburban, a Chevy Camaro which I only drive on long drives if needed for work. But the Solterra is the daily driver for me and my wife.
it's super faszinating, how car producers, who started very late building electric cars say to themselves: "no, no, we don't learn from the other car makers and all their mistakes they had made in the first years they built electric cars and so we build electric cars propperly, right from the beginning, no, no, we do the same mistakes ourselves for a while when we build our first electric cars." And what concerns functions that are not related to electric specific systems: "let's try how the reactions of our customers will be, if we build a nice bunch of annoying and bad function for another 5 years into our cars".
It's because they all have the arrogance of: we can do better than them, so they start from scratch and...they do exactly the same mistakes...
Solterra was our family favorite pick. Comfortable to drive. Loved by our second row passengers. All wheel drive. But only 64 kWh net capacity, limitations with DC charging (restricted amount of fast charging per 24 hours), software not particularly oriented towards EV drivers need. Subaru is rolling out a software update now that solves some of the issues with software but we’re going for a different EV. I think Subaru made a nice car but there’re better EVs out there.
My Subaru dealer called last week and asked if I wanted a Soltera that someone cancelled on. I asked what the lease price would be since that’s the only way to get the 7500 ev tax credit in the US. They came back back with $1000 a month!!! 😂 A Tesla Model Y Dual Motor Long Range is around $600. On top of that, in the US we only get a version with a lesser battery that can only handle 100 Kw charging. So the Soltera is $60k, vs. the Tesla at $50k and costs $400 more a month to lease than a Tesla while having less range, less power, and charges much slower. No thanks! This thing is Dead On Arrival. 😆
Yeah…Tesla costs a minimum of 200mo to insure. And I have a perfect driving record. This is not a typo.
I just priced a top of the line Solterra today and it was 698/month lease with only 2 grand down. The model 3 tesla (same price) was $732 /month with $2030 down. So they are very close. The Tesla has better range and power. The Subaru has better comfort, utility, and looks
@@DeeSnutz-bd1nt just bought my model 3 last week. It’s $350 a month which is in line with our similarly priced ICE vehicle.
@@tomasher1911 sounds like your dealer is giving you a better deal. Just picked up my model 3 last week. $425 a month with tax. 🤷🏻♂️
I just worked out a deal for a touring with no money down at $600. Subaru is trying to push these out fast this month so it might be advantageous....at least in my market.
I have just had my Solterra upgraded here in Norway . now the percent is shown on the console and the range for 100% battery is 420 km (252 miles). The value stipulated when I bought this Solterra was 416 km (250 miles). I am therefore satisfied. The car has performed well (as Alex states in his verdict). As for being cautious (nervous) about road trips, well I will embark on my first road trip in a couple of days. I am sure it will go well since I have mapped a number of chargers on the route. Bye the way, the new upgrade permits 4 DC charging (actually 3.86) in a 24 hour period. This is a significant improvement over the former 2.. Bear in mind that the conservative, restrictive control over charging is motivated by a desire on the part of Subaru/Toyota to lower degradation of the battery pack. The present improved restriction is fine by me because I do not see me going over the top with extremely long road trips. Conclusion: reasonably satisfied.
Exactly, Toyota are saying 90% of battery capacity after 10 years! also for me the offroad awd capabilities are mean to be really good for an suv. Japanese made. Its probably what ill end up buying, but definitely a niche market.
It was as I excpected. A miss. From your review I understand that if some robots would force me to buy BZ4X / Solterra, the Subaru is the better one. Thank You, Marek, for great channel and useful reviews!
It is a perfectly fine car. The glovebox situation is insane, but the rest seems fine.
Great and honest car review 👍 cha cha chaa
The Subaru Solterra and Toyota Bz4x have not sold in my neighborhood, while the Tesla Model Y are numerous as crows.
A car for people who don't know anything about EVs and have more money than sense
Just say you can't afford one, mines great..
@@neilmick6778 glad you like it. It has nothing to do with affordability, there's just no chance of me spending £50k on an EV with an EV-database range of 200 miles. You can get so many better EVs for that money or less
An elderly friend of mine is buying one, solely because he has bought Subaru ICE cars for the last twenty years. Can not offer one credible reason why he should not buy from a more established EV maker. Not logical, but understandable.
@@dominicjoslin5431 if your friend can charge at home and doesn't drive very far, they will probably be very happy. They may never realise how mediocre the Soltera is
Given the small battery pack a good EV, 350km real workd range. 10 years warranty, and due to recent updates far better charging. It won a comparison test in the Netherlands with VW'S Id4 and Audi Q4 etron....., the solterra the better ev and far better build car....
Hm... I cannot find anything to make me want one.
I am Subaru fan but i don't think the solterra is that bad. I have an 04 Forester XT and an 09 justy and i like both of the cars although they are opposite from eachother. I test drive a solterra and i really liked it and i really liked the feel of the driving itself and acceleration want bad at all, although it's not any kind of rocket. The price is absurd for what it offers in Europe, but i would probably get one if i had the money and if it has a few issues revised.
Nice video and presentation, thank you!
While I was laughing at your beached car, I began thinking this isn't realistic. The real offroad test should be driving over a parking curb. You know those concrete stops? That's probably what the soccer moms will be driving over.
Now to those dull black quarter panels.... so when these get little scratches it looks awful and because the plastic is pebbled and dull, buffing it will be impossible. Good Job Subayota. And that little steering wheel still blocks the binnacle for me at 6' tall. And why is there carpet on the dash? This isn't the 1970s. 218hp?? LOL. From 2 motors? That's embarrassing. Piano black...UGH
Fine video though Marek. Thanks!
Yes, a parking curb is probably the most challenging obstacle this car will every see. With this much ground clearance it should do fine.
If you live in the snow, this thing is the best EV under 90k USD. The big black panels don't crack when you scuff a snowbank. They're easy and cheap to replace. The steering wheel is no issue for me at 5'8", so I don't know what you're doing wrong. We got 14" of snow at our house last night (Utah mountains at 8000ft), and this drove out of our unplowed street just fine on Blizzaks. Yes, if you high-center a vehicle in deep soft sand, it will be stuck. Doesn't matter if it's a Subaru EV or the Ford Raptor I pulled out of soft shoulder last winter with my landcruiser. The manuals are in the center console under the armrest instead of a glove box, and the gloves I normally kept in the glove box sit in the large bin in the center console. It's not a big deal, and frankly it's easier. These types of hyperbolic reviews and comments do nothing but perpetuate the same talking points that you have to spend more, fall in line, and buy the same thing that the algorithm demands to be cool.
0:57 Those words have exactly the same meaning in Portuguese.
As of 11/2023- a lease of ZERO down and $349 a month doesn't sound too bad.Or ZERO percent financing for 72 months. Wow!
Our family have 5 , and we all love the vehicle 😅
5 Solterras or 5 People..???..............Paul
@@paulholterhaus7084 5 x solterras!
おーかっこいい！
Being it shares the Toyota frame is a bit of a sad thing but having awd and off road is appealing
I am not convinced and I have no need to go to the woods.
MG4 looks more modern and is even cheaper.
With that price, I'd go for Tesla Model Y.
You would buy more specs but at a lower build quality, something many people forget about these days
Middle of the road boredom for 61K Eurons? Shakes my head in disbelief.
It will be better if you set infotainment screen in English during reviews.
This is the result of benchmarking against yourselves… no CEO should have allowed this thing to be sold under TOYOTA/SUBARU. Is really below concurrence, as CX30EV… still have seen any on the streets.
I want to like it. I like many things about it. But somehow it just feels a little short of where it should be to be liked. Maybe if it was $5-8K cheaper I could forgive it.
Great review, but not a vehicle I'd be interested in.
I always thought off roading with EV was a scary risk, the whole battery bank is down there, you scrap that on a rock, bye bye car
Very expensive for something that isn’t really good enough. No glovebox was a fail on the Toyota and it is here too. The salesman said the handbook information is available in the menu, then I asked what happens when the menu fails. By this time there was tension between us, so I politely left.
The manual is in the center console. A print version. Open up the armrest, and lift out the bucket. There is storage space under there with a full set of manual.
I am really enjoying this SOLTERRA after two months of driving and unfortunately I dont agree with your hasty review.
Chances are you're at least one major software update ahead of this piece of crap. I don't think I was hasty. This car received the same amount of attention, as any other model on the channel.
Subaru and Toyota have a very loyal customer base that will buy these cars and they will sell as long as they don't make too many of them. But I think these loyal customers are going to feel burned when they realize how far behind these cars are behind the competition. Maybe there is some data they'll get from these cars or they felt they needed to have some kind of EV on the market. But I think in the end they are harming their reputation. The question is whether or not Toyota/Subaru can catch up when they get serious about building a good EV. Is it too late?
I’m a loyal Subaru customer, and I’d hoped the Solterra would be my first EV. It won’t be, and I’m disappointed but not surprised. As soon as they teamed up with Toyota it was likely to be underwhelming.
On another matter, where are those solid state batteries that Toyota have been promising for the past few years
Loyal Toyota customer … I’ll die before I get an EV
Hi Marek. Very good review as always. However, your conclusion is not original this time :) It seems many people think that Toyota and Subaru released these awful things just because they where forced and not because they wanted to. So the end result is...well you know better. Cheers
D.O.A.
Big miss. I mean, leaving EV part aside, the whole design looks stupid. Those central vents are way too low, and the ones on the back...are they serious?
No idea who approved this, but the only way they'll be able to sell some is for half of the base price but top trim. Otherwise, this is going to be a super limited edition car :)))
What I can't get over is Toyota removed the piano black trim from their last gen Prius because of so many customer complaints that it scratches easily, shows finger prints, etc. So they removed it from that vehicle because of the complaints...why on earth would they think it's a great idea to put it in another vehicle? Did they not learn their lesson last time? The Toyobaru Solterra is way over priced for what you get and only the unknowing would even think about buying it.
Definitely a miss.
Wow... amazing offroad capability.
Gonna buy an Isuzu pickup in the future
A bit of a disappointing effort from Subaru, though I get the feeling that this car is 99% Toyota. To put a positive spin on it I guess it's okay considering it's their first real EV, but it's still not market competitive.
I still prefer the interior presentation and the controls of this over the ID.4 though (except the piano black - that can get in the bin).
Just give Me a nice all electric Forester....................Paul
I could never live with the weird, non standard dash/steering/screen.........Just give Me what the E Equinox is planning.........Paul
And I'm holding out for the coming Prologue..........Paul
All new cars seem to be ugly useless crossovers
Should you have deflate your tyres in that sand to 15-20 psi, no help would be needed.
The car was on its belly already, so too late.
@@MarekDrivesENG Yep. Once you are ”floating” only options are a shovel or a rope.
Hey
Only a perfect consumer would buy one. I've never had the sorts of problems you described here, from any of the aging ICE Toyotas that I've owned over the decades. Modern cars are for the gullible
I have a 4runner with lockers and better ground clearance and I still wouldn't have driven straight into those sand ruts. That's not a vehicle limitation, that's a you limitation, 90% of not getting stuck is not needlessly driving in ways that increase your chances. As for the car itself, I've driven plenty of EV's at this point, and it's one of the only ones that can go off road, the 20" rims on the top two trim packages and the lack of a spare tire are the real issues in that case. Tesla's have horrible quality control, and a poor support network outside of major urban centres, to say nothing of the idiot CEO. The biggest limitation in this review was the operator.
I've been up this hill with the Nissan X-Trail (the with a petrol engine that powers electric motors), and it was fine. I drive my MINI Countryman here, and I it got up there once. The second time I had to tow it down, but that's expected. I know there are deep ruts, but most I take here, if they don't have sufficient ground clearance, they at least have sufficient power to get over them. This one didn't get up to the point, where I'd excuse it for getting stuck. The computer cut power much too early, and the allegedly clever AWD couldn't cope.
It looks like Toyota did everything to avoid significant investments in fully electric cars. The only EV they came up with is pretty much a failure (it's BZ4X or Subaru Solterra - the same car more or less). If the market finally goes in the EV direction, Toyota (along with Subaru) will have to catch up (if it's not too late)
😂😂😂 we will see about that … EVs suck anyways
It's sad to see how far Subaru have fallen.
I don't know whats wrong with Toyota ahmm Subaru...they don't have a hand for cozy interiors.
Subaru needs to stop teaming up with Toyota. The technology is from Toyota where the screen can only handle one object at a time, very basic interior, low range because Toyota doesn't believe in electric vehicles, and everything else that sticks out. It was appealing, but i think i will just stick with the Volvo EX30 that's right under $35,000
Wow, this vehicle is incredibly underwhelming. In almost every metric it’s stats are way under what Tesla gives you.
Toyota and therefore subaru,are,"playing"at this and the EV versions of their vehicles...they have never followed the latest trend or design ethos of the time,like Mazda to a certain extent,and,i think they more interested in "possibly" hydrogen cell fuelled cars,or maybe more realistically,like porsche etc,synthetic fuelled vehicles,and,see this as their long term future...of course,i could most DEFINITELY, be a 💯 wrong...i usually am lol!!😂👌👍
Literally, neither use nor ornament. Jeesh.
2 tonnes of car running on battery power ......i will never think thats a good idea ..... It will eat brakes and tyres and handle like a sponge on castors ....... and how long will heavy batteries last before they die unexpectedly .........??.... Expensive , garbage ........ Rather have my petrol.Focus
Very Poor effort...
Is there is anything positive on this vehicle from this guy. No car is perfect! that is for sure. But I would not listen to this guy.
No, the car's crap.
so what vehicle of that line would your recommend?
@@MarekDrivesENG
@chisim11 BEV, AWD or AWD BEV? BEV - anything that meets your price/range criteria, assuming you have a regular place to charge cheaply. AWD - an Outback or Forester seem like the obvious choice. AWD BEV - I don't thing it really works, because BEVs are too heavy, and all the electronics are trying to be smarter, than the driver, who may actually know what they are doing off road.
@@MarekDrivesENGseeing how you approached those sand ruts you're in no place to talk about being smarter than the car.