Subaru's EV bargain is cheaper than the Toyota bZ4X? International pricing hints at sharp price point for Solterra EV ahead of locked-in Australian launch

International pricing has been revealed for Subaru’s incoming Solterra EV, giving us our strongest hint yet at what we can expect to pay in Australia when it arrives in 2023.

And the news is mostly good, with the Toyota twin listing at the equivalent of $63,646 in Japan for the single-motor variant, which isn’t just fairly sharp in the high-priced world of electric vehicles, but cheaper than its closest relative — the Toyota bZ4X — which lists at the equivalent of $64,256.

That’s just the start, of course, with the twin-motor variant upping the cost to $68,332 - which is still pretty strong pricing for an upper-spec variant.

Now it must be said that new vehicles rarely arrive in Australia wearing a straight currency conversion price tag, but these new figures give us a strong idea of where Subaru will be positioning the Solterra.

All Solterra models are equipped with a 71.4kWh, 355-volt lithium-ion battery, with front-wheel-drive variants pairing it with a single 150kW electric motor turning the front tyres.

Subaru says to expect a 530km driving range, based on Japan’s WLTC cycle, and is capable of taking on 150kWs of DC fast charging.

But all-wheel drive models have another trick up their sleeves, with two 80kW motors — one at each axle for 160kW total — unlocking what Subaru calls X-Mode, which is designed for rougher roads and debuts a Grip Control function which maintains a constant slow speed, allowing the driver to focus only on steering.

Subaru in Australia has officially opened registrations of interest for our market, saying “the all electric Subaru Solterra hits Australian roads in 2023.”

“The Solterra EV brings the Subaru brand’s trusted reliability, state-of-the-art safety technology, and legendary Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive engineering to an all-electric SUV,” the brand says.