2023-05-13 03:49:17
Previously responsible for quality assurance, Atsushi Osaki further confirmed that production of Subaru electric vehicles will begin in 2025 at the Yajima factory in Japan. The Tokyo-born executive also told shareholders that a dedicated electric vehicle production line will be installed at the Oizumi plant in 2027. Altogether, total production capacity is projected to be 400,000 automobiles per year.
Batteries will be purchased through Subaru’s strong alliance with Toyota Motor Corporation. The biggest automaker is currently working on solid-state batteries for BEVs, though it’s too early to say whether Subaru’s upcoming electric SUVs will take advantage of that technology.
Subaru already starts year:
See more: New Fiat Strada 2023: check the new prices!
Scheduled to move into his new role as CEO in June 2023, the veteran executive assured investors that all three new models would be detailed at a later date. The big question is, how many of those three are Toyota-designed electric vehicles? Even more important, how dependent is Subaru on Toyota for electric vehicle technology? As of May 2023, we really don’t know, and we can’t make an educated guess either.
Whatever the zero-emissions future looks like for Subaru, two particularities need to be addressed. Remember the terribly bad launch of bZ4X and Solterra? Many of these had to be recalled due to improperly tightened hub bolts. Even worse, bZ4X owners were given the option to buy back outright.
In addition to quality, Subaru also needs to ensure that its next three electric SUVs are competitive. The bZ4X and Solterra leave a lot to be desired compared to their segment rivals.
From the generic styling to the poor driving range and frustrating infotainment system, there’s a lot that needs to be addressed if Subaru wants to sell 200,000 electric vehicles globally a year.
Subaru, like every other Japanese automaker, is full of people in leadership positions who are woefully out of touch with what customers outside Japan want in a new car. Innovative in many ways, Toyota is still conservative in many ways.
The same is true of Subaru, a much smaller automaker with a much smaller research and development budget. That said, both need to step outside their comfort zones to prevail in the increasingly competitive EV space.
#Subaru #attacks #electric #SUVs