A hybrid Subaru ‘Rex’? No, not the WRX – however Subaru Australia’s boss has left the door open for an reasonably priced hybrid crossover to hitch the lineup ought to the enterprise case make sense.
“We’re at all times taking a look at our mannequin vary and the way greatest we may give extra Australians choices for Subaru. After we deliver fashions in, they should be proper for the market, proper for Australian shoppers, and we additionally should have permission to play in that territory,” stated Scott Lawrence, normal supervisor for Subaru Australia.
“So it is not a no, however proper now we have got no agency plans to herald the Rex from Japan.”
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However what’s a Subaru Rex? To not be confused with the colloquial identify for the WRX sports activities sedan, the Rex is an affordable sub-compact – or ‘mild’ – SUV that Subaru sells within the Japanese home market.
Successfully a rebadged Daihatsu Rocky, which can be offered because the Toyota Raize in and outdoors Japan, the Subaru Rex presents three-cylinder petrol and petrol-electric hybrid engine choices, with petrol-only fashions additionally providing the choice of all-wheel drive.
The bottom 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol engine develops 72kW of energy and 140Nm of torque and sends drive to both the entrance or all 4 wheels through a CVT computerized; whereas the ‘e-Sensible Hybrid’ quotes system outputs of 78kW/170Nm and solely drives the entrance wheels.
WLTC financial system figures are quoted at 20.7km/L (4.8L/100km) for the petrol and a really thrifty 28.0km/L (3.5L/100km) for the Rex Hybrid, which may make it one of the fuel-efficient non-plug-in autos in Australia.
Measuring 3995mm lengthy, 1695mm vast and 1620mm tall, the Rex is so long as a Suzuki Fronx however somewhat skinnier in width, making this a really compact SUV certainly. It is even tangibly smaller than the Toyota Yaris Cross (4180 x 1765mm x 1590mm).
Japanese home market pricing kicks off from 1,910,700 yen (A$17,631) for the petrol, with the most affordable Rex Hybrid ranging from 2,216,500 yen (A$20,453).
Whereas the Rex may change into one in all Australia’s least expensive SUVs if it hypothetically made it Down Beneath, hurdles would come with funding to homologate it to strict Australian Design Guidelines (ADRs), in addition to the chance of a low ANCAP security score.
Low-cost, compact autos in Japan typically aren’t subjected to the identical security necessities as bigger autos designed for export to markets like Australia and Europe, which might pose a problem for carmakers like Subaru which might be identified for typically reaching five-star ANCAP scores.
Nonetheless, autos just like the Rex pose a possibility for legacy producers to return to the reasonably priced, entry-level finish of the Australian new automobile market.
Save for Hyundai, Kia and the Chinese language manufacturers, only a few automotive manufacturers in Australia at the moment provide new autos that are available in beneath $30,000 drive-away.
Key rivals for the Rex in Australia could be cut-price crossovers just like the Chery Tiggo 4 (from $23,990 D/A), MG ZS (from $22,990 D/A) and Hyundai Venue (from $23,750).
The most affordable new automobile in Subaru’s present steady is the Impreza hatchback, which kicks off from $33,490 plus on-road prices.
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