The boss of Subaru Australia is promising extra electrification within the pipeline, hinting that there is “much more to come back” past the Japanese model’s present hybrid portfolio.
Talking with CarExpert, Subaru Australia basic supervisor Scott Lawrence mentioned whereas he could not share precise plans as but, there can be “extra hybrid throughout the vary”.
“Our response [to NVES] is portfolio-wide [and] product-led, as you’ll have seen with Forester Hybrid final yr, Solterra updates and Trailseeker, with much more to come back within the broader hybridisation and electrification house,” Mr Lawrence mentioned.
“It’s a dialogue level, how we develop the hybrid vary, and we’ll see extra hybrid throughout the vary – however nothing to share at this level.”
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When requested particularly concerning the Crosstrek S:HEV ‘Robust Hybrid’ and Impreza ‘e-Boxer’ mild-hybrid Mr Lawrence mentioned he had “no plans” to share at this cut-off date, however each compact mannequin traces would logically be the following cabs off the rank.
The Crosstrek stays a comparatively well-liked mannequin within the Subaru lineup in Australia, although it has misplaced some floor within the gross sales race towards the likes of the Hyundai Kona and MG ZS because the present mannequin launched a couple of years again.
Final yr it managed 10,842 new registrations, with simply 969 of these (8.9 per cent) being the ‘e-Boxer’ model, which provides a 48V electrical system with low-speed electrical drive – therefore the ‘Hybrid’ branding as a substitute of ‘MHEV’.
In Japan, the Crosstrek now presents the identical S:HEV 2.5-litre hybrid system because the bigger Forester, which improves each outputs and effectivity, with a claimed mixed driving vary of 1000km per tank of gasoline.
The bigger engine produces 116kW of energy. It’s mated to an 88kW electrical motor and a 1kWh/260V battery, up from 0.6kWh/188V. The present Crosstrek Hybrid’s electrical motor produces simply 12kW and 66Nm, whereas its 2.0-litre engine produces 100kW and 196Nm.
No mixed system energy or torque determine is accessible for the brand new S:HEV powertrain, however Subaru claims it shaves 2.1 seconds off the 0-100km/h time. The longer vary can also be aided via using a bigger 64L gasoline tank, up from 49L.
It is also price noting the Australian-market Crosstrek Hybrid is now the usual drivetrain within the Japanese home market, with the bottom non-assisted petrol engine in Australia discontinued in Subaru’s homeland.
In the meantime, the associated Impreza hatchback would not even provide the e-Boxer possibility in Australia regardless of it being out there abroad, and regardless of the enduring reputation of the Toyota Corolla Hybrid domestically within the face of plummeting passenger automobile gross sales as patrons gravitate to SUVs.
Hybrid automobile gross sales proceed to speed up in Australia, with 15.3 per cent progress in 2025 to 199,133 items, pushed largely by Toyota’s vastly well-liked vary of hybrids which accounted for 115,953 of those registrations.
Subaru notched up 5150 hybrid gross sales in 2025, up 84.2 per cent. It positioned the Japanese producer eighth within the hybrid gross sales standings, behind aforementioned Toyota in addition to Hyundai, GWM, Lexus, Kia, Honda, and MG.
MORE: Discover the Subaru Crosstrek showroom
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