I am a proud and happy owner of a Subaru Outback and the vehicle has served me and my family well over the years. As I started looking into the hybrid and EV market, I was curious if Subaru made any hybrids. Let me share with you what I found.
Subaru makes hybrids, specifically plug-in hybrid, also known as PHEV. Subaru has released the 2020 Subaru Forester and 2020 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid in Australia but it is not available everywhere. Subaru also has announced plans to electrify their entire lineup of cars by 2035. Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid seems to be available in some North American dealerships.
The new Crosstrek hybrid is a series-parallel PHEV and will use two motor generators.
Although Subaru currently makes and sells many Partial zero-emission vehicles(PZEV), Subaru stopped making hybrids a few years ago. The company decided to halt hybrid production since sales numbers were disappointing. This was a result of a bad fuel economy and had a high starting price.
Similar to other Subaru cars, the Crosstrek hybrid
- is an all-wheel-drive
- Has a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine
- Has an electrified plug-in-hybrid model
- Can run on electricity for up to 17 miles
- Has an 8.8 kW-hr lithium-ion battery.
There are many reasons to admire or want a Subaru Crosstrek hybrid, but the burning question on my mind was when will the Subaru Crosstrek hybrid be available.
From the Subaru website, it looks like there is no 2021 model of Crosstek hybrid, and I checked with local Subaru dealers and they did not have any either.
Most other Subaru models are PZEV. I have written about PZEVs. You can read an introduction to PZEV here. There will be more articles in the future, so please make sure check back.
If you are new to the world of hybrids, I have researched and written many articles. You can start here on PHEV vs FHEV.
Subaru CrossTrek Hybrid
You can view the official Subaru CrossTrek Hybrid Video here
Subaru hybrid crosstrek mpg
According to US News, Crosstrek Hybrid gets EPA-estimated 90 MPGe combined city/highway. Crosstrek hybrid also has all-electric rage of 17 miles. Regular Crosstrek gets 35 MPG.
https://fueleconomy.gov/feg/noframes/42292.shtml
How does Subaru Crosstrek hybrid work?
2020 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid is second generation hybrid, and it is a plug-in hybrid or PHEV promising about 17 miles of range from battery
Here are other features of the Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid
- All wheel drive
- Costs more than regular Subaru Crosstrek
- Has 2 motors
- First Subaru PHEV
- Has 8.8 kWh battery pack
- Rear-mounted battery pack
- Generates 148 HP Combined (compared to 152 HP on regular)
- 240 Volt Level 2 charger charges in 2 hours
- 8.7 inches of ground clearance
You can read my other article about Subaru Starlink here.
It uses a system called StarDrive that includes 2 electric motors named MG1 (Motor Generator One) and MG2. Caranddriver says this
“Motor Generator One (MG1) sends juice to the battery pack and acts as a starter for the 2.0-liter flat-four engine. The cleverly named Motor Generator Two (MG2) provides 118 horsepower and 149 lb-ft of torque to actually propel the Crosstrek; it works alongside the boxer engine in most circumstances. “
CarandDriver found that Crosstrek hybrid is not quick, and if you go too fast gas engine will be engaged. There is no “EV mode” switch that you might find on a Toyota Prius.
Like most hybrids and EVs, Crosstrek uses regenerative braking. I will write more about regenerative braking in a future post. Stay tuned for that as well.
If you know Subarus, you know about the boxer engine that is in use in all Subarus. Crosstrek Hybrid combines the boxer engine with MG1& MG2. MG1 acts as an engine starter. MG2 powers vehicle for EV driving mode, and chargess battery while brkaing using regeneratie braking.
StarDrive is Subaru’s way of electricfying vehicles according to insiders.
StarLink is also available, and read more about it on our article here.
Read Subaru’s Press kit here: https://media.subaru.com/newsrelease.do?id=1371&mid=156
Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid Vs Subaru Crosstrek
So as a driver, what is the difference between the hybrid and regular Subaru Crosstrek?
- Hybrid gets 148HP combined, 152 HP for regular Crosstrek
- MPG hybrid is around 90MPGe vs 27 for regular Crosstrek
- Hybrid Price is $35345 while Subaru Crosstrek is around $22000
Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid Rating
Cars.com rating is 5, Caranddriver gave it a 8/10 rating.
Edmunds suggests a price of about $33k.
Notably, we picked the 2020 Subaru Crosstrek Plug-In Hybrid as one of Edmunds’ Cheapest Electric Cars for 2020. – Edmunds.com
Other Subaru Hybrids
Subaru outback is not available as a hybrid.
Subaru Forester is available as a hybrid at least in Australia.
Subaru has released a hybrid model of Subaru’s popular mid-size SUV, the Forester, costing $3000 more than its regular/gas model. That makes the cost of Forester hybrid to be around $45k.
You can watch a review of the Subaru Forester hybrid here:
2020 Subaru Forester and Crosstrek Hybrid have luanched in Australia.
Most other Subaru models are available as a PZEV. We have an article here about PZEV, please read that here.
Future : Will Subaru make hybrids?
Although I cannot predict the future, according to released information from Subaru, there are no current plans for hybrids. However, Subaru has announced e a new BEV named Evoltis.
If some auto magazines are right, we may be able to see Subaru BEV in the market as early as 2022.
Subaru has worked with Toyota, who owns 20% of Subaru, on hybrids and EVs, and so you see a lot of technology overlap between these vehicles.
Frequently Asked Questions
Subaru Crosstek Hybrid is a PHEV or a plug in hybrid. 2020 model Subaru Crosstrek is available in the US. Edmunds selected 2020 Crosstrek Hybrid as one of the cheapest electric cars of 2020.
Subaru Crosstrek and Subaru Forester. Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid is a hybrid. Subaru Forester also has a hybrid option. But, the Forester hybrid is not available in the USA. Both Crosstrek and Forester were released in Australia. Subaru Forester Hybrid costs around $45k and seems to be available in Australia, and I could not find an option to buy one in the USA.
Subaru Outback is currently available only as a PZEV, not a hybrid. Although there has been speculation online about a Subaru Outback hybrid, there has been no official announcement.