Subaru plans to go greener with a target to get at least 40 percent of its global sales from full-electric or hybrid vehicles by 2030.
Then, in the first half of the 2030s, the Japanese automaker plans to electrify every vehicle in its global lineup. In announcing the new campaign, Subaru also unveiled the first design study for the full-electric crossover it is co-developing with Toyota for sale before 2025.
The full-sized EV mockup, shown during a technology briefing at Subaru’s global headquarters on Monday, is a low-slung ride with a raked rear window, elongated cabin, digital sideview mirrors and short front and rear overhangs. The front fascia is aggressively creased, while the wheel wells get heavy black cladding that lends the tires a rugged, oversized look.
Subaru will achieve the electrification targets by introducing the EV along with a range of what it calls “strong hybrids” based on Toyota’s system, Chief Technology Officer Tetsuo Onuki said.
The goals are part of wider objectives to reduce the automaker’s carbon footprint, while improving the safety and drivability of Subaru vehicles. The move comes as Subaru races to adjust its all-wheel-drive lineup to surging demand for an onslaught of pricey next-generation technology, covering everything from electrification and autonomous driving to connectivity.
Subaru said that by 2050 it will slash the average well-to-wheel carbon dioxide emissions of new vehicles by 90 percent, compared with 2010 levels. And by 2031, it will also cut direct carbon dioxide emissions from its factories, offices and other facilities by 30 percent, from 2017 levels.
In the area of safety, Subaru said it also wants to eliminate fatalities among occupants of Subaru vehicles by 2030. It will do that by improving the responsiveness and stability of its vehicles, while also upgrading its trademark Eyesight driver-assist system with new high-tech functions.
The electrification plans flesh out Subaru’s roadmap to next-generation mobility. It currently offers a so-called e-Boxer mild hybrid powertrain that was developed in-house for Japan and other markets. And in the U.S., it sells a plug-in hybrid Crosstrek crossover.
