Subaru has released a teaser for a "new SUV" that looks an awful lot like the next Crosstrek. While I'm sure many folks are positively jonesin' for a new Crosstrek, what intrigues me about this announcement is what isn't announced - or rather what simply can't be heard.
Watch the short video for yourself, but more importantly listen to it.
What do you hear? Some fancy soundscaping, a little wind, and and a lot of tire noise. Now what do you not hear? Keen listeners will notice that completely absent from the soundtrack is an exhaust note or any hint of an internal combustion engine.
What does it mean? Well, I speculate that it could mean one of two things. It's possible that Subaru going to premiere an all-electric version of the red-hot Crosstrek; or they're going to unveil a plug-in hybrid Crosstrek with significant EV-mode range. I think the latter scenario is more likely.
In either case, I hypothesize that we'll be seeing a new BEV or PHEV Crosstrek in a couple weeks, which I think would be great at the right price point. The suspense ends September 15th, so stay tuned.
UPDATE:
One major thing about this announcement that I neglected to mention (or even notice) at first was the flash of lightning and rumbling thunder at the end of the video. As seen in the screen grab below for just a couple of frames, you can clearly make out a lightning bolt accompanied, of course, by some thunder. You can't tell much about the rear of the vehicle even if you toy with the exposure, which I did; but doing so doesn't reveal an exhaust outlet from what I can tell. That doesn't necessarily mean we're looking at a pure BEV, because tailpipes can be easily concealed in the undercarriage, so a PHEV is still very likely. In either case, an electric Subaru is imminent, and it will likely have more off-road cred than the Solterra, which is a very good thing.
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