Subaru might be quietly building a Tesla-killer
Subaru may be rolling out an all-electric crossover by 2021.
Subaru, which is owned by Fuji Heavy Industries, plans to launch the vehicle within the next five years and base the car on the Forester or the company's next Outback, according to the Japanese news site Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun, which cited sources close to the matter.
The car will be built on Subaru's Global Platform, which the company announced in March, according to the report. The platform enables the company to easily build a wide variety of vehicles, including electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.
Subaru declined to comment for this story, but a company spokesperson told Automotive News that if the company did build an electric car, it would most likely be built on the new Global Platform.
The company is one of many automakers aiming to venture into long range, all-electric cars during the next few years. General Motors, Ford, Volkswagen, Volvo and others are all ramping up investment in the space.
Tesla, though, has a leg up on most of the competition. The company already sells the Model S and Model X, and aims to begin delivering its first mass market electric car, the Model 3, by 2018.
Volvo is aiming to launch its first electric vehicle in 2019. Volkswagen plans to roll out 20 new vehicles with either battery-powered or plug-in hybrid drivetrains by 2025, and Ford is also expected to launch a 200-mile range electric vehicle within five years.
So far, General Motors is the only major automaker that will launch its long-range EV before Tesla. The car maker plans to launch its $37,000 Chevrolet Bolt, which has a range of more than 200 miles, next year.