[jg.]

Well, I had Toyota’s for a lot of years as well and I think it really depends on the dealership you use. The latest one used to break more than they fixed, ran my brand new Tacoma into one of the yellow poles protecting their doors, and smeared dog crap on my passenger seat. That and how cheap their cost cutting makes their products feel was the last time, until the Solterra, that I’ve dealt with them. I took a huge loss walking across the parking lot to the Subaru dealer and trading in that fully loaded Tacoma on my first Outback but 13 Subaru’s later, I couldn’t be happier.

 

[EvaA]

I have a Solterra that I purchased this last spring and am really enjoying it. At the time I purchased it, I considered it competitive with other main stream EV SUVs and a good value. I did my research and understood that I would be able to use it to travel from southern Oregon to the SF Bay Area and Portland. This requires DC fast charging and the Subaru online information confirmed that the Solterra was sold with the capacity to fast charge, accepting charging rates up to 100 kWs. But turns out it doesn’t.

Both my Solterra and my fiend’s Solterra will not charge faster than 23 kW at two different Electrify America DC fast charger that work normally and had capacity to charge up to at least 150 kW. On this forum and from others elsewhere online, many if not all owners of 2023 Solterras have the same experience. This means that to charge at a DC fast charger with say a 10% state of charge to 80% SOC, it will require us to spend 2-3 hours at the charger. Traveling a distance that requires a fast recharge to reach our destination just became more than 50% longer to reach, measured in time. This has made what appeared to be a good choice for an all around vehicle into one suited for day trips of a hundred miles or less and almost unacceptable for someone who wishes to drive more than a few hours from home.

When we asked our dealer about this, they referred us to Subaru. To date, I have not been able to find anyone who has received an admission from Subaru of what looks everything like false advertising, an explanation as to why we were misinformed, or any offer to somehow mitigate the impact this has on the value of the car to its owner.

I have owned Subarus before and had great experiences. This experience has changed that. I don’t think Subaru understands the importance of setting this right with owners who took a chance, depending on the company’s reputation, on a brand new model. I have lost trust in the company as a result.

I am calling on Subaru not to ignore this issue. To admit that they inaccurately advertised and find a way to either reconfigure Solterras to charge at a faster rate like other manufacturers have attained, or admit this undisclosed limitation has lowered the value of the car and find a way to compensate us.

I can’t help but hope that the 2024 model has caught up with the competition or at least Subaru advertises its DC fast charging abilities accurately.

Ok, to answer your question, yes the 2024 is supposed to charge faster. There is another article here in this forum that states what the new 2024 is about. I am sorry you are disappointed about it. What do you like about the Solterra? After reading some of the comments, my heart sinks a little bit due to the complaints and the range. It scares me that maybe I made a mistake. Tesla has been out there for a while and upgraded. This is the first that Subaru is getting into it. I test drove a few cars from regular to Hybrid (sluggish) to Plug in Hybrid (peppy and best of both worlds) and all out EV. I drove the Nissan Ariya which I loved. I enjoyed it, but some of the reviews are not that great and the estimated miles per charge is supposed to be about 300, however, after reading in a Ariya forum, that isn't the case. Driving ranges depend on weather and how you drive. I'm an old lady, so some of the complaints don't apply to me. I want safe, solid, comfortable and safety features. I am a little bit shaking when it comes to long range driving. I would go to upper Oregon and utah. And, by 2025, Tesla superchargers are supposed to be available to any EV. I'm looking into a converter to be able to charge my car to Tesla supercharger, but I got a warning about that as well. We do still have a gas car and if there's a problem, we can drive that. I really appreciate this forum cause I have so many questions. It's my FIRST EV and my LAST car.

 

[EvaA]

This would apply if only a few owners complain. But if this story mounts to thousands of owners that become aware of this situation (both Subaru owners and non-subaru owners alike) , it should affect sales negatively, and much more importantly, manufacturer reputation. A negative perception can take months, even years to recuperate from and nothing could be worse than to risk losing that Subaru buyer loyalty momentum.

The best strategy is ALWAYS to acknowledge the situation publicly, and work like mad to find a fix, or solution.

Ok, consider these are the first years Subaru is getting into EV, so there's growing pains. There may be thousands of owners across the USA, but Nevada is a state that doesn't have pollution laws. Calif does, so more are sold there. There are very few EV's sold in Nevada, other than Teslas. I got my Solterra due to my love of the brand, the comfort and stability and AWD, Plus, it's less than other EV. I would say take it up with Subaru and Toyota as they build these cars together. They are improving as they go along. I'll bet the 2025 will be more of what you expect. My new 2024 is going to have faster charging abilities. By 2025, Tesla is supposed to allow other EVs to charge at their fast chargers.

 

[EvaA]

They can make this “right“ by swapping out the CATL packs for Panasonic and changing the charging rate algorithm to at least the same one used for the Panasonic packs.

Short of that, I am not sure there’s anything useful they have done to improve the situation for CATL pack (unfortunate) owners.

Also, what I understand, new types of batteries have been developed and tested. One is a solid state that will hold 600 miles per charge. The other is some other type of battery not using lithium or solid state. But, for right now, EV's are not that popular yet.

 

[EvaA]

CATL is a manufacturer. Toyota chose to use their batteries on the AWD bZ4Xes and Solterrae in North America, rather than the Panasonic batteries used in the FWD bZ4Xes in North America and AWD/Solterrae in the rest of the world. They either chose a poor-performing battery to save some money or don't trust that they can charge it faster and not end up with a bunch of warranty claims down the line.

Someone needs to let Subaru know that. My 2024 has faster charging so they say.

 

[EvaA]

In Northern New England dealers seem to have 0 to 2 Solterras in stock. And none of them are Limiteds.

actually, I'm in Reno area, Northern Nevada and I ordered a 2024 Solterra which is supposed to be here this coming week. Nevada is not a low emission state, so they don't get too many EV cars other than Tesla. So, if there's a demand they will have more. Calif. seems to get more EV in all brands. Maybe your best bet is to order one.

 

[FelineFreddie]

From Reuters News:

Gravity opens fastest EV charger in US to public in New York City

Google-backed EV infrastructure startup Gravity Mobility has opened the fastest charging solution in the United States to the public, as it looks to attract fleet customers.

Seems to me they appear to have a very optimistic view of how many miles one can get from a kWh…

 

[JayEM]

From Reuters News:

Gravity opens fastest EV charger in US to public in New York City

Google-backed EV infrastructure startup Gravity Mobility has opened the fastest charging solution in the United States to the public, as it looks to attract fleet customers.

Seems to me they appear to have a very optimistic view of how many miles one can get from a kWh…

Indeed, 4.8 miles/kWh.

Also very optimistic about how many vehicles can accept anywhere near 500 kW.

 

[FelineFreddie]

It’s just another example of the many outlandish claims being made by the EV industry.

As an EV owner and supporter of the EV world, this really bothers me. Wild over-optimism rarely ends well…

If this “exuberant optimism” keeps on, it’s going to really start having a negative effect on the EV industry as well as EV acceptance by the larger public audience. The EV industry as a whole really needs to start cleaning up its act…I fear there is going to be a price to be paid at some point.

 

[BillLin]

Someone needs a visit from a troop of rideshare EVs topping off...

 

[Marek Barinka]

Describing charger speed as "distance added per time" is probably the worst thing.
It tells you nothing, it is just to create false expectation for "less educated" people...
500 kW is probably a little over optimistic, but at the same time I think I read that Tesla started with too slow chargers and had to rebuild a lot for about two years? old infrastructure.
Maybe it is good future proof value, maybe a little bit overkill?

 

[ashealy478]

Other than the dealer, did you communicate this to Subaru directly?

I've fast charged a bunch of times on ten or so road trips over the last year. Generally I get 60kW or more if I'm below 25% SoC. Once above 35% SoC the kW charging rate drops, with %SoC and kW adding to about 100.

A couple times, I only saw 45 or 50kW to start when below 25% (not counting the time it warned of reduced charging for maintenance), and once only 25kW. I can't imagine always starting at 25kW or slower!

Will the dc chargers of 350kw charge the Solterra much faster than the 100 or 150kw chargers?

 

[FelineFreddie]

No, the Solterra can only accept a maximum fast charge of 100kWh.

 

[JayEM]

^^ in the North American markets ^^

 

[R P]

Been away the last 3 weeks (New Zealand) and just back on the forum now. I see the hottest topic is still charging speed. Sad actually, because people still have not accepted that this is NOT a trip car, even though it was well known and documented on this forum over a year ago, before the Solterra was available for initial deliveries. There might be some improvements with the 24 model year, but am sure it will not be substantial or satisfy those that want faster charging. So the complaints will continue...

In our case, we bought the Solterra for its off-road capabilities and it has excelled at that, so we are very happy with our purchase. It has many other fine qualities, like ride quality, climate control, cabin comfort, etc, and overall exceeded our expectations. We have almost 20K kms on it now, and so far zero problems.

Our other car is the Ioniq 6, and it too has exceeded our expectations. It is our trip car and is exceptional at that, with its fast charging. Hyundai in general is very advanced with all its EV related capabilities and controls, in cabin, and remote. So can't compare it to the Solterra in that respect. It is also drives very well, super quiet, etc, but the ride is not quite as soft as the Solterra, but more sporty with its suspension and low profile sedan design. Have just over 7K kms (since last July) so making good use of it, too. And have been using it for ski trips too (instead of the Solterra like last year). It is has a Snow drive mode (can be used at any speed), and makes the car rock solid on snowy and icy roads. Just have the OEM A/S wheels/tires, but no problem plowing through some pretty deep snow in the ski parking lots.

My wife still prefers to drive the Solterra (what she first got used to), so I mainly drive the I6. Works out well for us.

Re charging, all I can say is don't expect that to improve much. And to those that are still assessing whether to buy the Solterra, all I can say (again) is DON'T if it will be your only car, and you will be using it for longer trips. But if you want an off-road capable SUV, just like the other Subarus, you will be very happy with that.

 

[BillLin]

Been away the last 3 weeks (New Zealand) and just back on the forum now.

What, no internet in Kiwi-land?

 

[jg.]

What, no internet in Kiwi-land?

And didn’t stop by a dealer to experience the squircle so you could tell us about it?
I also wouldn’t necessarily downplay the charging update that almost cuts DC charging in half, seems almost livable now.

 

[BillLin]

I also wouldn’t necessarily downplay the charging update that almost cuts DC charging in half, seems almost livable now.

Everyone's in wait and see mode to hear what the 2024 will offer for fast charging in cold.

 

[Snow Drift]

Everyone's in wait and see mode to hear what the 2024 will offer for fast charging in cold.

Luckily most won't take delivery until it is warm out.

 

[BillLin]

Luckily most won't take delivery until it is warm out.

Lucky for whom? Delayed testing in cold could result in more problems next winter. Or maybe that's just the pessimist in me talking. Maybe it'll work fine.

But still no mechanism to pre-heat the battery on the way to DCFC that we know of, right? Maybe that'll be a surprise fix in software.