Subaru's Upcoming PHEV Might be Called Evoltis

author: Manish Kharinta   

Toyota and Subaru's partnership has been very successful. The company's badge engineered offerings Toyota 86 GTS and Subaru BRZ have gained a lot of popularity ever since their launch. The company's first-ever plug-in hybrid car will probably go on sale by the end of this year. The launch of the upcoming plug-in hybrid vehicle will be later followed by the launch of an all-electric model. Recent leaks have brought forth more information about the possible Moniker the upcoming plug-in hybrid car might take.

Subaru has not yet released any official statement validating this information. However, last month the Subaru Corporation of Japan filed a US trademark request for the "Evoltis" Moniker. The request was filed via an intent-to-use 1B code.

This, however, does not confirm that the Evoltis name has been exclusively shortlisted for the upcoming plug-in hybrid electric vehicle. The carmaker may still move away and select any other name for its upcoming car. Evoltis can possibly even be the name of a host of items which are a part of the company's electric vehicle technology. This includes Subaru's charging system, plug-in hybrid, electric vehicle setup, the company's plug-in lineup or several other items. The only confirmation we have so far is that the company has shown interest in this name.

Even though there has been no confirmation about the name we expect that the company is very motivated to get ahead of the customers before the end of the year. Publications have speculated that the Japanese automaker will need to release the car before the end of the year if it wants to comply with ZEV requirements of California. This makes it even more likely that the upcoming plug-in hybrid will be called Evoltis.

Takeshi Tachimori is the company's chief technical officer and Mr. Tachimori has confirmed that Subaru has used its partner Toyota's technology for the upcoming plug-in hybrid. The technology in question will be borrowed from Toyota Prius Prime and an emphasis will be made on the incorporation of Prius Prime's all-wheel-drive system. Subaru has won several World Rally championships and is renowned for its offerings which come with state-of-the-art all-wheel-drive systems with exception to BRZ sports car which is offered as rear wheel drive only setup like the Toyota 86 GTS. Toyota Prius Prime also has an all-wheel-drive system in which a third motor is used to propel the rear wheels. This model is available in Japanese Market and it is very likely that a similar setup will also make its way into the upcoming car.

The technological incorporation might also present some challenges for the carmaker. For instance, the Toyota Prius Prime only comes with a 25-mile all-electric driving range. If the upcoming plug-in hybrid gets a CUV body shape. it will compromise the car's aerodynamics even further and add more kerb weight to the vehicle. This means that the driving range of the vehicle will be reduced even further. In addition to that, the incorporation of the all-wheel-drive system from Prius Prime will hamper the electric driving range of the PHEV even more. This only goes on to increase the anticipation for the car, as everyone is looking forward to finding out how Subaru will tackle these challenges.

Manish Kharinta

Manish Kharinta is a automotive writer based in the Los Angeles area. He has worked for automotive industry websites TheSmokingClutch.com, CarDekho.com and CarBikeindia.com. His experience ranges from covering auto shows, to car reviews and breaking automotive news. Manish aims to bring forth his unique perspective on automotive design and technological innovations in the automotive industry.