New Subaru Stella electric prototype plugs into eco conscience

Gunning for the Mitsubishi iMiEV, the new Subaru Stella is an existing Japan-based city car with bigger ideas about the future, and has nabbed the electric powertrain from its R1e concept car forerunner from the Subaru back catalogue.

A teeny bit more abrupt of bodywork dimensions than a Hyundai i10, the five-door Stella’s natural habitat at the moment is restricted to Japan’s streets, where it complies with the country’s ‘Kei Car’ eco-philosophy that stipulates city cars must no more than 3.4 metres long, 1.48 metres wide and 2 metres tall, and possess an engine with no greater displacement than 660cc combined with a maximum electrical energy of 47kw.

Talk about sticklers for rules and regulations. That said, the tax breaks and insurance costs – alongside the environmental-alignment – has resulted in these Kei cars being all the rage for the past decade over there.

The electric version of the Stella draws its breath from a 40-kilowatt ‘leccy motor that’s powered by lithium-ion batteries, which are domestic mains supply re-charged by the owner within 15 minutes using a fast charger, or overnight on a trickle. The range is about 50 miles on full charge, whilst maximum speed tops out at 62mph.

Whereas the two-seater Subaru R1e concept looked like a cheeky, future-proof version of the Ford Ka, the Stella is resolutely more cubist, playing up to the present fashion for box-like urban vehicles in the Far East market – but presenting itself as a far more practical and versatile framework on which to progress its electro-work.

New electric Subaru Stella makes G8 Summit connection.

The electric Stella is Subaru attempting to cash in on the sudden dealer footfall for electric vehicles for the future. In this prototype form at this stage, Subaru is playing a blinder by volunteering four of these all-new electric cars for delegates and officials to be shuttled hither and thither in during next week’s G8 Summit meeting in Japan.

A fifth PR machine will fill a display cabinet in the Environmental Showcase exhibition at the event, coming out when interested parties wish to take it for a test spin.

The R1e has been undergoing testing for two years, and its co-developer, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, has been using 40 cars on its fleet as part of the vehicle's development work.