A Good Cheap EV, If You Can Skip AWD

Subaru has more drivers interested in EVs than just about any other brand. It’s smart—if not particularly great timing—that it’s adding two more to its lineup for 2026. There’s the upcoming Trailseeker, which we’ll report on next week. First up, joining the veteran Solterra in the family is the 2026 Subaru Uncharted.

Almost identical to the all-new Toyota C-HR, and just a bit smaller than the Solterra, the Uncharted strikes out on a new path for Subaru EVs, one in which it nods at one of the more daring Subarus from the past. That iconoclast was the SVX, a big two-door hatchback AWD coupe that bristled with unconventional touches like a radio hidden behind fake burled walnut, a window-in-window treatment on the sides, and a rear wing large enough to serve charcuterie from. 

The Uncharted breaks gently in that direction, though it’s not the non sequitur that the SVX proved to be. More adventurous than the Solterra, the Uncharted wears a thin line across the nose that tethers its LED running lights to its logo. It swells around its fenders in a dual wave that kicks up into a rip current over its rear doors. The rear quarters fold into the pillar and slim taillights to pinch off the body before it boomerangs toward the ground. It’s a sleek body that would look sleeker if it sat lower to the ground, but alas, it’s a Subaru: ground clearance of 8.2 inches isn’t just a good idea, it’s nearly mandatory.

It’s 108.3 inches wheelbase, 177.8 inches long, and the Uncharted makes a lot of space from its footprint. The driver sits in a power seat faced by a squircular steering wheel and a smaller digital display for a semi-bewildering array of gauges; information bleeds over itself, leaving bits like brake regen blended too far into the mix. A wide console with twin phone charging pads sits over a push-and-twist drive selector, and below a massive 14-inch touchscreen that would look at home in a Toyota pickup, because an identical one lives there, too. There’s more passenger space than in a Crosstrek, and more than 25 cubic feet of space behind the rear seats for stuff—but tall people will find the 36.4 inches of rear-seat headroom a challenge on top-line Uncharted SUVs with the panoramic roof.

Subaru will sell three different Uncharted EVs. The base one, a Premium FWD with a single motor and front-wheel drive, will be offered only in limited numbers. It gets the same 74.7-kWh lithium-ion battery as the dual-motor Sport and GT models, but makes 221 horsepower while the twin-motor, all-wheel-drive versions generate 338 hp. The base model earns a 308-mile range rating; the Sport has 287 miles; the GT edition checks in at 273 miles of range. On all, a NACS charging port and a max charging rate of 150 kW enables 10% to 80% charging in as little as 28 minutes. Subaru promises a full charge in about seven hours on a Level 2 plug.

The Uncharted drives more like the SVX than many will remember. That unflappable two-door had a silken drivetrain and a beautifully controlled ride. The Uncharted has taken a hint from the past with its zero-problem EV power and poised feel. Credit those 4,000-plus pounds of curb weight with mashing down bumpy roads into something more pleasant. And like the SVX, it leaves some sporting nods on the table. Paddle controls can dial up more regeneration, for example, but there’s no true one-pedal mode. Though it offers Eco/Normal drive modes on the standard edition and Power on the Sport and GT editions, the Uncharted simply does what it’s asked, dialing in by remote and clicking off its driving assignments without fuss or much feedback. With its low center of gravity and truly quick acceleration—at 0-60 in 4.7 seconds, it’s more brisk from a stoplight than a base Polestar 4—it has that common EV feel of competence.

I ushered an Uncharted through an off-road path at Lake Elsinore east of the California coast, where the X-Mode mode spun a wheel or two before pulling the Uncharted through a set of alternating yumps and up-and-down humps during a cold, miserably rainy day. A Snow/Dirt mode and a Mud mode knit together with a downhill cruise control function to ease it back toward sea level and its final destination. You and it will survive any Airbnb trek into the hills for a long weekend. 

Pleasantly engineered and smartly shaped, the 2026 Uncharted has a plump price tag to boot. The base $36,445 Uncharted Premium FWD, or about $5,000 less than the Toyota C-HR, has orange interior accents that span the dash behind that big 14-inch screen, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. There’s also 18-inch wheels, LED lighting, wireless smartphone charging, a power driver’s seat, a power tailgate, and all the safety features you’d expect, including speed-limit warnings, low-speed driver assistance. Since it’s a limited-availability special, plan to spend up to $41,245 for the Sport, which gets a front passenger power seat, surround-view cameras, a heated steering wheel, synthetic leather upholstery, and X-Mode with hill descent control. The $45,245 GT adds a panoramic glass roof, cooled front seats, 20-inch wheels, and Harmon Kardon sound.

If you’ve shopped a Hyundai Kona Electric, Nissan Leaf or Volvo EX30, the Uncharted suits up as a solid rival. Admittedly, the base price would have looked much better with last year’s EV credits still in place. The past may be bygones, but Subaru’s electric-car future looks rich.

Subaru provided The Drive with travel and accommodations, along with the use of a vehicle for the purpose of writing this review.

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Quick Take

It’s not as weird as some old-school Subaru fans might like, but the Uncharted bakes in plenty of poise and efficiency.