Sport-utility vehicles have become car owners' most preferred vehicle, as Tesla's Model Y midsize SUV became the world's best-selling car with about 267,200 vehicles sold in the first three months of the year.
The Toyota Corolla sedan, which sold 256,400 cars in the first half of the year, was the world's bestselling car in 2022, with 1.12 million sales, according to Statista.
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While electric-vehicle makers have plenty of sedans to offer car buyers, many are also unveiling SUVs at a fast pace this year. Toyota Motor in April unveiled SUV and crossover battery-electric-vehicle concept models that will compete with Tesla's (TSLA) -) full-size Model X SUV. The concept models are part of Toyota's bZ series dedicated to BEVs, which will roll out 10 electric models by 2026.
Electric SUVs Popular With Car Buyers
In July 2022, General Motors (GM) -) revealed its new electric version of the Chevy Blazer SUV, which has been a popular internal-combustion-engine model since it first went on sale in 1969. GM on July 31 rolled its first Chevy Blazer electric SUV off the assembly line and has plans to offer three trim levels 2LT, RS and SS.
GM's webpage for the Chevy Blazer EV lists the RS for delivery in summer 2023 at $60,215, the 2LT available in fall 2023 at $56,715 and the SS available in spring 2024, but no starting price listed.
Subaru (FUJHY) -) has been slow to transition to EV production as it currently has only one EV model on the market that competes with Tesla's Model Y sport-utility vehicle, the all-electric Solterra SUV.
The Solterra EV has a range of 222 to 228 miles on a charge and has a manufacturer's suggested retail price of $44,995. Subaru of America, which began delivering the Solterra this year, on Aug. 1 reported 3,730 sales in 2023 through July.
Chief Executive Atsushi Osaki earlier this year said the company would add a second EV-assembly line in Japan to help launch four new all-electric crossovers by 2026 that will be marketed for sale in the U.S. The company's Yajima assembly line will have capacity to build 200,000 EVs a year by 2026, and it will add another line in Oizumi that will also produce 200,000 EVs a year.
Toyota (TM) -) reportedly plans to partner with Subaru to manufacture a three-row crossover EV in 2025 after it begins producing its own model to be called the bZ5X, Automotive News reported.
Subaru Updates Its EV Lineup
Two EV models are not enough for Subaru, however. The automaker will expand its battery electric vehicle offerings from four SUVs, including the Solterra, by the end of 2026, and add four more models with a goal of 400,000 BEV sales by the end of 2028, Osaki said in the company's Aug. 2 "Briefing on the New Management Policy."
Previously, Subaru set a target of 40% of its total sales from hybrid EVs and all-electric EVs by 2030. The company on Aug. 2 revised its goal to target half its total sales, or 600,000 units, of all-electric cars in 2030.
