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We recently had the opportunity to drive Subaru’s new Uncharted EV, a close relative of the quicker, more expensive Trailseeker we heard about a while ago. It sports a reasonable price, impressive range numbers, and up to 338 horsepower from a dual-motor electric powertrain. Still, we were left wondering if Subaru missed an opportunity to tie the Uncharted to its vaunted WRX performance branding.
Hear us out. The Uncharted is available in three trims: Premium FWD, Sport, and GT. The Premium model is the most commuter-oriented of the bunch, offering front-wheel drive, 221 horsepower, and a 300-plus-mile range, but the Sport and GT are where things get interesting.
The top two configurations add a rear electric motor and gain all-wheel drive. That setup delivers a total of 338 horsepower, with range dropping to 285 miles for the Sport and around 270 miles for the GT. For those of you keeping score, that power output number puts the beefier Uncharted trims deep into Impreza WRX STI territory.
Now, we can’t claim that either trim’s performance will be anywhere near that of the WRX, and their weight will almost certainly far exceed that of the sporty Impreza’s, but it feels like a missed branding opportunity for Subaru.
The current WRX sedan’s turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine makes 271 horsepower, and the car is available with a six-speed manual or continuously variable transmission. While it’s fun to drive and can deliver a decent number of thrills, it has never lived up to the hype of its predecessors. One major reason is the lack of an uplevel STI trim with more power and aggressive styling.
Subaru showed an STI prototype at the Tokyo Auto Salon show earlier this year, but we don’t yet know if it will come to North America or what form it would take if it did. In the meantime, the Uncharted could be a reasonable stand-in for the STI, especially since the development work has already been done and the EV has been vetted for U.S. emissions and safety standards.
It’s entirely likely that the automaker didn’t want to dilute the WRX name with an electric model, but that doesn’t mean that slightly modified branding couldn’t be popular. We suggested that the WRE name would have been a good fit, allowing Subaru to brand the Uncharted as a performance model without offending the WRX faithful.
The Uncharted isn’t a hulking electric crossover and could be positioned as a performance hatchback under the right conditions. Subaru has already taken a bold approach with the EV, offering bright colors and giving it a somewhat aggressive look. It even has a go-fast “squirkle” (squared-circle) steering wheel, so the only thing we’re missing here is the name.
All of that said, Subaru made its view of the Uncharted pretty clear. The automaker believes it’s more of an electric Crosstrek than a hot hatchback, though the powerful electric motors make it significantly quicker than the sedate crossover. Maybe we’re just being hard on Subaru here, as the Uncharged Sport and GT may do just fine without performance branding.
Regardless of the name, the new EV is surprisingly well-equipped for the price. The base Premium FWD trim comes standard with Subaru’s EyeSight driver-assistance system, which includes blind spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alerts, automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, and more.
Standard tech features include a digital key system, a 10-way power driver’s seat, a 14-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 7-inch digital gauge cluster, and dual-zone automatic climate controls.
While it lacks all-wheel drive, the Premium comes with 18-inch wheels, eco and snow driving modes, LED headlights, and an all-weather package with heated front seats and a windshield wiper de-icing system.
The Sport model adds roof rails, a 360-degree heated steering wheel, synthetic leather upholstery (Subaru calls it StarTex), and a surround-view camera system. Additional driver-assist features include traffic jam assist and lane change assist. The trim also adds a driver-seat memory system and a power passenger seat.
Stepping up to the top GT trim brings a panoramic glass roof with a power shade, ventilated front seats, 20-inch wheels, a Harman Kardon sound system, heated rear outboard seats, and an optional two-tone paint job.
Five paint colors are available for 2026:
Starting prices for 2026 Subaru Uncharted models include:
Those prices exclude Subaru’s $1,450 destination charge, which may vary by state. Alaskan buyers will pay a higher fee of $1,600.
The Uncharted isn’t the most spacious or utility-forward EV, but those prices are refreshingly reasonable, given what we’ve seen across the rest of the market. Adding premium paint costs $475, and the GT’s optional two-tone paints cost $970.
What do you think? Would you like to see a WRX or WRE Uncharted variant? Does the trim name or branding have any impact on your opinion of the new EV, and would a sportier name push you to buy one trim over another? Even if Subaru brings an updated gas-powered WRX to the States, we’re unlikely to see the breadth of special editions, limited models, and other cool variants we had in the past.
Emissions regulations and an unstable global trade situation would make it costly for Subaru to deliver a range of new gas-powered performance cars anywhere outside Japan. Its new line of EVs has only been made possible by shared development and manufacturing costs with Toyota, which has nothing to do with the WRX.
So, the Uncharted GT might be as good as it gets for Subaru electric performance in the United States. Whether you love or hate EVs, we think that’s a little disappointing. Let us know what you think.
