Subaru Ascent seven-seat SUV not for Oz

Subaru’s flagship Ascent SUV will not become available in Australia, leaving the Japanese brand without a seven-seat model here.

Subaru Australia managing director Colin Christie said he was disappointed the belated Tribeca replacement — which is built in the US for the US — would remain a left-hand drive-only proposition for the foreseeable future.

“If we could get it tomorrow we’d take it,” Christie told motoring.com.au at the international launch of the all-new Forester this week in Japan.

“It’s a fantastic car that would definitely fill a gap in our product range, but one of the challenges we face – even as one of the largest right-hand drive markets this side of Japan for Subaru – is what would need to be done to change that US plant over to right-hand drive.”

Christie explained that Subaru’s move to electrify its existing model range had impacted the business case for a RHD Ascent.

Hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery-electric variants of Subaru’s current SUV range are expected to arrive in Australia within the next 18 to 24 months, adding expensive development costs that could otherwise be used to ‘tool up’ for RHD Ascent production.

“It’s something we will continue to explore and discuss with them, but for now it’s purely left-hand drive,” Christie said.

“The other thing, of course, is that Subaru is looking at a lot of different model plans at the moment, and hybrid and electric vehicles are a big part of that equation.”

Subaru is expected to release two mild-hybrid SUV variants in Australia initially, with plug-in hybrid and battery-electric models to follow.

Built on Subaru’s new Global Platform, the Ascent is the largest model to yet be produced by the Japanese manufacturer.

Measuring 4998mm long, 1930mm wide and 1819mm tall, it rides on a 2890mm wheelbase and offers seating for up to eight.

Built at Subaru’s Lafayette plant in Indiana, the Ascent is powered by a new turbocharged 2.4-litre flat-four boxer engine making 194kW/376Nm and driving all four wheels via a continuously variable transmission.

North America’s Ascent includes Subaru’s EyeSight safety suite, adaptive cruise control, head-up display, tri-zone climate control and an 8.0-inch Starlink infotainment array with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.

In the US, it competes with the likes of the Hyundai Santa Fe, Mazda CX-9 and Toyota Highlander (Kluger).