2026 Subaru Trailseeker Photo by Matthew Guy

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Etymologists of old English may recall the phrase “sporting ivory,” words once used to describe a person smiling broadly as part of putting their best foot forward in terms of appearance, showing a bright mouthful of white chicklets and looking dapper.

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The new 2026 Subaru Trailseeker might not be literally sporting ivory but we can’t help feeling its long roof, nearly carlike overall height, and ample greenhouse glass make it a much more handsome vehicle than the recently overhauled Outback, a car which has arguably re-weirded Subaru after a spell of relative normalcy, especially in Wilderness trim. 

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Given its druthers, the Outback probably wishes it looked a lot more like the Trailseeker — if cars were capable of jealously, that is. After all, it can be troublesome when one’s fraternal brother unexpectedly outshines you by cleanly sporting their ivory.

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After years of not having anything to offer customers looking at all-electric vehicles, Subaru is suddenly flush with EVs. This embarrassment of riches starts with the Uncharted which is available with (gasp!) front-wheel drive, followed by the Solterra whose nameplate has been around for several years now. This Trailseeker sits atop the Exploding Galaxy’s electric vehicle heap both in terms of size and price.

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Front and rear electric motors combine to provide all-wheel drive and 375 horsepower. This is plenty considering EVs generally dump out all their power the moment its pilot breathes on the accelerator. In fact, Subaru estimates the Trailseeker can scoot to 100 km/h in just 4.4 seconds, enough to surprise an EcoBoost-powered Mustang if you catch it napping.

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Ride noise is notably loud, exacerbated by Bridgestone Turanza tires with a 400 treadwear rating and the fact there is no internal combustion to smother the hum. Ride quality is good, though this driver wanted to toss an axe through the incessantly nagging nanny-like driver monitoring systems which were designed by Toyota. After it told me for the umpteenth time to “sit up straight,” I began to wonder if it would also soon tell me to eat my vegetables and wash my hands.

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Based on Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan) approved guidelines, the 2026 Subaru Trailseeker is rated to get 444 kilometres of all-electric range from its 74.7-kWh battery pack. An overnight session on the Level 2 charger at this author’s home yielded an indicated 428 kilometres. 

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Replenishing at Level 3 DC fast chargers proved worthwhile on the road since this EV can hoover up electrons quite quickly. An Irving-branded unit advertised at 180kW, maxed itself at 125kW and delivered 18.4 kWh in 9 minutes 37 seconds for a cost of $4.81 total. This bumped range by about 100 kilometres. Not too shabby for splash and dash. A unit at Petro-Can, touted at 200kW but delivering about half that, cost $13.29 and increased range by 140 clicks in 22 minutes 28 seconds. Methinks I’ll stick with Irving based on cost per kilometre gained.

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Let’s do some math. Getting enough DC energy to drive 100 kilometres cost $4.81 at Irving; with a litre of regular going for $1.767 at the time, a person would have to drive a vehicle getting about 2.7 L/100 km to travel that distance using gasoline as the energy for the same price. The costlier Petro-Can would equal roughly 5.2 L/100 km when comparing the cost of energy to drive a hundred kilometres; gas had risen to $1.831 during that session.

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Broadly speaking, especially in terms of the powertrain. Styling differences between the two are obvious, as are swaths of the interior. However, anyone spending time in a modern Toyota will immediately recognize several of the Trailseeker’s digital displays in its cabin. Anecdotally, this author has heard the Toyota is a bit easier to find on dealer lots than this Subaru, perhaps owing to differences in production numbers in the initial ramp up at the plant in Japan where both are built. That said, longish wait times for delivery of a new Toyota are also the norm these days.

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Cargo capacity is listed at 886 litres (31.2 cubic feet) with the rear bench up and 2,095 litres (74.0 cubes) with it folded away. Unsurprisingly, both measures are slightly less than similarly sized gasoline-powered vehicles thanks to space required for the 74.7-kWh battery pack. The space didn’t seem that small, owing to a decently shaped area, some tie downs, and a skiff of underfloor storage.

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In terms of overall dimensions, the Trailseeker is 4,845 mm long and 1,675 mm tall, measures that when combined with an 1,860 mm width and plenty of glass give it a distinctly wagon-like profile, especially when viewed directly from the side. It’s not a bad looking rig and, to be quite frank, is the form factor Subaru should have stuck with for the new Outback instead of leaving that model unattended in the corporate taffy stretcher.

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Despite an overall height some 40 millimetres lower than the gasoline-powered Outback mentioned at the top of this review, there’s plenty of headroom in the Trailseeker, thanks in no small part to a fixed glass moonroof which doesn’t have any bulky motors or tracks. The dashboard itself is nice and low, contributing to a pleasant amount of visibility. In fact, there’s good visibility all around this thing, though standard blind spot monitors help in this modern age.

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That same low dashboard giveth but also taketh away. There’s not quite enough space for proper ventilation registers, now reduced to slim slashes of plastic which never did manage to deliver cold air conditioning to your writer’s face. The absence of a traditional glovebox in front of the passenger is worth talking about, since numerous people on Reddit have said they didn’t know it was absent until weeks after taking delivery. Covered storage is at a premium in here.

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The design does permit great placement of the gauge cluster, located basically at the base of the windshield and operating as a defacto head-up display. Viewing this screen was never a problem thanks to a square(ish) steering wheel, a design with which it was easy to get comfortable, though a habit quickly formed of holding it with one hand at the 12 o’clock position with the adjustable column in its lowest setting. This was comfortable but irked the driver monitoring system, prompting the nagging mentioned earlier. Twin wireless device chargers worked fine yet caused both an iPhone 15 Pro and Pixel 10 to get quite hot. 

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There are three trims of this model, all with the same powertrain and battery size, meaning the extra purchase price goes towards comfort and features instead of horsepower and range. The entry level Touring trades for $57,827 ($54,995 MSRP) while the midrange Limited is precisely a $3,000 walk up the ladder. Our tester, a loaded Premier, was $63,827 and proves Subaru has staggered pricing amongst this trio by an even three grand each. These figures are inclusive of freight and most fees.

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Note well: data from Daddy Government says the 2027 Trailseeker in base Touring trim will qualify for the $5,000 EVAP rebate, suggesting a price cut to perhaps $49,995 MSRP is on the way. This would align with other price adjustments of Subaru EVs for 2027, with both the Uncharted and Solterra getting a haircut this year. However, it seems freight is going up by $300 to $2,595, a sum which doesn’t count towards the 50 grand EVAP cap, denting some savings.

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2026 Subaru Trailseeker Photo by Matthew Guy

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With that in mind, it may behoove those interested in a Trailseeker to hang on until the ’27 model year is announced. A five grand reduction in MSRP plus $5,000 from the feds is a huge chunk of cheddar. And remember: the base Touring has the same powertrain and range as this top-spec Premier, giving up only creature comforts like the 11-speaker sound system and ventilated leather upholstery. As it sits, the 2026 Subaru Trailseeker is a comfortable EV with all-wheel drive and plenty of cargo space — and a form factor which likely makes one of its brothers sorta jealous by sporting better ivory.

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✔ Recharges quickly
✔ Comfortable driving position
✔ Styling the Outback wishes it had

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✘ Lack of real glovebox
✘ Incessant safety nannies
✘ Price may be less in 2027

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