Subaru Ends Gasoline Car Sales in Europe by 2027 and Goes All-Electric
Subaru will stop selling gasoline-powered vehicles in Europe no later than 2027 and move to an all-electric lineup, the automaker confirmed to Auto Motor und sport. Engadget reported the plan on October 21, 2026. Electrek had reported on October 20 that Subaru would sell only EVs in the region.
The phase-out is staged. The Subaru Outback is scheduled to be the first gasoline model discontinued in Europe, at the end of 2026. The Impreza, Crosstrek and Forester are slated for discontinuation in Europe during 2027. From 2028, Subaru plans to offer only three models in the EU, all battery-electric: the Solterra, the E-Outback and the Uncharted.
The European EVs were developed in collaboration with Toyota and are based on Toyota's bZ4X, bZ4X Touring and C-HR+. Subaru has also announced that it will develop its own EV technology separately from Toyota for its next-generation electric cars. The announced scope covers a new battery, an electric motor and an integrated control unit that supports over-the-air (OTA) updates, meaning software changes delivered wirelessly to the car.
Subaru attributes the European switch to two regulatory drivers. The first is the region's CO2 fleet emission limits. Cars built from 2025 through 2034 must average 93.6 grams of CO2 per kilometre, a 15 percent reduction from 2021 levels. That average is calculated across the whole mix a manufacturer sells, not car by car. The second is mandatory safety equipment. From July 7, 2026, all passenger cars and vans sold in the EU must include Advanced Driver Distraction Warning (ADDW), which alerts drivers who look away from the road, along with enhanced emergency braking.
Scale matters here. Subaru sold about 23,000 vehicles in the EU last year, a 0.2 percent market share, according to Engadget's reporting. Subaru UK's website states that two new all-electric SUVs, the Solterra and the Uncharted, are coming in 2026.
The European plan is not a global one. Subaru's official US electric vehicle lineup lists the 2027 Uncharted, the 2027 Solterra, the 2027 Trailseeker and the 2028 Getaway. The Trailseeker and Getaway do not appear in the three-model European line-up for 2028, so the two regional portfolios diverge from the start of the decade.
In my view, the more instructive detail is the division of labour with Toyota. Sharing the bZ4X-derived architecture gave Subaru a route to European EVs without carrying the full development cost alone. Developing its own battery, motor and control unit for the next generation is a commitment to owning more of the electric stack. That will be judged on whether those in-house systems arrive on schedule and on cost. Over-the-air update capability, if delivered as described, would also move more of the car's features into software after sale, which changes how a Subaru owner receives improvements.
The broader context here is regulatory. Emission averaging and mandatory safety electronics now set the product plan for a brand with small European volume, and the timetable follows those rules rather than a voluntary brand decision. For drivers in Europe, the practical outcome is a narrower choice of Subaru models, but a more electrified range from 2028. For the engineering teams involved, the work ahead shifts priorities toward battery integration, motor control and software update infrastructure. A sharper EV lineup could make a difference to the brand's European position.
