Compare the2023 Subaru SolterraVS 2022 Toyota Prius Prime

Safety
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Subaru Solterra have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision. The Toyota Prius Prime doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Solterra are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Subaru Solterra has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The Solterra has a standard Secondary Collision Brake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

The Solterra has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The Solterra Limited/Touring has a standard 360-degree Surround-View Camera to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Prius Prime only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

The Solterra has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Prius Prime Limited offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Solterra has standard rear cross-path warning, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Prius Prime Limited offers rear cross-path warning.

Both the Solterra and the Prius Prime have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and driver alert monitors.

The Subaru Solterra weighs 990 to 1140 pounds more than the Toyota Prius Prime. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Solterra its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 29 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Prius Prime last would have qualified as only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2019.

Engine

The Solterra’s electric motors produces 94 more horsepower (215 vs. 121) and 143 lbs.-ft. more torque (249 vs. 106) than the Prius Prime’s 1.8 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

Fuel Economy and Range

The Solterra can travel with zero emissions on a full charge for 222 to 228 miles. The Prius Prime has to start its internal combustion engine after only 25 miles.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Subaru Solterra higher (10 out of 10) than the Toyota Prius Prime (7). This means the Solterra produces up to 11.8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Prius Prime every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Solterra’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Prius Prime:

	Solterra	Prius Prime
Front Rotors	12.9 inches	10 inches
Rear Rotors	12.5 inches	10.2 inches

The Solterra’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Prius Prime are solid, not vented.

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Solterra has larger tires than the Prius Prime (235/60R18 vs. 195/65R15).

The Solterra Premium’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Prius Prime’s standard 65 series tires. The Solterra Limited/Touring’s tires have a lower 50 series profile than the Prius Prime’s 65 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Solterra Premium has standard 18-inch wheels. Only 15-inch wheels are available on the Prius Prime. The Solterra Limited/Touring has standard 20-inch wheels.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Solterra’s wheelbase is 5.9 inches longer than on the Prius Prime (112.2 inches vs. 106.3 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Solterra is 2.8 inches wider in the front and 2.8 inches wider in the rear than on the Prius Prime.

Passenger Space

The Solterra has 4.2 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Prius Prime (95.7 vs. 91.5).

The Solterra has .7 inches more front hip room, 3.6 inches more front shoulder room, .8 inches more rear headroom, 1.9 inches more rear legroom and 3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Prius Prime.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Solterra’s rear seats recline. The Prius Prime’s rear seats don’t recline.

Cargo Capacity

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier, especially for short adults, the Solterra Limited/Touring has a standard power liftgate, which opens and closes automatically by pressing a button. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer a power trunk.

Ergonomics

When two different drivers share the Solterra Limited/Touring, the memory seats and mirrors make it convenient for both. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position and outside mirror angle. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer a memory system.

The Solterra Limited/Touring’s standard easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Solterra’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Prius Prime’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The power windows standard on both the Solterra and the Prius Prime have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Solterra is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Prius Prime prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Solterra’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Prius Prime’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

The Solterra has a standard automatic headlight on/off feature. When the ignition is on, the headlights automatically turn on at dusk and off after dawn. When the ignition turns off, the headlights turn off after a delay timed to allow you to securely get to your front door. The Prius Prime has an automatic headlight on/off feature standard only on the XLE/Limited.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the Solterra Limited/Touring has standard cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer cornering lights.

When the Solterra Limited/Touring is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Prius Prime’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

Both the Solterra and the Prius Prime have standard heated front seats. The Solterra Limited/Touring also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Prius Prime.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Solterra Touring keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The Solterra’s standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

Both the Solterra and the Prius Prime offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the Solterra has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

The Solterra Limited/Touring’s Advanced Park can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Prius Prime Limited’s automatic parking system requires operating the brakes and transmission to safely park.