Compare the2023 Audi e-tron SportbackVS 2023 Subaru Solterra

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics

Safety

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The e-tron Sportback’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Solterra doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the e-tron Sportback and Solterra have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The e-tron Sportback has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Solterra’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

An active infrared night vision system optional on the e-tron Sportback helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera and near-infrared lights to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The Solterra doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Both the e-tron Sportback and the Solterra have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available around view monitors.

The Audi e-tron Sportback weighs 1249 to 1389 pounds more than the Subaru Solterra. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the e-tron Sportback its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 89 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Solterra has not been tested, yet.

Warranty

The e-tron Sportback comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Solterra’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The e-tron Sportback’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Solterra’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Engine

The e-tron Sportback’s standard electric motors produces 187 more horsepower (402 vs. 215) and 241 lbs.-ft. more torque (490 vs. 249) than the Solterra’s electric motors. The e-tron Sportback S’ standard electric motors produces 281 more horsepower (496 vs. 215) and 468 lbs.-ft. more torque (717 vs. 249) than the Solterra’s electric motors.

Fuel Economy and Range

The e-tron Sportback with its standard motors can travel longer on a full charge than the Solterra Limited/Touring (225 miles vs. 222 miles).

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the e-tron Sportback’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Solterra:

	e-tron Sportback	Solterra
Front Rotors	15.7 inches	12.9 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	12.5 inches

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the e-tron Sportback has larger standard tires than the Solterra (255/50R20 vs. 235/60R18). The e-tron Sportback Premium Plus/Prestige’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Solterra (265/45R21 vs. 235/60R18).

The e-tron Sportback’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Solterra Premium’s standard 60 series tires. The e-tron Sportback’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Solterra Limited/Touring’s 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the e-tron Sportback has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Solterra Premium. The e-tron Sportback’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the Solterra Limited/Touring.

Suspension and Handling

The front and rear suspension of the e-tron Sportback uses air springs for a smoother, controlled ride than the Solterra, which uses coil springs. Air springs maintain proper ride height and ride more smoothly.

The e-tron Sportback has a standard driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Solterra’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The e-tron Sportback has a standard automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The e-tron Sportback’s height leveling suspension allows the driver to raise ride height for better off-road clearance and then lower it again for easier entering and exiting and better on-road handling. The Solterra doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the e-tron Sportback’s wheelbase is 2.8 inches longer than on the Solterra (115 inches vs. 112.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the e-tron Sportback is 1.7 inches wider in the front and 1.8 inches wider in the rear than on the Solterra.

Passenger Space

The e-tron Sportback has .8 inches more front shoulder room, 3.8 inches more rear legroom and 1.2 inches more rear shoulder room than the Solterra.

Cargo Capacity

Pulling a handle automatically lowers the e-tron Sportback’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Solterra doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the e-tron Sportback’s liftgate can be opened and closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Solterra doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Towing

The e-tron Sportback offers up to a 4000 lbs. towing capacity. The Solterra has no towing capacity.

Servicing Ease

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Audi service is better than Subaru. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 13% lower rating, Subaru is ranked 16th.

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory seat and mirrors in the Solterra Limited/Touring, the e-tron Sportback Prestige has a passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position and outside mirror angle and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The e-tron Sportback Prestige has a standard heads-up display that projects speed and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Solterra doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The e-tron Sportback’s power window, power lock and power mirror switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The Solterra’s power window (except driver window) and power lock switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

The e-tron Sportback’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Solterra Premium’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the e-tron Sportback has a standard rear wiper. The Solterra doesn’t offer a rear wiper.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the e-tron Sportback to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Solterra doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

The e-tron Sportback’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Solterra has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Optional air conditioned front and rear seats keep the e-tron Sportback’s passengers comfortable and take the sting out of hot leather in summer. The Solterra doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats in the rear.

The e-tron Sportback has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel is only available on the Solterra Limited/Touring.

The e-tron Sportback offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Solterra.