A black electric wagon with pink, blue, and yellow splashes down its flanks pulls out of Bella Vista on Sunday morning, and if the week goes to plan it parks in Bathurst on Friday night. Her name is Evie. She’s the first battery electric car ever entered in a Variety Bash.
The Subaru Trailseeker leaves Bella Vista on Sunday and spends the next 6 days covering regional New South Wales, from 9 to 14 August. David Gillies, a long-time Subaru owner, is driving. A traditional Bash runs old cars on bush roads. The inaugural Variety Backyard Bash is a one-year-only format that admits modern vehicles, which is how an electric wagon got a start number.
The Subaru Trailseeker AWD is $69,620 drive-away, with a 74.7kWh battery and a claimed 533km WLTP. The AWD Touring is $75,920 drive-away, carries the same 74.7kWh battery, and claims 488km.
The car is called Evie. It wears a custom livery, black with pink, blue, and yellow splashes, and the star cluster on the rear door. Down the front door it says 280kW OF ALL ELECTRIC POWER. Gillies has owned and driven Subarus for years, and says there’s “something fitting about a Subaru being the first BEV to tackle a Variety Bash because Subaru has always been a brand built around adventure and exploration”.
Subaru Trailseeker Range and Charging
The Subaru Trailseeker AWD claims 533km WLTP from its 74.7kWh battery. DC charging peaks at 150kW, with a claimed 10 to 80% in 30 minutes. Mudgee, the first overnight stop on the route, has a pair of NRMA 180kW ultrafast units off the Castlereagh Highway. Ultrafast, not the term we’d use given China’s 1500kw units. The NRMA regional network covers more than 100 chargers across about 70 NSW locations, and most sites sit within 150km of the next one.
While the NRMA manages over 100 fast-charging sites in NSW, the state’s total public network now exceeds 3,300 chargers across 1,200 metropolitan, regional, and destination sites. This combined grid includes NRMA, Tesla, and local destination plugs. Government co-funding has opened up rapid-charging plazas within 100 kilometres of each other on all major regional highways.
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ABOVE: The Trailseeker
The Toyota bZ4X Touring Underneath
Under the cladding this is a Toyota bZ4X Touring, and we’ve already put the pair side by side. The Toyota is $76,020 drive-away and claims 488km. The Subaru Trailseeker AWD Touring is $75,920 drive-away with a 488km range from the identical 74.7kWh pack. The Trailseeker AWD is $69,620 drive-away and claims 533km, with 609L of boot against the Toyota’s 603L.
The other electric Subaru, the Uncharted, is a Toyota C-HR+ with a $59,990 badge, and the volume sellers are still petrol and hybrid. The Trailseeker makes 280kW from a motor on each axle, covers 0 to 100km/h in 4.5 seconds, carries 609L of boot, and has X-Mode for gravel.
Short Stages and Country Towns
Variety NSW/ACT supports children who are sick, disadvantaged, or living with a disability. The Backyard Bash keeps the driving days deliberately short, so entrants spend time in Mudgee, Dubbo, Griffith, Albury, and Cowra, support local businesses, and hand grants to remote and regional schools. Every town on the route has a Subaru dealer that has been there for decades.
Gillies also talks about the chance to “connect with communities along the way and see firsthand the difference Variety makes for children and families across Australia”. Tony Warner, CEO of Variety NSW/ACT, calls the entry “a significant milestone that reflects how our motoring events are always embracing new ideas while staying true to our purpose of connecting with regional communities and supporting kids in need”.
The convoy reaches Bathurst on Friday night for the gala. Donations go through fundraise.varietynswact.org.au.
Subaru Trailseeker Key Numbers
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Price, AWD | $69,620 drive-away |
| Price, AWD Touring | $75,920 drive-away |
| Battery | 74.7kWh lithium-ion, both grades |
| Range, AWD | 533km WLTP claimed |
| Range, AWD Touring | 488km WLTP |
| Power | 280kW combined, one motor per axle, Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive |
| 0 to 100km/h | 4.5 seconds |
| DC charging | 150kW, 10 to 80% in a claimed 30 minutes |
| Boot | 609L |
| Off-road system | X-Mode |
The 6 Day Backyard Bash Route
| Date | Leg |
|---|---|
| Sunday 9 August | Bella Vista to Mudgee |
| Monday 10 August | Mudgee to Dubbo |
| Tuesday 11 August | Dubbo to Griffith |
| Wednesday 12 August | Griffith to Albury |
| Thursday 13 August | Albury to Cowra |
| Friday 14 August | Cowra to Bathurst for the gala night |
More Subaru Stories
- Subaru Uncharted Is a Toyota C-HR+ With a $59,990 Badge
- Subaru Forester Hybrid Continues Australia’s Petrol Era Fade
- Subaru Trailseeker And Toyota bZ4X Touring: Toyobaru EV Twins Compared
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Alan Zurvas is the founder and editor of Gay Car Boys, Australia's leading LGBTQI+ automotive publication. Before launching GCB in 2008, Alan's automotive writing was published in SameSame.com.au and the Star Observer. With over 16 years of hands-on car reviewing experience, Alan brings an honest, irreverent voice to every review — championing value and innovation over brand loyalty.
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