New Subaru Brumby takes shape: Japanese brand's iconic Brat ute to go all electric as it makes a return as a twin to the Toyota's next-gen dual-cab

The next-gen Subaru Brumby ute is champing at the bit to make a return to Australian roads.

The rumour mill has started to whirl at full speed about a potential return of the Japanese brand’s iconic ute.

Those hoping for a return of the mini car-based ute of years past might be a bit upset, though.

Word has reached CarsGuide through the grapevine that the Brumby — or Brat as it was called overseas — is happening and it will be electric.

It is likely the Brumby will share its underpinnings with Toyota’s electric ute, which was previewed by the EPU concept at the 2023 Tokyo motor show.

Toyota and Subaru have committed to developing a range of electric cars together over the next few years, in the same vein as the Toyota bZ4X and Subaru Solterra twins.

Toyota’s electric ute was confirmed earlier this year in a presentation by Toyota Europe promoting their multi-pathway approach.

In the presentation it showed the company would have six electric cars by 2026, with a ute silhouette being one of the vehicles.

Details of what the possible Subaru ute could look like remain a mystery, but we’ve commissioned digital artist Thanos Pappas to give us a glimpse of what it could look like.

Unlike the EPU concept, we hope the Brumby will stick to its roots as a more compact two-seater workhorse designed for inner-city tradies and as a paddock bashing farm hand.

A stumpy bonnet should help maximise the size of the tray and the wheels pushed to the edges of the vehicle will allow for a roomier cabin than expected.

The lack of a front grille shows it's an EV. Dynamic headlights and flash alloy wheels borrowed from the Subaru Solterra also make it look the part.

It’s a Subaru so all-wheel drive is a certainty. This dual electric motor layout should be capable of circa 280kW and 500Nm outputs, which would put it at the upper echelon of diesel utes. It should also have multiple drive modes to handle different road surfaces such as snow, sand and mud.

Inside it should feature an open-plan layout with a large multimedia screen, driver display and a rotary gear selector in the centre console paired with a driving mode selector.

There is no news on when we might get official confirmation of the Brumby successor, but the 2025 Tokyo motor show sounds like the right place at the right time.