The Subaru Stella is a 5-door

kei car Kei car is the smallest category of Japanese expressway-legal motor vehicles. The term ''kei'' is a shortening of , (kanji: ), which translates to English as "light vehicle" (). With restricted dimensions and engine specifications, owners ...

produced by

Subaru is the automaker, automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate (company), conglomerate Subaru Corporation (formerly known as Fuji Heavy Industries), the Automotive industry#By manufacturer, twenty-first largest aut ...

starting in June 2006. The Stella is based on the same architecture as the Subaru R2. It can be considered as a direct replacement of the Subaru Pleo, although the Pleo soldiered on for another four years. It was Subaru's re-entry into the market segment dominated by the

Suzuki Wagon R The is a kei car manufactured and marketed by Suzuki since 1993. The R in the name stands for Revolution and Relaxation. The Wagon R uses a "tall wagon" configuration to maximize cabin space within kei car dimensional restrictions. The Wag ...

and the Daihatsu Move, hoping to recapture market share after the R2's lower-than-expected sales. The Stella's dimensions are more parking structure-friendly where vehicle stacking is utilized over the Pleo. The most recent generation Stella is a rebadged Daihatsu Move. The name ''Stella'' is

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

for "star", a reference to Subaru being the Japanese name for the Pleiades star cluster.

Electric version

In June 2008, Subaru unveiled a

concept A concept is an abstract idea that serves as a foundation for more concrete principles, thoughts, and beliefs. Concepts play an important role in all aspects of cognition. As such, concepts are studied within such disciplines as linguistics, ...

version on an

electric Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...

vehicle by combining the Stella platform with the electric drive from the Subaru R1e, which uses TEPCO

lithium-ion A lithium-ion or Li-ion battery is a type of rechargeable battery that uses the reversible Intercalation (chemistry), intercalation of Li+ ions into electronically Electrical conductor, conducting solids to store energy. Li-ion batteries are c ...

batteries. It was showcased at the G8 Summit on 7 July 2008. Fuji announced in June 2009 that it planned to sell 170 units through March 2010, primarily to fleet and government users in Japan, with deliveries beginning in late July. It was also intended to be sold in the European Union starting September 2010, but never was.

Successor

Due to the 2008 investment of Toyota, the Stella was replaced by a rebadged Daihatsu (a Toyota subsidiary). Subaru immediately started selling one rebadged Toyota, the Subaru Dex, but kept making the Stella and some other kei products for a few years longer than initially planned. The second-generation Stella (model code LA100) was introduced in Japan on 11 May 2011 and is a rebadged Daihatsu Move. The third generation Stella (LA150/160) was introduced in December 2014. It was discontinued at the end of June 2023, although sales from stock were set to continue into early 2024. Originally, the Stella was scheduled to be replaced by the succeeding (seventh) generation of the Daihatsu Move, but after the scandal involving rigged safety tests at

Daihatsu is a Japanese automobile manufacturer headquartered in Ikeda, Osaka Prefecture, Japan. One of the oldest surviving Japanese internal combustion engine manufacturers, the company was known for building three-wheeled vehicles and off-road vehicle ...

the Stella was withdrawn from the market along with several other Daihatsu models. The fourth generation model (LA850) was later introduced in June 2025. File:Subaru Stella L Limited Smart Assist 0235.JPG, Stella (second generation) File:Subaru STELLA CUSTOM RS Smart Assist (DBA-LA150F) front.jpg, Stella (third generation)

Sales

References

Kei cars Stella Vehicles with CVT transmission Cars introduced in 2006 Cars discontinued in 2023 2010s cars 2020s cars Front-wheel-drive vehicles All-wheel-drive vehicles {{Modern-auto-stub