Why we ran it: To see if this capable new crossover can be more than just a niche product
Month 1 - Month 2 - Month 3 - Final report - Specs
Life with a Subaru Crosstrek: Final report
We say farewell to our flawed but nonetheless likeable baby off-roader - final report
Subaru has a new UK managing director with a CV that includes stints at Jaguar Land Rover and McLaren and a new ambition to grow the Japanese brand’s market share, with sales expected to top one million this year. Only a tiny proportion of those will be in Europe, let alone the UK, but it still needs to widen its customer base if it’s to achieve those ambitions.
And after a few months with the Crosstrek, it seems to me that it’s on the right track. With a few provisos, which I’ll come to shortly, this is a very capable, likeable crossover with a wide spread of abilities.
Perhaps the most famous of them is the one the majority of those more mainstream buyers will never need, and that’s its off-road prowess. More than just a hollow boast, Subaru’s signature symmetrical four-wheel drive gives the little Crosstrek a cross-country agility that makes it an obvious choice if you happen to live well off the beaten track. Bouncing along a rutted surface also reinforces this car’s feeling of solidity: the ruggedness of its looks is more than skin deep, and I never felt nervous chucking it at a rough or muddy track.
Unlike most off-road vehicles, however, it’s pretty decent on the road, too, and the Subaru’s comfort will remain its most memorable feature. Although not a huge car on the outside, it’s remarkably roomy in the passenger compartment, with plenty of space for those over six foot and really good, supportive seats. Even with a leggy duo in the front, the rear cabin remains spacious – although the squabs and backs of the rear bench are a touch short. Only the limited boot space is a disappointment, but the load bay’s proper retractable cover is a pleasingly big-car touch.
And that comfort is more than seat deep. The tall suspension that gives it useful ground clearance means a suppleness to the ride that is unusual with modern cars, aided further by the chunky sidewalls of its mud and snow tyres. The way it rides the awful expansion gaps along the concrete-surfaced south-eastern section of the M25 – always a good test of a car’s ride and cabin isolation – is remarkable, yet it’s not so soft that it pogos around and gets unsettled if you want to sample the tidy if ultimately unexciting handling from the Impreza-sourced chassis.
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I've had a 2018 XV for a number of years, and have read a number of Autocar reviews which comment unfavourably about the CVT and the relative lack of power of this engine.
However I find those comments do not reflect the experience of either myself or my wife when driving our car. I have had many years of experience with CVT in previous Honda vehicles, and I can only say the Subaru is not only an improvement, but an absolute delight to use. I do not get over-revving, it is just a seamless smooth transmission, and I love the Subaru trademark sound of their flat 4. Yes, I would love a few more bhp, but given the way this engine perfectly matches the other abilities of our car, I can live without those. I've also had some experience driving the mild hybrid as tested here, and found that a delight as well, with the ability to trickle through local villages near-silently.
So any prospective buyers, test drive before you dismiss the Crosstrek/XV based on this review.
I have owned XVs of the two previous generations. The CVT gearbox improved hugely between the two generations and under heavy acceleration it accelerates with "fake" gearchanges. However running the car in a "leisurely mode it sits at 2000rpm most of the time up to about 120km/h when the revs climb further. The car is quiet so you hardly hear the engine anyway.