First look: XV Crosstrek

Had the chance yesterday to drive the new Subaru XV Crosstek. It's basically an Impreza on steroids w/ 8.4 inches of ground clearance...GREAT ski car!!! If you want one put your order in, dealer stock isn't going to be an option with this one.

Great looking car.

(Moving this into Gear X. In my mind cars are ski gear!)

if by "on steroids" you mean more ground clearance but still with a grossly underpowered engine, then yes.

tBatt wrote

if by "on steroids" you mean more ground clearance but still with a grossly underpowered engine, then yes.

Exactly what I meant. Unless you get into WRX/STI no Subie is going to win you any races, BUT you will get there safely no matter what the weather.

lookin good Camp , that,s damn near as much ground clearance  as the OB impressive !

What kind of horses are we talking about here? I don't need much more than 160 (depending on weight), and a manual transmission... of course.

148hp, weighs around 3K, available in bolt action or CVT....25/33 mpg

campgottagopee wrote

148hp, weighs around 3K, available in bolt action or CVT....25/33 mpg

Ick. I had hopes for this one but that MPG is pathetic. Not much more than the Outback but a lot less space, no? Who really needs that much ground clearance? I've never grounded a car with snows ever and I am a storm chaser. Too bad Subie can't hit the sweet spot with a regular proportion wagon with more space than the Impreza without the bulk of their CUVs/SUVs.

Certainly the best looking Subie, though.

The CVT is a really good idea. In theory. And it gets the best mileage of any of the trannies... but I just didn't like driving it when I tested the outback.  Maybe I was driving it wrong. For one thing the crappy salesman (who REFUSED to take the test drive with me) never told me I could shift it manually.

I would bet that the XV would beat those EPA highway numbers. My Hondas have always beaten the EPA by a decent margin.

The regular ones look better to me and it needs more horsepower. The ground clearance is kind of silly for most of us. Maybe if you could lift it for the 2 times per year you might need it.....

Horsepower is just gonna get you in trouble if there's three inches of snow covering the road.  This would be a better vehicle if (1) you could adjust ride height the way as with the Audi Allroad of a few years back, and (2) it was big enough to stretch out and sleep in.  Which I've done numerous times in Legacy wagons.

On the subject of ride height, I could deal with a Subie Outback and it's somewhat higher ride height than a Legacy.  The roads are too miserable at Diamond Notch in the Catskills and South Meadow in the ADKs.

Peter Minde wrote

Horsepower is just gonna get you in trouble if there's three inches of snow covering the road.  

Nonsense. Bad driving decisions get you into trouble.

Peter, the thing about your statement besides the fact that I disagree is that 340 days of the year I'm not driving in snow. I do value gas mileage, and obviously a huge v8 will never excel at that but I still have to chase ambulances to the tune of inches just to get to and fro around here.

Lets not forget a few things....

Subaru is a niche car company and they don't build cars for everyone.  Ground clearance is important to some people, someone like me. If you want to go back to our deer camp you'll need ground clearance and AWD/4WD to make it thru the manditory crick crossing....if not you're walking a mile back into the woods and I dont' want to carry all that beer that far . If you want to come over to my house in the winter time you'll need AWD/4WD to make it up my driveway or you'll be sliding down the hill, over the bank, and taking out my mailbox which pisses me off!!!! Just ask any of the service guys who've come over in the winter and haven't believed me..haha

Subie is on to something...their sales have increase every year for the past 5 years making them the only car company to do so...pretty darn impressive in this economy, no??

Harvey44 wrote

The CVT is a really good idea. In theory. And it gets the best mileage of any of the trannies... but I just didn't like driving it when I tested the outback.  Maybe I was driving it wrong. For one thing the crappy salesman (who REFUSED to take the test drive with me) never told me I could shift it manually.

I would bet that the XV would beat those EPA highway numbers. My Hondas have always beaten the EPA by a decent margin.

For sure the CVT is odd at first, feels like a snowmobile....but as you've said that's what gives it the MPG...better get used to it cause I don't see it going away

x10003q wrote

The regular ones look better to me and it needs more horsepower. The ground clearance is kind of silly for most of us. Maybe if you could lift it for the 2 times per year you might need it.....

My knee jerk was the same as far as the look of the car. I think it's the color or something, cause it's darn cool.

riverc0il wrote

campgottagopee wrote

148hp, weighs around 3K, available in bolt action or CVT....25/33 mpg

Ick. I had hopes for this one but that MPG is pathetic. Not much more than the Outback but a lot less space, no? Who really needs that much ground clearance? I've never grounded a car with snows ever and I am a storm chaser. Too bad Subie can't hit the sweet spot with a regular proportion wagon with more space than the Impreza without the bulk of their CUVs/SUVs.

Certainly the best looking Subie, though.

Riv, as you know they used to make a "true" wagon...it didn't sell

I just switched from a "regular station wagon ". To the  OUTBACK. Ltd and couldn't be happier . We just returned from a 2600 mile vacation trip thru the mtns on twisty roads then to the Beaches on the east coast and my trip average Was 32.4 mpg .we also spent several days in the Boston metro region with a mix of city driving . So we did the compulsory mtn road and side road (think dirt) and some sand dancing with it on the beach and then reg hgwy cruising .


So my point is WHATEVER floats your boat . Subie was not even on my radar screen when I was in the market but the consumer reports rating and several test drives made a believer out of us.  had several luxe level rides in the past but this one is in OUR sweet spot . As the French would say  Chacun a son gout !

It seems odd that Subaru has de-powered the Impreza line for 2013. Our 2009 Impreza 5-door has 175 HP and it feels just about right, and is peppy enough for quick acceleration when needed. My guess is that a similar vehicle with 148 HP would get you from A to B but would be a tad boring to drive. Personally, Blue Toes and I prefer cars that are fun to drive and allow you to safely pass slow-moving citiots. FWIW, this is the third Subie we have owned, so there is some brand loyalty here.

Our Impreza is pretty low to the ground and has the extra ground effects that came with the Sport model (different model name in the US, I believe). The lower edge of the front bumper is pretty much trashed from bumping into curbs, hitting deep potholes and the occasional frozen snow ridge. Fortunately, a friend of ours backed into the car recently and is buying us a new bumper! Other than that, we have had no issues with clearance. We live in a snowy, rural area and our dead-end road is usually the last to get plowed. We use the car for the long drive through snowstorms to Vermont. The car just plows through snow if needed. We avoid taking the car really rough roads and, fortunately, have the option of using our 4x4 Toyota Tacoma for off-the-beaten-path adventures.

If we were limited to having one vehicle, I could see that the extra clearance of the Crosstrek would be be a selling point. As long as we have the truck I'd stick with another standard-issue Subie. Although the new lower HP and other Subaru issues (fit & finish, engine electrical) might get me looking at something else.

campgottagopee wrote

Lets not forget a few things....

Subaru is a niche car company and they don't build cars for everyone.

their sales have increase every year for the past 5 years making them the only car company to do so...

C'mon, Camp. You say it is a niche company not building cars for everyone but their sales are increasing in a bad economy because they started making almost all their vehicles fit into a cross over mold based on the success of the major car companies. I'm not disputing Subie's success but you can't have it both ways. The only thing that makes Subie niche is AWD on every car and they can't even claim that any more due to their RWD offering. Subie has done everything possible to reduce its niche position to drive sales and not appear like some weird second tier manufacturer. Its cool. But you can't have it both ways. You say the old wagons didn't sell but I see them everywhere so I don't know about that. Maybe they don't sell as well as CUV/SUV and that is fine... good for Subie... but that is not a niche move.