Subaru’s Wilderness vary has introduced off-road capabilities to its Outback and Forester vehicles since 2021. Now, the Japanese automaker has given the Crosstrek the identical remedy, elevating the experience peak and including rugged styling, efficiency upgrades and all-terrain tires. This means the brand new Crosstrek Wilderness makes for a fairly enjoyable entry level into the world of heading off piste.
Full disclosure: Subaru flew me to St George, Utah, and put me up in a bougie tent in Zion National Park in order that I may spend a day testing the 2024 Crosstrek Wilderness on the paths.
What Is The Subaru Crosstrek Wilderness?
The Crosstrek Wilderness is Subaru’s newest mannequin to get the off-road-ready remedy and sits on the high of the automobile’s 2024 lineup. To make this range-topping Crosstrek, the Japanese automaker added a raft of updates over the common Crosstrek. For starters, the Wilderness solely comes with the top-of-the-line 2.5 liter boxer engine that kicks out 182 hp and 178 lb-ft of torque. This is paired with a constantly variable transmission (CVT), which Subaru has tweaked to supply efficiency extra suited to off-road driving. The remaining drive ratio is larger at 4.11 (versus 3.7 in the usual automobile), which aids traction at decrease speeds.
Subaru has additionally taken steps to lift the experience peak, which now offers you 9.3 inches of floor clearance, and modifications have been made to the entrance and rear bumpers to extend method, breakover and departure angles – which now sit at 20.0, 21.1 and 33.0 levels respectively. To support its off-road efficiency, Subaru fitted all terrain tires which might be wrapped round 17-inch alloy wheels.
To match its goals of conquering elements unknown, the $33,290 (together with vacation spot) Crosstrek Wilderness now comes with an up to date exterior that options a number of black plastic cladding to up the rugged aesthetic. The entrance finish has new Wilderness-exclusive fog lights and the grille has been tweaked to characteristic a criss-cross sample that Subaru says is a magnified model of the design discovered on the usual Crosstrek grille. There are additionally commonplace roof rails and neat gold accents dotted throughout the automobile’s exterior, which rounds out the design properly – particularly within the metallic orange colour my assessment automobile got here in.
What’s It Like Behind The Wheel?
After all these adjustments, the automobile is surprisingly acquainted on the highway. It appears like a Crosstrek due to that rumble of the boxer engine and the identical mild steering that leaves you feeling properly in management while you sit behind the wheel. In smart eventualities like round city and on county roads, the Crosstrek Wilderness is a pleasant place to be. Standard tech like lane protecting and blind spot detection assist you to really feel secure, whereas throttle response is sweet and the brakes are sharp.
When you hit the freeway and get an opportunity to open the faucets a bit extra, the acceleration is okay due to the additional energy over the bottom Crosstrek. But as with most vehicles fitted with a CVT, the sensation you get because it powers as much as cruising velocity isn’t setting the world alight.
But Subaru has prepped this automobile for adventures in elements unknown, and it’s off the overwhelmed monitor that the Crosstrek Wilderness actually comes into its personal.
Is The Crosstrek Wilderness Ready For Adventure?
Pulling off the freeway and onto a sandy path gave me the prospect to check out the X Mode driving options, which include Subaru’s Wilderness fashions. This offers you slightly management over the way in which the automobile handles on tough stuff, with modes like Deep Snow/Mud disengaging the traction management and altering the way in which the all-wheel-drive system places the ability down.
Speed is proscribed to 25 mph with X Mode engaged, however the Crosstrek Wilderness feels prefer it scampers over sand with ease. On a flat path, I used to be assured within the automobile’s traction, little question helped by these Yokohama Geolandar all-terrain tires. When the sand acquired deeper, I didn’t really feel the automobile dig in an excessive amount of – however caverns left by ATVs are finest prevented for those who don’t wish to threat the Crosstrek’s underside. For peace of thoughts, there’s a metallic skid plate on the entrance finish to guard your necessities.
On these trails, the suspension did an excellent job at protecting the wheels planted over the tough stuff however the experience throughout ruts and bumps was fairly harsh. You don’t go onto paths like this anticipating a buttery-smooth expertise, however slightly extra journey within the suspension might need gone a way in defending my bony body from the bumps of the highway.
But it isn’t simply bumpy grime tracks that X Mode turns out to be useful, as Subaru is relying on its nature-loving consumers utilizing their Crosstrek Wildernesses as a method of getting a foot in the door at their native off-road park. To show the automobile’s value on harder tracks, we headed even additional off highway and up steep, dusty inclines that put it to the check.
The hill descent was spectacular, with the automobile protecting velocity fixed as we creeped down banks. A easy dab on the fuel or brakes retains you in management as you drive down rougher tracks and on the undulating course that Subaru set out, the onboard programs did an excellent job. I solely discovered wheelspin hampering my progress on the high of a very steep incline.
Visibility while you head out onto trails like that is fairly good as nicely. I knew the place the automobile was at virtually each impediment – thanks partly to its diminutive dimensions at simply 176.4 inches lengthy and 71.7 inches huge. But the decrease driving place you have got up entrance does imply that the nostril can get a bit away from you at occasions. A fast peek out the open window ensures your wheels are pointing the best means although.
Taking this automobile on the paths was loads of enjoyable, and positively a highpoint of my time within the Crosstrek Wilderness. It was shocking how succesful it was “out the box” and I’m certain having this efficiency readily available will likely be a giant promote for the hiking-, camping- and adventure-loving folks Subaru attracts.
Does The Rugged Practicality Continue Inside?
Despite its rugged styling and efficiency, the inside of the Crosstrek Wilderness is markedly civilized. At the guts of the automobile is an 11.6-inch touchscreen show that handles settings, media and bluetooth pairing. It runs on Subaru’s Starlink system, however will even work with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto wirelessly or by way of the USB A and and C ports slightly below. Rather properly, there’s additionally a 3.5mm jack for anybody nonetheless rocking an iPod Classic.
The remainder of the sprint is crammed with a number of darkish colours, together with a sophisticated black encompass framing the display screen. Subaru’s vegan leather-based various, known as StarTex, covers nearly all of the sprint, whereas black carbon-look plastic provides some selection. There’s a distinct lack of bodily buttons throughout the Crosstrek’s sprint, but it surely does look fairly tidy… till you fill the cab with mud from the paths.
Across the remainder of the cabin, the seats are ensconced in charcoal grey StarTex, which has a smooth but sturdy really feel. There’s gold stitching to distinction the darkish colour of the seats and an embossed Subaru Wilderness brand on the headrests is a pleasant contact. In the automobile I examined, there was an optionally available digital driver seat, which was very straightforward to wrap round my gangly body. This choice, coupled with the Harman Kardon stereo and an influence moonroof, added $2,270 to its on the highway value.
In the rear, there’s extra StarTex cloth masking a bench seat that would squeeze in three adults. Legroom behind the passenger facet was fairly good, however with the driving force seat set to suit my six-foot self it was slightly comfortable for me to then sit behind.
At the rear of the automobile, you’ll discover a good-sized trunk with area for 20 cubic ft of tenting gear. In the Wilderness, there’s additionally a light-weight again there and two cup holders which might be every large enough for a Nalgene water bottle – Subaru clearly is aware of its consumers. If that trunk isn’t fairly large enough on your hydration wants, Subaru upped the towing capability on the Wilderness to three,500 lbs.
Is The Crosstrek Wilderness Worth Upgrading To?
The updates Subaru revamped the usual Crosstrek make the Wilderness a compelling choice for adventurous varieties seeking to improve. On metropolis streets, the experience stays {smooth} and the cabin has all the things you want for the day by day commute or a cushty journey into the nice outdoor. Then, while you attain elements unknown, tech like X Mode, Subaru’s hill descent options and all-terrain tires imply that newbie off-roaders may have the boldness to deal with routes they may not have beforehand tried.
All in, the Crosstrek Wilderness’ capacity to deal with sketchier surfaces, lug your gear round and stand out in an REI car parking zone crammed with Subarus imply it’s certain to catch the attention of your fellow granola women wherever the highway (or path) may take you.
2024 Subaru Crosstrek Wilderness CVT Specs
Engine kind
Regular Unleaded H-4
Transmission/Drive
CVT w/OD
Source: jalopnik.com