The 2024 Subaru Crosstrek Wilderness.Kunal D'soun/The Globe and Mail
Subaru classifies the Crosstrek as a subcompact crossover but its profile and shape are more wagon-like, at least to my eyes. Crossover is an elusive term, which could be used for anything from a lifted hatchback to a rugged and boxy SUV. It’s an easier sell to SUV-obsessed North Americans who generally avoid anything that reminds them of a station wagon.
The Crosstrek is the latest Subaru model to get the off-road spec Wilderness treatment, joining the Outback and the Forester. Crosstrek is the best-selling Subaru in Canada. All the trims offer all-wheel drive and are highly capable on rough and unpaved roads. The Wilderness takes this a step further with mechanical and visual changes that help distinguish it from the others. Subaru identifies some of its key competitors as the Ford Bronco Sport Badlands and the Jeep Compass Trailhawk, but the Wilderness costs quite a bit less and lines up better with other sub compacts like the Kia Seltos X-Trail and Honda HR-V in size and price.
It’s the most expensive Crosstrek you can buy with a starting price of $37,995, slotting above the more luxuriously equipped Limited, which gets items the Wilderness does not like leather and navigation. It’s also the most distinctive looking Crosstrek with its extra-thick body cladding and anodized copper accents. Typically, the Limited trims sit at the top of Subaru’s model lineup, but not with Crosstrek.
The Crosstrek is the latest Subaru model to get the off-road spec Wilderness treatment.Kunal D'soun/The Globe and Mail
“We were debating that quite a bit actually,” says Anton Pawczuk, senior director of product management for Subaru Canada. “The Crosstrek Wilderness has a lot of style, a lot of capability, so when we were looking at the pricing – they’re not that far off actually – it’s almost like choose your own adventure. You can get leather, navigation [on the Limited], and the Wilderness is just a tad more, but it has more capability and the styling.”
The Wilderness comes standard with the more powerful 182-horsepower 2.5-litre four-cylinder boxer engine, a suspension lift providing an additional 15 millimetres of ground clearance, special springs, revised dampers, all-terrain tires and an engine skid plate for additional underbody protection. The mechanical changes go even beyond that with a larger radiator and radiator fan and an oil cooler for the continuously-variable transmission, allowing it to tow up to 1,588 kilograms, an increase of 907 kilograms over the standard Crosstrek.
“All of those extra items like the oil coolers, and the tires, and those types of things, we think that people who are interested in this car will understand that those things are of value and pay a little bit more and that’s why it sits at the top,” Pawczuk tells The Globe and Mail.
It's the most distinctive looking Crosstrek with its extra-thick body cladding.Kunal D'soun/The Globe and Mail
All this capability puts the Crosstrek in a distinct position in its class. Competitors offer mostly what amounts to appearance packages, but the Crosstrek takes it all further. Subaru put together a gruelling off-road course for us in the wilds of the Arizona desert so we would get an idea of just how far this little crossover would take us.
Surrounded by rust and ochre striped mountains, we found ourselves on an isolated and rocky trail where only a few Jeeps and side-by-sides dare venture. Subaru calls its off-road driving system “X-mode”, and you can pick from Snow/Dirt or Deep Snow/Mud. Setting the Crosstrek to Snow/Dirt amounted to all the prep that was required before entering the trail. The Crosstrek’s engine output, transmission and torque-split are all tweaked to work on rugged and uneven terrain allowing the driver to climb and descend rocky and slippery surfaces with little effort.
If Subaru didn’t assure us that the Crosstrek could handle the trail in front of us, I wouldn’t have even attempted it, as some of the hills and rocks we had to clamber over would have challenged even a full-fledged SUV. It’s difficult to imagine any Crosstrek owners actually attempting anything like this, but Subaru wanted to prove a point and they did.
The Wilderness has special front and rear bumpers with cut-outs that allow it to climb and descend steeper hills and its coil springs are coated with a chip-resistant material while revised dampers improve stability.
Subaru ensured us the groans and creaks we heard from deep in the car was X-mode working its magic, finding bits of grip where it could and making it surprisingly easy to complete the course without getting stuck or damaging the Crosstrek. There were points where we had tires up in the air, and other times when all we saw was sky and no ground below us. These are situations I’ve encountered before in Jeeps and big trucks but never in a subcompact vehicle like the Crosstrek. As far as off-roading is concerned, the Wilderness can do what 99 per cent of its owners would likely never subject it to.
The vehicle comes with all-terrain tires and an engine skid plate for additional underbody protection.Kunal D'soun/The Globe and Mail
Where it all comes together is on regular roads and highways. The Crosstrek is the most car-like of all its competitors and it doesn’t drive like a typical tall crossover, so you can expect good handling and a comfortable ride.
The bigger 2.5-litre engine is a welcome addition to Crosstrek, but it’s not going to win you any races at a traffic light and is better reserved for a pleasant cruise than any sort of serious acceleration.
The Wilderness trims have been a success for Subaru so far. The off-road trend and vehicles seemingly ready for the apocalypse have shot up in popularity in the last few years.
“[The Wilderness] represents about 20 per cent of over all Outback sales. Forester sits at around 15 per cent, and for Crosstrek we’re expecting around 10-15 per cent,” says Pawczuk.
The writer was a guest of the automaker. Content was not subject to approval.
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