Indeed. I think these “off-road” versions of SUVs are more aesthetics than anything else. An overwhelming majority of vehicles like this will never see dirt and gravel, let alone rocks. It’s a look-at-me thing that speaks more for some kind of status. No diss on this vehicle but the Wilderness version is just show.
You guys are so Real. Every car has a context, right? It's not just about, "oh this car is a cheap piece of ship." You guys do a really good job explaining what the "goal" of the car was and whether it hit that goal or not. The context of the car is very important and this channel has always done a really good job of explaining that context. Mark's scream when Jack floored it also had me laughing!
I have a 2018 Crosstrek and love it. Yes, it’s slow and isn’t much to look at but it’s been a steady, reliable companion for almost 6 years. Ive taken it off road numerous times and have always been impressed with its capabilities for the price.
The touchscreen is the biggest flaw with new Subarus. Integrating the climate controls into the screen is so damn frustrating. My Legacy beeps at me telling me to keep my eyes on the road when I'm messing with the heated seats or climate control. Subarus own safety system pretty much is telling you their screen is unsafe. I get the reason is aesthetics of the interior, but on practical level it's no good. At least it looks like Crosstrek has hard buttons for heated seats.
@@obsoletecd-rom Subaru makes cars globally, many of which still have fully physical controls which could easily be used here. The guts inside the dash that actually modulate the HVAC are the same regardless so a few plastic knobs and buttons from their existing parts bin is going to be vastly cheaper than a touchscreen and software implementation. They're trying to look premium without actually being premium.
You can use voice commands to turn on and off your heated seat as well as changing radio stations and making phone calls so you do not have to take your eyes off the road at all.
The only thing missing in my opinion from the "final thought", was whether or not it would be worth ponying up the extra money and moving into an Outback.
Fully equipped, the Outback was 48K for me, about 10K more than a fully-loaded Crosstrek Wilderness. In my opinion, it's unnecessarily quick, but it's also very capable offroad with the added ground clearance, and it is enormous. If it wasn't for the fact that I frequently make long trips to see my family during the holidays, necessitating lots of cargo space, I wouldn't need the OBW. Due to that turbo 2.4, it's very compelling, but in all honesty the Crosstrek Wilderness has everything you could possibly need and more. Definitely way more practical. I'd say the Wilderness trim is much more compelling on the Crosstrek than the Outback. I feel like the mid-tier Outbacks are 80% as capable as the Wilderness, but for us, the Wilderness was a good buy given our budget against a 4Runner TRD Pro. I would not choose a base model Outback over the Crosstrek Wilderness.
It really depends on your body size and what you plan to do with it. I wanted the Crosstrek pretty badly, but when I sat in one with the intention of buying one. It suddenly felt too small. I'm 6'1", 265#. I ended up with the Outback and really find it to be the perfect size for seating front and back rows (with friends along), and the cargo area gets plenty of use. But I still would have preferred the overall size and style of the Crosstrek for everyday use.
It's worth it if you need something bigger. If not, it's about the same. The crosstrek trunk space is tiny if you are used to something like an outback.
Currently, depending on where you live, dealer promos, etc, the OBW can be a much better deal. Our 2024 OBW was $39.7k before taxes. Car was selling at MSRP, then a $2.5k factory discount on top of that (we did not negotiate for this, it was just given by default). The Crosstrek Wilderness was also @ MSRP, but $500 discount. This brought the two cars to within $4k of each other. For that 4k, you're getting better fit and finish in the interior (heated steering wheel, heated rears seats and HVAC, a 2.4L turbo that is *much* faster, a front camera, etc.) IMO, the OBW, with current pricing, is a no brainer. Only reason to get a crosstrek wilderness is that's already the top of your price range, you really REALLY care about fuel economy, or you just prefer a smaller car.
We recently bought (for my wife) a Forester Wilderness and agree with everything said in this video. We were looking at the CrossTrek initially, but wanted something just a bit bigger, which is what the Forester is (for about $2500 more, plus it has a couple of other features). As a regular vehicle to live with and drive, it is excellent. My wife actually really liked the "rugged" looks of the Wilderness trims and the fact it's not just a trim/marketing package is a bonus, you do get actual things that make it more capable. Driving it around town, and especially parking lots/etc it is such an easy vehicle to live with. It's our first Subaru, but with their insane resale values, we figured if we didn't like it anymore in 5 years, we'd sell it and get something else without losing our shirt. So far, it's my wife's favourite car she's ever had (I really like it too).
One thing I like about the Forester over the Crosstrek is that the far more livable 2.5L engine is standard in the Forester, while you have to climb up a few trims to get it in the Crosstrek, closing the price gap. The base 2.0L is just not doable in high altitude areas with mountain passes. I would only buy the 2.0L if I lived in Florida... but then I wouldn't be buying a Subaru.
@@andreipiv compared to other Subarus, yes. Compared to true body-on-frame offroaders? It's worlds better. My 2023 4Runner is rated 16/19mpg. Those offroad enhancements don't come for free. The lift is worse on gas, the increased drive ratio is worse on gas, and the knobby tires and thicker CV axles are worse on gas. Should probably only get the Wilderness trim if you're actually going a bit offroad.
@@TermlessHGW I get it, but the reality is most people who drive Wranglers never take it on anything more challenging than a gravel road. Most people who buy full size trucks simply use them as family sedans were used 30 years ago. My wife really wanted that rugged look, and likes the look of a Wrangler even though we'd never take it anywhere that we would benefit from its full capability. This trim of Forester (and CrossTrek for that matter) is fairly reasonably priced. A Wrangler Rubicon is about $25k more expensive than our Forester Wilderness cost and while the Rubicon is certainly more capable, we'd never use it that way anyway. The Wilderness trim vehicles are more capable than the everyday crossovers out there for comparable prices. They are also great to use everyday with light steering, excellent turning radius, great resale value and a smooth running engine/driveline.
I drove and worked on Subarus and it is one of those brands that just makes great vehicles. Capable, reliable, affordable and looks pretty good. It’s a car that simply makes sense for most people to buy.
Not so sure about reliable. I've known a lot of people with Subarus who report multiple issues. I myself had one that left me stranded a few different times. Head gaskets and transmissions are the achilles heel.
@@free2chasehappy ya you dont know much about Subarus do you lol. only the early n/a ej had any real headgaskat issues. modern Subarus hardly ever suffer from headgasket issues especially if you maintain the engine. if you keep it maintained, it will last you a lifetime, as my 2014 crosstrek is a perfect example with 347K with the original engine and original cvt, and guess what? no issues! its not a honda or a toyota where you can dog on it and lack on the maintenace and continue to be reliable, you have to actually take care of it. The reason why subarus die is because poeple treat it like a honda or toytoa and expect it to last like and honda or toyota, when its completely different
You guys hit the nail perfectly as to why I bought a Subie. It wasn't performance or any gimmicks. It's because it's a simple no frills machine that has longevity that I can also perform simple maintenance on from my home garage. It drives well and is safe. Simple as that. Great review guys!
@@respekted Longevity does not belong in his statement, bad opinion. I own a subaru but don't like how people think it's the godsend of the industry. It encourages manufacturers to stick with what they have (cvt) at the detriment of the buyers. Unless he bought an mt crosstrek oh wait they killed that off in 2024.
I loved my 2021 6MT model back when I had it. Can't drive a manual anymore since my legs don't work, but it was a low-frills, highly functional, good ground clearance car. Very useful for a person going on rock climbing trips every weekend.
As a 2018 Outback owner, the iPad style screen with minimal buttons is a huge turnoff. Every new Subaru except the BRZ has the damn screen. Nevertheless, another great review from Savage Geese.
I think most of the market for this car wants this. I bought one for my daughter after also looking at the Corolla Cross. She flipped over the Subaru interior and still loves the car 4 months later. The only issue was having to explain the CVT to her, which was also my first clue she was whooping on it and thinking it wasn't shifting right lol.
@@TheLostSquadronI’d be somewhat fine with the iPad screen on the newer ones if it didn’t have the processing power and graphics from a first gen iPad from 2009. I think it will age horribly and really date the cars fast. Too much stuff is wrapped up in that screen. Otherwise, I quite like the newer cars other than the iPad screen. My 2012 Outback 2.5i Limited I still have with almost 200k miles continues to works great!
The downfall of Subaru? Man, I genuinely think at times that Subaru may be doing well now, but they’re not going to be in business in a decade with choices like that imo.
Loved my gen 1 5 speed Crosstrek save for the expected tin can lack of nvh that wore on me over time. Wouldve gotten into another but those goddamn CVTs, lack of manual on the bigger motor and crappy infotainment keep me away.
Have they made the cv axles and wheel bearing last more that 100k miles yet, so you don't have a $4k dollar repair bill every 100k miles. I'm still seeing this on the earlier models, when all the other manufacturers figured out how to do it they can't.
The infotainment seems to be slowly getting worked out. Admittedly, the system is underpowered, but they are rolling out optimization to make it more stable. In my 22 Legacy, it was bad; Laggy and crashy. I had to restart the system several times occasionally to regain connection. My 24 Outback has been decent by comparison. It's still a bit slow at times, but have not had many issues that weren't carplay issues that I chalk up to running ios beta. I do wish they would clean it up and make things more logical, like Media and Radio shouldn't be two separate things. I still agree that HVAC needs to be completely separate with dedicated controls. If they want to integrate software controls, that's fine but minimize distractions... because their voice controls take too much effort to learn.
Great review and you summed up well the appeal of Subarus to their owners. My only other comment would be that I love the infotainment setup, the screen is large with big icons which makes it easy to select them when driving, the nav maps are large and colorful. It is not the fastest system, but I have had zero issues with mine and the items I use most heat and volume still have hard buttons. Keep the videos coming and happy new year!
I’ve actually found it to be pretty okay. If you leave the air on “Full Auto” you can use the physical temperature buttons to adjust the air and it does so absolutely perfectly. Then on the other side there’s buttons for front and rear defrost. I never have to use the touch screen controls.
Moving from a 2020 Crosstrek with physical HVAC buttons to first an OBW and now a CTW, I had the same thoughts and apprehension. Thankfully, my anticipation for a terrible experience never materialized. While I still would like physical HVAC controls, I really don't have any complaints with the newer setup. I find myself using the physical temp up/down buttons a lot more than I ever need to change the fan speed so, at least, I'm thankful for those. That said, everyone is different so I can understand your dislike of the HVAC being integrated into the touchscreen.
I have an Outback with this system. It isn’t my favorite feature on the car but it’s fine. 90% of the time it’s on automatic and there are buttons for the temp and defrost. It isn’t as terrible as some reviewers make it out to be.
Seeing a lot more Subies on the road these days. I guess it helps that you can walk into a Subaru dealership and effortlessly pay MSRP or less whereas other dealers (cough Honda cough Toyota) make you do somersaults over a flaming lion’s den to pay 5k+ markup.
On my way today to picking up our 2016 Crosstrek we bought brand new (and have babied since day one) because it’s been in the shop getting two leaks sealed (timing cover and rear differential) at a cost of $2,100. And we shopped around for this repair. Expense is almost entirely labor. Nothing sealing the front of the engine except a thin bead of silicone (not a gasket) and it’s past its warranty. Already had a door replaced due to a bad weld at the factory resulting in a prematurely rusted seam. Had to fight extensively to make them cover that under the rust warranty that was still very active at year four. Won’t buy another Subaru again. Ever.
Same. These are ultra cheap cars all around but for Toyota prices. I put 100k on a Forester and it was in worse shape at that mileage than my Prius at 250k - and I take care of my vehicles.
I just can't get over the styling. Subaru used to make cars specifically marketed to gay people, the Forester looked like a gold star lesbian. This Crosstrek? It looks downright homophobic. It looks like it's ready to cruise over to bass pro shops and anxiety-buy AR-15s every time a Democrat becomes president. I think Subaru's styling team has completely lost the plot and they need to throw all their design language in the trash and start over. Only the BRZ looks decent because they have Toyota on the line saying "Hey, what the hell are you doing here?"
"If you get one for around $30,000..." Where I live, in Northwest Washington in May, '24, these Wilderness versions are selling for $37k -$38k. That is not what I call "affordable" for any Crosstrek.
I don't know why everyone keeps crapping on thew infotainment system in the 2024 Crosstrek, I have one and I haven't had any issues with it, it reacts just fine, I don't have really any lag and honestly, I do most of my changes of the system with voice commands.
Also the perfect car for teenagers learning to drive. My 2018 Crosstrek is going strong with only a few supermarket cart dents… my only complaint is engine noise and more frequent recommended oil changes. But it is a very honest car that I don’t hesitate recommending and might replace mine for a new one in one or two years.
I've happily consider a Crosstrek for my next daily...except I won't. The powertrain is, I think, the biggest letdown for me. gas-only + CVT is a dealerbreaker. If this had a Toyota hybrid powertrain (sure, make it to Subaru's boxer engine) then yes. It would make the list. But without hybridisation, it sort of kills the appeal, and then the CVT just feels cheap and unnatural, making screaming Karen noises everytime you merge on the autoroute. I love the cheapness of the interior & the unrefinement but I hate the big touchscreen. It's overstyled on the exterior + massive fender flares. But I could look past that if it offered something a lot more competitive under the hood.
So I guess everyone has just capitulated on the demand for a manual transmission? And now their crap CVTs are OK too? Have you two been drinking too many soy lattes? Subaru used to be the brand that always offered a MT on their models. For the higher level trim that is more performance-oriented(-ish), why wouldn't they offer a MT? I wanted my son to learn to drive a MT. I had to buy a 2020 Impreza because there were no more MTs available last summer--all the current Imprezas and Crosstreks have crap CVTs. Keep beating this dead horse! Maybe you're tired of it but Subaru needs to keep hearing this message.
Cheesy Subaru , crappy CVT , crappy styling , crappy cabin , lifted beyond what's needed . 30K? Not worth it at all. 30K can get me so much nicer car ...
We have the Outback Wilderness and an Outback Limited, and owned a Crosstrek; we've had a total of 4 Subaru's. They are great cars if maintained properly. They don't have much of a driving dynamic/boring. It's best to drive them at the speed limit and listen to talk radio 🙂 Totally agree about the latest infotainment. It's downright horrible. Why they removed physical buttons for the HVAC controls is beyond me. But with that said, we obviously love the cars.
Yep. That's our ONLY knock with our 2023 Outback Premium--the huge screen burying HVAC inside of it. Touching the screen to turn on/off heated seats is absurd. Touching the screen multiple times just to change the HVAC vent zone or turn on/off A/C and recirculation is absurd. This stuff should have been physical buttons. Otherwise, we love that the big screen makes the wireless Carplay google maps nice and big to see.
@@thatoneotherotherguy to that effect, there was nothing wrong with the old Starlink setup that left HVAC separated. It looked much better and was worlds better to operate, as well
I periodically go look at Subies to buy but I just can't get past the poor performing / large screen info tech. I want physical buttons, I don't think that is too much to ask. So I never pull the trigger. What I don't understand is everyone in the threads I read and the RU-vid car reviewers all say go with physical buttons but car mfgs keep shifting to touch screen based controls. It doesn't appear that anyone likes that change so it has to be for cost savings but it seems short sighted.
my wife loves her '19 manual. we bought at the beginning of covid so the price and rate was pretty awesome. it'll be paid off soon and i've tried to get her into something nicer like the lexus ux hybrid or at least the rav4 hybrid but prices are still insane, rates are even worse. she really doesn't care about what she drives anymore, which is a relief for me. her crosstrek has been damn reliable though, and the spark plugs really werent THAT hard like people joke about. my only issues with this car is how god awful slow it is, and the shifter is so clunky and unrefined
I have a '21 Outback and I think the complaints about the tech are overblown. The display is manufactured by Denso, the Japanese auto parts supplier. There have been at least 3 updates to the s/w for my display to improve the ergonomics (adding new functional buttons for the heated/cooled seats, adding the AVH button to the main screen, and the latest update from Nov. that finally fixed the display so that Android Auto would display in a large window). Basically, once you set up your safety tech and other features the way you want to and program your radio stations, you really don't need to go into the menus very much. Most of the climate controls can be set from the physical buttons or the virtual buttons on the display. I find that Auto or Full Auto works well and you don't need to fiddle with the controls much other than setting the temp.
I’ve owned many cars in my life (I’m 70) and bought a Subaru Ascent two years ago because my wife liked it. It was my first Subaru and I thought I’d hate it but whatever. Turns out I really like it. Good SUV and I’d buy another Subaru without hesitation. The CVT is not a problem because I very seldom use WOT.
A few decades ago old people all drove Lincolns and Cadillacs, but these days they seem to drive Subarus for some weird reason. I guess it's a good choice if you enjoy driving as slowly as possible. The Ascent is also their least reliable model, it's too heavy for a CVT.
@@nodak81 Thanks for your idiotic comments about “old people”. I’ll remember them every time I dust the trophies I’ve won racing various two and four wheeled vehicles. Bless your heart.
Most CUV manufacturers are doing everything possible to make their CUV's look off road capable--except make them actually off road capable. Good on Subaru for actually giving us an off-road capable CUV wagon
I had a 2018 Crosstrek that I had to part with during Pandemic. I loved that car! Only downsides were the seats which weren’t comfortable for my body, then sluggishness, and the infotainment. But it was fun to drive for a wagon, built well, fantastic safety features, attractive, and capable off road. And the downsides were slight bummers but not deal breakers and things I accepted going in. It was a great value for the $$. I love the wilderness trim, I think the styling is a fun throwback to when subarus had a bit more funk and personality. Unfortunately they still are playing catchup with tech, but still not a deal breaker as most people just hop in, turn on CarPlay/android auto, and go. Thanks for the review!
Reading these comments maybe ours isn't the norm, but our 2016 Crosstrek w/the 2.0L naturally aspirated engine has a VERY touchy gas pedal. This car takes off startlingly fast.
Most buyers live with the CVT automatic pretty easily, as the vehicle has zero sporting pretenses. We do not mind the CVT in our 2023 Outback whatsoever. It does silly fake shift points when you accelerate very hard, but during typical use it's smooth as butter, maintain a constant RPM, gently easing it down as conditions allow. It works VERY nicely on the interstate passing people, able to always select just the right RPM rather than engage in dramatic downshifts. They've proven very reliable. Also, the Crosstrek and BRZ do not have the same engine, it's not just a tuning thing.
Is there a feature in this car that explains why 80% of the time you are on a highway a Subaru is the vehicle that is holding up traffic because it is driving so slowly?
Because they’re slow af even by normal people standards. That’s why I hate mine. I’ve driven some really fast cars and having to drive a cvt crosstrek daily literally pains me.
I used to not care about the Subaru brand at all. In the last three years that has flipped a 180. They and Mazda seem to be the best brands for high-quality, long-lasting, AFFORDABLE products. I really like that Subaru accepts factory orders, to get exactly what you want, often below MSRP. We bought a new 2023 Outback Premium for just below the MSRP of about $32,000. It's a LOT of vehicle for the money, especially when you factor in what is by far the best AWD system in the affordable segments. The Crosstrek is a great value, as are the Impreza, Legacy, Forester... most of their products, really. You can even get a "stealth WRX" Legacy Sport with the 2.4 turbo for a pretty reasonable price.
@@nodak81 I disagree. They've largely fixed their engine problems, and the CVT has proven very reliable. I would expect a 2.0L or 2.5L CVT Subaru to hit 200k without complaint, just like a Mazda. The turbocharged Subarus? Maybe not quite as much.
Got the 21 model because it came with physical hvac buttons. The naturally aspirated 2.5l boxes engine sounds good but the cvt somewhat cancels that. If you live in the snow its a great car. If you want to go rock crawling get something with lockers. My mechanic started recommending the crosstreck not necessarily because of the decent reliability but because of the now immense parts pool. Where I live about 1 in every 25 cats is a crosstreck or a variant of the platform like the impreza or forester.
Not too many people rock crawl unibody crossovers. We own an Outback and a 4Runner. We take the 4Runner (with rear locker!) when the offroading is serious, lol. That said, a Subaru in X-mode is about as good of offroad capability as you're getting in a crossover. Their whole AWD system works very well, largely better than the part-time 4WD system in my 4Runner does in most cases.
@@Jake-wb8wd honestly we find it a bit too much "fleet overlap". There's few situations that the 4Runner can do that the Outback can't. The Outback drives way better on-road, and uses 40% less gasoline. The 4Runner really only makes sense when we're really thrashing offroad, which is only a handful of days a year. Honestly, we'd probably be happy with just having an Outback Wilderness replacing both cars with the one car. We also have an ND2 Miata (which might be going away end of this year)
I've looked everywhere last year for a used 2021 2.5l but no chance. The few offers were asking ridiculous prices . I got a CX5 signature for the same price range instead for a more upscale product.
they ruined their infotainment system. It's so so slow and bad, backup camera is pixelated and small. Turning on seat heaters takes 3 taps, FM radio app sucks. Previous generation was much better.
Our family over the years has had 7 Subarus. 0ur latest is a 2023 Outback Onyx 2.5, Factory ordered without a gps or sunroof for about $35K. Great car here in the Pacnw for the price. It has a 4-500 mile range, Apple car play, and is great for soft off roading and camping. For us this was better than the garish wilderness model with worse mpg. The electronics are slow, but so is the car, but we’re retired and not in a rush.
How sad that an otherwise great car is let down by a half-assed, second-rate tech package.. when they could have just left it out and not lost any functionality.
Working at a Hyundai dealership, I can assure you plastic trim pieces ain't "cheap". Customers come in and they're flabbergasted that something so simple costs $400-800 just for the part and it'll arrive in a month or two... and don't forget the cost of labor on top of that. I agree with customers that the costs are out of control. If you damage a piece of trim with a sensor then you're looking at well over $2,000.
Reminds me of the Pontiacs of the 1980 with the decorative plastic cladding. They looked good for a while, but there was an issue with saltwater in winter getting behind the cladding and causing the cladding to start coming loose. Looked like shit in no time.
I despise the driving mechanics of off-road cars because that usually means SUV nowadays. But Subaru still makes cars designed simply to be off-road without trying to solve people's ego issues by being big and heavy. They are fun to drive. They are easy to drive.
