2024 Subaru Crosstrek is nimbler and easier to squeeze down a narrow trail

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One of the drawbacks of being an outdoorsy person is being perpetually tired. Now, indoorsy folks, those are as well-rested as can be, lounging in front of Netflix documentaries about mountain-climbing and maybe having a light snack. If you’re into actually tramping around the peaks in person, you’ll often be coming back to the trailhead footsore and ready for a break.

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Happily, for the 2024 model year, the redesigned Subaru Crosstrek moves the slider bar further away from roughing it and closer to glamping. This is a kinder, gentler, quieter Crosstrek, and while it is festooned with more plastic cladding than ever before, it is a welcome improvement in refinement.

To Subaru, it’s also the company’s most important vehicle. In Canada, Crosstrek sales surpassed Forester numbers roughly five years ago, and it is easily the best-selling Subaru. Product planners are confident that — should enough Canadian allocation be wrestled out of the parent company — they can put as many as 20,000 Crosstreks in driveways with this new 2024 version.

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They’re probably right, though the new Crosstrek comes with a higher pricetag to go with its improvements. With a $28,999 starting price just $2,000 less than the base model Forester, there’s bound to be some fierce cross-shopping right in the Subaru showroom. Which is obviously not a big problem for Subaru — but the Crosstrek has moved upmarket not just in feel, but also price.

Four trims are available: two with the 152 hp 2.0L four-cylinder engine, and two with the more powerful 182 hp 2.5L flat-four. Both powertrains are essentially carryover from the previous Crosstrek, and both are paired with Subaru’s Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) and all-wheel-drive. The manual transmission 2.0L combo is dead for this year, which will doubtless disappoint both people who would have actually bought one.

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Crosstreks powered by the 2.0L engine offer acceleration that is pretty modest. From previous experience, getting past a semi-trailer in a short mountain passing lane can be a little hair-raising as the smaller engine spools up to speed. The 2.5L motor, available in the Onyx and Limited trims, is not exactly a rocketship, but it makes the Crosstrek a much more competent touring companion. Further, the fuel penalty is minuscule: at 8.9 L/100 km city and 7.2 L/100 km highway, the 2.5 is rated at just 0.1 L/100 km worse than the 2.0L.

The Onyx is the approximate replacement for the previous Outdoor trim, though it is less of a bargain than the Outdoor was. As in the Outback, the Onyx gets a host of blacked out trim pieces, the most durable of three cloth interiors in the Crosstrek range, and Subaru’s dual-mode selectable terrain management system. Sitting on 18” black-painted wheels, it looks capable enough, a hiking shoe with neon-yellow foglights resembling shoelace eyelets. The slightly more urbane Premium is similarly capable in appearance.

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The toughish looks aren’t just for show, but this Crosstrek is a big softie. Subaru claims a 10 per cent improvement in chassis rigidity, achieved through an increase in structural adhesives and some changes to spot welding points. A stiffer chassis allows for softer damping, and there’s also much more sound-damping material in the roof.

Further, Subaru put some R&D funds into improving seat mount stiffness in order to try to improve comfort. Of all these refinements, the reduction in cabin noise is the most noticeable, but the seats do seem more comfortable, and the Crosstrek skipped lightly across potholes and over cattle grates.

As mentioned, each trim of Crosstrek gets its own interior fabric. The cloth of the Onyx looks like it will hold up well to wear, and the leather of the Premium will wipe down clean. The Crosstrek’s interior is more functional than premium, but there are some nice carbon-fibre-look touches and some hidden mountain-pattern Easter eggs for personality.

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The biggest change is the introduction of Subaru’s 11.6” touchscreen, as found in the Outback and WRX (the base Convenience model gets dual 7” touchscreens). The system is fairly easy to use, and Subaru deserves praise for keeping actual knobs and buttons for volume and temperature adjustment. And this year sees the Crosstrek get wireless CarPlay and Android Auto on all but the base model. However, that large screen does tend to wash out in bright sunlight.

Space for passenger and gear is good, with plenty of storage up front and 564L of space in the trunk (1,549L with seats folded flat). Headroom is a bit tight for taller drivers, especially with the sunroof standard on the top two trims. Four friends headed on a long drive to the trails better be comfortable getting cozy.

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Over twisting roads through the Okanagan farmlands, the Crosstrek felt planted and capable. There are more sport-oriented crossovers in this segment, but the new steering rack is lifted out of the WRX, with a quick 13.0:1 steering ratio. If Subaru wanted to stiffen up the springs and damping a bit and slot a turbo 2.4L engine under the hood, it could turn the Crosstrek into quite the little hatchback rally car.

As it is, the Crosstrek is more day-hiking-boot than trail-running-shoe. It’s smooth on pavement, leaving passengers with more stamina to take on whatever today’s adventure is. And, should the trailhead be located several muddy kilometres from where the tarmac ends, this little Subaru is still surprisingly capable.

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All Crosstreks come with a useful 220 mm (8.7-inch) of ground clearance, with approach and departure angles of 18 and 30.1 degrees respectively. The two-mode X-drive terrain management of the 2.5L-equipped models operates below 40 km/h and allows for handling muddy and snowy conditions, as well as gravel and sand. However, all Crosstreks get at least hill-descent assist, and all now get steering-responsive LED lighting — better for driving in all conditions after sundown.

Bumping over ruts and around narrow hairpin bends, the Crosstrek’s small size is a real boon. This is soft-roading rather than true off-roading, but Subaru’s smallest crossover shrugs the task off easily.

A more aggressively-equipped Wilderness edition Crosstrek is planned, with towing capacity upgraded from the standard to 680 kg to 1,588 kg, 235 mm of ground clearance, and even more plastic cladding. You get the sense that someone in Subaru’s engineering department would cheerfully build an entire car out of plastic cladding if they could. Either way, pricing and availability on the Wilderness will emerge later in the year.

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As it is, Subaru expects the $33,995 Onyx to be the volume model, and it’s already the one dealers are clamouring for. That’s $3,000 more than the previous Crosstrek Outdoor fetched, though the 2024 model has more equipment (a sunroof, for instance).

Though it’s no longer a bargain, the Crosstrek has evolved from an Impreza-on-stilts to a more polished product. If you don’t need the boxy space of a Forester, it’s nimbler and easier to squeeze down a narrow trail. It’s still capable, and the 2.5L models are great road-trip partners. More importantly, the level of polish that Subaru has applied here to its best-selling product makes it a better fit for the active lifestyle crowd. Get back to your Subaru, muscles aching from exertion, and the Crosstrek is a welcome refuge. It’s like you’re already home from the hills.

Check out the latest Subaru Crosstrek model.