The Subaru Crosstrek Sport in 2021 is a practical, compact and safe SUV. It's also easy-to-drive. For those looking to go off-road the crossover offers plenty of features, such as an X-Mode control system and hill-descent feature that can get you out of tricky terrain.
Subaru's Crosstrek is a great example of a car that has been designed to be small and lightweight. The Crosstrek's simple styling means it doesn't attempt to be more than it really is. This gives the SUV its own unique personality and appeal.
The ruggedness of the Crosstrek is a big part its appeal, making it an excellent choice for families looking to go on adventures. We took it on a short loop off-road in the desert. The AWD and X-Mode systems, as well as hill-descent and hill-assist control, proved very useful for the Crosstrek to navigate rough terrain.
As with any Subaru vehicle, the Crosstrek of 2021 comes equipped with safety features such as EyeSight's advanced driver assistance systems, which include forward-collision and automatic emergency braking as well lane departure warnings. Also included is lane maintaining assist and adaptive cruise. Subaru should continue to offer this feature as a standard.
Crosstrek has a 2.5-liter engine with 176 pound-feet and 182 horsepower. This is a huge improvement over the base 2.0-liter engine, and we are glad to have the larger engine.
The new engine doesn't feel much more powerful from a standing start, but it gets to the power band much faster than its predecessor. It is not very fast, but strong enough to help the crossover move quickly and smoothly through traffic.
It's also quite efficient. Crosstrek is able to go 100 miles per tank of gasoline, which is more than most rivals.
In the crossover there is plenty of room inside for passengers as well as cargo. The rear seats have generous legroom and headroom, measuring 39.8" in front and 43.12" in back. The seats are comfortable, too, thanks to a good amount of cushion and supportive bolstering.
There's also a small compartment under the lid of the center console and a pocket in front of the gearshift, but they're not as large as the glovebox. The rear armrest folds down, but it takes up most of the space.
Crosstrek's final feature is its standard 11.6 inch touchscreen which runs Starlink, along with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connections. We'd have liked to see the option of a more-expensive touchscreen that runs a more robust set of apps, but this is the most affordable way to enjoy a number of high-tech features on a small SUV.