Subaru XV e-Boxer | Test Drive | Auto Class Magazine

Subaru XV e-Boxer | Test Drive

13 September 2021 Redazione News, Tested

SUBARU XV E-BOXER

Words Andrea Albertazzi / Photos Gian Romero

Don’t ask me how it got here. With a Subaru – as long as it’s not a BRZ – it happens to be attracted by a road that plunges into the vegetation, where the asphalt gives way to dirt grounds and with the passing of kilometers the sound of today’s world is soon left behind your back, in favor of the chirping of birds and the rustle of leaves moved by the wind. I’m not writing a piece for National Geographic though, so I’d better focus on the car I’m dealing with, rather than on the details of a place that is slowly waking up from winter sleep. The fact is that here you can really understand how Subaru is able to produce cars that know how to be perfectly comfortable in the city, as on rough terrain, showing that getting your wheels dirty is one of the most fun ways to get in tune with the extraordinary X-mode.

The XV is in my opinion the best Subaru on sale today. I say this with full knowledge, not only because I drove it for several weeks and in any weather condition, but because it represents the quintessence of a car intended for the object we need to move and feel the freedom offered by its symmetrical all wheel drive system which is now legendary. It does not matter if for reasons purely related to the main markets, in the old continent there are those who turn up their noses due to the presence of the continuously variable transmission, the CVT which in off-road is however able to communicate better with the electric unit positioned right inside the gearbox and which allows an immediate and effective push forward, as soon as the road becomes sketchy.

A part from the Impreza, the XV is the smallest model of the house of the Pleiades, a crossover that, thanks to its ground clearance, continues regardless of the rough ground below, let alone if it gets worried by a few centimeters of snow. The 4-cylinder boxer is a 2-liter and delivers 150 horsepower, with a peak torque of 194 Nm at 4,000 rpm. This translates into a linear delivery, which has no interest in attaching you to the seat during acceleration, but which rather guarantees high comfort over long distances and the ability to climb where you would never have thought possible. And if the other models like the Forester and the Outback are equally able to satisfy their desire for adventure, the XV is the one that will then feel at ease in the narrow streets of the city, not to mention that – like the Impreza – it is even the least expensive as far as price list concerns, with prices starting at € 32,500 for the Style, € 34,000 for the Style Navi and at least € 36,500 for the Premium.

The cockpit is also an extremely comfortable environment and despite going straight to the point it has soft materials and precise finishes that confirm that the car in question deserves to be called premium, with an 8-inch touch display through which to manage the multimedia system, satellite navigation and everything that is not declined with physical buttons scattered all over the cabin. However, what interests me most at the moment is how much the X-Mode manages to turn an apparently quiet raised from the ground hatchback into a real off-road vehicle. The moment you think you have touched its mechanical limit it pulls you out of sand and deep holes, showing such a simplicity that you rarely find elsewhere. The confidence that can be established with its off-road skills is equal to the fluidity that is perceived when driving on asphalt, with a silent engine that goes from 100% electric to internal combustion in an almost imperceptible way.

Let’s go north, says the digital compass. At this point I believe that the only things able to stop us are the desire to have lunch immersed in the most pristine nature, or the need to backtrack to the headquarter. Even if the road were about to end, the XV would immediately find a way to jump over the obstacle and go further. You just have to trust it and rest assured that after a few hours of driving, you will have no doubts. I repeat: I believe that at this precise moment the XV is the most interesting Subaru on the list. Numbers (sales figures as well, ed) easily prove me right. And if initially you could be discouraged by a price that is not exactly cheap, just try it to understand that it is much more than a simple crossover.