MotorTrend Takes the Crosstrek Wilderness into the Wilderness

When Subaru launched the Crosstrek Wilderness for the 2024 model year, enthusiast magazine MotorTrend wasted no time putting one into its long-term fleet, where instead of testing a vehicle for about a week, the editors live with it for about a year to get an in-depth experience. As the summer marked the beginning of the closing months of its time with the Crosstrek, its primary caretaker/author realized that it hadn’t been through much actual wilderness and set out to change that. Twin Fall Subaru gives you the highlights of that experience. 

Wilderness Defined 

At least once away from ours or any other Subaru dealer, we probably all have something similar in mind when we hear the word “wilderness.” It turns out, however, that there is an official government definition. According to The Wilderness Act of 1964, “A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his own works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.” 

In a practical sense, this leaves out camping grounds and other outdoor entertainment locations that have an ongoing human presence. This could include many off-roading parks as well. That is probably just as well, because even though the Crosstrek Wilderness has a 9.3-inch ground clearance, all-terrain tires, and some slick off-pavement technology, it is not designed to go tire-to-tire with the Jeep Rubicons and American Expedition Vehicles-outfitted hard-core 4x4s of the world.  

The author first took the Subaru to Joshua Tree National Park, an 800,000-acre land of desert, big rocks, and of course, Joshua Trees, about 140 miles east of Los Angeles with 595,000 acres designated as “wilderness.” The thing is, you are not allowed to drive in the wilderness itself, but there are dirt backroads you can take, though none of them, the author found, would challenge an average car, much less a Crosstrek Wilderness. 

Sampling X-Mode 

The next trip was to Geology Tour Road, described as “a sandy, bumpy 17-mile route through Pleasant Valley with several miles of gentle climbs and descents.” The National Park Service (NPS) requires high ground clearance and four-wheel drive. The automotive author knew the difference between four-wheel drive and all-wheel drive, but thought the NPS wouldn’t make the distinction. Turns out it does, but the author was able to take the route anyway. The author found it not all that challenging, but added this:  

“I decided to activate the Crosstrek’s snow/dirt setting in X-Mode. This adjusts throttle mapping, keeps the CVT in “lower gears,” and alters the reaction time of the limited-slip diff to enhance traction in low-grip, low-speed environments. It also activates hill descent control. 

The result was … interesting. Even though the terrain definitely didn’t require an off-road mode, snow/dirt mode nonetheless gave an immediate sense of sure-footedness. Every move felt somehow a little more purposeful. A little more confident. The kind of subtle security a child might feel being carried in his or her dad’s arms instead of pushed in a stroller.” 

It’s Great at Being a Car 

What was repeatedly stressed was that even though challenging the Crosstrek Wilderness turned out to be a challenge itself, the car was simply ideal for getting to the locations. It was comfortable, making three-digit outside temperatures irrelevant while driving. On interstates, the editor averaged 29.9 mpg, which is a bit above the EPA’s estimate of 29 on the highway.  

It may be that “wilderness” is easier to come by in Idaho than a day’s drive outside of Los Angeles. Still, in any case, if you are interested in a compact crossover that is great for normal use and ready to take on any off-pavement excursion you could reasonably throw at it, you will want to look at the Crosstrek Wilderness. And we keep them in stock here at Twin Falls Subaru.