OT: Any Subaru Crosstrek hybrid owners care to share their experiences?

[Veloo]

Apologies for another OT topic.

Does anyone own a Subaru Crosstrek hybrid?
Can you share you experience with this vehicle - good and especially the bad.

This just popped into my head for possible consideration.

How long to charge?
How much have you saved on gas?
Mileage on a tank/ charge?
etc.

[TiminVA]

I don't have the hybrid version, regular gas model. The mileage is nearly insignificant, to me it definitely wasn't worth the $4000 premium for the hybrid. I'm getting 31 mpg all around with a roof rack.

[Matthew]

I also have the gas model. Got a 2015 for my wife. So far we love it! Also getting 31 mpg. Seems like a well made vehicle. But ours only has 3300 miles so take that for what it is worth!

[Likes2ridefar]

The bad is they look cheap inside and have less bells and whistles compared to other brands, and those that are there are not as well done as other cars ive been in.

Its noisy, the cvt is lame and sensitive although you do get used to it. I find the steering way too soft as well.

Basically im not impressed with Subaru be it top of the line outback, which im currently driving where i am (thankfully not mine)

Or my parents loaded forester, or the impreza i used to own.

[VTCaraco]

We looked at the gas-models in Jan of 13 when we were in the market.
We liked it, but found the extra size and creature-comforts of the Outback to be more to our liking.
I bring this up as our 13 Outback with 66k miles is getting 31 mpg, too. Those numbers drop pretty dramatically when we're hammering at highway speed with the car (and roof) fully loaded, but I would have guessed that the smaller dimensions of the Crosstrek would have equated to better mpg ~ especially with whatever tech-advances might have happened in the last 3 years.

The notion of the disinterest in paying the upcharge for whatever modest gains resonates with an industry-article that I recently read where an automaker questioned who should be paying for the R&D and re-tooling needed to meet the new demands when consumers aren't willing to spend $xxx for a fuel-savings of $xxxx. If my memory is right, the numbers quoted were $1700 up-charge for more than $5,000 in fuel savings over 5 years. I'm not exactly feeling bad for the automakers, but I found the article interesting (and the comment above makes me think of that article....).

[YoKev]

Subarus lineup is anything but inspiring.

Essentially, it has not changed in nearly 20 years.

The most "exciting" thing in their lineup now is the yellow BRZ.

Yeah, a color....



A good product? Yea, generally. I've owned 4, the most recent being a 2012 Impreza. If it chugged any more oil I was going to start sending it to meetings...

[benb]

And yet Subaru is growing faster and doing better than most of the other countries in the US market. They make great soccer mommy/nascar dad vehicles (and they are beasts in the snow).

I like my outback but it doesn't light my hair on fire or anything. Figure I had a car that weighed about 1000lbs less and had about 40hp more plus a motorcycle that turned in low 11 second quarter mile times. Then within a year all that was gone and I was rocking an Outback. Oh well it gets the job done!

I'm not as impressed with the smaller Subarus. The big ones have great packaging, the little ones not so much. I would much rather ride in the back seat of a Civic than an Impreza.

I think the Hybrid is stupid.. they should have stuck it on a regular Impreza to get some decent gas mileage. The ground clearance and "rugged" body styling of the Crosstrek negate a lot of the hybrid benefits. The prius is not just great at what it does cause it's a hybrid, it has the ground clearance of a sports car and is very aerodynamic. 2 Thinks the Crosstrek definitely is not in possession of.

I still haven't driven anything I would rather drive than my Outback in the snow. I'm sure there are pickup trucks with 4WD that are better in super deep snow at low speed but they handle like crap compared to the Outback at higher speeds, and as far as I can tell it takes at least 12" of wet sticky half frozen snow to stop the Outback on moderate grades and a lot more of it if the snow is dry/powdery/whatever. It my family from a bad accident last winter in the snow.. I was able to pull off an emergency maneuver in the snow when another driver ran through an intersection, very few other cars I've had could have pulled that emergency turn off without understeering like crazy and if we hadn't made the turn my wife would have gotten hurt as we would have got T-boned on the passenger side with the other car going about 40mph. My son was in the middle back seat, who knows..

[p nut]

I actually like the CVT in our 13 Outback. It's super efficient in squeezing out all the HP out of the little 2.5L H4. Going up canyons at elevation here, it keeps up the speed with no issues, while my other V8 trucks would need a big stomp on the gas pedal to keep up. Only bad thing is the noise from the CVT...this high pitched whining sound. Not bad, but annoying.

When we shopped, I thought interior was fine for the price point (~$25k): Accord, Camry, etc. were all shod with similar plastic pieces all over. I did like the ergonomics of the Accord a little better, but still, the Honda/Toyota lacked other more important features, like a huge cargo area, roof rack, and AWD.

Ours has been awesome, and with 44k miles right now, the MPG has improved. I drove it the other day (my wife's car), and netted ~34MPG on a 200 mile drive. (All highway). Look at it for what it is--great people mover, through sunshine or snow, with good MPG. We are 100% satisfied with ours so far.

[mmelito]

We own the 2015 Crosstrek Hybrid. We have owned for over one year and have 35,000Km on the car. Driven in all conditions with the exception of a desert climate. daily drive is under 100km round trip, all city, no highway. Weekends, typically all highway.


No major issues encountered. Minor issues, which are common, are annoying rattles from poor trim fitting which are resolved through patience and good service from dealership.

Typical gas rating on hybrid in the city with little traffic is 5 - 6 litres / l00km between gas and hybrid mode (the wife is incredibly light on the throttle - i can barely match her). Highway is about 8 liters depending on speed. It seems to be best below 2500 rpm.

On nuisance is Subaru will not warranty a trailer hitch on hybrids due to the electric motor (its a torque issue i am told); thus no rear bike racks. I have the roof accessories for both Bikes and Skis - all good, but i prefer my Kuat on my Subaru Forster.

I would recommend the Crosstrek for City dwellers /weekend adventurers. The other models are not as city / traffic friendly / fit. the all wheel drive is awesome in the winter and the wet. We drove through the snow roads in Northern Quebec Canada without chains (but winter tires on) and no issues.

Let's be real, the fit and finish is pretty good for what you pay, and the reliability, safety and inefficiencies are a very good value.

Pm me if you you need and further details. happy to share

[Likes2ridefar]

Imo, fwd and snow tires will serve you just fine. I passed an outback struggling up a hill last winter as my fwd with snow tires rolled right by.

The outback im currently drivng cost nearly 40k and has fake plastic wood and fake aluminum. The leather is cheap. The satellite radio antenna stinks compared to my kia, dropping the signal quite often in the same areas the kia does not.

The eyesight is barely seen in the mirror, and the computer cant even tell which door is open giving a general alarm saying some door or hatch is open.

The rear auto hatch is stupidly slow compared to better cars ive driven.

I thought somthing was wrong with the engine the first time i went up a steep hill. Sounds awful.

This is all in a loaded 3.6 2016 outback with a handful of miles.

Great interior space though....ill give it that.

Every model below this particular outback is the same or worse in every regard, imo.

[p nut]

Originally Posted by Likes2ridefar

Imo, fwd and snow tires will serve you just fine. I passed an outback struggling up a hill last winter as my fwd with snow tires rolled right by.
....

Passing an AWD car with (apparently) bald tires only says the owner is incompetent. Equipped the same, I'm sure you'll agree, AWD will trump FWD. There is reason behind these signs:



That said, my old FWD Honda drove fine 99% of the time in snow with winter tires. Got up some big hills with no issues. Tough part is when there is a stand still. Getting going again going uphill is the weak point. Unfortunately, everyone seems to want to brake going up a hill around here.

Also, my old 3-series with winter tires did just fine most of the time as well.

[Likes2ridefar]

Totally agree, extreme conditions warrant proper gear. Majority here dont and shouldnt be driving in those conditions.

[tkbike]

We just purchased our 4th Subaru, a 2016 crosstrek for my wife, only 4K on it so far, can't comment on reliability yet. I drive a 2011 outback with 145k trouble free miles and my daughter drives my old 2003 outback with 290k trouble free miles.

I know of no one who purchased their Subaru for the fit/finish/performance, they were purchased for their safety/reliability and utility. If you can point me to an AWD hatchback or wagon with the same reliability, safety, rating, ground clearance and COST I'll give it a try!

I've heard all the raves of fwd cars with snows, I've owned several of these also(Honda,VW and Mazda)...they don't come close to an AWD Subaru's ground clearance equipped with snows.

[Mr. Pink]

Originally Posted by tkbike

I know of no one who purchased their Subaru for the fit/finish/performance, they were purchased for their safety/reliability and utility. If you can point me to an AWD hatchback or wagon with the same reliability, safety, rating, ground clearance and COST I'll give it a try!

I've heard all the raves of fwd cars with snows, I've owned several of these also(Honda,VW and Mazda)...they don't come close to an AWD Subaru's ground clearance equipped with snows.

Word.

My Forester is a bore. But it's a great value that gets me anywhere at most anytime, fits a bike easily in the back with luggage, and has plenty of room for skiing.The only other machine I would consider is a Honda CRV, or maybe a Korean product, since they warranty those for 100 thousand miles.

[benb]

One thing to keep in mind when we Subaru owners rave about snow performance is fun factor and lack of stress driving in the snow. I've lived in New England the entire time I've had a drivers license. Even when I had a V8 Mustang I got by fine, although snow tires were 100% mandatory on that car, and I also once delayed a trip home from northern Vermont when I had driven that car up and there was a big storm.

I had 2 front wheel drive cars after that, a focus hatchback and an Acura RSX Type S. The focus was fantastic and I never needed snow tires. The RSX was not as good because the tires were lower profile, suspension was stiff and brakes and throttle were very responsive. With a LSD or traction control it would have been much better in the snow. But I still traveled just about everywhere around Northern New England in the winter without snow tires or incidents. Closest I ever got to stuck was getting out of an unplowed lot at a ski area and one other time when I pushed it on tire replacement.

But none of those cars work like a Subaru they all required tons of concentration and care to drive in bad snow. The Subaru suspension tuning, brake feel, throttle and steering feel, balance and electronics all seem so well tuned for snow that there is no stress and I spend more time watching out for dangerous behavior from other drivers and less managing my own car. it really makes a big difference and you don't dread getting stuck driving through snow.