Driven: Subaru XV

Subaru are renowned for making mean turbo charged monsters that have conquered the world’s rally courses. Their small capacity 4 cylinder boxer motors are recognised by all petrol heads and car enthusiasts the world over. That charismatic deep thud emanating from the exhausts combined with the high pitched turbo whistle and whine strikes fear into fellow road users.

As a result Subaru have created a very sporty image for themselves but there are in fact a variety of models that are anything but sporty. The XV is one, but for what it lacks in performance it makes up for in comfort and economy.

Designed to be a lifestyle orientated vehicle, the XV comes with the new generation boxer 4 motor. It is not turbocharged for power but in fact naturally aspirated and designed for optimum fuel efficiency. Unfortunately the engine does possess some slightly frustrating characteristics. It is not responsive at all, Subaru have seemed to fit a very heavy flywheel to keep up momentum. This means when you take your foot off the accelerator the RPM drops very slowly and consequently takes a long time to build up also.

The redline is fairly high at 62oorpm but you never utilize the full rev range due to the nature of power delivery. Instead the XV almost forces you to short shift and use momentum which equates to less fuel usage. This isn’t always a bad thing as fuel efficiency in this day and age is actually very important.

The gentleman from Subaru managed to achieve a fuel consumption figure of 7 litres per 100km upon delivery of the vehicle, this is very impressive considering it has a petrol powerplant and is a fairly substantial car with symmetrical all-wheel drive.

I managed to achieve between 8 and 9.6 litres per 100km whilst driving around in realistic conditions with an anchor attached to my right foot. Not bad at all, so out goes any WRX expectations and in comes fuel efficiency. The quoted power output is 110kw’s and 196nm of torque.

There are two model variants a manual 6 speed and a CVT option with the same 2.0 litre 4 cylinder DOHC powerplant.

What about the ergonomics on the inside? Well there is plenty space inside the cabin and boot, fold the rear seats down and you can fit a full size mountain bike in the back no problems. (Try do this in a normal saloon and you’ll end up with a damaged bicycle and greasy seats).

The leather interior is comfy and is definitely recommended for the XV. Standard equipment includes Xenon headlights, a reverse camera, sunroof, 17 inch two tone rims which look fantastic, a duel zone climate control system which works perfectly, cruise control, aux and USB inputs, power sockets, a 3d display screen, hill start assist and much more. The XV does come well equipped. However, the navigation display unit is a further R10 000. Not bad when you look at the competition but it will take a few days to become accustomed to it, especially the slightly older generations amongst us. You know who I mean, the ones who are still battling with SMS’s.

Some of the slightly disappointing features on the inside include the over-assisted steering, the abundant use of plastic despite the soft-touch dash, and the cheap and nasty manual seat adjustment levers. Somehow the overall feel is slightly lacking considering the R329 000 base asking price.

The XV is very much a car of positives and negatives, for what it might lack in fun and excitement, it makes up with in sensibility and practicality. There is good ground clearance and the all wheel drive system allows good off road performance. The interior contains an array of fuel efficiency and figure displays, but there is still a feel of cheapness. The gearbox is notchy on the manual version and you won’t be breaking any speed records, but perhaps this is a good thing.  

What you’ll also receive with the XV is a 5 star Euro NCAP rating and 7 airbags. As is expected today, the XV comes with an array of safety features that aim to keep you and your occupant’s safe in the occurrence of an accident. So if you’re a mom looking for something slightly different yet practical this may be the car for you. You can also strap on the bicycles and go for a ride out in the countryside on the weekend.

Pros:

Good selection of features as standard

Symmetrical all-wheel drive

Practicality

Fuel efficiency

Safety

Versatility

On board technology

Cons:

Interior not quite there yet

Slower than one might expect

Don’t get the orange variant or you’ll look like a Supradyn effervescent

I would personally like to thank Subaru South Africa, Didier and Ashley for their fantastic service and cooperation.

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