The all-new Subaru XV has been launched by Subaru Philippines, and while it looks like a heavy facelift of the previous generation model, trust me, but this car is 80% all-new, with the remaining 20% only coming from the bolts and screws used to build this car.
Exterior-wise, the Subaru XV looks very similar to the outgoing generation, which may be a good or a bad thing, depending on who you’re asking, as competition is getting stiff with good looking products, especially from Mazda’s CX-3. The new Subaru XV utilizes Subaru’s DYNAMIC x SOLID solid language, which outside the marketing jargon, is supposed to make the car look more sporty and dynamic than before, whatever that means. The new design language is characterized by a longer hood, steeply raked windshield, flared wheel arches, a new hexagonal grille, and LED headlights with “hawk-eye” LED daytime running lights. At the back, the rear LED lights mimic the headlight design, and are better flushed than the ones in the Impreza sedan, as those found in the sedan look like an afterthought. Underpinning the XV is where all the headlines at. It utilizes Subaru’s new scalable Subaru Global Platform, which started in its sibling, the Impreza. The platform has been designed for better ride and driving dynamics. Developed at a cost of US$ 1 billion, this investment will soon appear in future Subarus.
Inside, and the story brightens considerable from the outside. It’s similar to the Impreza’s, which, again, is no surprise, because it’s basically the crossover-ed version of the Impreza hatch. Only this time, the premium and upmarket interior has been spruced up a bit. It has orange stitching details all over, and a choice of water repellent fabric interior in the base trim, or leather interior in the highest trim. The interior is highlighted by the new Subaru Starlink infotainment system, which is dominated by a 7-inch in the base variant or an 8-inch capacitive touch screen system in the highest trim, with multi-touch gestures, enabling pinch to zoom and swipe actions. It is equipped with both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and through an NFC chip, an NFC enabled Android phone can be used so that you don’t have to fumble with your phone in order to connect your Android smartphone via Bluetooth.
Powering the Subaru XV is the same reworked version of the FB20 boxer engine in the Impreza. It now uses direct injection, and produces 156 hp and 200 Nm of torque. Power is sent via a Lineartronic CVT with paddle shifters, towards all four wheels via Subaru’s trademark Symmetrical AWD. Power is split 60/40 front/rear, with the system capable of sending 100% of the power to either the front or rear wheels. Idling Start/Stop is equipped as standard, shutting off the engine momentarily while in, let’s say, a set of stoplights, in order to save fuel.
Among Japanese brands, Subaru has always been a leader in safety, and this new generation is no exception. The Subaru Global Platform is designed to be one of the safest platforms until the year 2025, which means that even after 8 years, it should still theoretically lead the pack in terms of crash protection. Apart from the platform and a host of airbags mitigating the effects of a crash, the all-new Subaru XV in its highest trim is equipped with active safety features that prevent a crash in the first place, such as (SRH) steering responsive headlights, Blind Spot Warning, Lane Departure Warning, Lane Keeping Assist, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, and a unique Subaru feature called PIN code access. Standard features for all variants include a smart key and push button start system, a rear view camera, power folding mirrors, and the (VDC) vehicle dynamics control system.
There are two variants, the base 2.0i is priced at P1,348,000 and the 2.0i-s is priced at P1,538,000, both of which receive no price increases over the previous generation model.
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