Facelifted 2021 Subaru XV Gains New 2.5-Liter Boxer Engine

The facelifted 2021 Subaru XV recently made its debut in the United States. Called the Crosstrek in North American markets, Subaru’s refreshed compact crossover SUV gains a new look and a bigger 2.5-liter four-cylinder boxer engine found in the North American Forester.

With this refresh, the Subaru XV gains a redesigned front bumper, new grille, and new alloy wheel designs on all variants. The main highlight for the 2021 model year is the addition of a new Sport variant (shown in Plasma Yellow Pearl), which gets its own wheel arch moldings, unique 17-inch alloy wheels with a dark gray finish, along with a gunmetal finish for the front grille, side mirrors, and badges.

The interior remains largely unchanged for the 2021 model year, though the new Sport variant gets its own unique design details. This includes a new StarTex™ upholstery, which is a lightweight, eco-friendly urethane material manufactured without polyvinyl chloride (PVC), phthalate, or chlorine. Yellow stitching has also been added to the leatherette door trim panel armrests, leather-wrapped steering wheel, shift boot, multifunction display visor, and center console storage box lid. The backing of the Sport variant’s floormats, which also feature yellow stitching, is made from 25 percent recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

As mentioned, the 2021 Subaru XV is now available with a more powerful 2.5-liter boxer engine that’s also found in the North American Forester. This engine is equipped as standard in the Sport and Limited (as shown Horizon Blue Pearl) and it produces 182 hp and 238 Nm of torque. Of course, in typical Subaru fashion, power is sent through all four wheels via a CVT. Lower variants are still powered by the smaller 2.0-liter boxer engine, which produces 154 hp and 196 Nm of torque, and can be equipped with a 6-speed manual transmission.

All CVT-equipped Subaru XVs are equipped with EyeSight as standard, which includes full-speed adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, just to name a few. New for the 2021 model year is a lane-centering, which keeps the car right in the middle of the lane during highway drives.

The facelifted Subaru XV will go on sale in the United States in late summer. As for a Philippine launch, there is no word yet from Motor Image Pilipinas about the company’s plans for the XV line-up.