The all-new Subaru Crosstrek is currently on display at the ongoing Japan Mobility Show, a few months after the third-generation crossover went on sale in the country. Known previously as the XV – the second-generation facelift is still sold in Malaysia – the Crosstrek made its global debut back in September 2022.
In terms of design changes, the latest Crosstrek takes an evolutionary approach rather than a revolutionary. From a distance, the general shape and profile of the crossover appears similar to its predecessor, but there are some notable changes.
As a start, the black body cladding around the wheel arches is more angular and expressive than before. There’s also a larger grille at the front, which has trim extending out of the insert towards the sleeker LED headlamps, while the fog lamp surrounds are a lot chunkier.
Moving to the rear, the Crosstrek features C-shaped taillights in keeping with recent models introduced by the brand, and just like the front end, the trim around the reflectors is more prominent – note the more rugged, diffuser-like skid plate too.
This new shape sits atop an updated version of the Subaru Global Platform (SGP) and sees a 15 mm increase in overall length to 4,480 mm as well as a 40 mm reduction in height to 1,575 mm. No change to the width (1,800 mm) and wheelbase (2,670 mm), with the ground clearance remaining useable for soft off-roading at 200 mm.
The Crosstrek’s cabin takes inspiration from newer stablemates by adding an 11.6-inch, portrait-format touchscreen infotainment system to the dashboard. This sees the omission of the supplementary display at the top of the dash in the previous model, which served to display the status of various vehicle systems. The analogue instrument cluster with a multi-info display as well as the steering wheel appear to be about the same as before.
The same is true of the positioning of the gear lever, although the centre console it is on has been revised so the cupholders are arranged diagonally and the controls for the electronic parking and parking camera now sit on the same gloss black panel.
In Japan, the Crosstrek is offered with just one e-Boxer powertrain that uses consists of a FB20 2.0 litre naturally-aspirated flat-four petrol unit augmented by a 48-volt mild hybrid system. The latter comes with a 4.8-Ah battery under the boot floor that is linked to a MA1 electric motor rated at 13.6 PS (13.4 hp or 10 kW) and 65 Nm of torque.
The electric motor is sandwiched between the FB20 and Lineartronic CVT, with the entire system providing 145 PS (143 hp or 107 kW) at 6,000 rpm and 188 Nm at 4,000 rpm. Based on the WLTC standard, the fuel economy rating is 16.4 km/l for the cheaper front-wheel drive variant and 15.8 km/l for the all-wheel drive.
The post 2023 Subaru Crosstrek on display – 2.0L e-Boxer mild hybrid; 145 PS, 188 Nm; will this come to Malaysia? appeared first on Paul Tan’s Automotive News.
