While in town for the 2024 Chicago Auto Show, Cars.com West Coast Bureau Chief Conner Golden nabbed the keys to the new 2024 Subaru Crosstrek Wilderness as the perfect off-road weapon for the inhospitable badlands of the Windy City. We kid, but driving the Subaru’s most overland-ready compact crossover exclusively on pavement had us thinking: Could these changes make it better not just off-road, but also as an urban commuter?

The squishy all-terrain rubber and (slightly) jacked-up suspension have minimal effect on the Crosstrek’s impressive-for-the-segment ride and handling — and make it that much more forgiving when navigating broken pavement and steep lot entrances. Subaru’s hard work at improving sound deadening and noise isolation also has tremendously improved the driving experience. There are less kind things to say about the outlandish exterior, though the extensive badging, mustard-hued trim accents and acres of chunky black plastic resonates with enough buyers to make the various Wilderness trims a popular option.

Come along with us in this video as we walk you through the details of the 2024 Subaru Crosstrek Wilderness.

Read more about the 2024 Subaru Crosstrek: https://www.cars.com/articles/2024-su...

See the 2024 Subaru Crosstrek’s pricing, trim and specs: https://www.cars.com/research/subaru-...

Shop for a new Subaru Crosstrek: https://www.cars.com/shopping/subaru-...

Intro 0:00
Exterior styling 0:38
Roof rails, roof tent 1:52
Rear styling 2:08
Off-road hardware 2:26
Drivetrain 2:45
Interior 3:07
Driving impressions 3:29
Power delivery 4:12
Sound deadening 4:36
Ride and handling 5:48
Steering and braking 6:05
Outro 6:37

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