Subaru plans bigger engine for Crosstrek
Subaru’s Crosstrek will get a little more power thanks to a planned engine swap, Automotive News reports.
Tom Doll, chief executive of Subaru’s American division, told a dealer meeting that the larger engine would be coming soon to fix customer complaints.
“One of the things that our customers were telling us about the Crosstrek was it was maybe a little underpowered with the 2.0-litre engine,” Doll said. “Well, the 2.5-litre engine will solve that problem.”
The 2.0-L flat-four made just 152 horsepower, which, when combined with the weight of the vehicle and parasitic loss from the all-wheel-drive system, made the SUV dreadfully slow.
Subaru offers two different 2.5-L engines, and although Doll declined to go into greater detail about which one would be going into the Crosstrek, either one of them would be an improvement.
One is naturally aspirated and provides 182 horsepower and 176 pound-feet of torque. This is the engine featured most prominently in the Forester, Outback and Legacy. The other 2.5-L engine makes 310 hp and 290 pound-feet of torque thanks to its turbocharger, but it’s unlikely we’ll see that engine in the Crosstrek as its original home is in the WRX STI.
While the Crosstrek is based on the Impreza, there is no indication that the 2.5-L engine will make its way to that also underpowered vehicle. It will be featured in a new
Sport trim package and arrive later this year as a 2021 model.