Can the Hyundai Santa Fe and Subaru Crosstrek Off-Road Like a Bronco? You Might Be Surprised

The Santa Fe XRT and Crosstrek Wilderness are far more capable off-road than you might think

Subaru Crosstrek, Hyundai Santa Fe, Ford Bronco hero shot

written by Steven Ewing^{Director, Editorial Content
Steven Ewing has worked in the automotive industry since 2003. In that time, he's written thousands of car-related articles and tested just as many vehicles. Steven is Edmunds' director of editorial content and has previously been on staff at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog, Motor1.com, CNET Roadshow, and was the U.S. correspondent for Top Gear magazine. Steven has also contributed to Automobile magazine, Ars Technica, Car and Driver, The Drive, Jalopnik, SlashGear, and dozens of other publications. In his spare time, Steven loves to play the drums, cook, and lust over small JDM cars that never made it to the States.}
edited by Kathleen Clonts^{Copy Chief
Kathleen Clonts has worked in the automotive industry since 2014 and has copy-edited thousands of vehicle reviews and stories about cars and the auto industry in that time. Kathleen is the Edmunds editorial team's copy chief and previously worked as the senior copy editor for Automobile Magazine.}
8/8/2024
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Hyundai and Subaru offer off-road packages for the Santa Fe and Crosstrek crossovers.
Which begs the question, do you really need a purpose-built off-road SUV to hit the dirt?
To find out, we put the new Santa Fe and Crosstrek to the test.

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More and more automakers are offering off-road packages for their mainstream crossovers and SUVs, giving these vehicles a little extra dirt-slinging cred for buyers who enjoy venturing off the beaten path. But how off-road-capable are these vehicles, really? That's what we aimed to find out with the new Hyundai Santa Fe XRT and Subaru Crosstrek Wilderness.

The vehicles

The XRT is a midlevel trim in the Santa Fe hierarchy, powered by a 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-four with 277 horsepower. Its all-wheel-drive system is complemented by an all-terrain tire package, as well as 1.5 inches of additional ground clearance, for 8.3 inches total.

The Crosstrek Wilderness builds on Subaru's trusty tall hatch with 9.3 inches of total ground clearance, as well as all-terrain tires and dedicated off-road drive modes. Power still comes from a 2.5-liter flat-four with 182 hp, and of course, all-wheel drive is standard.

The tests

We decided to put these two soft-roaders through the sort of tests we'd use for any off-road vehicle, including a ziggurat (or large rock, in this case), hill climb and high-speed trail. Obviously, we are not suggesting that these vehicles could tackle any of the same obstacles as, say, a Ford Bronco, and it's important to note that, for some obstacles, you don't necessarily need a hardcore off-roader to get the job done.

Which brings us to ... the Bronco

To demonstrate that last point, we actually brought our long-term Ford Bronco out on the trail to prove that, while some tasks certainly require legitimate off-road chops, others, well, don't. Sure, the Bronco drove up our hill climb test without issue. But so did the Santa Fe. And so did the Crosstrek.

How did the Hyundai and Subaru fare on the whole range of tests? And which one is our favorite? You'll have to watch the video above to find out.

Steven Ewing

by Steven Ewing

Steven Ewing has worked in the automotive industry since 2003. In that time, he's written thousands of car-related articles and tested just as many vehicles. Steven is Edmunds' director of editorial content and has previously been on staff at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog, Motor1.com, CNET Roadshow, and was the U.S. correspondent for Top Gear magazine. Steven has also contributed to Automobile magazine, Ars Technica, Car and Driver, The Drive, Jalopnik, SlashGear, and dozens of other publications. In his spare time, Steven loves to play the drums, cook, and lust over small JDM cars that never made it to the States.

Kathleen Clonts

edited by Kathleen Clonts

Kathleen Clonts has worked in the automotive industry since 2014 and has copy-edited thousands of vehicle reviews and stories about cars and the auto industry in that time. Kathleen is the Edmunds editorial team's copy chief and previously worked as the senior copy editor for Automobile Magazine.

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