3 Reasons Why You Want The New Subaru Crosstrek With A CVT And Not A 6-Speed Manual

You have got to be kidding me with this waste of an article. Several of those "differences" simply come down to how you drive the car. But, you're actually supporting Subaru's withholding of safety features if you purchase a manual? That is a terrible side to take, and not one that sides with the consumer.

The fact that EyeSight doesn't come with a manual is a BIG reason I would chose a manual. All the stupid techy stuff is getting ridiculous and adding unnecessary maintenance costs.

BUZZKILL: I literally had an adrenaline rush finding out about the newly upgraded Crosstrek, only to be let down by the lack of a real transmission. I had a 2018 with the manual and it was very good...if not a bit gutless. I'm used to performance cars and still enjoyed the chassis, ride and shifting with the 6-speed manual. I lament that a sunroof cannot be had with the manual, but I accepted that.

Also, be very careful with the eyesight option. Had a friend with an Outback and the eyesight would activate the brakes over the smallest things and scared the s*** out of his wife several times. He demanded Subaru buy it back. I also agree. Scary!

It seems obvious that the author of this article is pushing what Subaru would like him to push. Typically, if auto writers want to be loaned future vehicles to review, they will feel pressure to make the manufacturers happy.

The CVT is trash on all these cars, not just Subaru.
Can't call it Sport without the 6 speed......
I ended up with a Mazda CX-5 this time with a real automatic transmission.

People who drive a manual drive it because it is speedy and more fun to drive. I would NEVER consider driving an automatic, EVER!

Manual transmission all day long. The dealers cannot get enough in stock and people want them. They sell as soon as they get to the dealer. I bought the first 2021 that came into the dealer and someone else bought the 2nd. Out of 14 2021 Crosstrek's the dealer received 2 were manuals.

Denis my friend You know you don’t truly believe what you wrote. This is purely to get clicks on your site but I will bite down because you know the is a sensitive topic for a lot of us and I hope Subaru reads these comments.

The CVT fuel economy is the only real argument you made but it’s still a marginal difference. Every other reason to me was very flimsy and can be a matter of preference and also has its negatives. For example.Eye sight made all these cars more expensive. I remember the last gen costing 3 k less on all trims with eye sight being optional. I don’t even want it. Also, eyesight cameras take up so much space that the sun visors are shorter and don’t properly cover the door windows lenght . That little extension on the visor sucks and can still light pass depending on the sun’s angle and driver height. Subaru still can’t make a proper slide out visor even if you get that on a Kia Soul.???

The real reasons to buy the CVT are the following:

1-The new 2.5 l engine is only available on the CVT models. That extra power has been requested for 9 years and it’s truly a slap in the face of its loyal fans to not offer the bigger engine on a Manual or better make it standard across the board.

What’s worst is the price difference is so small between a sport and outdoor model in Canada. Subaru made it impossibly difficult to pick the manual over the CVT for anyone looking for value. Sure the sport has a few more gadgets but a bigger engine upgrade is usually a 3-4K price increase but the outdoor model costs less. Anyone with a brain and a calculator can see that the manual is totally handicapped on purpose. It’s the same reason they only offered the heated steering wheel on the limited up until 2021 but not most trims have it. Why was that? Simple..increase profits by pushing your customer into the more expensive car.

2- if you do some off roading the CVT with 2 Xmode setting can be more capable. Brake a spinning wheel and sending that power to the wheels that grip is quite effective and is close but not quite the same to a locking differential. Subaru could have evened out the playing field by adding a rear lock or viscous coupling like my old 2005 forester XS but once again pushes you towards the CVT.

3- absent feature from the manual trims. Even on the highest manual sport you can get all the bells and wistles. It really sucks that I can’t get leather or the Harmon Cardin system on a 32k with a tiny 2.0l engine . Again this is to push us into a limited but 36 k on a car this size even fully loaded is insane. The sound insulation is average and is missing basics luxuries like a lumbar support ..?. Even my old forester had a manual adjustment in 2005..Come on Subaru! We know it’s a jacked up Impreza with plastic cladding.

I am a longtime fan of the brand and would love to have a Crosstrek. The exterior look and the interior dash is amazing compared the old days. The ride soaks up bumps but the rigid frame and AWD keeps the car planted it planted. I know there is no perfect car. But Subaru almost made one perfect for me. I hate that I have to choose the lesser value but I m still going to buy a sport manual. Why?

Well, if you drive a car just to get to a destination then I won’t bother explaining it to you. Those of us who love cars and enjoy the connected feeling a manual understand what I mean. Life is about fun and discovering our passions. I love rowing gears in a AWD on a curvy snow covered road. It brings me joy it’s that simple.

Sadly this will probably be the last manual Crosstrek. I m buying mine and keeping it forever. It will sit proudly next to my S2000 and CRX. I suggest you do the same. Find your manual tranny dream cars and keep them maintained. The future is clear and There is no going back now. However, We don’t have to resist these changes. You can drive along side them in a more fun to drive time capsule.

Save the Manuals, more engaging driving experience.

can someone please help me. I would like to buy a new crosstek but the manual transmission, just so I can learn and get use to drive stick cars. Im not that young Im almost 40 so not sure if it is a good idea ?? that is one question. The next question is : which one I should get base trim or premium ? what are the differences ?? I cant find these online. please help thanks.

Hi Fran,
I've been driving manuals all my life. If you go for the Crosstrek Manual and want a few extra options, get the premium, it has heated seats, CD player, SiriusXM, Fog lamps and maybe a few things they add on at the port, like trunk mat, upgraded floor mats(pretty decent). I have a Base model and the only things I had added to my car were the trunk mat, led overhead lights and upgraded floor mats. The car is great to drive, I get about 30+ mpg.
Good luck with your choice.
Chuck

The day I can no longer get a manual transmission on a Subaru is the day I no longer buy Subarus. I'm on my 4th, a Crosstrek Premium, stick shift. Love it. Love driving stick. It's the primary reason I didn't buy another Outback (no stick, but also too bloated). I get better MPG on my manual Crosstrek than the CVTs. All about how you drive it. Don't need, and certainly don't want EyeSight. Another reason not to get a CVT. I know several people that wanted manuals but the wait time was too long. Settled for the CVTs. Sales don't always reflect wants.

Why a manny trans. So you can tow it 4 down behind an RV. Any so that with a CVT. RV’ers love the Crosstrek for towing 4 down. Lightweight and fun to drive.

Anyone that has any passion for driving cars wants a manual. I do not care about the stupid power cut modes they offer or vdc or eyesight. (You can disable the vdc and abs by pulling off a wheel sensor). I want all the power, to the clutch, and I will decide when I need it, thanks. It's called driving for a reason, if a wanted a golf cart I'd buy one.

I have yet to get the fuel economy rated with our 2019 limited cvt.

Does anyone pull their CT (manual) with an RV? Any issues?

One, I’m running a truck that gets 16.5 mpg
Two I don’t like the cvt tranny, they are gutless and feel like you have to drive them gingerly
Three, I like to slide around in the snow, and have found that the less ability your car has to compensate for your poor judgement, the better driver you’ll become.

Everything I have read from Crosstrek manual owners on various forums indicates that the EPA severely underestimates the mileage you'll see with the manual transmission and that in most cases it will actually outperform the CVT. The manual also comes with 50/50 torque split which give superior handling in dry conditions at the expense of a little less sophistication in inclement weather. Lastly the windshield of EyeSight models is insanely expensive to replace as the glass is more expensive and the labor to replace and re-calibrate EyeSight is significant, up to $1800 for everything. Sure in most cases it will be covered by insurance but you can bet your insurance company will charge you more as a result. So while the manual looses out in some areas there are some pluses to it as well.

I am 75 and have driven manuals all my life. Most autos in Europe are manual transmissions. Bullet proof compared to the complicated, and many times unreliable, auto transmissions that are coming out. Eight speed, nine speed, ten speed, CVT.... Bullshit! Are Americans too lazy to learn how to drive a simple manual? I don't get it.

I'll say this, Hyundai accent manual sounds more appealing to me than Mercedes S class. Base model manual sounds pretty good to me. I can't care less about all that fancy tech junk. I'll get me a Buick if I live up to be 80. Until then, I want to drive the car, not the other way around. There are fans of manual and it's a shame our choices are narrowed down to few models.

Anyone claiming an auto will get better mpg over a manual is clueless.

So the only real reason is better mpg, the other 2 are because subaru decided not to let people have the manual with those options...

I own a 2019 Crosstrek with 6 speed manual for several reasons. One is most crackheads out there stealing cars are too stupid to even know how to drive a manual transmission vehicle and two I can pull behind the motorhome 4 wheels down.

I have a crosstrek CVT, to try it out. Previous owner of a 2.5RS. From experience, its complete trash.
1) No control, I am always driving it in manual mode.
2) It is super sluggish, many times I have mashed on the gas to do a lane change out of traffic and take 2-3 second for the transmission to respond almost getting rear ended. (common problem to most automatic transmissions).
3) Report have been made that they are not very reliable.
4) The torque is unable to handle additional power if I wanted to add some.

I am truly against cars that have computer systems and auto pilots ets. Computers are discrete machines, reality is continuous, and compute times will always fr seconds longer than the proactive driver. Computers will always reactive approach on the road rather than a proactive approach to driving, assuming the sensors catch them 100% of the time.

Sad, because I now have to bastardize my crosstrek and convert it to a manual due to not having one from factory.