2018 Subaru XV now available in PH with retained price tag

When we covered the ASEAN debut of the Impreza in Singapore, Subaru Executive Director Glenn Tan shared that the Philippine market will get the all-new XV this year. Well, Tan held on to his promise as Motor Image Pilipinas, the exclusive distributor of Subaru vehicles in the country, launched the 2018 XV.

Overall, the XV gets a new exterior look, a revamped interior, and added technology features. This updates give Subaru’s subcompact crossover an added arsenal to battle its segment rivals such as the Nissan Juke, Ford EcoSport, Mazda CX-3, Chevrolet Trax, among others.

This XV is the 2nd Subaru model to feature the brand’s new Global Platform, which enhances vehicle’s overall driving performance and safety. It is said to improve the vehicle’s straight line stability (smoother steering response), Noise/Vibration/Harshness (NVH), and comfort. The 1st model to be equipped with the brand’s new platform is the Impreza.

Under the hood, the XV is powered by a 2.0L gasoline engine, which is said to be 12kg lighter than the previous power unit. The engine delivers 154 hp and 196 Nm of torque. It is connected to a continuously variable transmission (CVT) and power is sent to all 4 wheels with Subaru’s Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive.

The exterior of the 2018 XV is integrated with Subaru’s current design language dubbed as ‘Dynamic x Solid.’ It gets blacked-out C-shaped headlights that shares similarities with the Impreza. Adding to the XV’s aggressive front is the revamped hexagonal grille and the matte black cladding on the bumper. Turning at the side, it has prominent wheel arches and newly-designed 18-inch aluminum alloys that sort of look like a Japanese weapon called shuriken or more commonly known as ninja star.

The rear is fitted with revamped taillights, which we find more distinctive and stylish as compared to the outgoing model. In addition, the XV has a large bumper with matte black cladding and a ground clearance of 220mm, which further adds to its aggressive, rugged design.

Inside, the XV has a black interior theme along with splashes of silver and orange stitches. It comes with a 3-spoke steering wheel (with audio and call controls), an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay, and a white-on-black instrument cluster.

Aside from the refreshed exterior and interior design, one of the notable addition to the 2018 XV is Subaru’s X-Mode. With a push of a button, this feature allows the XV to drive through rough terrain with ease by controlling the engine, transmission, all-wheel drive system, and brakes for you to safely take one any terrain (rough, slippery, and steep climbs).

The top-of-the line XV variant also gets the following features: High Beam Assist, which automatically adjusts the vehicle’s headlight beam when it detects oncoming vehicles. It also has Steering Responsive Headlights that follows the direction of the steering wheel. Lastly, the XV is equipped with Rear View Direction that works like a rear cross traffic alert system, which detects imminent collision when reversing. The said safety feature also aids safer lane changing.

Safety-wise, the XV comes with the usual features such as anti-lock braking system with electronic brakeforce distribution, engine immobilizer, vehicle dynamics control, 7 airbags, and ISOFIX child seat anchors.

The local-spec XV is available in 2 variants: 2.0i CVT and 2.0i-S CVT. In terms of pricing, Motor Image Pilipinas has retained the price of the outgoing XV. With that, the 2.0i is priced at P1,348,000 and the 2.0i-S has a sticker price of P1,538,000.