2024 Subaru Ascent Onyx Limited Review and Off-Road Test

We get behind the wheel of the new 2024 Subaru Ascent Onyx Limited 3-Row Crossover. How does it compare against the competition and does this Onyx still maintain the off-road capability buyers expect from Subaru? We have a full feature review, street drive and off-road test.

#Subaru #SubaruAscent #offroad

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[madlucio]

It is interesting one of the points that you made in this video. The point of people commenting about how Subarus fail in offroad situations. I have grown up in the offroad world, starting out with my 78' Blazer that my dad and I built together. I cannot tell you how many people I came across with amazing offroaders completely stuck or broken down in only semi-difficult situations. Is does not matter how great a vehicle is at doing something, you absolutely have to know what you are doing to be successful. You can get anything stuck or cause anything to fail if you are unaware of the proper driving habits or limitations of your vehicle. I have owned Subarus since the 1990's and driven them in pretty much every situation short of straight rock crawling and I have yet to encounter a failure or breakdown of any sort. I have definitely made mistakes as a driver and gotten into bad situations that I needed help getting out of. I learned from those and adjusted my driving behaviors to avoid those mistakes again. But the vehicles themselves have never failed me. Subarus have really impressive systems in them and they are comfortable on the highway and offroad as well extremely safe. Take care of your Subaru vehicle and it will definitely take care of you.

[MillerSubaru]

Had a 2020 Ascent, really enjoyed it. So much so, we traded it for a 2023 last year, and like it even more. Great vehicles, and appreciate the subtle improvements in the refreshed model. Great size for our family of four, strong value in the Premium trim, and an excellent all-around vehicle. Appreciate how safe Subarus are as well, especially as my wife's daily driver.

[weatherornotsubaru]

Hello! I offered you our 2023 Ascent last year to test, but you couldn't due to insurance reasons. So I'm really glad to see you finally getting one to test. And I hope you test it a lot more offroad and in snow, and more difficult road situations, because it's very capable!

In the past 24k miles on our 2023 Subaru Ascent Limited my family of 6 (2 adults, 4 kids ages 10 and under, one of which is a 1 year old) have driven hundreds (thousands?) of miles offroad. We took our whole family and our 60 lb dog on a 3, 400 mile trip last October, 16 days of camping and mostly offroading through the BDR trails of Utah and WA, including Moab, UT, Bethel Ridge WA, and many more areas. And it handled beautifully! After that trip we have zero doubts about it's capability and comfort for our larger family.

This year we are planning another 3, 000 miles trip through more of Utah's BDR and Colorado BDR, plus finishing off WA BDR offroad trails this year. We frequently (as in, almost every single weekend) take our Ascent with all 6 members of our family into the cascade mountains and Mt Rainer area in all kinds of offroad conditions from mud, steep/deep puddles, rocks, deep snow, etc. We have only been stuck a couple of times in the deep snow (18+"), but that was mainly a tire issue (spinning tires, no traction).

Something I wanted to mention in reply to your video above, the Ascent provides 100% of the engine torque at 2k RPM's. This is worth noting because it means the RPM's are never very high in any kind of driving condition, unlike other SUV's that require high rpm's to put the power down.

Also, we've pushed our Ascent VERY HARD in rough conditions and not once ever had AWD issues. Never overheated. The engine, transmission, and AWD system has never failed us. It's one of the only AWD systems that I can trust to safely get my family from point A to point B through offroad conditions any time I ask it to.

Something else worth noting. In all the offroading we've done in numerous states, we have never seen a Honda, VW, Hyundai, Kia, etc. What we do see is always Toyota, Jeep, Subaru and Ford (specifically only the bronco) and the occasional Chevy truck. I think that pretty much confirms that despite other brands offering 'offroad' focused options and vehicle trims, people don't actually trust them enough to take them offroad. Subaru's ARE that trusted vehicle people take offroad and the Ascent is one of them.

[SubaruAmbassadorRobert]

Great vid, as always!!! I've got over 10, 000 miles off roading my Ascent all over the country, and also never had my AWD fail or shut down. Heck, I've off roaded my Ascent in all four of this country's major deserts, and we spent hours off roading the Arches NP 4x4 Trail and had no problems.

[TechDad-thph]

You love Subarus and you live where I live and that’s why I love you and your vids. Thank you for having Subarus back. You’re 100% they don’t fail and over heat like others. They just go. 🎉🎉😊

[gigawattsohmy]

Loved my 2020 so much we just went and got a 2024. 85k on the 2020 without a hiccup - smooth, quiet, comfortable and such a good value. Got the same setup as this one reviewed for a cool $44.5k - a lot of vehicle for the money these days

[Kusaland_CEO]

Glad to know the Xmode on a larger vehicle still works as intended. Would like to see more videos of this system pushed even further (if subaru will let you) in an Ascent since its a huge part of why people would buy this over other cars in the segment. Also would love to see a long roatrip video with this vehicle, perhaps a touring trim.

[sethlingenfelter]

Really enjoyed this test! We have a 2020 and love it. It’s been wonderful for all kinds of trips and weather. Approaching 90k now.

[WeirdMikey]

A base 2021 Ascent (with a few subtle mods) changed me over from being a lifelong Honda and Mazda owner. Subarus for my family for life.

[dannyboy]

Agreed with you Ryan we need a Wilderness version of the Ascent

[pidziuk]

Love my '23 limited, does everything I need and brings some peace of mind with great IIHS and NHTSA scores.

[shoveljunk-americanpatriot]

It’s perfect for us. It fits in the garage. Out of sight out of mind. Please give me a button so I can choose to turn off the fake shifting. “PLEASE!”

[MechayaAlta]

We chose a 2023 outback onyx 2.5 over the wilderness for a lower vehicle height with a Inno roof box on. We can drive into our garage with the box on. Total height is 78”. Thanks for your unique helpful reviews. We factory ordered our Outback without sunroof or GPS for about $35K. Only miss a turbo when passing a semi going uphill.

[huntstyle]

Why do all these manufacturers keep putting big rims on their more off-road focused trims? That is so counter-intuitive. This thing should have no more than 18" rims.

[hobbytake]

On our 8th Subaru in the family, and have had excursions into snow that was difficult and near stuck to the point of rocking for near ten minutes. No issues with the awd system... not even once. Love the review! I'm currently driving the 23 version of this vehicle.

[Joeybz]

Thank you! I have the 22 limited. I am very happy with it.

[bendcamp]

22’ Crosstrek 6 speed manual here. Your videos have inspired me to go out and drive my own Subaru offroad. What I want to know is how Subaru tunes the brake vectoring in the Crosstreks that don’t have the CVT or X-Mode. My car has a button that makes the traction control slightly more lenient with wheel spin. Kind of like an X-Mode type 2. I’ve done some articulation testing with my car, and it does seem to shift power around like it’s in X-Mode, but there is no mode selector involved.

[panzer_TZ]

I love my 2023 Ascent Limited. Great power, excellent ride quality, plenty of space. I also put Pirelli Scorpion AS Plus 3s, which makes the ride even better and quieter. The Pirellis also smooth out the throttle. I took it on a family road trip with the car fully loaded(me + 4 full size adults + their luggage) and it performed beautifully. It's not as flashy or as well known as some of the competitors, but I've appreciated the car the more I've owned it. My mother said the Ascent was so comfortable that it seemed like the roadtrip went by way faster than the last time.

[gmogorean]

One of the best reviews ever. Very to the point and no BS. Thank you!

[rayjensen]

I currently have a 2021 Limited with just over 50, 000 miles on it. GREAT car! It has made 3 round trips from Southwest Florida to Massachusetts and comfortably. I was VERY concerned about the CVT after reading and watching videos about vehicles with them. I actually REALLY LIKE the Subaru CVT. It has a built in oil cooler....(which is a must), and it is smooth as hell. In my opinion, it constantly applies power to the wheels in all conditions without interruption. It's a great application for these vehicles. I to0 really wish that Subaru would "get with it" in regard to their marketplace. As an example, right now, all of their competitors are coming out with very desireable "box" type SUV new models. Yet the Ascent....is overdue for a complete update to the well as a ....NOTHING. They were a day late and a dollar short coming out with the Ascent back in 2019. It's happening again.WHY? The newly designed 2024 Hyundai Santa going to destroy the market for the Ascent if Subaru doesn't get on the stick. My opinion.