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2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother

After all those concepts and teasers, Subaru has finally completed the Impreza family with the debut of the XV at the Geneva Motor Show. We're dealing with a brand new platform wrapped in pretty much the same styling as the regular 2017 Impreza hatchback.
2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother 13 photos
Photo: Guido ten Brink / SB-Medien
2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother2018 Subaru XV Debuts in Geneva as Impreza's Rugged Brother
The styling we saw in Switzerland is nowhere near as bold as that of the XV Concept shown in in 2016. There are no orange accents or aluminum skid plates. However, it's still a far better-looking crossover than the older model.

Things like the bumpers, wheel arches, wheel design, grille and roof bars are used by the XV to give itself a more rugged appearance than your regular Impreza. We really like it in both orange and the light pastel blue that was on display. Subaru also introduced a color called Cool Grey Khaki, which you also see on popular Nike shoes.

Remove all the frills, and you're left with the Subaru Global Platform, substantially more rigid than its predecessor but also more refined from a suspension point of view.

Under the hood is a 2.0-liter boxer unit which Subaru says is made with 80% new parts. In European spec, it delivers 156 PS and 196 Nm (145 lb-ft) of torque. It's linked to Subaru's Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system through an improved Lineatronic gearbox that can mimic seven gears.

The XV has the latest safety tech from Subaru, EyeSight 3.0. You can see the big binocular cameras next to the central mirror that offer Pre-Collision Braking Control, Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Keep Assist, the High Beam Assist and adaptive headlights. The crossover also has Subaru Rear Vehicle Detection, which provides blind spot detection, lane change assistance, and reversing assistance. Unless we are mistaken, that makes it Subaru's current safest car in Europe.

The US debut of this 2018 model year has already been scheduled for New York next month. So stay tuned for that all-important pricing information.
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About the author: Mihnea Radu
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Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida.
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