The only surprise, now that Subaru has introduced its first production hybrid model, is that it took so long.
The company last week showed off the Subaru XV Crosstrek Hybrid at the 2013 New York International Auto Show. The 2014 XV Crosstrek Hybrid model will hit Subaru dealerships in the fourth quarter of the year, Subaru said, and when it does it will be “the most fuel-efficient and lowest-emissions AWD hybrid crossover in America.”
Unless the car is a dog, it’s hard not to imagine this being a popular choice for the crunchy Subaru crowd. As Wired pointed out, a hybrid Subaru seems tailor made for “urban hipsters and Portlanders.” We at EarthTechling, headquartered in Portland, wouldn’t disagree. According to our utterly unscientific study, the top two vehicle choices here are Subarus and Priuses, so you can only imagine how a sort-of merging of the two might fare.
Subaru said the melding of the 13.4-hp electric motor and brake regeneration system into the XV Crostrek will give the vehicle fuel economy figures of around 28 mpg in the city and 34 on the highway. That’s compared to the 25/33 the EPA has the 2013 gas version of the car at.
No word on what price you’ll pay for that chance to be just a little bit greener.
