I am definitely a car enthusiast, but being a junior in high school it is often hard for me to drive cars that are not mine or my friends. So when I do get behind the wheel of a new car, I always pay close attention to its features.

When I first heard of the new Subaru Crosstrek, I was interested. Subaru has grown exponentially in popularity in the last three years, so I knew they had to be doing something right. I was expecting a well made, solid car with a lot of very useful features.

When I first got into the car I noticed a simple interior. The center council and interior controls were very driver focused. There weren't too many buttons like you see in many other cars today, it was just about driving and doing so as safely and efficiently as possible. Next, I noticed the interior lines, they were very simple but made the car look futuristic and fast. Fake carbon fiber, leather, and plastic are what makes up the whole of the interior. When you think of a crossover SUV, you don’t really think of good exterior looks and clean lines. But once again, the Crosstrek delivers. With beautiful aerodynamic looking lines from front to back, an aggressive front end, and a mean looking back the Crosstrek catches the eye.

The next thing that I noticed was the center council. Many cars on the market today have complicated screens. However, on the Crosstrek, Subaru used Apple and Android car play instead of trying to create their own software system. I think that carplay works better than most, if not all, car software systems because Apple and Android are much better at creating software then all car companies.

The Crosstrek also doesn’t waste space. The trunk is much bigger than most of the car's competitors like the Ford Fiesta and the Honda CR-V. I also found that the back seats had enough room for most adults, and the headroom throughout was ample.

The engine is maybe the most important feature. The Crosstrek only has a 2.0 liter 4 cylinder engine. This is both good and bad because with a very small engine you get great fuel efficiency, the Crosstrek averages about 30 miles to the gallon. The problem with a small engine is low horsepower and low torque. It only makes 148 hp and 98-foot-pound of torque. Amazingly, the car has a towing capacity of 1500 pounds.

The Crosstrek, like all other Subarus (except for the BRZ), comes standard with all-wheel drive. This feature is very useful for snowy conditions or any off roading that you might encounter while driving. All-wheel drive for most cars is a feature that can cost an extra $5,000 or more when looking at prices. The Crosstrek also has a ride height of 8 inches off the ground. 8 inches is much higher compared to the other cars in its class like the Honda CR-V’s 6-inch ride height. This is very useful for off-roading, driving on bumpy roads, bad conditions, and making for a more comfortable ride. With a best of its class ride height, the Crosstrek also comes with great all season tires. The car comes standard with Yokohama Geolandar G91F tires which is a value of about $800 and far exceeds all other standard tiers in its class. This also means that you can use one pair of tires all year long.

Another important feature of the Crosstrek is its reliability. Subaru is known for having extremely reliable cars. The Crosstrek is no exception, it is amazingly rated for 500,000 miles. This also means that your Subaru will hold its value extremely well so you can resell your car for almost no losses. It also means that your car will have little no maintenance costs (except for oil changes).

The features in the car should determine the price. Knowing all of these features, I would think that the Crosstrek would start in the high 30 thousand. But amazingly it starts at only $21,000. That price makes it the cheapest in its class. The Honda CR-V starts at $24,350 and doesn’t have standard all-wheel drive, has less power, more depreciation, and less towing capacity.

Because the Crosstrek gives you so much, it is by far the best of its class, and maybe the best value of all cars. The Crosstrek exceeds my expectations. The only area in which the Crosstrek falls short is probably power and torque. Other than that, I see no shortcomings. I fully recommend the Subaru Crosstrek to anyone, but specifically to people with small families or who are just looking for a midsized SUV.