Compare the2023 Subaru CrosstrekVS 2021 Hyundai Tucson

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Crosstrek CVT are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Tucson doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Subaru Crosstrek has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Tucson doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Crosstrek has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Tucson doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Crosstrek Limited has standard Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The Tucson doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Crosstrek. But it costs extra on the Tucson.

Both the Crosstrek and the Tucson have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, rearview cameras, available crash mitigating brakes, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Subaru Crosstrek is safer than the Hyundai Tucson:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The Crosstrek Sport/Limited’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 21 more horsepower (182 vs. 161) and 26 lbs.-ft. more torque (176 vs. 150) than the Tucson’s standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Subaru Crosstrek 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder is faster than the Hyundai Tucson 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder (automatics tested):

As tested in Motor Trend the Crosstrek Sport/Limited 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder is faster than the Hyundai Tucson 2.4 (automatics tested):

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the Crosstrek lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability without compromising ground clearance. The Tucson doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

On the EPA test cycle the Crosstrek gets better mileage than the Tucson:

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Crosstrek CVT’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Tucson doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Subaru Crosstrek higher (7 out of 10) than the Hyundai Tucson (5 to 7). This means the Crosstrek produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Tucson every 15,000 miles.

The Crosstrek offers a manual transmission for better acceleration, control and sportiness. The Tucson doesn’t offer a manual transmission.

The Crosstrek offers an optional continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Tucson doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Crosstrek stops shorter than the Tucson:

The Crosstrek Premium executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Tucson SE (27.3 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 27.9 seconds @ .6 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Crosstrek has a 2.3 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Tucson (8.7 vs. 6.4 inches), allowing the Crosstrek to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

To almost totally eliminate engine vibration in the passenger area, the Crosstrek CVT (except Manual) has a liquid-filled front engine mount. The liquid helps further dampen engine harshness. The Tucson uses conventional solid rubber engine mounts.

The Crosstrek has .2 inches more front headroom, 1.6 inches more front legroom, .7 inches more rear hip room and .1 inches more rear shoulder room than the Tucson.

The front step up height for the Crosstrek is 1.5 inches lower than the Tucson (17.5” vs. 19”). The Crosstrek’s rear step up height is 2 inches lower than the Tucson’s (18” vs. 20”).

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Crosstrek. The Tucson doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The engine in the Crosstrek is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Tucson. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

The Crosstrek’s front power windows open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Tucson’s standard power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully. Only its driver’s window opens automatically.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Crosstrek’s available exterior PIN entry system (not available on Crosstrek Base). The Tucson doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Blue Link can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

The Crosstrek’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Tucson offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Insurance will cost less for the Crosstrek owner. The Car Book by Jack Gillis rates the Crosstrek with a number “5” insurance rate while the Tucson is rated higher at a number “10” rate.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Crosstrek is less expensive to operate than the Tucson because typical repairs cost less on the Crosstrek than the Tucson, including $196 less for a muffler, $79 less for fuel injection and $179 less for a power steering pump.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Subaru Crosstrek and the Hyundai Tucson, based on reliability, safety and performance.