Subaru Behind Jeep, Ram As Most Off-Roaded Automaker
Jeep may be the first thing to come to mind when the idea of going off-road comes up in conversation, but when taking a trip from Los Angeles to that secret pool/art installation in the middle of the desert, you might find a Subaru waiting nearby.
Autoblog reports the automaker’s vehicles are the third most off-roaded in a 2013 J.D. Power study, where 29.5 percent can be found departing the highway for the trail; only Ram and Jeep bested Subaru at 30.2 percent and 31 percent, respectively. Subaru’s director of corporate communications, Michael McHale, added that owners of his company’s offerings were “190 percent more likely to do outdoor activities than other brands,” meriting those treks off the beaten path.
Regarding individual vehicles, the Outback sees the highest use in the dust and mud at 34.7 percent. Meanwhile, most Jeep Grand Cherokee owners prefer the high street over high peaks, with only 21.1 percent deciding to experience just how “trail-rated” their SUVs are. The Outback is also among Subaru’s top three best-selling vehicles in 2013, sandwiched between the Forester and the XV Crosstek as the automaker celebrated its sixth consecutive year of record sales; 424,683 units were sold in the United States alone that year.
Seattle-based writer, blogger, and photographer for many a publication. Born in Louisville. Raised in Kansas. Where I lay my head is home.
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I always felt judged by other drivers when I was in my green 97 Impreza wagon. It wasn't a nice feeling.
Awd and off-road aren't necessarily the same. Then there's this: youtube.com/watch?v=jmfbsUJRe14
Last summer I was mountain biking on what I thought was an old logging road, with big rocks, extremely steep grades, huge washouts - in short I was terrified much of the time navigating this "road" on my full suspension bike at very low speeds. This "road" finally dead-ended at a mountain cabin, where I found the owner doing yard work next to his completely stock Subaru Forester. I couldn't believe he was able to navigate that road in a Subaru, but he did it every weekend, and I gained a lot of respect for the off-road abilities of the brand. The worst part for me was having to ride back the same way on that very scary driveway.
I'm surprised that the number of GC owners who venture off-road is as high as 20%. I would have guessed this number to be in the low single digits. Of course off-road could mean gravel-road to some. A neighbor recently put an expedition rack and pizza-cutter KM2s on his almost brand new GC, they don't look quite right, maybe it is the lack of dirt, dings and pinstriping that makes them look out of place.