Monday, May 19, 2014

The Primitive Racing Subaru XV Crosstrek

Primitive Racing Subaru XV Crosstrek

Tigard, Oregon-based Primitive Racing is well known in the Subaru world for offering a host of products from light bars and skid plates, to rock sliders and mega-strong differential covers. From time to time they will do a full custom build, and that's the case with this XV Crosstrek. Owner Paul Eklund and the crew decided to make a more off-road capable Crosstrek that could go farther and do more than any other Crosstrek out there. I met up with Paul at our local Cars and Coffee to check out the up-armored Subaru.


A stock XV Crosstrek already sits three inches higher up than a standard Impreza. Primitive Racing threw on an additional two inches of lift courtesy of King springs and their spacer lift giving a total of 10.7 inches of ground clearance—0.6 inches more than a Jeep Wrangler Rubion. To help make the most of that ground clearance off road and to fill out those wheel wells, the car rides on larger 215/70/16 BF Goodrich All-Terrain tires, which are mounted to custom hydro-dipped Sparco Terra 16x7 alloy wheels. However, this Crosstrek is more than just a lift and some wheels and tires.

Primitive Racing's light bar for Subaru XV Crosstrek with WARN lights

Starting up front, the car sports a ridiculously sturdy Primitive Racing light bar. Mounted on that bar are four WARN W650D driving lights, which are operated via remote control—no drilling through the firewall. Behind the bar lies a Superwinch winch with synthetic rope. A custom mounting plate was developed by Primitive to accommodate the 4,500 lb. capacity winch. The winch's controls are slickly integrated, too: There's a mini rocker switch under the hood, and the port for the wire remote control is in the front bumper.

Speaking of bumpers, both the front and rear have been hydrodipped in a digital camo pattern to match the wheels and the inside radio bezel, which has been dipped as well. The items were clear coated for additional protection.

Rear crash bar

Step to the vehicle's back side and there's another set of bars to help protect the bumper from obstacles. Along the sides are a set of Primitive's rock rails to protect the XV from any stumps or rocks along the way. The most crucial part, however, is the under armor. Skid plates and a super-stout rear differential cover will help protect the Subie when the trails get difficult off the pavement.

16x7 Sparco Terra wheels with 215/70/16 BF Goodrich AT Tires

One the road, the lifted Crosstrek rides surprisingly well. Although it's up-armored, the King springs feature a stiffer rate to help compensate for the additional weight. The taller tires do rob the car of some power; acceleration  from this CVT-equipped model is a bit tardy compared to a stock version. And yes, there's more road noise and a bit of a hum from the chunky all-terrain tires. However, hit a pothole, a set of railroad tracks, or a dirt berm and the car's suspension soaks up the bumps like a miniature baja racer. The suspension system does a really good job with bad pavement and craters; I'm sure off road it'd be quite good, and I'd love to find out how good some day.

Rear of Primitive Desert Edition Subaru XV Crosstrek

Primitive's Desert Edition Crosstrek has that just-right look. In fact, I freaking love it. If I had an XV Crosstrek, I'd probably build it exactly this way (even in the Khaki color). I might not add the digital camo, but you get the idea.

Whether out exploring the forests, running through the desert, or simply up for a day hike, this Subaru Crosstrek XV is ready for nearly anything. Moab anyone?

MORE PICS

Primitive Racing Diff Cover

Camo radio bezel

Superwinch 4500 lb winch

6 comments:

Unknown said...

This vehicle is my dream coming true...now we have to get an XV Crosstrek!

rubicon4wheeler said...

I've been in love with the XV Crosstrek since it first came out, but I would definitely want some more-aggressive tires. You can never have enough ground clearance either, so the lift is a great idea! I had Primitive's skidplates under my Suzuki SX4 and they took a beating but did their job without adding a lot of weight to the car. Compliments to Primitive for building such an impressive Subie!

Unknown said...

Where was the hydrodipping done?

Thompson said...

I am the current owner of this vehicle! However, I'm putting it up for sale. I'd love to pass this awesome car to someone who will use and appreciate all these custom upgrades. I also added a Nav/rear camera/stereo system. 971-678-9701

Quintin said...

Saw your car today at work. Looks awesome. My crosstrek is looking bare now.

TaylorS said...

Where can I find the rear bumper rail? I've been searching