2016 Subaru XV arrives with yet more upgrades – still costs from £21,995

The Subaru XV gets a further raft of updates for 2016, including design tweaks, new technology, improved engines and no price rise.

It’s only eight months since the Subaru XV got a raft of updates (following a series of price cuts), but that hasn’t stopped Subaru coming up with more upgrades for the XV for 2016.

Subaru are happy to boast that the XV’s Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive, high ground clearance and low weight make it stand out in its sector, and they’re not wrong. Although sales don’t reflect how good the XV is, with car buyers in the UK grabbing well under 1,000 units a year.

The cosmetic tweaks for the XV include new front bumper, headlights and fogs, with LED tail lights, new alloys and a boot spoiler round the back, as well as two new colours –  Hyper Blue and Dark Blue Metallic – marking out the 2016 version.

Inside, there’s a new 7″ touchscreen infotainment system with Sat Nav and voice control, piano black trim, contrast stitching and a new instrument binnacle.

Under the bonnet, the 2.0 litre petrol and diesel Boxer engines get a tweak too, with the 2.0 litre diesel still delivering 145bhp but now offering 52.3mpg (a 4 per cent improvement) thanks to longer gear ratios, despite which performance is unchanged at 0-62mph in 9.3 seconds.

The 2.0 litre petrol Boxer is also updated with longer ratios on the manual gearbox, and even with the CVT ‘box it still manages a small improvement in economy to 43.5mpg.

Despite another raft of improvements, the XV isn’t going up in price, with the Subaru XV 2.0i SE costing from £21,995 rising to £25,995 for the XV 2.0D SE Premium.

The 2016 Subaru XV is now on sale at Subaru’s UK dealers.