Subaru

Everything Subaru’s renowned for in a compact package.

You get class-leading ground clearance (220mm) and proper all-wheel drive for more confident dirt-road driving than its rivals.

The 2-litre flat-four engine is highly durable, but it feels underpowered when travelling with four passengers. Especially at Highveld altitudes.

Luggage space is poor. Which is odd, because Crosstrek’s product mission is to be a compact all-terrain touring crossover.

Chinese SUVs offered a lot more performance, specification and space, for the price. But none are as good on demanding high-speed dirt roads.

Has niche appeal in the South African market. Build quality is formidable.

Unassuming but brilliant gravel travel family vehicle.

Has a true all-wheel drive system, unlike most of its competitors, which are front-wheel drive, with a clutch pack enabling all-wheel drive on-demand

More ground clearance (220mm) than any of its rivals, but it feels more stable at high speeds, on dirt roads. Subaru’s secret? That flat-four engine helps lower the centre of gravity without limiting ground clearance.

No turbo engine options, so a fully loaded Forester feels slow when trying to overtake trucking traffic at Highveld altitudes.

Subaru’s dealer network is limited, but the build quality is terrific and the theft risk is negligible. Unlike Toyota’s gravel-travel-capable vehicles.

No longer the bold, quintessentially Japanese supercar-baiting sedan it once was. But WRX does offer something credibly different to S3 and A35 sedans.

The 2.4-litre turbocharged engine is a lot less powerful than rival German 2-litre turbos. But WRX retains its distinctive flat-four engine sound, which has more value than pure power stats for performance-oriented drivers.

Well built, with more space and luggage capacity than its faster but less spacious German rivals, WRX is the outlier’s choice. S3 and A35 are much quicker, though. WRX does offer the novelty of a 6-speed manual gearbox, though.

If you don’t want to be just another German 2-litre turbopetrol performance car driver, WRX’s rarity has value. But Honda’s Civic Type R is a more dramatic ownership statement and a better driver’s car.