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Worth Turning Ascent into Soft Roader?

3487 Views 46 Replies 17 Participants Last post by  OverlandAscent, 
OverlandAscent
Hello,

I have a '22 premium that has about 17k miles.

The Ascent has been great to drive and has had no issues.

I am considering upgrading it into an overland/soft roading rig, but am questioning it's capability.

This is mainly due to the approach, departure, and break over angles of the vehicle. Also it is a unibody construction.

However, the AWD system is absolutely amazing and is like having front and rear lockers.

So I am debating upgrading the Ascent with AT tires, a 1-2" lift, skid plates, and possibly new bumpers.

On the other hand I am just considering buying a second vehicle like a Ford Bronco, jeep, or Mid Size pickup truck.

I wanted to get people's experience and see what everyone thinks about the Ascent as an off-road and overland rig. I have read some previous threads but the info seems a bit mixed.

Some people say that it is not super capable and others say they can go on most trails without issue.

I've taken my Ascent onto beaches, gravel roads, and deep snow and it has been amazing. However, on one forest service road I decided to turn around instead of risking my bumper.

im interested to see people's experiences



Edit: after wasting thousands I can confirm nobody should do this. Buy a truck. The Ascent sucks. Primitive Skids plates still have issues and the lift was basically pointless. It's a good highway car but flat out stinks off-road.
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P
OverlandAscent said:
I honestly thought the Ascent was more capable, but it's just not designed to be.

I have not taken it anywhere that there were not also Prius' and Sedans. I need something that can actually get me away from people and to some more remote trails.
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My stock (except for Falken Wildpeak AT Trails on 18" wheels) Ascent has taken me to many of those places that only lifted trucks and Jeeps have ventured. It probably would have been wiser to do it with a small lift and skid plates, but I had less trouble on one trail than a friend in a lifted Jeep did. That's probably on his skill more than the vehicle, but you certainly wouldn't have gotten there in a Prius...

...unless you took this one
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OverlandAscent
pdxeca said:
My stock (except for Falken Wildpeak AT Trails on 18" wheels) Ascent has taken me to many of those places that only lifted trucks and Jeeps have ventured. It probably would have been wiser to do it with a small lift and skid plates, but I had less trouble on one trail than a friend in a lifted Jeep did. That's probably on his skill more than the vehicle, but you certainly wouldn't have gotten there in a Prius...

...unless you took this one
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I'm not saying it can't be taken places. It's just not meant to be there. Idk why everyone's mentioning lifted trucks. A stock truck is miles ahead of the Ascent in terms of off roading.

I have also only shown love to the Subaru AWD system. It is what made me buy the Ascent in the first place and it has been great. Arguably better than 4WD in a number of bad weather instances. It's really the suspension and the angles.
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Jim_in_PA
OverlandAscent said:
I also think I've said a few times that the car should have come this height. (10" of clearance) It just feels like a normal SUV with the lift.
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Consider that the vast majority of the market for a three row SUV isn't aimed at off-roading so Subaru really didn't design it to be "excellent" for that pursuit. This same topic comes up a lot with the Grand Cherokee in our sister forum for Jeep that I help manage, too. The three row really isn't suitable for off-road because of angles and the two-row, while being extremely capable for a mid-size SUV, isn't a Wrangler or a Bronco, either. Robert has clearly shown that the Ascent can do some amazing thing if one really wants to but it does require a lot of time, money and effort to make things happen if you want to overland or hit the heavier/harder trails.
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OverlandAscent
Jim_in_PA said:
Consider that the vast majority of the market for a three row SUV isn't aimed at off-roading so Subaru really didn't design it to be "excellent" for that pursuit. This same topic comes up a lot with the Grand Cherokee in our sister forum for Jeep that I help manage, too. The three row really isn't suitable for off-road because of angles and the two-row, while being extremely capable for a mid-size SUV, isn't a Wrangler or a Bronco, either. Robert has clearly shown that the Ascent can do some amazing thing if one really wants to but it does require a lot of time, money and effort to make things happen if you want to overland or hit the heavier/harder trails.
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Ya I originally wanted a Forester, but they neutered it by getting rid of the XT. I have zero use for the three rows. The outback just feels like a sedan to me.

I didn't expect it to be a rock crawler, but I thought it would be closer to the Forester.

Looks like it's back to body on frame for me.
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Robert.Mauro
OverlandAscent said:
I honestly thought the Ascent was more capable, but it's just not designed to be.
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It was designed to be, and is. It's just not for driving like one would drive a truck.
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P
Where are you offroading the Ascent? personally I would leave it stock because I like my warranty. We drive it on the beach with good tires and correct tire pressure (I would call this soft-roading... literally) and it does great. It is not hard flat beach, this is a place where many cars get stuck. Tires and tire pressure are definitely key.
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OverlandAscent
pcampbell said:
Where are you offroading the Ascent? personally I would leave it stock because I like my warranty. We drive it on the beach with good tires and correct tire pressure (I would call this soft-roading... literally) and it does great. It is not hard flat beach, this is a place where many cars get stuck. Tires and tire pressure are definitely key.
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I am not even really offroading.

The angles can't even handle forest service roads where I live. I've even scraped in the parking lot and on some steeper inclined roads.

I really should have just gotten a different vehicle.
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