2024 Subaru Ascent Review: My Toddler Cried When The Test Drive Was Over

When the 2024 Subaru Ascent Onyx Edition showed up in my driveway, I was fairly intimidated by the size. Compared to my 2011 Forester, the Ascent looked huge – but sitting in the driver’s seat, I was immediately charmed by how dainty it felt on the inside.

The steering wheel felt right, the steering radius was amazing, and the A/C controls were easy to access on the side of the infotainment system. Plus, the Ascent had amazing visibility, and the driver’s seat was so cozy. The tinted 54-inch sunroof made everything feel so much bigger and open.

Related: How Does the Ascent Compare to the 2025 Subaru Forester?

The Subaru Ascent Onyx Edition Ascent I test drove had two captain’s chairs in the second row, which opened up the floor space tremendously going into the third row. The car seat LATCHes made securing the front-facing car seat incredibly easy. Not only were the lower anchor points easy to find, but they were a breeze to make contact with and secure, and the upper tethers on the back of the seats were easy to reach and use.

On my Forester, I have to dig around for the anchor points, which makes reinstalling the seat laborious and frustrating. No joke, both front and rear-facing seats were installed without any help in under two minutes in the Ascent. I was very, very pleased. Even better, I still had plenty of room in the footwells for my purse, their toys, and the diaper bag without even using the trunk.

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Compared to my car, getting both girls in and out of their seats was easy with the added ceiling height. The girls both LOVED the giant windows in the back. My 2-year-old loves looking out of her window, but she hates having the sun in her face—to the point where she verbally curses the sun, waving her hands and saying, “Go away sunshine, GO AWAY!” Even though my windows are tinted, she shakes her fist at the sun. 

In the Ascent, though, the manual sun shades were heaven sent to her. The entire time she sat in the “big car,” as she called it, she didn’t insult the sun once. The second best thing for her was the sunroof. She loves the sunroof in my Forester, too, but the Ascent’s large roof gave her more things to admire driving through Central Oregon. She demanded me to “opey da winnow, Mommy!” every time we got in.

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With two toddlers regularly spilling water, milk, or juice, the “StarTex” water-repelling seats were a MUST. Juice still left a residue, but it was so much easier to clean than the grey cloth in my Forester. The back seats of my Forester look like a scene from a horror movie.

My oldest daughter was the biggest fan of the visibility as a passenger. In my personal car, she tends to freak out and scream about wanting out of her seat after only 30 minutes. In the Ascent, she felt so comfortable that I could keep her in the car for two hours before she cried about getting out. The same could be said for my youngest; she slept most of the time, which was a first for her.

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I took the girls for a walk by the river before I went for a Costco run, so my double-stroller was still in the back of the Ascent. My husband and I don’t have family in Oregon, so I kept the third row down when he wasn’t home. At first, I panicked thinking, “Shoot, I won’t have enough room for all the bulk groceries and the stroller.” 

All I had to do was push the stroller up against the back of the second row, and the 75.6 cubic feet of space was more than plenty of room for all of my groceries. I had so much room, I bet I could have sat down crosslegged with the tailgate closed to enjoy my Costco salad, with room for another adult. I was genuinely blown away by how much space I had in a car that felt so much smaller when driving.

Unfortunately, the storage diminished significantly with the third row up. In the 17.6 cubic foot space I could fit their stroller, and nothing else. If you’re looking at an Ascent to use for more than two children, you can still make it work. Put your child in the single third-row seat, and keep the dual seat side folded for the most optimal storage space.

However, if all three seats are being used, let passengers know they’ll have to carry their belongings. You can also look into a cargo box for the roof if it’s going to be used regularly. The third row also won’t be very comfortable for adults on long trips. I had to sit sideways to feel comfortable. 

All Ascents, no matter the trim level, have a turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder boxer engine that generates 260 horsepower. While that isn’t an impressive number for a nearly 4,000 pound SUV, the CVT transmission makes it remarkably agile. I was shocked by how quickly I passed a Mustang GT 500 going 35 mph in a 55 mph without the Ascent feeling laggy, slow, or straining. 

For someone who enjoys a car with power under the hood, I was very much a fan of the unassuming power from the Ascent. 

I drove the Ascent from Bend, Oregon to Ridgefield, Washington for a drive event with the Northwest Automotive Press Association. To save time, I powered through the Mt. Hood National Forest. However, a rain storm hit on the way back. Without many other cars on the road, I felt inspired to check out a campground by a creek just off the road. 

At first, I thought, “The campground is probably empty because of all the mud and water. Maybe I should keep going.” Then I looked at the Subaru logo on the steering wheel and figured, if any car could handle mud and rain, it was the Ascent. I explored the campground, taking in the sights and sounds of the Pacific Northwest, taking pictures, and getting my shoes dirty. 

It reminded me of the days before I had kids when I sought out spots just like it in my Forester, making notes of future spots to camp with my husband. The Onyx reminded me that it’s still possible with two girls under three, and I need to make an effort to explore more often.

I wasn’t bothered by the fuel economy (I averaged around 19 mpg driving through the city and close to 25 mpg on the highway), and I wasn’t too bothered by the wideness of the driver’s area, which made it difficult to find a spot for my elbows. Besides, that was easily fixed by adjusting the steering wheel position to be closer to me. 

However, I ultimately would have opted for the second-row bench seating. Although I enjoyed the captain’s chairs, they lower the overall passenger capacity from eight to seven. The Onyx Edition comes with blacked-out badges, blacked-out wheels, and blacked-out exterior and interior trimming. The interior had black “StarTex” seats and neon green accent stitching. 

Personally, I think the black interior showed dirt and dust; the back seat seemed to get dirty from the kids within minutes. Of course, any color would show evidence of children. If I owned the Onyx Edition, I would spend a weekend day cleaning off the shoe prints and crumbs.

The day the fleet company came to pick up the Ascent, my oldest was so sad to see the “big car” go. She cried, telling the driver not to drive away. It’s been three weeks since it was returned, and she still looks at the driveway and asks when the “big car” is coming home. 

The Ascent I tested was $42,795 MSRP – which, in my opinion, is a bargain for what you get. All the standard safety features like auto emergency braking, steering assist, lane departure warning, heated steering wheel, cargo space, wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay, StarLink, and the legendary Subaru reliability? It feels and looks much more expensive than it is.

But seeing how much my kids loved it made me love it even more.