Are Off-Road Trims for SUVs Worth the Extra Money?

About this episode

The episode evaluates the worth of off-road trims for SUVs and discusses their real capabilities versus styling.

On this episode of Talking Cars, we discuss our recent evaluation of popular rugged SUV trims, sometimes called "soft roader" SUVs—including the Subaru Forester Wilderness, Honda Passport TrailSport, Toyota RAV4 Woodland, Ford Explorer Tremor, and more—to see whether they add real capability or mostly rugged styling. Plus, we answer a viewer's question about whether roof crossbars hurt fuel economy on SUVs like the Toyota RAV4 Prime. Join CR at https://CR.org/joinviaYT to access our comprehensive ratings for items you use every day. CR is a mission-driven, independent, nonprofit organization. SHOW NOTES ----------------------------------- 00:00 Intro 00:16 Soft Roaders Explained 00:47 What Makes an SUV a "Soft Roader" 01:44 Why CR Doesn't Do Formal Off-Road Ratings 03:56 Building and Driving the Off-Road Evaluation Course 04:56 Vehicles Evaluated 06:13 On-Road Compromises 10:26 Off-Road Impressions 12:44 The Big Role Tires Play 16:28 Should You Buy an Off-Road Trim? 20:06 Can You Add All-Terrain Tires Yourself? 21:14 Should CR Fully Test These Off-Road Trims? 21:58 Audience Question: Do Roof Crossbars Hurt Fuel Economy? ---------------------------------- 10 Best SUVs You Can Buy…

Topics covered

• SUV evaluation
• off-road trims
• fuel economy
• rugged styling
• soft roaders

Keywords

• off-road trims
• SUVs
• fuel economy
• rugged styling
• soft roaders

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Consumer Reports

Products: Subaru Forester Wilderness, Honda Passport TrailSport, Toyota RAV4 Woodland, Ford Explorer Tremor, Toyota RAV4 Prime

More episodes of Talking Cars (MP3)

• 2026 Dodge Charger R/T · June 10, 2026 · 48 min
• How to Survive High Gas Prices · June 3, 2026 · 41 min
• 2026 Mazda Miata Is Still the Answer · May 20, 2026 · 41 min
• 2027 Kia Telluride EX AWD · May 13, 2026 · 50 min
• Best Used EVs, Renting with Turo + Sixt, Rivian Reliability + Owner Satisfaction · May 6, 2026 · 28 min
• 2026 Jeep Cherokee Laredo · April 29, 2026 · 34 min