Heh, I bought a 2004 Subaru Forester XT. Nice size, easy to park, easy to travel with dog and kid, etc. Went to buy a newer one and it was MUCH larger, felt like a boat, much taller, much longer, etc. Turns out the crosstrek (their smallest crossover) is now nearly the exact size of my Forester XT. I'd have bought one, but it was depressingly slow.
Sadly Subaru seems to have abandoned the practical small/sport SUV. The WRX wagon ... killed off. The crosstrek, nowhere close to sporty. The Forester nowhere close to small.
Indeed, I used to drive a 2001 Forester, and the new ones look insanely large. (I haven't owned a car in the last 12 years, and whenever I rent a car I try to get an "economy"-sized car but usually end up with something much bigger).
Sadly Subaru seems to have abandoned the practical small/sport SUV. The WRX wagon ... killed off. The crosstrek, nowhere close to sporty. The Forester nowhere close to small.