The Subaru Crosstrek isn't poised to win any beauty contests. It doesn't shine when it comes to cabin excitement, just like it doesn't shine if you're looking for nippy accelerations off the line.

However, the Crosstrek wasn't designed to impress visually, nor through performance. It has one task, and one task only: offer a tad more rugged character than a hatchback without compromising on ride and handling. And its this character that gets a boost with a little help from Crawford Performance.

Inspired by the Baja-ready (also mental) Subaru Crosstrek Desert Racer

You do remember the 300-horsepower Crosstrek Desert Racer, right? Well, then you remember the classic Subaru livery seen back in the day on rally cars. That's what Crawford Performance will bring to your mundane Crosstrek, together with a lift kit.

Mind you, though, Crawford's idea of a lift kit doesn't come near the heavily modded ethos of the Desert Racer, but it's still nice to have if you prefer to explore the world beyond the beaten path.

So, for $550, Crawford Performance will provide you with its CDR Series lift kit which adds two inches of front lift and 1.5 inches of rear lift on top of the Crosstrek's standard 8.7-inch ground clearance. Getting the mods in place and your new off-road-ready Crosstrek up and running is done via the following components:

-* two 2-inch aluminum front strut spacers

-* two 1.4-inch aluminum rear strut spacers

-* six long strut extensions (front)

-* four short strut extensions (rear)

-* additional bolts and nuts

Crawford Performance estimates that installation should take more than two to three hours. The tuner even offers a set of detailed step-by-step instructions detailed in a PDF document available here.

Since the kit doesn't touch on performance, your Crosstrek's 152-horsepower, 145-pound-feet, 2.5-liter boxer engine will keep doing what it's been doing from the factory. Same goes for the 148-horsepower Crosstrek Hybrid.

Oh, and by the way, keep in mind that the lift kit is compatible with 2018 and later Subaru Crosstrek models.