The Subaru Outback first debuted in 1994. As a teenager I mocked it, but secretly would have been cool with one for a first car. For years I’ve smugly looked at the Outback with an “I’m so much cooler than that car” smirk. Turns out, I’m not…
With a base price of $23,295, the Outback is sitting right in VW GTI territory. But the Outback comes standard with the cargo capacity of a small freight train and the assuredness of all-wheel drive while the GTI can't really fit all that much.
The Outback has always been the funny little station wagon that wanted to be an SUV. Now that I have kids, strollers, diaper bags, and all the other stuff that comes with offspring, I totally get the Outback.
Specs:
Base Price: $23,295
As Driven: $31,730
Engine: 2.5L flat 4-cylinder, 170 horsepower
Transmission: Continuously Variable-Speed Automatic
Curb Weight: 3,538 lbs.
Wheelbase: 107.9 inches
MPG Rating: 22 city/ 29 hwy
Driving
The 2.5L Boxer engine does its best to be “torquey,” 170 ft-lbs at 4,000rpms. The Boxer engine has the cylinders horizontally opposed in a 180 degree layout. By doing this, the Outback has a lower center of gravity than a traditional inline engine. But this point is moot for a car that has almost nine inches of ground clearance.
The 0 to 60 time is not why you buy an Outback, it's a staggering 9.4 seconds. That's mostly due to the fact that the 2.5L only produces 170 horsepower. This isn’t the best amount of power out of a four cylinder engine, but it is adequate. I would like to see the WRX’s turbo charger offered with the Outback. I know that Subaru won’t do that, but I still want it.
The mileage is good. The 2.5L averages 22 mpg in the city and 29 mpg on the highway. I was closer to 23 on my test drive, but I did a lot of stopping and starting with aggressive acceleration. While on the highway, the mpgs were over 30 for most of the drive.
The suspension on the Outback was able to smooth out most of the bumps. Having a long wheelbase helps the Outback glide over most road surfaces. There were a couple sections of surface that were like getting punched in the tail bone quite rough, but I figured that it didn’t matter what car I was in; the road was just the worst, like a South Dakota highway (I drove across SD back in the 90’s and every 8 feet there was a seam in the interstate. You felt every seam…).
Interior
The Outback has a spacious interior with great visibility. You don’t have to pull the rear headrests to see out the back. There are really nice leather seats, not whale skin, but nice. The best thing about the leather is how easy it is to clean mud, formula, fast food, and kid puke off of the seats.
The driver’s seat has the most room that I’ve ever experienced in a car. The steering wheel tilts and telescopes allowing the driver to stretch his/her legs to a comfortable position. The driver’s seat will get so far away from the instrument panel that it feels like the hood is in the future and you struggling to keep up.
The rear seat legroom is listed by Subaru at 37.8 inches. This is definitely a spacious back seat. This is the kind of legroom that allows a giant me to sit comfortably behind even the tallest drivers. Shaq would be more comfortable in an Outback, but I don’t know if his ego could take it. Plus Buick is already paying him…
The Outback has 34.3 cubic feet of cargo capacity with all of the seats in place. When you drop the rear 60/40 split seat and really maximize your cargo space the numbers jump to 71.3 cubic feet. That’s almost half a baby elephant… And yes, I Googled "how many cubic feet is a baby elephant."
Exterior
The styling of the Outback has gotten better with age. The lines are not as horrible station wagon as they used to be. There are not a lot of guys that want to tell people they drive an Outback based on looks alone. If you are a “dude” and you’re extolling the virtues of your ride, it probably has more to do with cargo capacity, all-wheel drive, and the lovely hippie chicks this car is sure to attract.
The 8.7 inches of ground clearance tells everyone that you’re the kind of guy ready for anything: snow, ice, sleet, rain, typhoons, or the occasional rocks that are smaller than 8 inches.
Subaru offers a number of optional extras for the exterior of the vehicle. Different badges, caps, covers, carpets, mats; all of it can be changed in your Outback. There are almost as many things that can be changed as on a Scion.
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