2010 Subaru Outback Review

The Outback station wagon debuted in the United States market in 1994 for the 1995 model year as a derivative of the second generation Subaru Legacy

So what is it crossover this is probably one of the most overused terms in the auto industry what some manufacturers do is they take a car platform then they build it up to make it look like a traditional suv then there are other manufacturers that take an existing station wagon and they add suv elements to the design subaru was the first car company to successfully

Launch a crossover they took their basic legacy wagon added some more ground clearance more rugged cladding on the outside and all-terrain tires and they called it the outback since the middle of the 1990s the outback has been a huge success as buyers who would never be caught dead driving a station wagon suddenly became attracted to the go anywhere attitude the

Outback projected this is the fourth generation outback they’ve completely dropped the legacy wagon from the lineup so in order to please both wagon and outback buyers they’ve had to make some updates the outback is based on the subaru legacy sedan and for 2010 both have grown in size the outback is much longer than the outgoing model which provides much more

Passenger legroom and it increases the cargo capacity since the regular legacy wagon has been dropped the outback has to appeal to a broader market so subaru has toned down the suv influences on the outside one way subaru turned kind of basic legacy station wagons into out backs is by putting in lower body cladding now in previous versions it was much bigger it came

Farther up the door for this latest model they’ve toned it down a bit alright here’s something that’s very simple and clever i like it now you’ve got your roof rails along the side makes it look much more like a crossover right but what you do is when you lift up this latch you turn the roof rails into the roof rack they’re hidden away here that helps reduce the

Amount of drag and saves on fuel with these larger dimensions the outback really has come into a new space in the crossover segment got lots more legroom headroom and tons more cargo it gives you a great alternative to a compact suv like the crv or the chevy equinox 17-inch alloy wheels are framed by large fenders and the ride height is still impressive with over

20 centimetres or eight inches of ground clearance the lift gate is large but is manually operated no power liftgate has even offered the dash is a big step forward with more care and attention to detail the rather bland centre stack on the old model has made way to a clean and bold interface the base model comes with 10 way power adjustable driver’s seat radio

Controls on the steering wheel optional bluetooth system that’s easily operated in the centre console and heated front seats the back seat split and full forward so they can also be reclined for more rear passenger comfort subaru wasn’t content to just upgrade the interior and the exterior they also made some significant changes in the transmission and engine to

Really improve the fuel economy the 2.5 litre 4-cylinder boxer style engine provides excellent torque and is rated at 170 horsepower the four-cylinder models can be equipped with a six-speed manual or an all-new continuously variable transmission or cvt which provides much better fuel consumption compared to the outgoing model there is a 3.6 liter 6-cylinder engine

Offered as well which pumps out 256 horsepower but this engine is only available with a conventional 5-speed automatic what i don’t like about the outback is that it feels a lot bigger than it really is i have a hard time figuring out exactly where the front end is and if it wasn’t for the backup camera i’d have an issue finding the back end as well now it’s got a

Very rugged feel to it when you’re driving firm brakes and heavy steering personally i prefer something that has a little bit of a lighter feel to it it really is a shame that this outback isn’t available with the two and a half liter turbo 4-cylinder found in the legacy sedan that car is a lot of fun to drive and it comes with a manual transmission now speaking

Of the cvt subaru has moved to this kind of transmission to improve fuel consumption when equipped with a cvt the outbacks fuel rating is just 9.5 liters per 100 kilometers in the city and only 6.9 on the highway this is a similar transmission to the one that audi uses with a metal belt which makes it more robust and offers quicker acceleration the drawback to

Any cvt is that the engine kind of groans when passing on the highway so subaru has to basically appease two masters they have traditional outback owners that like this vehicle because it’s a little more rugged its higher off the ground it has good ground clearance you can go to your cottage or cab and go skiing and it’s good be able to do all those things with

These now they have to also appeal to the traditional legacy wagon buyer they don’t make that car anymore so on-road this car now has to feel refined and smooth and appeal to those bars and i think they’ve achieved that you get it out on the open road it’s smooth it’s quiet does have a slightly heavy steering feel to it but that makes the car feel solid so i think

They’ve been able to appease both masters the outback starts at just under 29,000 and it tops out at about 40,000 so zac i just want to know if you think that this iconic vehicle is going to be a better alternative to an suv well absolutely one thing that subaru did on price is they drop the price of their cars and they’ve added more content so there’s more value

Here plus you get a better handling car you’re lower down to the ground then a tall or traditional crossover plus for the design of the boxer engine the horizontally-opposed engine it’s it’s lower in the car so it goes through the corners better in addition to that that boxer engine provides a lot of torque so it helps you get up and away with ease now another

Thing that subarus done is they’ve made this outback bigger which offers more interior space and it makes it more comfortable for everybody involved and you get more cargo space on the downside on the sedan you can get the turbo four-cylinder but on this outback it isn’t offered which is a shame because that’s a lot of fun to drive and the cvt or the continuously

Variable transmission is a compromise you get better fuel consumption but it doesn’t have the same kind of driving dynamics that you get from a traditional automatic it is available a traditional automatic in a six-cylinder so if you like that matt might be the one to get lacey what do you think was like i really like the improvements on the interior the styling

Is definitely much better than the outgoing model you also get standard all-wheel drive which is a fantastic thing especially for canadian winters i like the fact that you’ve got two engine options to choose from and it does have great fuel economy but again i agree with zack on the downside you have to have the cvt which i really was not too impressed with on the

Outback and i mentioned it earlier but it just drives a little bit too rugged for me it’s funny you should mention a rugged because subaru used the actor paul hogan for many years in their advertising rugged australian guy des and all that well you know what the use of for so long they did surveys of potential subaru buyers and they found out they actually believe

That subaru is an australian company not japanese with japanese engineering in design so now subaru uses japanese in all of their advertising fair dinkum that’s aussie one more check out driving television calm for expanded reviews and more automotive stories you

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2010 Subaru Outback Review By Wheelsca Official Channel