Subaru Outback 2.0 Diesel Premium Quick Review

TELL ME ABOUT THIS CAR

The Subaru Outback is a popular AWD crossover wagon which offers excellent station wagon handling and practicality while having the ability to negotiate reasonably rough terrain better than many SUVs.

STRENGTHS

• If you have to compromise between practicality, elegance and a car that’s enjoyable to drive this ticks a lot of boxes.
  
  
• It has plenty of safety features. Central to this is the Eyesight Assist package which scans the road ahead and warns you of everything from kids running across the road to a car suddenly braking ahead. If it’s too late to warn you it will stop automatically. It also has blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning, rear cross traffic alert, active cruise control. Another interesting feature is an audible alarm telling you when the car in front of you drives off at traffic lights in case your day dreaming. It’s quicker and less irritating than the driver behind beeping you.
  
  
• It’s a good looking car that’s based on the Subaru Liberty but looks a lot more assured than the sedan.
  
  
• The clean interior fit out is also very similar to the Liberty, and is put together intuitively. Everything is laid out nicely and I never had to pull out the manual to find something or work out what a particular button did. The same goes with the 7-inch touch screen which is straight forward to use and syncs to devices quickly. The Premium also comes with a panoramic sunroof.
  
  
• It’s comfortable. The electrically adjustable front seats feel good on long trips and have heating and two memory settings. It’s also comfortable at the back with ample head and leg room. Back seats easily flip forward to increase cargo size.
  
  
• It handles well thanks to the 2.0-litre turbocharged diesel boxer engine, which means lower centre of gravity which helps handling and stability, despite the raised wheel height. It drives nicely in town and barrels along well on rough roads.
  
  
• It’s reasonably economical for an AWD car this size. I averaged about 7.8L/100kms not doing as much country driving as I would have liked.

WEAKNESSES

• The smart key doesn’t have an actual unlock button which means your passengers can’t in the car if you’re not right near it. My kids learned this the hard way when they ran to the car ahead of me during heavy rain.

ANY RIVALS I SHOULD CONSIDER?

The Outback Premium falls between a normal wagon and an SUV so there are many competitors around its size and $42,000 retail price depending what you’re really looking for, These range from Ford Mondeo, Mazda 6 GT, Citroen C4 Picasso, Volkswagen Passat Alltrack and the Jeep Cherokee