Subaru Outback 2.5i Premium 2013 Review

Price Guide (recommended price before statutory and delivery charges): $42,990
Options fitted (not included in above price): Nil
Crash rating: Five-star (ANCAP)
Fuel: 91 RON ULP
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 8.0
CO2 emissions (g/km): 185
Also consider: BMW X1, Volkswagen Passat Alltrack

Subaru's Outback has certainly drawn fire for its styling, there's no doubting that. But its practicality quickly overshadows aesthetic concerns.

Putting it plainly, the Outback is an exceptional family car from a packaging standpoint. It's not too big on the outside and its turning circle is tight for its wheelbase measurement. There's great rear-seat accommodation for adults of practically any size and the luggage space is large and usefully angular.

Subaru has adopted finger-pull levers in the luggage compartment to flip the seats forward for extra load length. Similar levers at the base of each seat squab restore the seats to an upright position and also deliver reclining adjustment – no science degree or circus strongman certification required.

Since the Outback is basically a Liberty wagon on raised suspension, the hip point is on par with conventional SUVs, making entry and exit easier. From the driver's seat all the traditional virtues of Subaru design are instantly apparent. Comfortable, enveloping seats are properly supportive, and combine with reach and rake steering column adjustment to suit the vast majority of drivers.

Legible instrument graphics are complemented by simple switchgear, located appropriately. There's no fumbling around to find the cruise control switches – they're practically under your right thumb on the wheel. The centre fascia interface – for sat-nav maps, audio and communications – is shared with upmarket Toyotas and works easily by touch, displaying street numbers on either side of a road icon in the sat-nav mode.

Subaru's vaunted EyeSight system isn't so rational, however. Frequent warnings of lane departure (when one lane merges with another), obstacles ahead (road signs located on traffic islands) and even the departure of the vehicle in front (turning left at a left-turn arrow) renders the system intrusive and unwelcome.

Since the audible alarm was usually the same tonal sequence, the driver is forced to check the display in the instrument binnacle to determine what had activated the system. The Lane Departure Warning sounds when the car moves right in the lane – without actually leaving it – to provide a wide berth for a cyclist in the adjacent bike lane, but the driver has to take eyes off the road to read the display and clarify what the risk actually is.

At least the system can be disabled if/when it gets beyond annoying.

Being a raised wagon rather than an SUV, the Outback's driving position is less commanding for off-road work – making it hard to assess the degree of difficulty negotiating a downhill track on the passenger side, as one example. And the nose of the Outback sits well forward of the front axle, with the approach angle compromised accordingly. Further to that, the breakover angle is diminished by the long wheelbase.

But off-road performance (power, torque and traction) is pretty handy. The Outback certainly lacks nothing in the way of grunt to charge up hills, and the car's all-wheel drive system continues to push and pull even when the car is rocking back and forth on two (diagonally opposed) wheels. With stability control disabled it made relatively light work of a grade that has defeated smaller and lighter SUVs in the past. Wheel articulation off-road was better than expected also.

Fuel consumption for the week was 10.6L/100km, based on more than 200km of around-town commuting, a brief sortie on a freeway and a little off-road work combined with some country touring. At lights the Outback was called upon to launch quickly and out in the country it was being driven manually and taken to the redline 'in gear'.

Off the road it was being gunned up slopes and driven ploddingly over rougher sections of track, so the average figure is pretty good for a car of the Outback's size and displacement.

The boxer engine trumpets a full-blooded sporty note higher in the rev range, but is refined when driven more sedately. In-cabin noise at highway speeds is subdued, with the CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission) keeping engine revs below 1800rpm. Tyre noise is more prevalent on country roads at lower speeds.

Often deemed the bane of 'drivers', the CVT is a very good partner for the engine. Unlike CVTs in other cars, the lowest ratio allows the engine to crank up enough revs to launch rapidly – and smoothly, of course. The car's liveliness from a standing start is aided by the sensitive throttle, which could have been a problem in the boondocks, but wasn't.

Subaru has calibrated the CVT for engine revs to build in concert with road speed. Most of the time, drivers may not even notice – or care – that the transmission is a CVT. And dropped into Sport mode for the driver to use the shift paddles, the CVT was highly responsive and held gears until redline, when it changed up to save the engine.

Headed downhill with cruise control operating the Outback held the selected speed, and the CVT provided the flexibility to maintain engine revs for a climb at the preset speed.

In corners the Outback is more poised than traditional SUVs in this market segment. It offers high levels of grip, with the front-end beginning to push as a signal the car is approaching the limits of adhesion. There is some feedback through the wheel, but it’s inconsistent at times.

The Outback absorbs some larger bumps and potholes very well, but there is an initial lack of compliance at lower speeds, resulting in a firmer ride quality around town. Tyres may be the culprit there. At higher speeds the ride is well controlled, but feels under-damped around 60 to 80km/h.

Minor qualms about the car's ride comfort aside, however, the Outback remains a superior family car.

Diesel Outback pictured.

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