Subaru Outback Sport 2021 Review

The 2021 Subaru Outback range kicks off from $39,990 plus on-road costs for the entry-level model, rising to $44,490 plus ORCs for the Outback AWD Sport and $47,790 plus ORCs for the Outback AWD Touring.

Both the mid-spec and flagship variants are on test for this review. There’s just the one powertrain for all variants (see below) – for the moment at least.

Subaru is not unique, but close to it, in offering metallic paint at no extra charge. The mid-range Subaru Outback Sport misses out on three colours available with the entry-level Outback and the range-topping Outback Touring: Brilliant Bronze metallic, Crimson Red pearl and Storm Grey metallic.

Standard features for the entire Outback range run to 18-inch alloy wheels, heated electric door mirrors, dual-zone climate control, leather-bound multifunction steering wheel, trip computer with 4.2-inch display, keyless entry/start and reclining 60/40-split folding rear seat.

In addition, the Outback Sport includes sports pedals, a powered tailgate with gesture control, and heated seats (front and outboard rear).

The range-topping Outback Touring adds auto mirror adjustment, auto driver’s seat adjustment (with two-position memory), auto power fold-in mirrors, a sunroof, gloss finish alloys (in lieu of dark metallic finish for Sport), steering wheel heating and Nappa leather seat upholstery.

The infotainment system incorporates voice control, digital radio, Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto and an 11.6-inch touch-screen.

Satellite navigation is standard for the Outback Sport and Outback Touring, and the flagship ditches the default six-speaker audio system of the base Outback and the Sport variant in favour of a nine-speaker Harman Kardon set-up with a single-disc CD player in the storage bin under the lifting centre arm rest.

All variants are covered by a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, with 12 months of roadside assistance and a capped-price servicing program for the duration of the warranty up to 62,500km.

The service intervals are 12 months or 12,500km, whichever occurs first.

There is no current crash safety rating for the 2021 Subaru Outback, but it’s only a matter of time before the latest model is tested by ANCAP. And with the Outback’s plethora of driver assist technology and passive safety systems, it looks odds-on to score five stars.

It’s an impressive list: driver fatigue monitoring/distraction warning, reversing camera, blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, autonomous emergency braking (forward and reverse), lane change assist, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, autonomous emergency steering, traffic sign recognition and tyre pressure monitoring.

Front- and side-view monitoring is standard for the Outback Sport and Touring variants, but not the base-model Outback.

The Outback comes with four airbags to protect the driver and front passenger from frontal and side impacts. There are also airbags in the front passenger seat cushion and below the steering column, and side curtains to mitigate head injuries for both front and rear seat occupants in the event of a side impact.

Subaru is to be praised for the Outback’s excellent headlights and auto high beam assist, which does sequentially dip the lights at the approach of an oncoming car or at the first sign of tail-lights ahead. The system is so effective, yet seamless, that drivers will barely notice the active shadowing around an approaching vehicle or one ahead travelling in the same direction.

It’s only while following a car along a winding country road that you’ll notice how the system constantly varies the lighting ahead on one side or the other, and the lights swivel to follow the road through bends as well. It’s one of the very best systems available for the money.

Elsewhere, however, Subaru’s EyeSight system can be over-reactive, triggering the forward collision warning prematurely when a dark BMW SUV pulled a late right-hand turn across the Outback’s bow.

And the forward collision warning doesn’t care too much for parked cars either, as you approach one from behind at around 20km/h, waiting for an oncoming car to pass. The audible alarm is very strident too.

With the reversing camera display so tiny, which makes it hard to see bollards and other obstacles when backing, the driver will quickly become reliant on the ultrasonic sensors and acoustic guidance.

For reasons beyond explanation, the driver fatigue monitoring system would frequently post a reminder to keep my eyes on the road, even though I was watching the road at the time. I can only presume that the system was reacting after the fact to my eyes focused on the satellite navigation display in the infotainment touch-screen.

As with similar systems in other cars tested in the recent past, the Subaru’s lane keep assist struggled to maintain the right heading on a winding country road at night, even with line markings at the side of the road.

But the Subaru at least made up in part for that by advising the driver when it was relinquishing its control of the steering.

A change from port injection to direct injection is one of the many differences in the 2.5-litre horizontally-opposed four-cylinder petrol engine powering the 2021 Subaru Outback.

According to the manufacturer, the mostly new engine delivers a seven per cent improvement in peak power and a 4.2 per cent gain in torque. Other changes include a stronger block, thinner cylinder liners, revised cylinder heads, connecting rods and pistons, increased compression ratio and the adoption of active valve control on the exhaust side.

Peak power is now rated at 138kW and torque plateaus at 245Nm between 3400rpm and 4600rpm. This contributes to the Outback’s towing capacity of 2000kg, with a downball weight of 200kg.

But many of the changes to the engine are aimed at reducing noise, vibration and harshness.

Despite the stronger power and torque, the Subaru still feels leisurely getting up to speed. The S/I drive doesn’t appear to make much difference to power delivery, and the CVT (continuously variable transmission) shifts to a higher ratio before the engine makes it all the way to the 6000rpm redline, even in manual mode and shifting with the paddles.

On the plus side, the torque curve is close to flat across the rev range, and the engine spins up to higher speeds with a musical note accompanying it. It’s a refined powerplant that produces no discernible rumble or any other noise at 100km/h, when it’s running at 1500rpm.

It will run all the way down to 1000rpm without any labouring, and it restarts quickly and smoothly when the driver lifts the foot off the brake pedal.

For an engine as large as this one, it can be frugal. The Outback Sport posted a fuel consumption figure of 8.7L/100km in testing, but the Outback Touring returned a figure of 9.4L/100km, due to traffic. In urban commuting the Outback will likely consume fuel at the rate of at least 11.0L/100km.

For its part, the comprehensively revamped CVT does let the engine accelerate higher into the rev range while also picking up speed, so there’s a lot less of the droning that is a normal trait of this type of transmission.

And there’s none of the high-load shrieking and whining that has been a hallmark of Subaru transmissions in the past. It’s a conservative set-up, however, refusing to allow downshifts if the engine is running anywhere near 4000rpm.

In a successful effort to suppress powertrain noise in the 2021 Subaru Outback, the Japanese car-maker has accentuated the road noise of the Bridgestone 225/60R18 tyres. The tyres are not of themselves noisy; it’s just that you notice them more in a car that is otherwise very quiet.

The tyres do contribute to the Outback’s very good ride quality, with the big Subaru just sailing over bumps that would have competitors bouncing around.

At touring speeds in particular, the suspension settings are basically spot-on over lumpy bitumen, and springs and dampers also cope well with lesser bumps at lower speeds. It’s a very good balance.

Both the Outback variants were tested for handling and roadholding on different nights. The handling is safe, but the roadholding is a middle-ranking effort against some of the Outback’s rivals.

While the Bridgestones fitted to both cars do cling on for dear life, the Outback in either variant feels more at home slogging away through mud and muck than defying physics on high-friction bitumen.

To its credit, the Outback brakes strongly and with acceptably good stability from higher speeds. Brake pedal feel allows some fine modulation for soft stopping too, and the response is practically immediate.

There’s little engine braking available through the CVT, however. When the driver backs off for a speed-limit zone that’s 20km/h slower, the Outback is likely to be still travelling 10km/h too fast by the time the car reaches the signs.

The durable but soft synthetic trim in the Outback Sport is water resistant. It’s a good alternative to the cloth trim in the base-grade Outback and it’s more affordable than the Nappa leather in the Outback Touring, but the leather is nicer, all the same.

In both cars, the front seats are well shaped for comfort and support.

The Outback’s instrument cluster is generally easy to read and informative, with plenty of options available for the trip computer display. Graphic icons in the lower section of the information display between the speedo and the tacho are a little ‘hieroglyphic’, but owners will quickly learn what they all mean.

A digital speedo readout is located between the two major dials and route instructions for the satellite navigation automatically display in lieu of whatever function was previously featured – fuel consumption, phone contact data, audio entertainment details, etc.

All of these data points can be selected by the arrowed buttons on the lower left quadrant of the steering wheel.

Finding features in the infotainment system is a pretty easy process, and the climate control switches are permanently operable, although you have to bring up a dialogue box to operate the sync function and seat heating.

Voice recognition struggled with entering a destination for the satellite navigation, but we got there in the end.

There is plenty of headroom and legroom for rear seat occupants, plus two USB recharging ports, seat heating and adjustable vents in the rear of the centre console to serve the kids (or adults) in the back.

The comfortable seats fold flat for through-loading from the boot, and can be reclined with clever finger-pull levers on each backrest to suit the individual occupants. Users can lower the seats from the large boot as well, with a finger pull on either side of the luggage compartment.

Plus there’s a full-size spare with matching alloy road wheel under the boot floor.

From the moment you get behind the wheel it’s plain to see (and feel, and hear) that the new 2021 Subaru Outback is demonstrably better than the car it replaces.

It’s almost like the Outback has skipped half a generation with this new model.

The hip point remains finely judged, in line with the car’s ground clearance for off-road work, but without the Outback being a stretch for those with short legs.

Subaru has kept what works and moved on up with new ideas, the instrumentation being a case in point for the former, and the portrait-style infotainment screen showcasing the latter.

It’s at once an acceptance of modern preferences and a genuinely practical alternative to the displays of yesteryear.

The new Outback is a more attractive car than its predecessors have been – a bit more purposeful and aggressive in its design – and Subaru has also found that fine line between useful innovation and undiluted quirkiness – and successfully avoided the latter.

Little wonder it’s selling so well.

How much does the 2021 Subaru Outback AWD Sport and AWD Touring cost?
Price: $44,490 (Sport, plus on-road costs); $47,790 (Touring, plus ORCs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 138kW/245Nm
Transmission: Continuously variable automatic
Fuel: 7.3L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 168g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested