Overview of the Subaru Outback
In 1996, Subaru fused the wagon and SUV segments with a crossover vehicle called the Outback. It was essentially a Liberty wagon with increased ride height and plastic body cladding. The Outback's ability to provide everyday family practicality as well as tackle dirt and gravel trails effectively has made it a perennial favourite in Australia.
SUBARU OUTBACK GENERATIONS (SINCE 2003)
2003-2009
2009-2014
2015 onwards
RUNNING COSTS
Fuel Consumption
2.0L 4-cylinder turbo diesel: 5.7 to 6.3 litres per 100km
2.5L 4-cylinder: 7.3 to 8.0 litres per 100km
3.6L 6-cylinder: 9.9 litres per 100km
= Highly economical.
= Good economy.
= Average fuel use.
= Heavy consumption.
Servicing
Every 12,500km or six months, whichever is sooner. Each service currently costs between about $253 and $568. Subaru Outback parts and accessoriescan be found on Gumtree.
SIMILAR MODELS TO SUBARU OUTBACK
Holden Calais Tourer
Skoda Octavia Scout
Volkswagen Passat Alltrack
Volvo V60 Cross Country
WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR: SUBARU OUTBACK (2009 TO 2014)
The main complaint by owners of this generation of Outback was a CVT transmission that was slow to select gears from Park.
After plenty of investigation, it seems the problem is the design of the transmission needing time to create hydraulic pressure to make the gear selection.
Subaru claimed at the time that the average delay between Park and Drive should be 1.5 seconds or less, but many owners reported that the lag was a lot longer than that.
Like other Subaru CVTs of the time, the solution was to take the car to a Subaru dealer and have the transmission reprogrammed. But again, according to owner feedback, the condition improved for a while before reverting to the way it had been before the fix.
The best advice is to drive any CVT in a mix of environments and conditions and decide for yourself whether you could live with the peculiarities of this type of transmission.
Beyond that, the head-gasket problems of previous Subarus were eradicated by this stage of the game, but check the service record is up to date and that the oil on the dipstick is clean and clear.
