Subaru Outback - suprising capability

It was Thanksgiving week and necessary to transport a lot food, cooked and uncooked, over bumpy roads, through the woods, over rough bridges, and along twisty roads. Fortunately, it was a 2011 Subaru Outback that had been made available for a test drive.

The name alone gives you an indication of how this vehicle can be utilized. All Subaru cars are All-Wheel-Drive, and that four-wheel drive ability is really useful. It allows the Subaru Outback to really go out into the outback areas and do almost any type off-roading except the extreme style reserved for Jeep, Land Rover, and Hummer.

The Outback is now in its fourth generation, but in 2010, it was re-designed. Apparently, the design engineers at Subaru got it right this time. They increased the back seat, upgraded some of the interior, and stayed with the basics – capability, utility, drivability. The initial Outback models were simply a spin-off of the Legacy station wagon. Wagons are not very popular with certain age groups. But now, the Outback, with its redesign, is competing directly against the Honda Accord Crosstour and the Toyota Venza and outselling them in most instances.

Out test model was a beautiful Cypress Green Pearl. We did not drive it down into the Lousiana bayous, but we did take it into the East Texas Piney Woods. The cypress green color blended nicely with the abundant pine trees. There are three trim levels available: Base, Premium, and Limited. Our test model was the Limited, which included a lot more comfort and convenience features, but the price was also slightly higher.

The Subaru Outback is powered by either a four cylinder engine or a 3.6 liter 6-cylinder. The 6 cylinder definitely had a lot of get-up-and-go and never even hiccoughed. I am sure, however, that the four cylinder engine would do the job necessary in almost any situation, however. The 6 cylinder engine was matched with a five speed automatic transmission that operated smoothly and efficiently. The Outback provided good steering and handling, and turned easily along the winding East Texas back roads. It bounced along the uneven dirt roads without much driver disturbance.

The Subaru Outback is an SUV, but also a Crossover, based on a car platform. The redesign was introduced at the 2009 New York Auto Show and I was impressed then, but I really like the improvements and upgrades in this latest model. It is a fairly heavy sedan style, although it is an SUV. The body is made with high tensile steel and that gives it top ratings in crash tests.

The base MSRP of the Outback Limited with the 6 cylinder engine is $31,495. Pricing for the Outback begins about $23 to $24 thousand. There are a lot of options and packages available and with a few of these added on, the bottom sticker price on the test model came to $33,724. EPA mileage ratings were 18 cities and 25 highway.

If you are thinking about a small SUV that is versatile and can go almost anywhere and do almost anything try this one. You might be very surprised at the capability of this vehicle.