I bought my first Subaru in 1989 and about 4 years ago got rid of the last one I will ever own. I owned two different generations of the Outback, a Forester, two different generations of Legacy and the Dl/GL versions. The DL and GL were bullet proof, the newer ones all had issues and I got fed up and will not buy another one. There are better vehicles to own in my opinion. Hopefully yours works out.

You know what excites me? being able to motor along in icy conditions. Being able to survive a crash is pretty high up there too!

OTOH, my niece just survived a 5 car, 50 MPH pileup in Puyallap in her outback, with minor injuries. She was hit by a stolen Range Rover. It may not be quick, but it is a safe car for the most part.

I lifted my '98 Outback Sport years before Crosstrek was a subaru wet dream. It's all about the suspension and capabilities in winter. I even spliced in a solenoid-d switch on the 4eat transmission to lock the diff in 50/50 among other mods. The 2.2l is good to go and I will probably keep it until the timing belt/tension pulley fails, if I don't change it before that. Yeah, I'm in the far right lane on the highway but it don't care. Think of it as a modern day Willy's. Subies used to be the perfect power to weight. Now they're just another SUV.

Trade it in for a WRX.

Our Crosstrek has the 2.0 L and a 6 speed. It's slow, even when you wind it above 4,500 RPM's.
But damn is it fun to drive. You can sling in into a corner and it stays hooked up. In fact, it taunts you to push it harder next time. I haven't enjoyed a small car this much since my 1984 Honda Civic S.

That's how the wife feels since she moved on from her 2012 T&C van to a 2023 Forester. From 280+HP to like 175HP is a noticeable difference. It been great with the EyeSight, better winter traction good ride height/visibilty for a short driver. I still hear complaints whenever she needs to merge onto a busy highway.....

quote:

Originally posted by TheBull:
That's how the wife feels since she moved on from her 2012 T&C van to a 2023 Forester. From 280+HP to like 175HP is a noticeable difference. It been great with the EyeSight, better winter traction good ride height/visibilty for a short driver. I still hear complaints whenever she needs to merge onto a busy highway.....

Thats why I bought my wife the touring XT with the turbo!! plenty of power!

Far from practical, but read on the Legacy forum of a guy that put a Porsche flat 6 in his Subaru.
That would up the fun factor, with a bit of chassis bracing.

I got curious the other day & looked up 718 turbo 4s. Still crazy expensive. Almost what I paid for my Legacy
Then all the custom work to make it functional.

Subaru only makes appliances today, for the most part. The Twins are a Toyota collaboration and wouldn’t exist without Toyota. And the soon to be next gen won’t be partnered with Subaru to make it any longer. The WRX is an afterthought with a diesel like redline.
They used to make vehicles like previously mentioned Forester XT with the WRX motor. The Outback used to be a proper wagon, now it’s another cookie cutter CUV. Their cars understeer and are just bland. If you got the naturally aspirated version and didn’t get the turbo, oh my. That thing is a dog, especially at elevation.

Sell/trade it and get yourself a GR Corolla. Preferably in 6MT configuration but they make a slushbox. If you need a bunch of room to carry a bunch of crap, try the Honda Passport with Honda’s SH-AWD. That system has mechanical torque vectoring on the rear half shafts and will naturally rotate and give you some oversteer in the corners. I like the previous gen of that as well as the new one has the same as everyone else wannabe overlanding SUV bodystyle. The previous one didn’t. It was exactly what it is. Current one is look at me I can rock crawl, when it can’t.

CUV’s are just bland in general. I don’t make them, for the most part, with good driving dynamics. Perhaps Mazda, and the previous mentioned Passport.

Excitement is a big ask for a base motor Subaru. I have owned 3. My current driver is the bigger motor Crosstrek (30 extra hp). It is noticeably peppier than the previous one which my son still drives.

I know you are attempting to be derogatory calling them appliances but in all honesty so what? If I need toast I want a toaster. If I need transportation then I need a reliable, sure footed, cost effective car. That’s it. I don’t buy cars as toys. You guys who do probably shouldn’t foray into daily driver/subaru threads because they ain’t that.

The only point you made that I am in total agreement with is the remodeled Outback is a horrible restyle. Before it at least had a niche. Now it’s just another boxy suv. Yuck.

My 2 cents on Subaru is always buy the biggest motor they offer. Including if it’s a turbo.

My favorite moment in the wife's Outback was casually driving past several 4x4 trucks dug in and stuck in the sand on a beach.

The Outback is more fun on soft surfaces.

quote:

Originally posted by Prefontaine:
Sell/trade it and get yourself a GR Corolla. Preferably in 6MT configuration but they make a slushbox. If you need a bunch of room to carry a bunch of crap, try the Honda Passport with Honda’s SH-AWD. That system has mechanical torque vectoring on the rear half shafts and will naturally rotate and give you some oversteer in the corners. I like the previous gen of that as well as the new one has the same as everyone else wannabe overlanding SUV bodystyle. The previous one didn’t. It was exactly what it is. Current one is look at me I can rock crawl, when it can’t.

Considering he bought a 2014 Outback, I don't think the GRC or Passport are in the range of what he wanted to spend.
A GRC would've made a blast of a replacement for my totaled FiST, but well outside of my budget for replacement.

quote:

Originally posted by pedropcola:
I know you are attempting to be derogatory calling them appliances but in all honesty so what? If I need toast I want a toaster.

Actually no. Appliances is common vernacular or slang in the automotive community. My daily driver is an electric toaster, and an appliance. It’s still somewhat fun to drive as COG is low, and it’s actually pretty quick with 216 HP and 250 ft pounds of torque. Even an appliance should have some pep, be quick, not fast, and be somewhat enjoyable to drive. I’d say your Crosstek is way better to drive than his Outback. The previous Outback, the wagon, not this current CUV monstrosity, with the turbo, is actually a fun appliance for a DD. Your Crosstek, Subaru made it with the 30HP less that you mentioned and it was so heavily criticized by reviewers and owners it forced their hand to put a bigger N/A motor in it which alleviated the problems with it. What I said is current model year Subarus are appliances for the most part. And yeah, there is certainly nothing wrong with that, but they used to be better. Now most companies make AWD and have better offerings with more sophisticated AWD systems.

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:

Considering he bought a 2014 Outback, I don't think the GRC or Passport are in the range of what he wanted to spend.
A GRC would've made a blast of a replacement for my totaled FiST, but well outside of my budget for replacement.

He didn’t mention what year and I didn’t read a previous thread. If it is a MY2014 then he’s G2G and can off load it for something more to his liking with minimal financial impact.

I’m always watching vehicle reviews, and most reviewers bring up the lackadaisical acceleration of the naturally aspirated versions. To my memory, the engine noise wasn’t an issue…or I just don’t remember that as an issue.

Personally, I rarely come close to using full throttle in my ‘24 Forester Wilderness. Gas mileage is always on my mind, but I have gotten on it a cool times. Again, the boxer engine gets adequately moving, but I don’t think the WOT sound stood out over other non-performance vehicles.

My dad’s ‘17 normally aspirated Outback is driven up and down steep roadways in the mountains of Colorado, and he’s always using his paddle shifters to shift. I don’t remember, with three full-size adults, having power issues or engine sound issues.

My son-in-law just totaled his Legacy, and he picked up a used ‘24 Subaru Ascent with about 45k on it. It has the turbo motor, and he’s pleased with its acceleration. How, he didn’t comment about the engine noise.

Even if my personal anecdotes don’t point to a problem, it may be to others. Personal preference and experiences vary wildly. Personally, if I’m going to spend as much on a big ticket item and going to spend a lot of time with it, I’m going to want to be reasonably happy with it.

I’m currently sticking with naturally aspirated Subarus. Currently, they are rated at or near the top, they get good mpg, their snow/mud/ice/light off-road capability is solid, and they are relatively trouble free. Even so, their association with the left and their use of CVTs and/or boxer engines is too much to overcome. It is understandable.

It is a 2014. I don’t know if it’s mid year as Prefontane suggested, but I do intend to offload this if I can find something that suits me. This is the first 4 cylinder I have ever owned and the more I drive it, it’s like listening to a lawn mower. Hence it’s the last 4 cylinder I will purchase.

When a car gets wrecked, time isn’t a luxury most of us have. The Subaru purchased time for me. I lost a vehicle that weighed roughly the same as my Outback. It did have a 6 cylinder with roughly 100 more hp. and a much lower stance. It was the quickest car I’ve ever owned, and one of the quickest FWD sedans available then. 0-60 was 5.5-5.6 (I owned a ‘13 and a ‘17, both of which were wrecked), so the difference is significant. Not corvette quick but it wouldn’t be completely embarrassed by a 370z. Regardless of others opinions, it was exciting for me.

Yes I’m poking fun at those who were pontificating. It was decidedly earned.

You want excitement? Drive an old piece of junk.
Every drive an adventure, every trip a risk.

I would kill for some boredom.

(yes to me 2014 would be brand spanking new)

How do you feel about a Subaru?
Jokes aside, I’m guessing most of us have owned a car that was in constant need of repair. It’s stressful. The 2017 Accord was the 2nd newest vehicle I’ve owned. 8 years old when I bought her. I only owned her for 5 or 6 months.

Someone gave me a '93 Impreza they hated and always "had trouble with."

I changed a CV joint when I got it, but other than that I had zero issues. I loved the stupid little car. I would have gotten another 10-15 years out of it had someone not totaled it.

ETA: Nope, I remember changing the starter one. Once of the easiest things I've ever done on a car. Up top on that engine, it was quicker than changing the air filter on some new cars. Heck, changing the CV axle was simple, the hardest part for me was figuring out where i could jack it up from. lol