The Subaru Outback deserves to find more favour with British buyers, Glenn Brooks believes, after having just tried the updated model with the new combination of boxer diesel and Geartronic CVT.
According to Fuji Heavy Industries, 2013 was a record year for Subaru in some of its major markets. The largest of these has always been the US. There, sales rose by 26.2% to 424,683 units; the same percentage as the rise YoY recorded by Subaru of America for the 2012 calendar year compared to 2011. That also means the fifth consecutive annual sales record and, SoA states, this makes it the only manufacturer in the US to post sales increases for six consecutive years.
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Which models have been causing the sales rush to American dealerships? Mostly the Forester (123,592) and Outback, with the latter notching up an impressive 118,049 registrations in 2013 – not bad for a vehicle that is getting towards the end of its lifecycle. Unlike almost all other OEMs, Fuji Heavy insists on replacing its main models after just four to six years: while successors for the current Outback and Legacy are due in Japan and the US within the next 12 months, this model range is not even five years old, having first appeared at the New York motor show in April 2009.
In Britain, Subaru is a tiny player but nonetheless it recorded a rise of 12 percent in 2013, while the market was up 11 percent. That translates to 2,271 vehicles compared to 2,023 for 2012. Considering the fact that the new shape Impreza is not available here, the brand’s performance is worthy of note. More crazy contrasts with the US? Here, just 2,229 new Jeeps found buyers here last year, the Chrysler brand was another relative competitor if you’re looking at sales totals (2,515) and how about this for a left-field stat: with registrations of 8,260 units, Porsche outsold Subaru by a factor of more than three to one.
Much of the air came out of an overinflated Yen during 2013, especially against Sterling, so there is hope that IM Group might yet start bringing in some lower priced models in an effort to lift Subaru sales towards 2,500 or possibly even 3,000 in 2014 or 2015. The production version of last year’s Levorg concept is due out in Japan in May so here’s hoping we see that model here, along with the next Legacy. The current one seems to have been quietly dropped as only the Outback, Forester, BRZ and XV now appear on subaru.co.uk.
Speaking of 2014, that’s the prefix for the newly updated Outback for the UK and as noted above, that means a minor facelift and the first time the so-called Lineartronic gearbox has been made available with this model’s diesel engine. The Boxer Diesel, as it’s termed, is a 1,998cc flat-four that produces the same 110kW (150PS) and 350Nm in both manual and automatic forms. Just the one high-spec SX trim level is offered. Prices are either GBP29,995 or GBP31,495 should you prefer the gears to be shifted for you.
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By GlobalDataThat Lineartronic transmission is an absolute revelation for anyone who has been frustrated by the noisy-revvy CVTs used by Toyota and Lexus. It’s an unusual situation for a Subaru to be so superior in this area given the fact that TMC is influencer-in-chief via its shareholding in Fuji Heavy.
Apart from the obvious exception of the exterior door handles, I struggled to find any visible Toyota-shared components in the Outback, though there are probably plenty tucked out of sight. Subaru purists might not always like the TMC influences but without that supply deal for the (GT) 86 and Scion FR-S, the R&D investment in the brilliant BRZ sports car could never have been justified. Ergo, it wouldn’t have happened and the world would be infinitely poorer without it and its near-identical brothers. So for me, Fuji leveraging TMC’s components buying power and even manufacturing cars for its giant rival isn’t something to get worked up about – quite the opposite.
Back to the Outback. As well as the superb shifting of the Lineartronic gearbox and its seven sensibly chosen artificial ratios which you may control via paddle shifters, the rest of the drivetrain is just as good. Traction from the symmetrical AWD system is there whenever you need it – I detected no wheel slippage over the course of a wet week of driving, and with the exception of the Volkswagen Group’s 4.1-litre V8 with which I was recently enraptured, is there a more pleasing sounding diesel than this one? The 2.0D Lineartronic is ranked in Band H and CO2 is 166g/km, but if you’ve a desire to deprive HM’s Treasury of a little bit of loot, go for the 155g/km manual as it’s in Band G.
We only see the diesel here in Britain, but in other parts of the world, there are normally aspirated and turbocharged 2.5-litre boxer petrol engines as well as a lovely 256hp 3.6-litre flat six. That one can’t be had with Lineartronic, however, though the replacement model might well be – for now the biggest engine comes only with a five-speed torque converter automatic.
Other differences between our Outback and the one sold in North America is body width: Europe’s cars are sourced from the Ota plant in Japan, while cars for the US and Canada have extra girth and are manufactured at SoA’s factory in Lafayette, Indiana. One other unique touch for our Outbacks is an air scoop in the bonnet: cars with petrol engines don’t have that.
You might get all manner of luxury gear in this car but SatNav isn’t standard, which is an odd oversight. The interior is really roomy – think Mondeo size without quite the exterior dimensions – but just remember you’re not paying Audi money and you’ll be happy with plastics that feel more hard wearing than super-soft and squishy. Not that they’re sub standard, just more that this car is marketed as a near-premium model here, whereas in its major markets of the US, Canada and Australia, it goes up against mainly other Japanese (and Korean) brand crossovers.
I can think of just three direct competitors in the UK market, each of which sits at the top or near the top of the equivalent mainstream model’s line-up: Vauxhall’s Insignia Country Tourer, Skoda’s Superb Outdoor and the VW Passat Alltrack. Given that state of affairs, and the mostly higher prices of those vehicles, the Outback is unfairly overlooked by many potential owners.
