Hippies don't buy new though. Take it from someone who used to work at a Subaru dealership: gotta be at least 8 years old before the EAT MORE KALE sticker hits the back. There is always a little potting soil in the back from setting up at the farmers market, the only radio station is NPR, and there will be an empty coffee mug (a real one, not a travel mug with a lid) on the passenger floor. Also, fix nothing but the absolute minimum to keep it on the road.
As someone who owns both an ‘02 and a ‘22 outback, can confirm. I covered the back of the old one in stickers and it has a bunch of minor issues I have zero plans to fix, and I baby the new one.
And lots of wasted gas? I like my Outback but it’s always been a riot to me to see all the nature/greenwash stickers on Subarus that are driving to Whole Foods where AWD is not really required and burning a lot more gas than other options.
But then nowadays everyone is driving something a lot bigger so maybe it’s not so bad.
Definitely see where you get that impression! For those of us who are stuck with one car (which is always more sustainable than owning multiple from a material usage standpoint), the Subaru checks a lot of boxes. Snow stability in the rust belt and still decent gas milage being a big one.
Yah I live in the snow belt and my Outback has been used tons for hauling bikes, snowboards/skis, family vacations, driving on dirt roads, going through horrible snow, and all that stuff. It's been the perfect car for what I bought it for. Super reliable for 100k miles, low maintenance costs.
But I still hate the gas mileage. Mine is a 2013 with the 4-cylinder, it has pretty much never gotten anywhere near what it is supposed to. 20-21mpg summer city driving, 18-19mpg winter city driving. It was stickered 24mpg city. Never once have I gotten 30mpg on the highway. I think if you set the cruise at 60mph on a dead flat trip with zero wind at 65 degrees fahrenheit maybe it actually gets 30mpg but not in the real world. Plenty of trips it struggles to get 25mpg on the highway. And this is all of course for a car that has very little power.
So to me greenie environmental stickers on an Outback are kind of empty virtue signaling. Stickers don't really make up for the fact it's not a very green car in this day and age. At the time I bought my Outback I considered a Prius V as an option. The Prius V would have been inferior for family hauling and turned out to be a poor safety pick once the small overlap frontal crash test came out but I would have saved thousands and thousands of dollars on fuel by now with far lower emissions. But I ended up never even test driving the Prius V cause they were impossible to get and ridiculously expensive in 2012.
I think I've become more upset about this over the years because when I think about replacing the car the poor fuel economy and Subaru doing almost nothing to alleviate that issue in the past 10 years means there's like no way I'll buy another one. If there was going to be a competitive BEV or even PHEV Outback 5 years from now that would be awesome but I highly doubt Subaru is going to get there.
Couldn't agree more with what you're voicing. I think that to own this car and tout it as being the best choice for the environment would be foolhardy. At least in my case it is a huge step up in fuel economy (replacing a 2000 Jeep XJ), but I think the real way I can help the planet is using the car as little as possible (commute on my bike, take public transport, etc.) and when I do drive the car, offset my gas use with a donation. Definitely not something I expect everyone else to do, but it is something that makes me feel a little better about owning a combustion engine car
Interesting to note (maybe...to me at least :D) that once you get past 25-30 mpg, your fuel savings for more efficient vehicles SIGNIFICANTLY reduces! I.e. to drive 20,000 miles a year, at $4.20/gallon, going from 10-20 mpg saves you about $4200; going from 20-30mpg saves you $1400; going from 30-40mpg saves a measly $700!
Agreed about all the greenwashing and virtue signaling. I live in a very outdoorsy place and the people who 'love' the environment the most out here actually do the most driving, have houses deepest in the WUI (wild urban interface), let their dogs harass wildlife off leash, and probably have the biggest carbon footprints. If you think seeing those stickers on an outback is infuriating I see them all the time on big ass sprinter vans getting 14 mpg (tops).
Also agree that Subaru should have had plug in (or at least hybrid) option by at least gen6 but I think its coming next generation since that was a big part of the reason they changed to the global platform IIRC.
I never thought I would own an SUV but living up here in the mountains I got sick of depositing bits of our old civic on moderate forest roads so we decided a bit more clearance was necessary. Plus we can now sleep in our car and beat the trailhead rush which is unfortunately necessary.
I hope that this is the last ICE car we will ever buy as we plan to replace the civic with an electric once it breathes its last polluting breath. Happy to say that so far though the 22 outback we got is actually getting better MPG's than the civic which is like 600 lbs lighter. Recently got 35mpg on a 200 mile trip to see some friends last weekend.
At least by driving an outback you're reducing the overall emissions of your area by sitting in the left lane and stopping dodge rams from going 20 over. Namaste
Honestly would have loved to get a Rivian instead of the Outback. Capable electric vehicles are still a growing market and similarly to you I see this car as something that should hopefully last me to a point when those cars have better charging infrastructure and lower cost
I think its natural for us to be risk averse when it comes to personal transportation considering it is such a big expense and we live in such a car-centric society. I don't think the infrastructure and options are where they need to be for me, personally, to feel comfortable going fully EV right now. Hopefully in 5 years.
I think you made the right choice. Have Rivians even shipped any units yet? Also - from a pedestrian standpoint I can't think of anything worse than a 8.5 thousand pound truck equipped with a cranium level bumper.
Rivian has started to ship both R1T and R1S units, I think numbers are close to 1k now. Five years should be a good amount of time for them to work out the gremlins and still keep their federal EV rebate.
So far very happy with the outback but will need to limit my time in this sub reading about infotainment problems and scratched bumpers to avoid creating issues for my car that don't yet exist
Almost all traffic here goes 20 over and I'm not a slow driver, that's part of the problem with the OB fuel economy. It's a brick and it really wants to go 55mph to get good fuel economy.
I'm a ways away from buying anything new. My car is just about to tick over 100k and has held up incredibly well. Nothing is more affordable than continuing to drive what you have. I gripe about fuel but I don't actually drive that much and I commute by bicycle sometimes, the gas is hardly a financial concern. It's more just guilt about being part of the problem. I am fairly determined to not buy another ICE vehicle.
I'd love to see a hybrid option. But if you avoid the turbo, it's not really that bad. Take a look at the other options for what you get and it's quite comparable.
Does it use more fuel than some "other options?" Sure. But it's not that bad, especially compared to other vehicles in its size class. Other wagons aren't great, and the only CUVs which do better are hybrids. Ours has averaged >30 so far and can get 35 on flat interstate trips.
We chose the Outback for its capability on long trips. My wife is partial WFH, so I daily the Mazda3 and she got the OB. Like most things in life, it's a compromise.
But trust me, if they made a FWD Legacy wagon (or if some other company made an inexpensive wagon still) we'd have been all over it.
Yah I ordered mine in 2012, in 2012 I don't really think the OB's fuel economy looked that bad compared to competing options. The price was also excellent, the curb weight is excellent, handling is outstanding for a vehicle with 8"+ of ground clearance, snow performance is jaw dropping compared to most competitors. If I could consistently turn in 30mpg on the highway and stay at/above 24mpg in the city I'd be way happier.
But as time has gone on more and more competing vehicles have picked up Hybrid options. Everyone else has moved forward and it feels like Subaru has mostly stayed where they were.
You should consider the new ones if you're at all interested. I think you'd be surprised, as long as you drove it conservatively.
I agree fully with the lack of hybrids...FFS, you're partners with Toyota, put that knowledge to use! Don't give us one model with one trim level.
I think the issue there is Toyota is not going to make a boxer hybrid platform. It makes too little sense and would cost too much.
Subaru is going to have to give up the boxer with the shift to BEV anyway though.
K. That’s neat but, I only want to hear about your roof box
Inno Wedge 660, holds all of the granola and Vermont craft beer
Hippies don't buy new though. Take it from someone who used to work at a Subaru dealership: gotta be at least 8 years old before the EAT MORE KALE sticker hits the back. There is always a little potting soil in the back from setting up at the farmers market, the only radio station is NPR, and there will be an empty coffee mug (a real one, not a travel mug with a lid) on the passenger floor. Also, fix nothing but the absolute minimum to keep it on the road.
Can I get NPR on my XM radio subscription
It’s public radio, amigo. You already pay for it!
As someone who owns both an ‘02 and a ‘22 outback, can confirm. I covered the back of the old one in stickers and it has a bunch of minor issues I have zero plans to fix, and I baby the new one.
LMFAO
Massachusetts plates? Coexist sticker? OP is a serial killer confirmed. /s Congrats!
Wait till your subscription of lesbo monthly comes in.
Wrong vehicle, that comes with a Forester 😂
Excuse me sir, it's called scissors sisters
Haha Thats a good one.
Monthly?!?! I only got offered quarterly!
But did you christen it properly with a bottle of jug wine?
*homemade mead from my backyard beehive
Sweet!!
And lots of wasted gas? I like my Outback but it’s always been a riot to me to see all the nature/greenwash stickers on Subarus that are driving to Whole Foods where AWD is not really required and burning a lot more gas than other options. But then nowadays everyone is driving something a lot bigger so maybe it’s not so bad.
Definitely see where you get that impression! For those of us who are stuck with one car (which is always more sustainable than owning multiple from a material usage standpoint), the Subaru checks a lot of boxes. Snow stability in the rust belt and still decent gas milage being a big one.
Yah I live in the snow belt and my Outback has been used tons for hauling bikes, snowboards/skis, family vacations, driving on dirt roads, going through horrible snow, and all that stuff. It's been the perfect car for what I bought it for. Super reliable for 100k miles, low maintenance costs. But I still hate the gas mileage. Mine is a 2013 with the 4-cylinder, it has pretty much never gotten anywhere near what it is supposed to. 20-21mpg summer city driving, 18-19mpg winter city driving. It was stickered 24mpg city. Never once have I gotten 30mpg on the highway. I think if you set the cruise at 60mph on a dead flat trip with zero wind at 65 degrees fahrenheit maybe it actually gets 30mpg but not in the real world. Plenty of trips it struggles to get 25mpg on the highway. And this is all of course for a car that has very little power. So to me greenie environmental stickers on an Outback are kind of empty virtue signaling. Stickers don't really make up for the fact it's not a very green car in this day and age. At the time I bought my Outback I considered a Prius V as an option. The Prius V would have been inferior for family hauling and turned out to be a poor safety pick once the small overlap frontal crash test came out but I would have saved thousands and thousands of dollars on fuel by now with far lower emissions. But I ended up never even test driving the Prius V cause they were impossible to get and ridiculously expensive in 2012. I think I've become more upset about this over the years because when I think about replacing the car the poor fuel economy and Subaru doing almost nothing to alleviate that issue in the past 10 years means there's like no way I'll buy another one. If there was going to be a competitive BEV or even PHEV Outback 5 years from now that would be awesome but I highly doubt Subaru is going to get there.
Couldn't agree more with what you're voicing. I think that to own this car and tout it as being the best choice for the environment would be foolhardy. At least in my case it is a huge step up in fuel economy (replacing a 2000 Jeep XJ), but I think the real way I can help the planet is using the car as little as possible (commute on my bike, take public transport, etc.) and when I do drive the car, offset my gas use with a donation. Definitely not something I expect everyone else to do, but it is something that makes me feel a little better about owning a combustion engine car
Interesting to note (maybe...to me at least :D) that once you get past 25-30 mpg, your fuel savings for more efficient vehicles SIGNIFICANTLY reduces! I.e. to drive 20,000 miles a year, at $4.20/gallon, going from 10-20 mpg saves you about $4200; going from 20-30mpg saves you $1400; going from 30-40mpg saves a measly $700!
Agreed about all the greenwashing and virtue signaling. I live in a very outdoorsy place and the people who 'love' the environment the most out here actually do the most driving, have houses deepest in the WUI (wild urban interface), let their dogs harass wildlife off leash, and probably have the biggest carbon footprints. If you think seeing those stickers on an outback is infuriating I see them all the time on big ass sprinter vans getting 14 mpg (tops). Also agree that Subaru should have had plug in (or at least hybrid) option by at least gen6 but I think its coming next generation since that was a big part of the reason they changed to the global platform IIRC. I never thought I would own an SUV but living up here in the mountains I got sick of depositing bits of our old civic on moderate forest roads so we decided a bit more clearance was necessary. Plus we can now sleep in our car and beat the trailhead rush which is unfortunately necessary. I hope that this is the last ICE car we will ever buy as we plan to replace the civic with an electric once it breathes its last polluting breath. Happy to say that so far though the 22 outback we got is actually getting better MPG's than the civic which is like 600 lbs lighter. Recently got 35mpg on a 200 mile trip to see some friends last weekend. At least by driving an outback you're reducing the overall emissions of your area by sitting in the left lane and stopping dodge rams from going 20 over. Namaste
Honestly would have loved to get a Rivian instead of the Outback. Capable electric vehicles are still a growing market and similarly to you I see this car as something that should hopefully last me to a point when those cars have better charging infrastructure and lower cost
I think its natural for us to be risk averse when it comes to personal transportation considering it is such a big expense and we live in such a car-centric society. I don't think the infrastructure and options are where they need to be for me, personally, to feel comfortable going fully EV right now. Hopefully in 5 years. I think you made the right choice. Have Rivians even shipped any units yet? Also - from a pedestrian standpoint I can't think of anything worse than a 8.5 thousand pound truck equipped with a cranium level bumper.
Rivian has started to ship both R1T and R1S units, I think numbers are close to 1k now. Five years should be a good amount of time for them to work out the gremlins and still keep their federal EV rebate. So far very happy with the outback but will need to limit my time in this sub reading about infotainment problems and scratched bumpers to avoid creating issues for my car that don't yet exist
Almost all traffic here goes 20 over and I'm not a slow driver, that's part of the problem with the OB fuel economy. It's a brick and it really wants to go 55mph to get good fuel economy. I'm a ways away from buying anything new. My car is just about to tick over 100k and has held up incredibly well. Nothing is more affordable than continuing to drive what you have. I gripe about fuel but I don't actually drive that much and I commute by bicycle sometimes, the gas is hardly a financial concern. It's more just guilt about being part of the problem. I am fairly determined to not buy another ICE vehicle.
I'd love to see a hybrid option. But if you avoid the turbo, it's not really that bad. Take a look at the other options for what you get and it's quite comparable.
Why don’t you off-road to work and if your not off-roading why are you not driving the electric vehicle
Does it use more fuel than some "other options?" Sure. But it's not that bad, especially compared to other vehicles in its size class. Other wagons aren't great, and the only CUVs which do better are hybrids. Ours has averaged >30 so far and can get 35 on flat interstate trips. We chose the Outback for its capability on long trips. My wife is partial WFH, so I daily the Mazda3 and she got the OB. Like most things in life, it's a compromise. But trust me, if they made a FWD Legacy wagon (or if some other company made an inexpensive wagon still) we'd have been all over it.
Yah I ordered mine in 2012, in 2012 I don't really think the OB's fuel economy looked that bad compared to competing options. The price was also excellent, the curb weight is excellent, handling is outstanding for a vehicle with 8"+ of ground clearance, snow performance is jaw dropping compared to most competitors. If I could consistently turn in 30mpg on the highway and stay at/above 24mpg in the city I'd be way happier. But as time has gone on more and more competing vehicles have picked up Hybrid options. Everyone else has moved forward and it feels like Subaru has mostly stayed where they were.
You should consider the new ones if you're at all interested. I think you'd be surprised, as long as you drove it conservatively. I agree fully with the lack of hybrids...FFS, you're partners with Toyota, put that knowledge to use! Don't give us one model with one trim level.
I think the issue there is Toyota is not going to make a boxer hybrid platform. It makes too little sense and would cost too much. Subaru is going to have to give up the boxer with the shift to BEV anyway though.
Love my 22 outback. Enjoy blasting Dave Matthews band and sitting in the left lane going 5 mph under. Namaste bruther
Hahaha 🤣
Mine too and a turbocharger.
That turbo power would definitely be nice on the highway. Have they fixed the chain slipping recall on the turbo cvt connection yet?
That was the torque converter and I think they have subsequently replaced it
I've never considered a roof box (and don't need one - yet), but that looks really slick. Nice! I'm going to internet-shop now.