Road Test: Subaru Outback 3.6R

Review by Jay Williams - 09/February/2010

Subaru decided to add body cladding and a suspension lift to their Legacy wagon, low and behold the Legacy Outback was born. Since 1994 when it made its debut at the New York Motor Show, the Outback has gone through a vast array of changes.

Now 2010, the new fourth generation Outback has dropped the "Legacy" prefix from international markets and is now simply the 'Outback'.

The model we tested was the 3.6R, now, I'm not sure what the 'R' stands for, but I'm pretty sure it's not 'race' or 'really fast', but don't get me wrong, the 3.6-litre isn't exactly slow either, in fact it has some 'get-up-and-go' when the right boot is applied heavily.

But, the Outback is not about blistering performance or high speed cornering, it's about comfort, safety and ride quality. And it delivers on all accounts.

Drive: 3.5/5

Sitting behind the wheel of the Outback 3.6R for the first time I noticed that vehicle sits high on the road, 213mm is the official ground clearance of the Outback. This is handy when driving over unsealed and bumpy roads.

Subaru's symmetrical all-wheel-drive system works well on the Outback, delivering a well composed driving experience and high levels of grip.

The suspension felt like it was designed specifically for Australian roads, it was comfortable while cruising around and had no problem absorbing harsh bumps and pesky speed humps.

However, because of the sheer size, weight (1569 kg) and ride height of the Outback, it was prone to large amounts of body roll when pushed hard through corners.

There’s also some understeer, it’s not difficult to send the tyres squealing, this even applies when maneuvering a round-a-bout at a normal pace, this is due to the 60-series tyres (225/60-17), a taller profile selected for ride-quality benefits.

The ride was very comfortable and would suit well as a day-to-day family car. It would also be perfect to take away on family trips to the beach or camping.

As far as parking is concerned, the Outback could do with the use of reverse sensors. Because the vehicle sits higher than a sedan it was hard to see smaller objects while parking. This could present a hazard especially around young children.

Engine: 4/5

There are three engines to choose from in the Outback range, the 2.5-litre flat four-cylinder petrol, 2.0-litre flat four-cylinder diesel and the 3.6-litre flat six-cylinder petrol (model tested).

The 3.6-litre flat six-cylinder produces 191kW of power and 350Nm of torque, with a five-speed automatic sending power to the symmetrical all-wheel-drive system. Torque split is 45 percent front, 55 rear in normal operation - the 3.6R is able to go from 0-100km in 7.4 seconds.

Unlike the Outback 2.5i which gives buyers the option of a six-speed manual or chain-driven continuously variable transmission, the 3.6R only come with a 5-speed SPORTSHIFT automatic transmission.

While in normal operation the five-speed auto is very smooth. However, the five-speed SPORTSHIFT automatic gives the driver the choice of three different driving modes - Intelligent, Sport and Sport Sharp.

Intelligent mode is the smoothest of the modes and provides the greatest level of fuel economy. As the name suggests Sport mode gives the Outback sharper gear changes and increases the rev's, while Sport Sharp raises the bar even further making the engine behave more aggressively.

Another feature of the transmission was the manual function which utilises the wheel-mounted paddle shifters. I didn't find the manual mode very satisfactory. Shifting through gears felt slow and the transmission get a mind of its own and upshifts before the 6500-rpm redline.

Taking into consideration that this vehicle is family-oriented, the lack of performance from the paddle-shift system may be over looked.

Exterior: 4/5

Subaru state that the Outback has been completely redesigned from the ground up and just looking at the new Outback it isn't hard to see why.

The latest Outback looks a whole lot bigger than previous models and is now 50mm wider, 70mm higher, 65mm longer. This translates into more interior room, particularly boot space which is 490-litres with the back seats upright and 1690-litres when the seats are down.

Visually, less plastic cladding and more colour matched body parts. The front bumper and rear bumper are now colour matched to the body, so to are the side mirrors and door handles. The Black under body bumper covers seen on previous models are still present.

The new fourth generation Outback features large rounded wheel arches and a sleeker appearance than previous models, which works well in distinguishing the Outback from the rest of the Subaru range.

Interior: 3.5/5

The interior of the Outback boasts spaciousness, with its increased measurements the Outback easily accommodated five adults comfortably, with plenty of leg room, both in the front and back. 

A new dual centre console features side-by-side drink holders that are hidden by a spring operated hatch, a small storage compartment and also houses the round SPORTSHIFT transmission control knob that looks similar to something you would find in a BMW. Opening the centre arm rest reveals the AUX input and a 12-volt power outlet.

Information displays are divided, speedo and rev meters are situated in the dash behind the steering wheel, while fuel usage and a digital clock are situated in the top of the dashboard.

The leather wrapped steering wheel feels great in hand and shows a high level of craftsmanship, it also features paddle shifters, volume / track controls and cruise control.

One thing that I didn't like about the Outback's interior was the wood grain trim, it made the interior feel dated and it didn't really match the dark soft feel plastics and dark cloth trimmed seats. There were no complaints about the level of comfort.

Overall: 3.5/5

A great family vehicle that can be taken anywhere, with its great build quality and a name you can trust the Subaru Outback 3.6R is a reasonably classy unit.

I think the 3.6-litre engine is a must with the Outback as having driven the 2.5-litre in the Subaru Liberty I don't think the smaller motor would suit the larger vehicle. The Outback’s greatest strengths are quiet operation, expanded interior space and safety.

But for the price, the 3.6R is faced with increased competition from the likes of Honda's CRV, Kia's Sorento and Mitsubishi's Outlander.