Subaru’s chosen mechanical specification of a 167bhp naturally aspirated boxer engine coupled to a CVT makes the Outback quite a reluctant performer. As long as you adjust your driving style to suit the car, it can be adequate and indeed quite relaxing. The CVT is programmed so that under moderate acceleration it will keep the engine at about 3000rpm. This means that, so long as you’re not in a hurry, the engine stays relatively quiet and you can mooch about, unperturbed by gearchanges.
The problem is that sometimes you just want to make a bit of progress, or you need to merge onto a busy motorway. Then it quickly becomes apparent that 167bhp isn’t very much in a 1690kg car. Our test car managed to shave four-tenths off its quoted 0-62mph time, taking a still-unimpressive 9.8sec.
The CVT does its best. If you floor it, it will hold the revs in the band where the engine makes maximum power, but for anything less it will engineer in some ‘gearchanges’. They don’t feel contrived – it’s just the gearbox limiting the noise whenever it can.
That’s very welcome indeed, because this boxer is not a nice engine to listen to. At low revs it’s too quiet to have any discernible character, whereas under high loads it can sound like a tortured small-capacity diesel. It’s at its worst when having to fire into life after being shut down by the start-stop system. It takes several cranks, and sounds particularly unhappy being woken up. Annoyingly, there’s no dedicated button to disable the start-stop system – you have to go into the settings on the touchscreen.
The Outback is rated to tow 2000kg, and we suspect that would be a tall ask for this engine. In the US, the same unit makes 15bhp more, and buyers have the option of a 260bhp 2.4-litre turbocharged version, which sounds like a more appropriate powerplant for this car.
The brake pedal is uncorrupted by any form of regen, and that translates to a pleasantly organic feel. In an emergency stop from 70mph on a dry track, our Outback required almost two metres more than the Skoda Superb did. Our test car wore one mismatched Bridgestone Turanza tyre, though stability was not notably affected.
Off-road notes
The real draw of an Outback compared with, say, a Skoda Superb is the Subaru’s off-road credentials. Still, one should be conscious of its limitations – this is not like a true off- roader. The Outback lacks low gearing and locking diffs and is ultimately held back by its fundamental shape: long overhangs result in fairly modest approach and departure angles (a Dacia Duster does better).
With that said, the Outback is a good deal more capable than most things this side of a Land Rover Defender. Beefy skidplates front and rear mean you can use every degree of those angles without fear of bending a bumper or bashing a sump.
The Outback has two off-road modes: snow/dirt and deep snow/mud. With standard road tyres, it still scrabbled up Millbrook’s gravel slopes and through muddy sections with little fuss. If an off-road mode is engaged and the car detects you are coasting down a hill, it will automatically engage the hill descent control.