{"id":4810,"date":"2016-03-08T11:25:59","date_gmt":"2016-03-08T16:25:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/?p=4810"},"modified":"2016-03-08T05:39:34","modified_gmt":"2016-03-08T10:39:34","slug":"behind-the-wheel-2015-subaru-outback-2-5i-limited","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2016\/03\/08\/behind-the-wheel-2015-subaru-outback-2-5i-limited\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the Wheel: 2015 Subaru Outback 2.5i Limited"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"2015<\/a>Recently, the repair costs on my faithful old 2003 Mitsubishi Outlander<\/a> started to exceed the value of the car – so it was time to start looking for a replacement.<\/p>\n

One of the cars I looked at rather extensively was a 2015 Subaru Outback 2.5i Limited. I wanted something similar to my old car – at least in the same general size & style; not too big or tall – but maybe also a bit nicer. Since Mitsubishi doesn’t make anything like that anymore, Subaru’s offering seemed like the natural choice.<\/p>\n

The Subaru Outback has a lot going for it – right off the bat I can say this is a very<\/em> nice car. It looks quite nice from the outside – not too garish, as many cars are these days – and the inside is equally nice. Subaru has really improved their interior design, even compared to just a year or two ago.<\/p>\n

The Outback has plenty of power for a car of its size: 175 HP and 174 lb-ft of torque from it’s 2.5 liter 4-cylinder (horizontally opposed of course – that famous Subaru “boxer” configuration). It’s no race car or anything, but it gets up and moving more than quickly enough.<\/p>\n

The Outback also has incredible visibility – especially compared to many SUVs – even the side mirrors were moved down onto the door so you could have just that last little bit under the A-pillar for better forward\/side visibility. Rear visibility is fantastic too – no massive blind spots on this thing.<\/p>\n

There’s also a fantastic amount of room, both front and back – rear leg room is almost as good as the front – and there’s also a generous cargo area behind the rear seats which gets even bigger once the seats are folded down. As a bonus, the rear seats can be folded down from within the rear hatch area – without having to open the side doors. (Why don’t more SUVs have this? It’s a great idea!)<\/p>\n

The Outback is a big car on the inside, but it doesn’t look big on the outside – it’s like the TARDIS of cars.<\/p>\n

It’s a surprisingly nimble for a car its size, with a very tight turning radius making it very good as a city car. It’s also very planted on the road (thanks to its low center of gravity), handling tight corners with ease.<\/p>\n

The roof rails also have the cross beams built into them (they fold away when not in use) which is a very clever feature – most other vehicles of this type just have the rails and the cross beams are an extra cost.<\/p>\n

All that said, there are some downsides to the Outback.<\/p>\n

It’s got lots of room, because it’s a LONG car – a full 11 inches longer than my old car – which wasn’t exactly short, either. I had to actually measure my garage to see if this would fit in it – and it turns out it would, but only just<\/em>, with no room to walk in front of or behind. You also feel that size when you’re driving – especially when changing lanes.<\/p>\n

The Outback also comes with paddle shifters, which I just find very… strange. This car only comes with a CVT, and having paddle shifters on a CVT just seems… wrong. They create fake shift points where none exist… why? (I know it’s because people expect that “shifting” feeling, but c’mon…)<\/p>\n

Overall, the Subaru Outback is a very<\/strong> <\/em>nice car, especially for the price. In my mind it competes with much more upscale luxury SUVs in terms of interior. But, the size is a problem – if you’re looking for something “compact” then this is not it. But if the size doesn’t bother you, then the you could do much worse than the latest Subaru Outback.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Recently, the repair costs on my faithful old 2003 Mitsubishi Outlander started to exceed the value of the car – so it was time to start looking for a replacement. One of the cars I looked at rather extensively was a 2015 Subaru Outback 2.5i Limited. I wanted something similar to my old car –… Continue reading Behind the Wheel: 2015 Subaru Outback 2.5i Limited<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"webmentions_disabled_pings":false,"webmentions_disabled":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"activitypub_content_warning":"","activitypub_content_visibility":"","activitypub_max_image_attachments":3,"activitypub_interaction_policy_quote":"anyone","activitypub_status":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[9,199],"tags":[134,102,402,124,401],"class_list":["post-4810","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cars-and-trucks","category-my-opinion","tag-behind-the-wheel","tag-cars","tag-outback","tag-review","tag-subaru","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pimUj-1fA","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4561,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2014\/10\/17\/behind-wheel-2003-mitsubishi-outlander\/","url_meta":{"origin":4810,"position":0},"title":"Behind the Wheel: 2003 Mitsubishi Outlander","author":"Keith Survell","date":"October 17, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"To keep this \"Behind the Wheel\" series going I thought I'd mix things up a bit and give some thoughts on cars I've actually owned, as opposed to ones I've just driven for short periods of time. 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Okay, okay, I know I've probably said it a million times, but c'mon - it's great fun.","rel":"","context":"In "Cars and Trucks"","block_context":{"text":"Cars and Trucks","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/cars-and-trucks\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2748,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2009\/08\/08\/behind-the-wheel-2009-pontiac-vibe\/","url_meta":{"origin":4810,"position":3},"title":"Behind the Wheel: 2009 Pontiac Vibe","author":"Keith Survell","date":"August 8, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"I get behind the wheel of a 2009 Pontiac Vibe and find out that this little car has got it where it counts!","rel":"","context":"In "Cars and Trucks"","block_context":{"text":"Cars and Trucks","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/cars-and-trucks\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":217,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2004\/09\/25\/off-roading-in-new-england\/","url_meta":{"origin":4810,"position":4},"title":"Off-Roading in New England","author":"Keith Survell","date":"September 25, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm on a mission to find good off-roading (or soft-roading) locations in New England. 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