Test drive Subaru Outback
In mud, the main thing is not to throw gas, all the time maintaining traction, and not to be greedy with speed, since inertia will help to overcome sticky areas. And we rushed off. Suspension impacts on bumps of deep ruts made the car bounce no worse than SUVs in the Dakar rally. The windows were instantly covered with brown mud. The tread of the tires clogged, and the movement took place to the accompaniment of a roaring engine at high speeds ...
Crossovers are increasingly being bought, citing their greater versatility, comfort and additional features. And neither their modest off-road potential, nor higher prices, nor the lack of comfort on bad roads in many crossovers can prevent this. But what can you do if there is no alternative, as is commonly thought? If you want to sit higher, have more ground clearance and more spacious trunk - buy a crossover. Or is there still an alternative?
All-terrain wagons - Subaru know-how. It was the Japanese who were the first to think of in the mid-90s of the last century to increase the ground clearance of an all-wheel drive station wagon, add unpainted plastic in a circle and season it all with the "jeep" aesthetics of large fog lights. The resulting car was named the Legacy Outback, after the sparsely populated and inaccessible desert regions of central Australia. The car quickly became a hit, even though the SUV era was just beginning and the word "crossover" hadn't even been coined yet.
The idea behind Outback is simple and ingenious - a combination of handling and comfort of a passenger car and off-road capability. It would seem that the recipe by which all crossovers are prepared. But what distinguishes Subaru from many competitors is that the Japanese have always honestly tried to instill in their car the best qualities of two worlds - passenger and off-road, and not just make a passenger car brutal. And the new, fifth generation Outback (the car lost its name Legacy in the second generation) should take the model to a fundamentally new level both on and off the road.
Subaru engineers worked on the car with a purely Japanese approach of continuous and ubiquitous development. It is not so important that Subaru is far from the richest company, it is important that the available resources were used correctly. While the new Outback is based on a machine from the previous generation, it is difficult to find an element that has not been improved. Take the body, for example. Thanks to new welding methods mastered by the Japanese, high-strength steels, the proportion of which in the structure has increased, and new cross-members in the windshield and tailgate frame, the torsional rigidity of the body has increased by 67%. This, in turn, allows for better handling and a smoother ride.
In the suspension, the Japanese increased the volume of shock absorbers, made the springs stiffer, and the anti-roll bars thicker. New dampers dampen bumps better, while springs and stabilizer provide less roll and more precise handling. For the latter, both the body reinforcements in the suspension attachment points and the strengthening of the angular rigidity of the suspension itself work. The engine of the new Outback retains its previous displacement of 2,5 liters, but the powertrain is 80% new. This is still a naturally aspirated flat-four, but it has different lightweight pistons, thinner cylinder walls and reduced friction losses - all together provides a reduction in fuel consumption per liter on average. Greater engine output (175 hp and 235 Nm versus 167 hp and 229 Nm) was achieved due to larger intake channels, which provide better filling of the cylinders.
But more importantly, the Japanese are finally beginning to listen to their customers' wishes. Annoyed by the boring roar of the engine caused by the fact that the CVT lifted up the revs before the cutoff? The new Lineatronic CVT software allowed it to simulate gear changes. It is almost impossible to guess that the Outback has a continuously variable transmission, and not an “automatic” with a torque converter.
The Japanese tried to collect in the image of the new station wagon the dynamism of the third and solidity of the fourth generations of the model. It worked out well. Of course, from the large and shiny radiator grill it gives off Asiatic, but in general, the appearance of the novelty is quite nice.
The interior with hard plastic and an old multimedia system was constantly criticized. The quality of the materials has increased many times and leaves no reason for criticism, and the multimedia itself is better than that of many premium brands: an intuitive interface, beautiful and modern graphics, high screen resolution, as well as the ability to turn pages with one swipe of your finger and zoom the map, as in smartphone. The Japanese also added automatic mode to all four power windows. And they admitted that they do not understand why this is necessary, since his absence does not irritate anyone except Russians.
The majority of Japanese engineers are noticeably shorter than the Russian buyers of their cars, so the Outback still has several disadvantages characteristic of all Japanese cars. So, the seat cushion is short, and some of the secondary buttons (in particular, opening the trunk) are too low on the panel - you have to press them by touch or bent over. But the space in the cabin is enough for ten Japanese. There is a feeling that not understanding the true dimensions of Europeans and Americans, the creators of Outback left places with a margin everywhere.
The seat adjustment ranges are great - anyone can find a comfortable fit, and there is so much legroom in the back that Subaru can be used as a car for driving with a driver. Thanks to the fact that the luggage compartment cover was raised by 20 mm, the luggage compartment volume has increased from 490 to 512 liters. The backrest of the rear sofa folds down into a flat floor, increasing the usable volume to a fantastic 1 liters. So statically, the Outback outperforms crossovers in both driving comfort and storage space. But it's time to go.
In the city, Outback is no different from an ordinary passenger car, except that you sit unusually high. Firstly, the clearance here is a solid 213 mm, and secondly, the greater inclination of the front struts made it possible to raise the front seat by 10 millimeters. So the landing in this Subaru is the most commanding one. On the high-speed Novorizhskoe highway, Outback pleases with excellent directional stability: ruts, joints and other flaws in the roadway do not affect the behavior of the car in any way. Subaru walks so confidently in a straight line at high speed that you can safely release the steering wheel. It's a shame that autopilots are still being tested. Improved noise insulation was a pleasant surprise - at high speeds, neither the engine nor the wind is almost heard, and the only source of noise is the wheels. But they are also less audible, as the Outback is now fitted with quieter summer tires instead of all-season tires.
But now the time has come to leave "New Riga" for the sake of the broken paths of the Volokolamsk and Ruza districts. However, the fact that they were broken, I more likely remembered than felt. For Outback gives rise to an inexplicable paradox in your head - your eyes see deep pits and sloppy patches on the asphalt, but your body does not feel them when driving. The excellent energy intensity of the suspension is a signature feature of Subaru cars: this is how all generations of Outback drove, this is how the XV goes, so does the Forester. Fortunately, the situation has not changed with the change of generation. One can only complain about the larger and heavier 18-inch wheels, which slightly worsened the smoothness of the ride on short waves, but the changes are not critical, because the width of the tires and the height of their profile have not changed - 225/60.
At the same time, on any surface, you want to drive Subaru quickly - the car readily reacts to movements with a steering wheel and gas. The steering wheel itself is poured with effort and very informative, the brakes are set in an exemplary way, and no irregularities can change the clarity of cornering along a given trajectory. At the same time, the rolls are very small. It is a pity that such a successful chassis does not require the most powerful engine. But the flagship V6 3,6 will not be brought to us yet.
There is only one reason for criticism - the steering wheel is too heavy. If on the highway this allows you to carelessly hold it with literally two fingers, then on a twisted secondary road it is already uncomfortable to drive a car with one hand - you have to make too much effort.
At the end of the test, an off-road section was waiting for us, which had to demonstrate how much increased permeability this station wagon had. When leaving the asphalt, it is better to turn on X-Mode - an off-road mode of operation of the engine, transmission and ABS, in which the electronics simulate differential locks. At first, everything was limited to driving through the forest in a deep collegium, overcoming fords and ascents of various steepness. Here everything is decided by the clearance and the accuracy of the driver - the Outback's overhangs are still too large for fast driving on rough terrain. It is worth gape, do not calculate with speed - and bumpers hitting the ground cannot be avoided.
Having overcome a forest lane, we were upset: it did not become a serious obstacle for Outback. Usually, on off-road test drives, organizers try to pick up obstacles that their car is guaranteed to overcome. It seemed that it will be so this time. But "Subarovtsy" decided to take a risk and let us out on a field soggy after the rains. Moreover, we were asked to be more careful, since there was no complete confidence in the passability of the route.
In the mud, the main thing is not to throw gas, all the time maintaining traction, and not to be greedy with speed, since inertia will help to overcome sticky areas. And we rushed off. Suspension bumps on bumps of deep ruts made the car bounce no worse than SUVs in the Dakar rally. The windows were instantly covered with brown mud. The tire tread clogged, and the movement was accompanied by the roaring engine at high revs. But Outback drove ahead. Not fast, sometimes sideways, but the car stubbornly moved towards the target. Surprisingly, we are not stuck. It is even more surprising that the girls who were driving some of the station wagons in our column, for whom such conditions are a novelty, also almost completely covered the distance.
But whoever had problems was the representatives of the Japanese delegation. Engineers and managers responsible for our market from the Subaru head office arrived in Moscow for the premiere test drive. And they all made the same mistake - threw the gas. As a result, the off-road program for the guests was considerably reduced. At dinner, one of them admitted: “We have traveled a lot to similar events in different countries and have not seen Outback trials in such conditions anywhere. It was completely unexpected for us that the car did it. We did not prepare her for such off-road conditions. In Japan, such a field is considered difficult off-road, and you need to conquer it at least on a Mitsubishi Pajero or Suzuki Jimny. "
So why do Russians choose crossovers over Outback? He feels confident at high speeds, is able to deliver pleasure in dynamic driving and comfortable on bad roads, and off-road overcoming is his favorite hobby. One of the reasons is the conservatism of Russians. But even more important is the much banal reason - the price. Subaru have never been cheap, and after the fall of the ruble they have become even more expensive. Outback was originally supposed to hit the market in January, but due to the difficult market situation, the Japanese have postponed their debut. Sales will not start now either - their start is scheduled for July.
But the prices are already there. For the cheapest Outback, you will have to pay from $ 28, and for the most expensive - $ 700. The base Outback has everything you need already: 30 airbags, cruise control, heated seats, a rearview camera, dual-zone climate control, a 800-speaker audio system and 7-inch wheels. The $ 6 mid-range trim includes leather upholstery and power seats, while the top version features a sunroof, Harmann / Kardon audio and navigation system.
The Outback finds itself in the marketplace between mid-size five-seat crossovers like the Hyundai Santa Fe and Nissan Murano and seven-seat cars like the Toyota Highlander and Nissan Pathfinder. The latter are much larger, more powerful and richer equipped, while the former are cheaper. It seems to me that even with this price tag, the Outback is a smarter choice. Subaru gives the driver more than you expect from it. She is better than any of these four, both on asphalt and off-road. It is not too much inferior in the size of the trunk, and even surpasses in space on the back sofa. And the overall level and premiums have increased. Is the crossover really necessary?
