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This new fourth-generation model is a reflection of Subaru's knowing what it is and what the Legacy should be. Apparently, part of that includes being what it used to be. Say hello to a feature not seen in the lineup for 11 years: the blower is back! Turbocharged performance is now a Subaru staple and deserves all the credit for pumping up the dual-cam 2.5-liter 4-cylinder to 250 horsepower and just as much torque. Just watch that tachometer - once the needle swings past "3," the engine has a V6 moment and you're off! Subaru avoided Audi's mistake of making the engine too small and avoided Volvo's mistake of having the wrong cylinder count. Top it off with with decent low-end torque and plenty of aural personality, and finding fault with this motor takes deep digging. Nissan's Altima has it tied for total output, but V6s are for a different crowd, and anyway, the Legacy 2.5GT stands as the acceleration champion at 5.7 seconds to 60 MPH with a stickshift. What a way to make a first impression.
Another early impression came early into my drive when I pressed the "-" button on the steering wheel expecting a volume change. A volume change I got: the engine started screaming and promptly catapulted me forward. Oops. Apparently those +/- buttons are transmission shifters, unique in that they let you spontaneously pick a new gear for exactly five seconds without having to shift out of D. What a clever idea. (Only turbo models have them.) Also, when in full manual mode, the dashboard displays little up and down arrows indicating which direction of shifting is possible. Clever x 2! The transmission almost always finds the right gear (there are now five in turbo and 6-cylinder models), even if it takes a few milliseconds too many to downshift at certain times.
Along the way, the engine's always making a slightly raw, guttural sound that's entirely due to Subaru's chosen engine layout: cylinders laying on their backsides, boxing away at each other. Some things never change. Advantages of going horizontal include better vibration resistance (though turning the key shakes the Outback to life like a cheap 80s car), better front-to-rear weight distribution (just like V-shaped engines), and most of all, a lower center of gravity.
The regular Legacy enjoys all those advantages. The SUV-wannabe Outback we tested works against that last one by jacking up its stance to 8.7 inches above the Earth. Advantages of riding high include the freedom to javelin the car at full speed into any driveway; the bumper never scrapes. After that, the result of such posing comes down to added tippiness and bounciness (and an extra $1,000-$2,000) to hamper down an otherwise competent performer. Don't think it adds anything meaningful to off-road ability, either.
The Outback is one car you'll want to keep on the road, despite any of its "four" (really, it's more like two) standard all-wheel-drive systems. As our Outback is an automatic-transmissioned turbo model, it has the "Variable Torque Distribution" system, which splits the power 45 front / 55 rear using an electronically controlled hydraulic clutch. (Other automatic Subarus use variations on this system; stickshift Subarus use "Continuous All-Wheel-Drive" that splits power down the middle via a less complex viscous coupling and locking center differential.) Any of these systems is good for heavy-duty weather but only light-duty off-roading.
Sometimes, the Outback makes for a pretty light-duty on-roader as well. All-wheel-drive was of no aid in this California August, nor did it prevent the Outback from sliding all over the place. Each tire was a moaner and a screamer, protesting at every moderately motivated corner entry. Since Subaru chose a fairly aggressive size - P225/55R17 - the lesson is to stay away from these all-season Bridgestone Potenza RE92s.
What's odd is how the Outback slides. The tires are an easy scapegoat for the understeer, but if you stab the brakes or even lift off the gas in the middle of a turn, the tail breaks loose and heads for the nearest ditch. The theoretical AWD strategy of keeping your foot on the gas doesn't seem to correct this habit, and when you're off the gas, the Outback's standard limited-slip diff doesn't do diddly. Strange: despite the AWD hardware, boxer engine, and wagon body balancing out the weight distribution, this is still a 56% front-biased car with a sophisticated multilink suspension. Since oversteer is a trait shared by all past Legacys, maybe it's intentional.
Tail sliding, race car shifting, and insta-rocket big turbo power? It's as if the Legacy and Outback had the talent to be whatever they wanted yet chose a life of comedy. Silly Subaru.
Driven slowly, the Outback will give off the pleasant Mr. Congenial Japanese Car demeanor that so many probably seek. Noise levels and ride harshness are about average, maybe a little better. Yanking off the roof rack (you'll need an Allen wrench) would help with the wind noise problem (so would window frames, but never mind), and going for the Legacy instead of the Outback would help with the ride bounciness. The steering is light and easy, yet enough road feel somehow gets through to make it ultimately satisfying - almost as good as the Mazda 6. And Subaru seems to have exorcised the previous mushiness from the brakes, which still have a long travel but now react decisively. Legacy 2.5GTs (but not equivalent Outback 2.5XTs) get the exclusive performance tweaks of bigger brakes, ventilated rear brakes, and a quicker 15:1 steering ratio instead of 16.5:1, which itself is already quicker than last year.
Through it all, I only found one thing glaringly wrong with the Outback's drive: financing it. That 4-cylinder engine must've taken a few V8 moments while I wasn't looking, because the first fill-up netted an Earth-destroying 18 MPG average. On premium fuel. Subaru, don't forget your liberal customer base.
Go park this sharp-looking Outback between an Camry and a Highlander - notice how it's almost as tall as the latter? The gaudy styling cues from past Outbacks don't seem to be present anymore; differences between Legacy and Outback seem to end after the tallness, roof rack, and fog lights, plus the functional hood scoop on the turbo models of both. Despite increases in dimensions, Subaru claims 180 pounds have been lost thanks to aluminum in the hood and rear gate, among other places.
Opening any of the frame-less doors is a pretty ethereal experience. Once seated, though, it's all substance, and 2005 brings a much-needed splash of style. The good-feeling 3-spoke leather wheel is new and the more artful center stack is new. Crisp electroluminescent gauges exclusive to turbo models light up the dash in a Lexus-like fashion (and in a Pontiac fashion, all dials dance when you start the car). Well-placed cupholders, an upper-dash console (where next year's navigation system will go), rich leather with seat heaters, and a good mix of leather/wood/chrome make this the best Subaru interior I've seen.
Best I've heard, too. The modest 120-watt rating doesn't describe the tight trebles coming through the Outback's six door-mounted speakers. An in-dash 6-disc changer and good ergonomics also work. Forgetting MP3 in a brand new 2005 design (except in the top-of-the-line Outback 3.0R Limited) is unforgivable, however.
A few things need work: the otherwise smart dual-zone automatic climate controls annoyingly default to recirculate and A/C ON mode instead of its previous settings. The dome light is way back in the middle of the car, making night-time entry/exits a dark affair. (The map lights are too weak to compensate.) And both the power lock switches and the locks themselves work backwards. I'd also like the choice of turning off the daytime running lights. Strangely, the headlights don't work when the car's off.
Despite a no-telescope Momo-brand steering wheel (another acute 2005 omission), I was able to find a perfect driving position in the supportive seats. But the second row, with its low cushion and clamped-down footroom, leaves some to be desired. Space isn't bad and the driveline hump isn't much bigger than a front-drive car's, but the Legacy and Outback are still the only mid-size cars that are really EPA "compacts." At least everyone gets a view out of the gigantic sunroof, and newly standard are all the requisite safety features of all-seat 3-point belts and head restraints (the fronts are active), collapsible brake pedal, front-side and all-curtain air bags, and new dual-stage front air bags that turn off the passenger's if none is present.
As one of the four remaining wagons in its class, you can easily toss 33.5 cubic feet of junk in the Outback's caboose (11.4 in sedans), plus there's a handy underfloor compartment for small items, tie-down hooks galore, and a 12V power outlet. The easily-folded second row expands space to 66.2. (Outback Limited models shrink those to 32.1 and 61.7.) That has it beating the Mazda 6, Volkswagen Passat, and Chevy Malibu Maxx - a.k.a. everyone - not to mention about 20 junior SUVs you can name.
The fraternal Legacy and Outback twins officially parted ways during the 2000 redesign, and divided they stand. First, let's get one thing out of the way: when people menion the Subaru Outback Sport, they're not talking about the Legacy. Now that "Outback" seems to be a free-for-all term, the car known as the Outback Sport is a version of the Impreza wagon.
Now on to the rest of the confusion. Aside from stance and styling, the Legacy and Outback lines both get some versions the other cannot. Going by powertrain, each starts off with a single-cam version of the 2.5-liter 4-cylinder with 168 horsepower (valve timing improves this to 175 next year). Like in the last version, it mates to either a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic and is found in the Legacy 2.5i sedan/wagon and Outback 2.5i wagon. Second is the 250-horsepower turbo motor that pairs to a differently-geared 5-speed manual or 5-speed automatic; it's found in the Legacy 2.5GT sedan/wagon and Outback 2.5XT sedan. Lastly, there's the 250-horsepower H6 engine that mates only to the 5-speed auto and is exclusive to the Outback - either the 3.0R sedan (the only Outback sedan variant) or 3.0R LL Bean wagon. The line ends with the Outback 3.0R VDC Limited wagon, significant for its stability control system, subwoofer, and MP3 playback.
Nice how Subaru starts with a perfectly adequate base engine and offers two separate, equally appealing routes to 250 horsepower, isn't it? As the H6 offers 219 pounds-feet of torque, the 250 pounds-feet turbo car is actually the faster one. Cheaper, too.
The 82-horsepower spread is nothing compared to the 12-grand gap between the $22,020 Legacy 2.5i sedan and the $34,020 Outback 3.0R VDC Limited. Just to illustrate some of the journey throughout the many Legacys and Outbacks (9 or 15, depending on how you count), an automatic transmission costs $1,000-$1,200. The Limited Package on the base and GT/XT models - always adding leather and a moonroof and in some cases a boatload of other items - costs between $2,500-$3,450, depending on model. In the Legacy line, the leap from sedan to wagon costs $1,000-$1,200. The sideways leap from Legacy to Outback costs between $1,000-$2,000 (due to varying equipment levels), and going from a base to a turbo model runs between $3,700-$4,800 (same reason). The H6 engine is reserved for the wealthy, as the Outback 3.0R sedan starts at $31,820 and the two following wagons at $33,020 and $34,220.
Expensive? Well, compared to what? The 34-grand Volkswagen Passat GLX 4MOTION? The 36-grand Volvo XC70 2.5T AWD? The 37-grand A4 3.2 Quattro? (All of which are slower.) Subaru might or might not be the first name that comes to mind against those brands, but the list of like-sized sedans/wagons with all-wheel-drive is a very brief one.
You could compare Subaru's troopers to the likes of the Mazda 6 - another sport-minded sedan/wagon in this price range. $27,555 buys the V6-powered wagon, which is a little lower than a Legacy 2.5GT automatic's 29, but Subaru has the better, faster engine and all-wheel-drive - items that are usually worth a couple thousand in MSRP. The base Legacy sedan is also a little higher than all its fellow Japanese class leaders - but none of them - not Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Mazda, or Mitsubishi - can be bothered to use their back legs. Surprising, given that all-wheel-drive is now en vogue.
Put it this way: if you just want a car, all-wheel-drive is a significant enough reason to sway you towards, or away from, a specific model. As the Legacy and Outback match the class leaders in every other respect, let the local weather be your guide. If clouds are something you only see on TV, buy one of the others; you don't need the extra hardware dulling down your acceleration, mileage, handling, etc. But if you need grip when the road start to slip, learn to love the Legacy.
And if you want a practical, four-seasons performance machine at an agreeable price, Subaru just cleaned Europe's clock.
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