Learn me late model wagons, or specifically Subaru Outback

Wife has a 2012 Focus with 150k miles on it. It has served us well but now dealing with a carseat, soon adding a dog to the mix, and likely another kid in a year or two and she insists that she needs a larger car (I am inclined to agree). A common complaint with the focus is the trunk space when not being able to fold down seats which a wagon would certainly solve.

We briefly were looking at something like a CX9, my sister had one that she loved, but the gas mileage kind of sucks.

Currently we are kind of fixated on late model Subaru Outback wagons 2009+. Subjectively, I think they look kind of stupid but they look functional. I dont know much about subaru's at all. Any specific things to look out for? Anything on the car a ticking time bomb? Its looking pretty certain that we'd end up with a CVT model for all the mpgs.

I'd honestly be looking at possible european options like a volvo, because I am sure they are wonderful places to spend time, but am concerned about the cost to maintain/repair long term. We are of modest means, wife already thinks my 120k mile mazda is nickle and diming us. I think its kind of nickle and diming us but at least parts are cheap. We had a rental Jetta Sportwagen 2.5 a few years ago and I loved it....but long term $$$?

Am I missing any current wagons worth looking at? Mazda 6's for instance are older than she would like. Wife would also consider a crossover but I am worried the smaller ones aren't too much bigger than what she has now. You go big and you get crap gas mileage.

I have floated the idea of a nice large luxury sedan, maybe an early V6 Genesis or something?....she is about as excited about those as she is minivans. Which is to say not at all.

We just got a 2017 outback 3.6. Love it. If you can find a 6 cylinder, it is worth the premium as the 2.5 with that chassis isn't sporty. The CVT does help it a bit though.

If you go with a 2.5, timing belt interval is 105,000 miles, so be wary that you account for that at purchase.

In reply to sachilles:

What kind of mpg are you getting with the 3.6 and cvt? I read its supposed to be better than the standard auto of the earlier cars. But at 2014+ it may or may not be in our price range.

I agree, her focus is around 170hp and to think of a bigger car with the same power, sounds kind of gutless. My entire array of cars through my life have been completely gutless too though so it shouldnt really scare me too much.

Wife has a 2015 Outback 2.5 and loves it. It can swallow a lot of stuff... 2 teenage boys, luggage and 2 dogs. A travel piano, drum kit and sound system. Etc.

It's been trouble free for 30k miles now and averages 26MPG in mixed driving.

My opinion of it is - fantastic price, economy and utility but terrible to drive. The only time the word "fun" will escape your lips when behind the wheel is if you happen to be on the way to a funeral.

I'm kinda looking at this world too but the Outback has become such a slow floppy bloat mobile. Apparently we only like wagons of the lifted variety here. Too bad Legacy wagon is gone. Forester is an okay option, not as engaging as the ones of yore though.

The Golf Sportwagen is nice and pretty spacious, nimble enough... But VW reliability. Reports are pretty mixed, I'm not sure what to believe.

Failboat, I'll have to find out on the mileage. I don't get to drive it often. I believe it's mid 20's. We also have three of them at work. Aside from the steering column recall and oil changes, they've needed nothing. The works ones are used hard. This cvt is much better than the earlier ones.

My mother has a 2013 Outback 2.5, it's gutless not particularly comfortable and utterly boring to drive. Despise it and she loves it. It's a comparable size and capability to my 2007 Passat wagon but without any of the fun. It does seem to be fairly reliable so there is that....

Brakes on the Outback are undersized and prone to warping in our experience.

We've had my wife's 2011 Outback Premium 2.5 CVT since new. 74k miles on it now. Other than tires at 57k (going up a speed rating made for an improvement in ride and handling, IMHO) and front brakes at 73k ($148 for pads and rotors at Napa), nothing other than oil changes. Mileage has been 26-28 mpg. It's a great family mobile, but I don't find it fun to drive.

I have a 2015 2.5L Outback. Not many miles on it yet but haven't had any problems. Gas mileage averages 25-26 in mostly city driving. 3.6L might be better for power, etc. but wasn't worth the price difference to me.

As mentioned it will hold a lot of stuff. With the seats folded it actually has 6" more space seat to hatch than my 2005 Transit Connect wagon did.

As for the folks saying it is boring to drive, I say they aren't driving it in the right places.

Compared to my FJ Cruiser my wife's Outback is a sports car.

Our 2015 2.5 Premium has about 73K miles. Nothing but gas, oil, and tires so far. Mileage has been a bit disappointing. Although I haven't tracked in a while we were getting 28-29; rated at 33 highway. Her use is about 95% flat Ohio interstate. Turning radius is surprisingly good.

My wife likes it which is all that matters.

Subaru had head gasket issues at some point in the 2000s but I don't remember which engine or years. The CVT in our 2015 is very good although we would have a 6spd stick if it was available on the 2015. IIRC the autos before the cvt were considered very reliable.

Nice pic Hal. Kind of touched on a perk of the car, we would use it for 99% commuting but already talked about just having the option to pack up the camping gear and go somewhere remote with the family.

Other wagon-ish option that always slips my mind (because I rarely see them), Accord Crosstour.

We have a 2014 Acura TSX Sportwagon and we love the thing. Handles great. A little tight inside. Not a single problem. Unfortunately they don't make them anymore and may be hard to find used.

Between my wife and I, our parents have 3 of these. A 2014 3.6, 2015 2.5, and 2016 3.6.

The 3.6 is certainly nicer to drive from a power standpoint. The 2.5 gets pretty good mileage. Upper 20s highway, mid 20s in mixed use. Surprisingly much better than my 2.5 RS 5 spd did despite being a LOT larger. None of them have had any issues that I know of, but they are also all pretty new.

The headgasket issue would scare me.

Also, they are very tall for a wagon. They are an SUV in my book.

failboat wrote: Nice pic Hal. Kind of touched on a perk of the car, we would use it for 99% commuting but already talked about just having the option to pack up the camping gear and go somewhere remote with the family.

If you want to see what a relatively stock one will do search Youtube for Bruceyyyyy. Biggest modification is tires.

I have a 2011 2.5 6 speed manual; they are not that boring to drive. You can throttle steer it in long sweeper and if you lightly trail the brakes you can get it to rotate without popping the stability control.

I've used to to take students around the track and also help set up a rally stage. It's a good all arounder for what I do.

The one down side is the steering just off center; I believe it was the 2010 that had steering column shake issues so they tightened up the preload on the rack. This makes the steering slightly dead about 1/2 either side of center. You can adjust it out.

The brakes are OK but I would like something with a bit more power but realistically they're fine for a street car.

My mixed mileage is 26mpg.

JimS wrote: We have a 2014 Acura TSX Sportwagon and we love the thing. Handles great. A little tight inside. Not a single problem. Unfortunately they don't make them anymore and may be hard to find used.

We have come across a few in classifieds and wife has seen them on the road twice recently. Another one you forget about because they are not common.

In reply to failboat:

Really based on your family situation, I would say you and your wife should get a minivan.

All I can say is that I know five women that tried the whole SUV, then crossover thing before finally getting a minivan and realizing that they should have had a minivan all along.

The only thing I find that people have against them is that they think other people judge them. Ultimate peer pressure driving people into the wrong cars.

The Outback is big and usable. Just can't beat the designed in functionality of a minivan for kid hauling.

In reply to Advan046:

Plot Twist: I daily a Mazda 5. And if we need more space than that or a wagon, it would be more likely that I would trade up to a larger van for myself. For now and the foreseeable future I handle most kid duties throughout the week.

You are preaching to the choir here, I have seen the light, this is my 4th van of sorts...

We picked up an Outback wagon for SWMBO earlier this week.

2014 Cypress Green Limited 2.5i, with nav and eyesight, and several other accessory options added. Wife is loving it, especially that the stereo lets her run slacker radio via bluetooth over the phone, and she can use all the steering wheel and touchscreen controls to run it. A little higher mileage than we wanted (76k) and the lingering scent of a former smoker, but the rest of the car is so clean and well cared for inside and out would guess it only had 20k miles on it.

I think we decided that my set of hella 500's in the garage would look cooler on her wagon than my mazda5. Want to tint the front windows and maybe paint the oem wheels gunmetal in the meantime.

Congrats, I think your wife will enjoy it.

We're moving to a mountain town in Colorado and bought a new Outback 3.6R. The wife really digs it and she's a car gal. I drove it up there from Houston area and found it to be a nice highway car, too. My only complaint was they made the inside of the window frame shiny so it reflects the road surface. When there is a broken white line you get a constant flash in the corner of your eye. She has been enjoying the sure-footedness of it in the snow and she's happy with the power of the 3.6. She would not have tolerated the 2.5.

Thing is, every other car there is a Subaru and the local dealer in this small town claims they sell about 17% of all the Subarus that are sold in the US.

We have a 2015 3.6R, and I think its perfect. SWMBO loves it, its her daily. 50K miles at this point. It replaced a 2003 Outback H6 3.0 LL Bean.