It’s reliable and convenient and has every feature I need or want.
It’s got pretty good adaptive cruise control, good cargo capacity, including seats folding flat so that my large dogs can fit comfortably. It’s got AWD and additional traction and hill features. It can tow my boat. It’s got a pretty good sound system. Heated seats and steering wheel (a necessity for those of us with Raynaud’s ). Two buttons for memorizing seat settings. Backup camera. High clearance. All kinds of pros and the only con is mediocre gas mileage.
I expect it to last for a very long time. It’s just practical all around. And I don’t need to drive it terribly much, so the gas mileage isn’t a big deal for me.
How do you like the 3.6r overall? I have a 2018 with the 2.5 and I love it, but I sure do wish I had more power sometimes. I get great gas mileage though (if I drive right)
I love it. I’m glad I got the 3.6r. It’s got plenty of power for accelerating at a reasonable rate (though I wouldn’t call it speedy like my old Mini was) and I don’t have to worry about hauling cargo or my boat.
Interestingly, when I last took it on a road trip out to Glacier National Park, some guy saw me getting into it and was so excited because he used to have one that was a couple of years younger and he missed it that he felt compelled to talk cars (I’m a woman–this is not a thing that happens to us). He went on and on about how much he loved and misses the 3.6r engine and how they’re just not the same anymore.
But I do use it for things like hauling boats and the occasional UHaul trailer or similar. If you’re just using it as a commuter car, the better gas mileage would make more sense.
I did test drive a 2018 before buying the 2017 and the 2018 had a nicer sound system.
Yeah the 2018 got the face lift with a bunch of new features, most important to me was carplay.
The 2020 Outback with the same engine and a slightly revised transmission design is rated for the same 3500 pound tow rating as the 3.6, and in Europe it’s rated for 3500 pounds. So if I ever get adventurous I might try finding a super light weight trailer and tow my Miata around. The car itself is right at the 2700 pound limit so I need to find a SUPER light trailer and probably go really slow. I have hauled around a few trailers and it did alright.
But the 4 cylinder just can’t compete with the flat 6 being perfectly balanced. I’ve joked before that if you put in Outback in reverse it’s now a Porsche.
2017 Subaru Outback 3.6r
It’s reliable and convenient and has every feature I need or want.
It’s got pretty good adaptive cruise control, good cargo capacity, including seats folding flat so that my large dogs can fit comfortably. It’s got AWD and additional traction and hill features. It can tow my boat. It’s got a pretty good sound system. Heated seats and steering wheel (a necessity for those of us with Raynaud’s ). Two buttons for memorizing seat settings. Backup camera. High clearance. All kinds of pros and the only con is mediocre gas mileage.
I expect it to last for a very long time. It’s just practical all around. And I don’t need to drive it terribly much, so the gas mileage isn’t a big deal for me.
How do you like the 3.6r overall? I have a 2018 with the 2.5 and I love it, but I sure do wish I had more power sometimes. I get great gas mileage though (if I drive right)
I love it. I’m glad I got the 3.6r. It’s got plenty of power for accelerating at a reasonable rate (though I wouldn’t call it speedy like my old Mini was) and I don’t have to worry about hauling cargo or my boat.
Interestingly, when I last took it on a road trip out to Glacier National Park, some guy saw me getting into it and was so excited because he used to have one that was a couple of years younger and he missed it that he felt compelled to talk cars (I’m a woman–this is not a thing that happens to us). He went on and on about how much he loved and misses the 3.6r engine and how they’re just not the same anymore.
But I do use it for things like hauling boats and the occasional UHaul trailer or similar. If you’re just using it as a commuter car, the better gas mileage would make more sense.
I did test drive a 2018 before buying the 2017 and the 2018 had a nicer sound system.
Yeah the 2018 got the face lift with a bunch of new features, most important to me was carplay.
The 2020 Outback with the same engine and a slightly revised transmission design is rated for the same 3500 pound tow rating as the 3.6, and in Europe it’s rated for 3500 pounds. So if I ever get adventurous I might try finding a super light weight trailer and tow my Miata around. The car itself is right at the 2700 pound limit so I need to find a SUPER light trailer and probably go really slow. I have hauled around a few trailers and it did alright.
But the 4 cylinder just can’t compete with the flat 6 being perfectly balanced. I’ve joked before that if you put in Outback in reverse it’s now a Porsche.
Interesting. I didn’t know that about the more recent builds. It’s good to hear that there are still some options.
I bought my car at the beginning of 2020, and I wasn’t looking for new car prices, so I didn’t look at anything more recent than the 2018.