2024 Subaru Outback Sport Touring XT review

12/29/2024 08:30 PM

2024 Subaru Outback Sport Touring XT

The world’s gone SUV-mad, and everyone knows it. The story of sedans and wagons dying at the altar of faux-utility and supposed off-road credentials has been beaten to death, so I won’t go over the same old ground.

But what I will say is that despite Subaru’s own protestations that the Outback is its entrant in the ‘large SUV’ race, this is false. And I base this opinion on the facts I get when I simply look at the car.

This is 100 per cent a wagon.

Don’t get me wrong, because it’s actually a really good thing.

It’s made better by the 2023 introduction of a turbocharged boxer-four engine borrowed from the smaller and sportier WRX. While the power output has been trimmed back slightly compared to the WRX, the 2.4-litre ‘FA24F’ makes 183kW and 350Nm – a bump of 45kW and 105Nm over the non-turbo Outback.

So if you’ve got your heart set on Subaru’s own so-called large SUV (which is an excellent choice, by the way), you need to do two things. Keep believing the whole SUV thing, or embrace the idea that this four-wheel-drive family wagon does everything that you need of it.

Provided, of course, that you don’t need more than five seats.

How much is a Subaru Outback?

Priced from $57,490 plus on-road costs, this Outback Sport Touring XT sits at the tippy top of its range. It’s a sizeable $4300 jump over the Outback Sport XT, but not a whole lot more than the $56,990 Outback Touring XT. This sits as a special-edition addition to the range.

For those that want all of the niceties without the turbocharged power, you’d be looking at the Outback Touring 2.5-litre for $51,990 plus on-road costs.

In this top-spec model, you get dark 18-inch alloy wheels and exterior elements, along with a few flashes of green for some reason.

On the inside, you get dual-zone climate control with second-row air vents, keyless entry with push-button start, an 11.6-inch infotainment display with all of the mod cons (including a CD player), nine-speaker Harman Kardon sound system, eight-way front seat adjustment (with memory for the driver), heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear outboard seats, and an electric sunroof.

This spec also gets nappa leather accents for the seats, and a heated, leather-wrapped steering wheel. On the outside, adaptive and automatic LED headlights are included, along with the trick integrated and deployable roof rails, and an electric tailgate.

How big is a Subaru Outback?

Provided that you don’t want or need a third row, the Subaru Outback provides plenty of space for occupants and their gear.

Up front, you’ll notice the up-specced nature of the interior with soft-touch materials on the doors and dashboard, along with the leather-wrapped shifter and steering wheel. It certainly feels nice, and mostly quite regular in terms of the design and layout.

Although, you’ll notice that in lieu of having physical controls for the air conditioning, this is instead run through the big portrait-oriented infotainment display.

The interior isn't probably as practical or spacious up front as you get in other SUVs, in terms of nooks and crannies for your bits and bobs. The small shelf in front of the passenger is nice, and there's a space for things like your phone and keys underneath the infotainment display.

There’s USB-A and USB-C power hidden in here, and an aux input, which is a rare breed in this day and age.

Open the centre console and you'll find a near throwback feature that I'm sure some will love, a CD player. This is another rarity in this day and age. That Best of Kenny Rodgers CD is about to get the dust blown off it.

The materials are nice with soft-touchy vinyls and plastics, so it's not feeling like a cheap interior. Its seats are quite comfortable as well, with lots of softness in broad, lounge-like design.

The second row of the Outback is quite spacious and effective, with plenty of leg room and head room to spread out in. There’s loads of space for two adults or bulky kids’ seats in the back, and you can squeeze three across reasonably comfortably as well. The second row is rounded out by air vents and USB-C power outlets, along with a drop-down central armrest with additional cupholders.

The boot of the Outback is big at 522 litres, with a flat and square load space that makes sense. There are levers in the back to drop down the second row, and a glorious full-sized spare wheel tucked underneath the floor.

The second row folds to almost flat and gives you a total of 1267L of storage space, or a full 1711L to the ceiling.

Does the Subaru Outback have Apple CarPlay and Android Auto?

The portrait-oriented infotainment display of the Outback measures in 11.6 inches in size, which is big. But at the same time, this screen is busy dealing with additional controls like air conditioning, navigation buttons and a permanent bar across the top with additional information.

So when that’s all done, your leftover screen isn’t as big as you might first realise.

In operation, the system is good and fuss-free. Smartphone mirroring ends up only using part of the big screen, but it was faultless for us and didn’t have any lagging or errors to note.

When the phone is plugged in (or not plugged in, for that matter) you’ve got Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (wired or wireless). A wireless charging pad does complete the picture if you’re cable-phobic.

There’s also native navigation, digital radio and AM/FM reception.

There are some physical controls, including a volume dial for easy operation. There’s also a tuning dial and physical controls for the dual-zone climate temperature control, which help to balance things out.

Is the Subaru Outback a safe car?

Using ANCAP’s 2021 crash-testing criteria for the Subaru Outback, we have a positive five-star result in terms of the vehicle’s safety in the event of a prang.

Along with an 88 per cent rating for adult occupants, there’s also an impressive 91 per cent safety rating for child occupants. Vulnerable road users (pedestrians) get an 84 per cent safety rating, while the onboard safety assistance systems get a very high score of 96 per cent.

What safety technology does the Subaru Outback have?

Subaru generally goes hard on safety technology, and there isn’t a punch pulled in the set-up of this top-spec Outback Sport Touring.

There are cameras all around the vehicle, which feed the good quality 360-degree camera system, but also operate things like traffic sign recognition and autonomous braking.

While the interior could feel a little overwhelming for some with all of its functions, buttons and displays, the operation of them in regular driving is very good. In other words, they don’t have the habit of interrupting you too much.

There’s a small camera array above the infotainment system as well, which is tasked with keeping an eye on you (the driver). This system is mostly well-tuned, and only sets off false alarms when you are goading it. Regular driving, which includes observing the displays and checking your mirrors regularly, doesn’t pummel you with a cacophony of beeps and bongs.

How much does the Subaru Outback cost to run?

Five years of servicing costs $2646.17, which averages out at $529.23 per year. This is on the spendier side of things in comparison to others out there, and isn’t helped by the fourth ‘D’ service at $835.13.

Over three years, $1406.57 in servicing costs averages out at $469 per year.

Insurance for a top-spec turbocharged Outback like this one is set at $1802 per year, for a comparative quote for a 35-year-old male living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circumstances.

Is the Subaru Outback fuel-efficient?

Strapping a turbocharger to an engine – and increasing levels of power and torque – does increase fuel consumption. The claimed average of 9.0 litres per 100 kilometres on the combined cycle is up from 7.3L/100km on the naturally aspirated 2.5-litre engine.

We weren’t able to match this claim, even though we spent the majority of our time cruising along Sydney’s highway network. We saw an average of 10.2L/100km, but more town use (and a heavy foot) would likely see this number creep upwards. For what it’s worth, Subaru claims 12.0L/100km on the urban testing cycle.

With a relatively high level of consumption, you’ll also notice that you’ll get through the 63-litre fuel tank relatively quickly. Compared to a more frugal diesel or hybrid medium or large SUV – some of which have up to an 80-litre tank – you’ll be dropping into the servo more regularly.

What is the Subaru Outback like to drive?

I'll sound like a broken record, but the best thing about this supposed SUV is the fact that it really isn't one. It's a high-riding wagon. This means it doesn't sit so high on the road, and your driving position and experience are much more car-like.

But contrary to so-called category rules, this Outback has permanent all-wheel drive and surprisingly decent off-road capability. In fact, it's a lot better than many 'soft-roading' SUVs out there in that regard.

Being a bit lower to the ground overall means there is less of a pendulum effect of body roll through corners, and the suspension is able to feel soft and cushy with plenty of speedbump-absorbing travel on offer.

In terms of handling, the Outback isn't a sharply dialled machine through the throttle and steering wheel. But when push becomes shove on a back road, it's quite decent.

The CVT automatic gearbox, with its pretend eight 'gears', is fine in this application. Wide-open throttle applications will push the engine up to redline quickly, but the combination of the stepped calibration and plentiful midrange torque means this transmission isn't annoying like other CVTs can be.

The engine – by the way – has an interesting characteristic with a turbocharger added into the equation. The extra potency is no doubt welcomed, and helps round out an otherwise excellent car in most respects.

But if you're expecting a fizzing and viscous delivery of elastic-band power like boosted Subaru boxer engines of the old days, then you'll be disappointed. This has clearly been calibrated to mimic a larger capacity motor, favouring low-to-mid range torque and effortlessness rather than chasing peak ponies at the redline.

There's not a lot of turbo noises either, if you're hoping for that sort of thing.

Truth be told, put your fake STI badges back in the drawer for another vehicle. When you're looking at the Outback as a family lugger, this works well in terms of having a larger power reserve easily available while staying approachable and easy to manage.

As a reference, the 2.4-litre turbocharged engine almost exactly mimics peak outputs of the old 3.6-litre naturally aspirated six-cylinder engine at 183kW/350Nm versus 191kW/350Nm. However, the beauty of the turbocharged engine means peak torque is available in a much lower and wider band of revs.

Can a Subaru Outback tow?

The Subaru Outback is something of a surprise packet in terms of towing with a 2400kg braked towing capacity. This is up 400kg on the naturally aspirated model, and opens up the opportunity to tow some fairly big trailers and caravans.

We did some towing with a turbocharged Outback a little while ago, and found some decent performance on offer. But we also came across some unsettling smells, read about that here.

Should I buy a Subaru Outback?

There’s a lot to like about the Subaru Outback, but the headline acts centre around the wafting ride quality and spacious, comfortable interior. Being a wagon certainly has its advantages over a more lumbering SUV, and this Outback does offer a bit of towing and off-road capability thrown into the mix.

The pricing still feels quite sharp considering the high levels of standard equipment you get, and the addition of a punchier turbocharged donk rounds out a car that hasn’t really changed much over the years… because it doesn’t have to.

How do I buy a Subaru Outback? The next steps.

If your budget stretches far enough, consider the Touring or Sport Touring Outback with all of the features and fruit for convenience and comfort.

But if you’re not so fussed on the nice-to-haves, save a few dollars on the Sport XT specification.

The next step on the purchase journey is to check the Subaru website for stock of your preferred Outback variant. You can also find Subaru’s for sale at Drive Marketplace.

We strongly recommend taking a test drive at a dealership before committing because personal needs and tastes can differ. Find your nearest Subaru dealer via this link. We'd also recommend test-driving the Mazda 6, which isn’t as fresh feeling or all-wheel drive, but does offer similar levels of value and turbocharged petrol performance. Another wagon worth considering is the Skoda Superb.

If you want to stay updated with everything that’s happened to this car since our review, you’ll find all the latest news here.

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