SUBARU OUTBACK TOURING XT
OUTBACK STAKEOUT
In a pop culture already celebrity-driven, few endorsements resonated better than when Australian actor Paul Hogan served as the spokesman for Subaru’s then-new Outback, introduced in the U.S. for the 1995 model year. Without a budget for a ‘proper’ SUV, Subaru’s design and marketing teams took the already-practical Legacy wagon, lifted the suspension, added what was then new-and-novel cladding, and gave the result a tag that resonated far better than the one initially suggestion: Kansas. Before the Outback, Subaru showrooms were most often regarded as out-of-the-way; after the Outback’s launch they became destinations.
Although seemingly everyone is building offroad-oriented variants of their asphalt-specific crossovers (Nissan’s Pathfinder, Honda’s Passport and Ford’s Bronco Sport come to mind), Subaru was arguably among the first, and the company continues to refine the package. And nowhere is that refinement more evident than in Subaru’s Outback Touring XT, currently parked on my driveway.
As I’ve written, our own Subarus have taken spots on my drive before, beginning with a 2011 Forester, followed by a ’14 Crosstrek. The Forester was subsequently sold to our son, and he continued to drive it until very recently. The ’14 Crosstrek was sold when we no longer needed it, and while not perfect – even with the manual trans it felt underpowered – it was a great second or third car, a fact we didn’t fully appreciate until after we had sold it!
We’ve not owned an Outback, but for me the third-gen, offered between ’05 and ’09, continues to be the model’s sweet spot. The footprint is tight, the cladding is still minimal, and while offering more space than the aforementioned Crosstrek, that Outback retains a footprint that’s almost tossable. I doubt that a 20-year old Subaru is on my shortlist, but given the right one – low miles, clean CarFax – I might talk to my loan officer…
The 2025 Outback Touring XT incorporates all the refinement expected after some 30 years of development, along with the stylistic tweaking Subaru – of late – has been (in)famous for. To what remains essentially a station wagon modified for off-road application – think fire roads and logging trails – front and rear overhangs are too long, and the cladding affixed to front and rear fenders looks to have been designed by a team of 8-year old boys. None of this keeps the Outback from selling well (in Northern Virginia, where I’m writing this, the Outback is almost as ubiquitous as Tesla’s Model 3), but it seems as if Subaru could do better. And a quick look at the 3rd-gen Outback could provide inspiration.
If you can get past the exterior sheetmetal you’ll find a lot to like inside. The Touring trim provides an almost lavish application of leather, dual-zone climate controls, a Harman Kardon speaker system, and more technology than you can shake a last-century stick at. The best news: Most of what you need to access is intuitive, and the nanny aids supply a bonus boost to the government’s 5-star safety ratings. The bad news: For your $45K there’s no wireless charging of your iPhone, which even I find amazing.
Behind the wheel those trims benefiting from the XT descriptive enjoy 2.4 liters of turbocharged flat four, delivering 260 hp and 277 lb-ft of torque. The 260 figure is delivered at 5,600 rpm – which most will never access – while the 277 lb-ft of torque is there at 2,000 rpm, which all of you will access. That prodigious power (how I wish we could buy the Turbo in a Crosstrek or BR-Z!) gets to all four wheels via a CVT. Fortunately, Subaru’s tuning of the CVT isn’t – to channel HBO’s Bill Maher – the whiny b!tch many are, but you gotta’ think a DCT (dual-clutch transmission) would be the transforming mod performance enthusiasts would give their left foot for. In its absence you’ll enjoy a 0-60 time (according to the team at Car and Driver) of comfortably under six seconds.
Those not prepared to spend the $40K (and up) for the XT turbocharged variants will make do/suffer with 182 horsepower and 176 lb-ft of torque coming from the standard-spec 2.5 liter flat four. Those numbers get you to 60 – again, according to Car and Driver – in 8.5 seconds. Depending on your disposition that number will either reduce your anxiety or, if like me, increase it.
With generous passenger space, real room for your cargo and enough ground clearance to get you to the trailhead, the Outback Touring XT has a lot to recommend it. But in its current guise – speculation suggests a new design comes in ’26 – I’d not wear a bag over my head; I’d put a bag over the car.
