Did a lot of research when we needed to trade our civic for a better car. Needed good rear legroom, heated rear seats, and adaptive headlights. With the touring trim, you also get a hands-free liftgate, napa leather, and air-conditioned front seats. With the turbo, it is just as quick as any other car, and never have to worry about power.
I am a weaver, and do some craft shows, and EVERYTHING fits into this car. Our adult child fits just fine in the back seat, as do grandma and grandpa. With three, it is a little less comfortable, but totally doable.
This is quiet, has an awesome sound system, and driving at night is a breeze. Glad to be "sharing the love".…
3rd time is not a charm
By Kelly | on Wednesday, July 28, 2021
3.0
We bought an '18 Limited and fell in love. We bought a '19 3.6R Limited and were even more in love. We traded the '18 on a '21 Touring XT 3 months ago and wish they would take it back. The car has been PLAGUED with infotainment problems. I HATE that every single control is trapped behind that stupid screen. And when the screen blacks out, I have ZERO control of climate, bluetooth, radio, NOTHING. And I've already had my radio replaced once because that was supposed to fix the problem and the problems still continue. If I could get rid of this now, I would. I am told over and over again that Subaru is working on a fix that could be out in the fall. There is WAY TOO MUCH BEHIND THE SCREEN.
Then there is this garbage driver monitoring system that sometimes recognizes you and sometimes doesn't. Or sometimes it recognizes you when you get in and then forgets about you somewhere along the ride and by the time you get to your destination. I HATE the jerkiness of how the engine restarts at stop lights. Not smooth at all. Lastly, I can't imagine what the pick up must be like in a standard engine. The Turbo does offer some pep, but it still doesn't compare to the pep of my 3.6R. I'll take that engine any day. I'd love it if Subaru would just buy it back from me at this point so they could pull it apart and figure out what the heck is wrong with it.
On a positive note, the seats are much more comfortable compared to my '19 and I wish I could have seats like that in my '19. That's about all that is better. So hugely disappointed to have finally splurged. For what? Not sure that I'll be buying any more Subarus.…
mixed feelings
By Relic | on Sunday, April 25, 2021
4.0
This is my second Outback Touring. I thought that the new technology and new body platform would be great, but I'm not so sure. My previous Outback had absolutely no rattles or squeaks, but this one does--in several places around the dash and the passenger side door, especially. Of course, the dealer couldn't hear any noises. There's also an occasional hesitation when driving. It's almost like the torque converter is disengaging momentarily. The dealer told me that the transmission is still "learning" my driving habits. There was nothing like that in the 2019 Outback. The new screen size is nice, but as I've read, and agree, there are too many menus to go through to get to what one wants. The heated seat controls are just one example. Invariably I will get a warning to pay attention when I am trying to find something on the screen. So far gas mileage is great. On a smooth flat road the ride is very comfortable and on the freeway I like the lane centering feature that my other one didn't have.…