Subaru Outback: Sameness? It’s a strength

There’s a lot of ‘new’ arriving with the latest Outback. Don’t worry. It just adds flavour to a favourite old recipe.

“Subaru NZ doesn’t like being pushed around and this Outback experience suggests this car won’t be a pushover either.

“Slightly roomier, more tech and luxury within a cautious redesign: These factors will help but what’ll keep it sweet with the faithful are toughness, durability and all-round competence.”

Words penned six years ago on this page, about the previous generation Subaru Outback, really still ring equally true today, with arrival of a successor.

What’s the standout feature of the latest? That, at heart, it’s really a continuation of every old strength, including in look. Yes, it’s bigger, yes, it’s different inside beyond taking on that big tablet touch screen; the seats, even indicator stalk action have changed (the first for the better, the other for no good reason). Yes, it delivers considerably more advancements and ‘newness’. And yet, anyone coming from the old will surely swear this replacement is so hugely familiar in feel, attitude ability and look that it’s as ‘same again’ without being technically ‘same again’ as might be possible.

In tune with the ‘so familiar’ vibe, the choice of media launch location.

Heading into the Nevis Valley section of the Garston-Bannockburn track, a pre-European greenstone route that came to national attention in the 1800s with a gold rush, was a wholly déjà vu experience.

The last time I hit this route? In 2015. And the car? Well, surely you can guess.

No worries about Subaru NZ dusting off its old route book. A trek that has pretty much stayed the same as the gold miners left it is a fantastic test. Formed dirt roads conjoined by a rocky mid-section trail ascending to 1300 metres, making it the country’s highest accessible (though only over summer) public road, delivering numerous reminders of the area’s history with dredge ponds and tailings, gold mines and a lonely, hillside cemetery.

Yesterday we tackled it in opposite direction to six years ago, spanking clean cars heading in from Bannockburn above Cromwell to emerge three hours later wholly grime-covered at Garston, at the southern end of Lake Wakatipu.

The drive and the conditions it delivers is revealed in today’s video. Experiencing the route from the driver’s seat of ‘GOOAT’ – the very car that features in the local advertising campaign (the number plate is shorthand for the promo theme, ‘greatest Ouback of all time’) - reinforced that, whichever way it’s tackled, the Nevis is even-stevens for toughness.

Both ways you start with a big ascent and pass signs signalling this is the highest public road in New Zealand, closed from early June to the end of September.

Both ways you’ll be advised it’s best to travel as a group as you are a long way from everywhere. Both ways you’ll very soon lose mobile phone coverage.

Both ways, you have to tough it through the middle, where numerous stream and some small river crossings and big ruts rule out everyday cars.

All this makes the Nevis the sort of route you’d imagine Subaru engineers would wet-dream about as an ultimate test ground for the country’s most-loved and best-selling all-wheel-drive elevated station wagon.

The sight of a work crew tending to a bridge near the mid-way point at which a small cluster of occupied homes, almost always snowed-in over the worst parts of winter, reminds the road isn’t ignored by local authorities; but where our convoy passed their grader was also right at the end of the smooth gravel we’d been enjoying until then.

From a couple of kilometres on from there, the road degraded significantly. Gravel gave way to hard rock or pure dirt, the latter regularly pock-marked with holes evil in size and look. The running water crossings were easily judged because you could see the bottom and make a judgement. These were uniformly muddy, so every one was an unknown in respect to maliciousness.

It was one of these that caught out one of our number. The plan was to avoid this evil-looking bog, but when the lead car bottomed out on a ridge midway through the detour and had to pushed clear, we realised the only option was to plough on through the big muck. I went first and got through, as did the next car.

The footage shows what happened next. Over-enthusiasm? My approach was more cautious … I’d edged in, progressively fed in the power once the tyres found grip and, for good measure, had the X-mode feature activated, in its ‘deep mud’ setting.

My colleague? ‘Hard in’ looked spectacular, but unfortunately even more water went through the engine bay as over the bonnet. The 2.5-litre coughed and died … and just like that, a sheepish stranding.

Fortunately, the muck was not deep enough to enter the cabin. Unfortunately, the engine would not start. Once towed out (a good, if unexpected demonstration of the new model’s enhanced-to-2000kg tow rating), and with the intake system pulled apart by Subaru’s senior tech (on his first press experience), aided by Automobile Association mechanic-writer Cade Wilson, it was plain to see why. The air filter was utterly soaked and more water had gone deeper. Fortunately, some judicious drying and finger-crossing brought the car back to life.

Thereon, the Outbacks returned to tackling every challenge effortlessly. Just as they had in our 2015 expedition. Which is great news. It’s one of the reasons why the car has such a strong following.

Doubtless the fanbase will be relaxed about the three variants - entry-level Outback at $49,990, mid-range Outback X at $54,900 and the top-spec Outback Touring, as I drove, siting at $57,490 –having the one engine choice, as it’s the one they mainly bought into.

I’m okay with that as well, overall. Sure, it’s exciting that, as reported, the local distributor has (with Australia’s help) secured a turbocharged 2.4-litre that, with 194kW/375Nm, should surely be a decent substitute for the defunct 3.6 flat six on arrival at end of 2022. Yet the 2.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol four pulling sole duty now is okay, overall.

Sure, you’ll wonder about the veracity of the claim of this version being ‘over 90 per cent new’.  For one, power and torque are only mildly enhanced, with outputs now of 138kW/245Nm against 129kW/235Nm before. For another, though it is undeniably smoother and quieter, the engine is otherwise as it was before in operational feel.

Meaning? Well, you can understand why the turbo has been added into the mix. The ‘atmo’ has enough oomph to feel handy, but it’s no outright fireball in a car of this size and substance.

What’ll keep it in the fan club’s good books is the torque; as before, there’s an easy muscularity to this engine that was certainly beneficial when tackling Duffers Saddle, with an elevation of 1275 metres above sea level the highest point of this drive. Being second car in the convoy meant I could take this on at the same spirited clip as the convoy leader, who has rallying experience, without being over inhibited by the choking dust clouds those further behind had to progressively contend with. Sorry about that people, but ‘needs must’, right?

What also enables the engine to stay schmoozily on song is the new transmission. Another CVT, of course, but Subaru’s have long seemed to be better than most at mimicking the way a conventional automatic shifts. Within limits: Floor it and there’s no disguising the set-up’s provenance. But drive sensibly and you’ll find this one, which now has eight transition points, exhibits none of the nastiness that so often undo older CVTs. Does that make it as ultimately enjoyable as a ‘proper’ auto? No. Yet, at same token, it kinda suits the Outback’s laidback style.

Speaking of: Thumping over rocks and ruts is little sweat for the car; as always, it has a fabulously compliant ride. Actually, let’s just call the bump absorption exceptional. The 225/60/R18 Bridgestone Alenza tyres help, but it’s a lot more than just this; the entire suspension tune is a work of genius.

The trade-off for its compliance is, as before, a slightly sloppy dynamic feel, but honestly, who will really care? It’s an adventure wagon, not a race car, and the fact that it’ll simply soak up the punishment when driving at pace across poor surfaces (hey, all the name of research) will remain a big buy-in.

Before you ask: Roughing it up on the Nevis is NOT fabulous for fuel burn. However, just the hour-long open road run from Garston to Queenstown was enough to signal the drivetrain will, when set into an easy-going pace, quickly revert to a level of efficiency that’s as good as anything else it sells against. I saw 7.9 litres per 100km on that leg.

Something else. No, your eyes do not deceive. The exterior honestly effectively looks the same. Yes, there are detail differences, some quite obvious when you put old against new and yet, though the body is slightly longer, taller and wider, in profile they’re ringers. How close? Put it this way: During our unplanned mid-drive regroup, one colleague mentioned there was an old model parked near where we’d picked up the new ones, at Highlands racing circuit. I hadn’t even noticed. And I owned one of those for three years.

Different when you’re inside. Primarily, it’s all eyes on the big touchscreen. The portrait layout is sensible – as I was reminded, a screen sited this way mimics the way we look at our smartphones already and, as such, makes it more intuitive. Subaru couldn’t stretch to a inductive charging pad and your smartphone’s hook up to Apple CarPlay or Android Auto requires a cable hook up rather than the in-vogue wireless Bluetooth route, but in other respect it’s one hugely smart and intuitive set-up, covering a lot more than the usual infotainment aspects – the full trip computer and off-roading functionality also operates via this portal and everything is wonderfully logical and self-explanatory.

The native satellite navigation has an astoundingly in-depth destinations menu so I was surprised it couldn’t locate the winery we headed to for the event-ending late lunch, though it is programmed to seek out these (and micro-breweries). Still, to be fair, CarPlay was none the wiser.

Outbacks have always felt big inside and this one sticks to that playbook. There’s a touch more head and legroom front and rear, but what appeals just as much is that the boot is deeper and wider. The second-row seats fold via a switch next to the headrest and open up a luggage space that goes from 522 litres to 1782L. The electric tailgate is still a bit slow, but the hands-free activation is neat: Rather than waggle a foot under the bumper, you just put an elbow near the rear badge. It keeps those fold-out roof rails.

The redesigned seats are excellent, as is the driving position – there’s huge adjustment. I’d have the X over a Touring simply because, while the latter alone has the full suite of EyeSight driver assistances and also gets an awesome stereo, the mid-grade is also fulsomely-kitted and doesn’t lump you with the one feature no modern car needs, yet Subaru insists on delivering to its flagship: A sunroof.

Overall? Well, I’ll not be the first and surely won’t be the last to suggest that the reasons that the Outback appealed haven’t changed. Yes, the market is tougher and harder than ever. But there’s nothing else exactly like an Outback in this sector. Same as it ever was.