2023 Subaru Outback Turbo new car review

Loyal fans of this brand have been calling for this upgrade for years and now this in demand wagon has everything they’ve always wanted.

Subaru Outback Touring XT.

This is the sort of car Subaru fans adore – a practical family wagon with the turbocharged heart of a WRX. The brand has a lot of history in this area, with models such as the Liberty RS and GT, as well as the high-riding Forester GT and XT machines from years gone by.

VALUE

The Subaru Outback range starts from about $48,000 drive-away, though you need to spend more to get hold of a turbocharged model. Based on the mid-grade Outback Sport and deluxe Outback Touring (yours for about $53,000 and $56,000 drive-away), the turbo treatment adds $5000 to the bill.

Subaru has added turbocharged power to the Outback.

The Outback Touring XT we tested costs about $61,000 drive-away.

It comes loaded with gear including a huge 11.6-inch touchscreen, wireless smartphone mirroring, satnav and a nine-speaker stereo.

Riding on silver-coloured 18-inch alloys with matching roof rails and mirror caps, the Outback Touring is a well-appointed machine backed by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty.

The downside is that running costs are high. It uses a claimed 9L/100km of premium fuel, although that climbs to double digits in the real world. Expensive capped priced servicing averages about $535 per year.

COMFORT

The standard Outback is a comfy car, with beautifully sorted suspension, supportive seats and a roomy cabin with dual-zone climate control.

This top-end model ups the ante with heated leather seats and a heated steering wheel that take the chill off winter mornings.

The cabin is comfortable and has plenty of hi-tech features.

As with many cars, it has electric seat adjustment with memory settings that work well in households where the car is used by a couple of drivers.

Subaru’s party trick is a facial recognition system that adopts the preferred seat and mirror settings for different drivers, removing the hassle from shared vehicle situations.

SAFETY

The facial recognition features are central to the Outback’s driver aids. For better or worse, a camera watches you to make sure you’re keeping an eye on the road.

The Outback has plenty of space for growing families.

This is a safe car by any standard, with a five-star ANCAP rating and plenty of driver assistance features, including auto emergency braking, lane keeping and blind-spot alerts.

As with many new cars, those features can feel overbearing from time to time – the car will chime and beep if you glance away from the road.

Happily, the car’s lane keeping assistance ranks among the less intrusive of the breed.

DRIVING

Subaru fans hoping for a fire-breathing experience should keep expectations in check.

After all, even the WRX is a smooth, quiet and mature machine these days, not the rumbling, surging, firecracker it once was.

The Outback’s turbo engine is an effortless perfomer.

Detuned to make 183kW and 350Nm in Outback trim, the WRX’s turbo motor still has far more mumbo than the standard car’s 138kW and 245Nm.

Better still, it needs little more than half the revs on board to produce maximum torque.

It’s an effortless rather than thrilling performer, offering the sort of lazy progress once found in Aussie sedans with big six-cylinder engines.

Approach it like a Ford Territory, not a Falcon GT, and the Outback impresses with smooth and refined progress, unflappable traction and an easygoing CVT auto.

As with the standard Outback, the turbo model has a plush ride helped by a decision to avoid low-profile 19 or 20-inch rims and focus on overall comfort rather than driving thrills.

VERDICT 3.5/5

The standard Subaru Outback is a winner. This easygoing turbo motor improves its appeal, as long as you can handle the price premium, servicing costs and fuel bills.

Alternatives

Volkswagen Tiguan 162TSI Monochrome, about $59,000 drive-away

About to be replaced soon, VW’s family SUV shines brightest when paired with a willing 162kW turbo motor.

Mazda CX-5 GT SP, about $57,500 drive-away

As with the Tiguan it’s a little dated, but the turbocharged 2.5-litre CX-5 drives well and has a strong 170kW motor.

Skoda Superb Sportline, from $70,990 drive-away

Folks looking for a fast and spacious wagon must consider the 206kW Superb, which is loaded with kit justifying a pseudo-premium price.

SUBARU OUTBACK XT TOURING


PRICE About $61,500 drive-away

ENGINE 183kW/350Nm, 2.4-litre turbo four-cylinder petrol

WARRANTY/SERVICE 5 years/unlimited km, $2673 for five-years

SAFETY Eight airbags, front and rear auto emergency braking, radar cruise, lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitor, rear cross-traffic alert

THIRST 9.0L/100km

LUGGAGE 522 litres

SPARE Full size