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15 Forester XT to a 17 OB 2.5i LTD: My Impressions

2K views 7 replies 6 participants last post by  jws360 
#1 ·
So I did a lot of research when I was considering the '17 Outback 2.5i LTD coming from a '15 Forester XT, scouring the forums for people that did the same, trying to make sure I knew what I was getting into, and wanted to provide my feedback for those that may be in the same situation (or vice versa).

Power / Drivetrain:
No question the XT can put down power, seriously impressive, barely slower than my 2016 GTI, and probably a bit faster than my 2013 BRZ. Although CVT, it was smooth power delivery, and effortless to accelerate. Although hate putting premium fuel in anything I'm not putting on the track.

Power-wise, the OB wasn't as bad as everyone made it out to be, the 2.5 does just fine, not a ton of power, but enough to get up to speed on the highway on-ramps. And regular fuel, horray! One of the reasons why we made the switch. The few times we needed the acceleration in the XT was not worth the price of putting premium in it all the time. Plus, I like the simplicity of a N/A 2.5 engine for longevity reasons.

The CVT in the OB feels like the S# mode in the XT; the shifts have a slight surge to them at the top-end, not great and are noticeably artificial, but bearable. I think the transmission in the XT is a bit smoother than the OB, and actually prefer it the XT's transmisison

Ride Comfort / Handling:
The OB is SO much smoother, a lot bigger difference than I thought it would be. The XT feels like a dump truck compared to the OB, very stiff suspension, feeling every bump in the road. Handling wise it isn't as darty as the XT, as the XT had a sportier feel to it, which isn't a pro or a con, just a different feeling. This is definitely a cruiser, handling-wise. Turning radius in the OB isn't that much worse, feels about normal for a sedan / wagon, but the XT was noticeably impressive in that category.

Interior:
Seats - it's like going from a wooden park bench in the XT to a nice couch in the OB. The seats in the XT were absolutely terrible, my biggest gripe with that car. The length of the base of the seat was very short, tons of overhang on my thighs (6" tall), and just not comfortable overall. The OB seats aren't the best, most comfortable seats I've ever been in, but they're a serious improvement.

I like the sedan-ish center console in the OB, higher than the XT, as it gives the car a better cockpit feel. Cupholders are better (the XT center divider would always pop out) and the coin-holder (which is really a cell phone holder) in front of the cupholders is very convenient.

I really dislike the fact that you have to get wood-grain interior trim on the OB, and it's a PITA to swap it out. On the plus side, it's not that noticeable with the matte finish, but I just think wood grain looks ridiculous, and would have been nice to option that out. My wife joked about it and asked where the wood paneling was on the outside.

We have the same % window tint on the OB as we did on the XT, and wow is the inside of the OB dark! I chalk it up to a lower roof, as the greenhouse area (and windows) isn't as big, but it sure is nice. Keeps it cool for the baby in the backseat. Speaking of the backseat, OB has rear seat warmers and rear HVAC vents, which is awesome.

As far as size goes, the OB is noticeably longer and wider, especially when pulling it into my garage, but I prefer the additional size.

Eyesight and other tech:
The XT had Eyesight/Nav, so I wasn't expecting much of a difference with the OB. There is 1 additional distance setting (4 instead of 3), it does feel a little bit smoother under braking and quicker to identify cars further out, but overall feels close to the same. The High-Beam Assist is nice, although for some reason it would turn-off the high-beams when I went down a steep hill on a dark back country road, not sure why, but overall it works well. The biggest surprise was the "Lane Keep", as the salesperson told me - I had no idea Subaru had this technology. The car will literally steer itself to keep itself in the lane. Pretty cool stuff. The blind-spot monitoring,

Navigation seems the same as our XT - I still don't bother with it, and use Google Maps on my phone. The text message reading is VASTLY improved from our XT, which would tell me "you have a new message" like 1,000 times after getting in the car for the first time in a while, trying to read every message on my phone since the last time it was sync'ed up. It actually works now! The radio is much better, with the ability to pause a radio station, restart a song on a radio station, a lot more presets, and can assign XM, AM, & FM all on the same preset list.

HVAC controls are a bit more simple to use on the XT and better laid out IMO, so kind of a draw, but still nice in the OB. I do like having a much more detailed center screen between the gauges than the XT, as it just feels more consolidated. The XT would display the info in the stand-alone screen on the top of the dash.

Oh, and the cross-bars that swivel back into the side rails, that is a wonderful feature. I had a roof rack on my GTI and the wind noise and MPG hit was frustrating, but not worth taking on and off all the time. We'll be adding a cargo box for our road trips to see family up north, so this feature is fantastic.


Overall, I'm extremely happy with the switch. I was looking for safety features, comfort, reliability and efficiency, and the OB ticked all of those boxes.
 
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#2 ·
Good review and fair assessment. I test drove the XT when looking for a Subaru and in agreement with all you wrote. It was fun having the extra power and I liked the ride height and field of vision. Didn't like the seats and it felt/looked less finished than the Outback. The deal breaker for us at the time was having to put in premium gas.

Settled on the 3.6R Outback to still give me that little extra peppiness that I did enjoy in the XT and haven't looked back since. I like the Foresters but like the Outbacks much better.
 
#3 ·
I just bought a 3.6R Limited, I considered Foresters when I was shopping, I ended up going with the Outback because it was wider (more back seat room for the times I have 3 people back there), longer cargo orientation, and smoother ride. My wife didn't like it was missing center air vents in the back seat for the kids. In the end, the only thing I wanted from the Forester was the Panoramic Sunroof.
 
#4 ·
I'll offer a different POV:

We have a 2016 3.6 limited with about all one could get. Was thinking of adding a 2017 Forester XT to the family stable.

To be fair, the 2017 XT is VERY different from previous years. MUCH quieter, LED headlights, nicer interior with the brown and more. I found it quite comparable to our 3.6. In some ways it was better: Felt noticeably quicker, the CVT seemed better with the sport and sport # switches and handled way better. Much more confident around turns and curves. In others ways the OB is better, depending on one's tastes. Certainly more room and a cushier feel. Even with the 19mm sway bar I find the OB a bit ponderous.

In the end, I'd say they appeal to different buyers. One wanting a more sporty feel with some refinement and good visibility might go for the XT. Those seeking more room and a cushier ride will go for the OB. Prior to the 2017 changes the gap was noticeably wider.
 
#7 ·
Spot-on review. My 2015 Outback was our first Subaru and I started out looking at Foresters. I really wanted that size of car but the just couldn't get comfortable in the seats. I frankly think it was more a matter of lacking the needed range of adjustment for the tilt of the bottom cushion, but I just couldn't envision spending 8 or 12 hours in them on a long road trip.

So, I checked out the Outback. Seats were big improvement and the ride and handling were a bit nicer, and the interior more refined. Finally decided that there was nothing wrong with having a slightly bigger car than I wanted. That was two years ago and I haven't looked back.
 
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