[toysbyus]

Call me optimistic, call me a dreamer (not a DACA, of course) BUT, with the 2019 Forester getting ready for its public intro at the NYC Auto Show, I'm thinking that an occasional 2020 Outback "mule" might be somewhere on the roads in the US..........so consider this the first, "official" Gen 6 thread......

Try NOT to laugh, you know that SOA has the mules out there somewhere......

Steve

 

[AWDFTW]

lolno

 

[byebye6cyl]

too early? We still don't know even what will Forester have for sure:
- rumors of FB25 going DI
- rumors of no FA20 turbo option available

 

[chigga]

too early? We still don't know even what will Forester have for sure:
- rumors of FB25 going DI
- rumors of no FA20 turbo option available

They said its most likely non turbo version of the 2.4L, which is an evolution of FA engine like the Ascent, the 6 cyl is 99% confirmed to be dropped, you will be left with either:

2.4L Direct injection (they projected of 185-190hp)
2.4L Direct injection turbo (260hp) or more.

The structure is going to be very much like the Ascent, the Indiana factory is tooled to produce Ascent and its global architect siblings, so that includes Legacy, Outback as well as current Impreza.

Source: talking to someone working with Subaru and conversation came up, as I was debating to upgrade to a 3.6R or wait for Ascent, so take it with grain of salt, nothing is firm, may be 6cyl survives, but outlook is unlikely as the 2.4L even in turbo form is tuned to run with 87.

 

[toysbyus]

Of course, it's TOO early but, after this week's Forrie reveal, Outback is next up....

Steve

 

[phishfood]

I'm thinking good likelihood we see a twin turbo 3.6 with a 6 speed manual Outback STI

I will be excited if this is announced

 

[midnight.moonlight]

I'm thinking good likelihood we see a twin turbo 3.6 with a 6 speed manual Outback STI

I will be excited if this is announced

Well, that would be really awesome. Hope you're right!

 

[dangatlin]

I'm thinking good likelihood we see a twin turbo 3.6 with a 6 speed manual Outback STI

I will be excited if this is announced

I am giving this possibility a solid 0% chance >

 

[chigga]

I'm thinking good likelihood we see a twin turbo 3.6 with a 6 speed manual Outback STI

I will be excited if this is announced

No, but the 3.6R bellhousing bolt pattern is same as STi, so you can buy a 3.6 without eyesight and do a swap.

 

[toysbyus]

Deep down in your hearts, you know that the mules are "out there", accumulating miles.........wonder if they're using modded Gen 5 cars as their "hats" of if the mules are already in camo-ed up graphics.........

Somewhere, someone is going to see a "weird" looking OB...........it won't be me up in NH, for sure!

Steve

 

[rasterman]

Spy photos of the 2015 Outback started appearing in March 2014. So you're a year early.

Plenty of time to speculate on the number of cupholders, dual engine option, tag axle for towing, footwell illumination mood synchronizer etc...

 

[chigga]

Deep down in your hearts, you know that the mules are "out there", accumulating miles.........wonder if they're using modded Gen 5 cars as their "hats" of if the mules are already in camo-ed up graphics.........

Somewhere, someone is going to see a "weird" looking OB...........it won't be me up in NH, for sure!

Steve

It's literately an Ascent, so the mules will most likely Ascents running around with the non turbo engines and change of weights to mimic suspension behavior of lighter vehicles.

 

[toysbyus]

That sounds very positive, I think.

The ONLY tech detail that I really wish Subaru would adopt is the "360°" around viewpoint that many competitive brands have.........the top down view is much better than the FPV that Subaru uses these days......

Other than that, the Ascent sounds like a fine platform on which to build the next Outback........shorter wheelbase, of course.......

Steve

 

[russellpat]

following.

 

[Robert.Mauro]

too early? We still don't know even what will Forester have for sure:
- rumors of FB25 going DI
- rumors of no FA20 turbo option available

I have two early access days at the auto show, and will be asking those and many other important questions, as well as taking many pics.

 

[OBinMaine]

My thought is that the 2020 Outback will be a smaller version of the new Ascent (which I feel is a fantastic design but too big for me). That new design language is also shown on the updated Forester. Subaru is not known for building stylish cars......

 

[Secerator]

I went to the Atlanta Auto show and saw the Ascent in person. Probably I had high hopes and wasn't really impressed by it.
It was a limited model. Not touring. Ivory leather which was already dirty and blue from jeans of people going in and out. Then some plastics on the interior were showing many scratches (inside the cavity in front of the passenger where you could rest a phone or something else). The plastic handle that folds the back seat was coming off from the metal inner handle on one of the sides. Very similar looking to Outback. Did not felt upscale.

Compared to my Outback Touring it would be worth only if you need a big car like that. With all the seats folded the area was not as flat as in an OB. Also you had a gap between 3rd and 2nd folded rows. No 360 top view cameras.
I was thinking to get an Ascent Touring. That would be over $45k with no financial incentives. But now I will pass for at least 2 years. We do not need a bigger car, but thinking that we might need one in 2 years. So another OB would make more sense for us.

 

[Tishers]

To keep it from overshadowing the Ascent the 2020 Outback will only have eleven cup holders.

While there may be a few '20 mules out there they probably don't look anything like what the final form will be. Subaru probably has the gen 5 body panels bolted right in place of where the gen 6 panels will end up at. You wouldn't be able to tell the difference unless you climbed under the car or opened the hood. We have seen what a backyard hack with a welding rig can do for body customization; Subaru probably has some slightly better welders who can dream up something that is a time-traveling sleeper. They are going to want to get all of the mechanicals like the suspension and drivetrain squared away before they even start considering the interior, body styling or accessories.

So look for early winter before we start getting UFO sightings of what might be the '20 Outback. If things follow the pattern that we have seen over the past 5-10 years and the schedule shift of the Outback being a summer-type reveal we won't have hints of powerplant/ optioning until this time next year.

You never want to steal the thunder from your upcoming model year, even for something more innovative that will be another year down the road. What ends up happening is that current owners will hold off on buying a '19 in anticipation of a '20. Then for some of them something will go bad with whatever they are driving, they get disappointed or impatient and jump brands.

 

[russellpat]

To keep it from overshadowing the Ascent the 2020 Outback will only have eleven cup holders.

While there may be a few '20 mules out there they probably don't look anything like what the final form will be. Subaru probably has the gen 5 body panels bolted right in place of where the gen 6 panels will end up at. You wouldn't be able to tell the difference unless you climbed under the car or opened the hood. We have seen what a backyard hack with a welding rig can do for body customization; Subaru probably has some slightly better welders who can dream up something that is a time-traveling sleeper. They are going to want to get all of the mechanicals like the suspension and drivetrain squared away before they even start considering the interior, body styling or accessories.

So look for early winter before we start getting UFO sightings of what might be the '20 Outback. If things follow the pattern that we have seen over the past 5-10 years and the schedule shift of the Outback being a summer-type reveal we won't have hints of powerplant/ optioning until this time next year.

You never want to steal the thunder from your upcoming model year, even for something more innovative that will be another year down the road. What ends up happening is that current owners will hold off on buying a '19 in anticipation of a '20. Then for some of them something will go bad with whatever they are driving, they get disappointed or impatient and jump brands.

I think vehicle design considers all parts concurrently. That is mechanicals, interior and exterior are all designed at the same time.

 

[ghp]

If it follows the Forester redo it will change a bit but not much with the exception of the SGP being implemented. I predict a Ascent /Forester type dash. Big news will be a 2.4 dit option.