[OB3.6Touring]

Greetings!!

I will be taking delivery of a 2018 3.6 Touring in a couple days. I currently own a 2017 Crosstrek Premium that my daughter drives. I traded in my 2017 Forester XT Touring w/EyeSight for the Outback. I have also had a 2015 Forester XT Touring w/EyeSight that I traded in for the 2017 Forester.

I am a dealer trade driver for my local Subaru dealership so I get a lot of time behind the wheel of all the Subaru models. I loved my Foresters for what they were but I needed a change in vehicle model to satisfy the life changes.

I love what Subaru has done with the 2018 Outback, inside and out. Its quieter, has a nicer ride, new mapping for the CVT,  CarPlay/Android Auto, LED headlights/DRLs, USB ports for the backseat passengers, the list goes on...

What I don’t love is where the front seat USB ports are located. I’ve always wondered why they could not put them in the armrest console like they do on the Forester? I really do not like the low-profile roof rails on the Touring. To me, the big roof rails with the integrated crossbars are part of what makes the Outback an Outback. I also do not like that I have to pay $460.00 plus tax for crossbars. Thule crossbars are the only crossbars available for the Touring model.

For me the pros greatly outweighed the cons for the Outback.

 

[Kmann]

I'm looking at purchasing an 2018 Touring OB. What are the differences between the OB Touring roof rack and the Limited roof rack?

 

[OB3.6Touring]

On the Limited it has the roof rack that has the built in roof rails. The Touring has what Subaru calls “Low-profile roof rails:silver finish”. They look like strips of metal running from the front to the back of the roof on each side, they are only about 1”-2”high with plastic on each end of them. The outside of the roof rails are smooth and the inside has a opening to attach the Thule crossbars.

Hope my explanation helped, if not then go to the Touring page on the Outback page, yes the Touring has its own page. Not all the pics on the Touring page show a Touring though, silly Subaru. Scroll down until you see the green OB in front of the cabin. The roof rails on that OB are the Touring roof rails. I would have posted the pic or even the link but I’m to new to this forum.

 

[Kmann]

I picked up my 2018 OB 3.6R today, Wilderness Green. This is my first Subaru and I'm upgrading from a 1997 Honda CRV so I have lots to learn in the new OB.