I've had my '07 2.5i (49k miles) for 12 days and one tank of gas now, and I have a couple of questions and observations thus far.
Questions:
Overall, nice car thus far. My first tank of gas was probably a pretty typical one for me -- commuting to and from work (70% city/30% freeway), running errands, plus a couple trips up the canyon (4100 ft to about 9700 ft over about 10 miles) to mountain bike, with 2 bikes on a hitch mounted platform rack. Mileage for that tank was 23.7 (hand calculated -- computer showed 24.3), which is about what I'd expected, but a little less than I'd hoped for.
Things I like so far:
Car performs very nicely in the twisty canyon. Granted, I've been driving either a 3/4 ton pickup or a Suburban the last 3 years, but it handles quite nicely and feels solid.
You have to rev it to get the power (quite different from my diesel pickup, obviously), but it goes pretty well when you push on the pedal hard enough.
Love the interior, dash setup, center stack. Very clean, well thought out, like the white and red dash lights. I'm impressed every time I get in it.
Upholstery on the seats is good. Texture looks kinda rough, but is more comfortable and seems more durable, easier to clean than the "velvety" cloth that was in my truck.
4EAT performance is just fine -- I thought I wanted a manual, but couldn't find a clean one I liked. Nice to have sport and manual shift options -- great for driving in the mountains. I'm not regretting getting an auto at this point whatsoever.
Car looks good, easy to transport bikes, will fit my lifestyle pretty well (except family needs -- see below). Does 75% of what my truck did (gets me to work and to recreation in all weather conditions, hopefully), and burns less fuel.
Things I don't like so far:
The rear seat room is ridiculous. I didn't spend much time worrying about the rear seat when shopping, but for such a big car with a family reputation, it seems unacceptable. Really struggled to get 3 kids w/ carseats in there (2 boosters, 1 infant seat) -- was like twister to get them all buckled in. I had 3 12 yr old girls back there the other evening and they were complaining about the space (esp the bump in the center seat). I was hoping that this car could serve for family day trips and so forth until baby #4 arrives in the spring, but it isn't gonna work. I am quite disappointed -- the seat in my father-in-law's 10 yr old Toyota Corolla is bigger (I know this b/c he dropped me off dealership to pick up the Outback, w/ the kids' -- of course, they wanted to ride home in the new car -- and I thought I was going to have to call him to come back and get one of them!). Given the car's size, I assumed the seat would be comparable to other mid-sized sedans, eg Accord, Camry, etc., but it is not even as big as a compact sedan!
Plastic bumper and wheel trim don't exactly match the paint (dusty gold) in the sun very closely. Just a cosmetic issue. No, the car hasn't been in a wreck, at least according to Subaru's warranty history and Carfax. Now that I'm paying attention, I noticed this on another 3rd gen OB (silver) in my parking lot as well, although a different black 3rd gen in the parking lot seems fine, so maybe it is an issue only with the lighter colors.
Getting used to the frameless doors, but still kinda weird when the windows are rolled down and you open the door. What is the rationale behind thiss design again?
Anyway, just a few questions and thoughts from a new, first-time Subie owner ...
Questions:
- Does everyone's mpg computer calculate in 0.3 increments?
- Is the transmission supposed to downshift when going downhill in sport mode, or will it just hold the gear I was in?
- What does the parking light button on the steering column do?
Overall, nice car thus far. My first tank of gas was probably a pretty typical one for me -- commuting to and from work (70% city/30% freeway), running errands, plus a couple trips up the canyon (4100 ft to about 9700 ft over about 10 miles) to mountain bike, with 2 bikes on a hitch mounted platform rack. Mileage for that tank was 23.7 (hand calculated -- computer showed 24.3), which is about what I'd expected, but a little less than I'd hoped for.
Things I like so far:
Car performs very nicely in the twisty canyon. Granted, I've been driving either a 3/4 ton pickup or a Suburban the last 3 years, but it handles quite nicely and feels solid.
You have to rev it to get the power (quite different from my diesel pickup, obviously), but it goes pretty well when you push on the pedal hard enough.
Love the interior, dash setup, center stack. Very clean, well thought out, like the white and red dash lights. I'm impressed every time I get in it.
Upholstery on the seats is good. Texture looks kinda rough, but is more comfortable and seems more durable, easier to clean than the "velvety" cloth that was in my truck.
4EAT performance is just fine -- I thought I wanted a manual, but couldn't find a clean one I liked. Nice to have sport and manual shift options -- great for driving in the mountains. I'm not regretting getting an auto at this point whatsoever.
Car looks good, easy to transport bikes, will fit my lifestyle pretty well (except family needs -- see below). Does 75% of what my truck did (gets me to work and to recreation in all weather conditions, hopefully), and burns less fuel.
Things I don't like so far:
The rear seat room is ridiculous. I didn't spend much time worrying about the rear seat when shopping, but for such a big car with a family reputation, it seems unacceptable. Really struggled to get 3 kids w/ carseats in there (2 boosters, 1 infant seat) -- was like twister to get them all buckled in. I had 3 12 yr old girls back there the other evening and they were complaining about the space (esp the bump in the center seat). I was hoping that this car could serve for family day trips and so forth until baby #4 arrives in the spring, but it isn't gonna work. I am quite disappointed -- the seat in my father-in-law's 10 yr old Toyota Corolla is bigger (I know this b/c he dropped me off dealership to pick up the Outback, w/ the kids' -- of course, they wanted to ride home in the new car -- and I thought I was going to have to call him to come back and get one of them!). Given the car's size, I assumed the seat would be comparable to other mid-sized sedans, eg Accord, Camry, etc., but it is not even as big as a compact sedan!
Plastic bumper and wheel trim don't exactly match the paint (dusty gold) in the sun very closely. Just a cosmetic issue. No, the car hasn't been in a wreck, at least according to Subaru's warranty history and Carfax. Now that I'm paying attention, I noticed this on another 3rd gen OB (silver) in my parking lot as well, although a different black 3rd gen in the parking lot seems fine, so maybe it is an issue only with the lighter colors.
Getting used to the frameless doors, but still kinda weird when the windows are rolled down and you open the door. What is the rationale behind thiss design again?
Anyway, just a few questions and thoughts from a new, first-time Subie owner ...
