very sturdy little hatchback. good handling and fuel economy. european styling. exceeded expectation with fuel economy. runs on regular.

This is our second Subaru. Purchased our 2008 Outback 2.5i in April and now is four months old with 4,200 miles on it. Gets 28.8 mpg. with local driving, and 31 mpg. on the interstate. Love the styling inside and out. Color is Quartz Silver Met.w/dark gray interior. Engine has plenty of power for a 4 cyl. with a automatic transmission. Very smooth ride and quite. The best part is all the safety features which lowered my insurance $400.00. The fit & finish is great everything seems to blend together, and zero defects no going back to the dealer to get things fixed. I highly recommend this Outback too anyone wanting a dependable family car.

My first Outback, bought cause a friend told me about them. I took a 2500 mile trip in it and was very pleased.

Purchased a Outback XT with the Navigation package (translation auto transmission & navigation system) and tinted windows in late February 2008. I settled on Diamond Gray Metallic color, originally wanted an Obsidian Black (none were immediately available). The car has been driven a bit over 12K miles since then. Anticipated atleast 30-40K per year and used primarily for business.

Engine, Transmission & Brakes: Excellent response from 2.5 liter four cylinder engine. Subaru’s “SI Drive” performs flawlessly, making this wagon move briskly providing comfortable acceleration, merging and passing power. Brakes are a bit mushy especially after a long run, severe vibration does not inspire confidence. All competing cars come with tire pressure monitoring system standard, this one does not have it however now a standard offering. Excellent AWD system works flawlessly in all types of weather conditions including severe snow storms, heavy rain’s etc. etc.

Fuel Consumption: Depends on the driving style – under aggressive driving style (S and S#) I have averaged 17.5 mpg (driving range of approx. 300 miles) and when driven conservatively in intelligent mode I have been able to average 27 mpg (driving range of approx. 450 miles).

Appearance: Revised front fascia for 2008 and smooth styling. Impressive ground clearance, does not significantly affect ride quality and handling even though the heavy duty suspension is a bit rough over uneven surfaces.

Cabin: Generally nice ergonomics, comfortable seating arrangement. Wagon can seat five, however comfortable for four adults especially on longer drives. Heated seats are pretty good however would have preferred cooling seat option. Phenomenal dual sunroof – all cars should come with this option.

Navigation & Audio: Navigation system has poor graphics and is slow in responsiveness – pretty expensive for the price. Driving directions are extremely difficult to follow on bright sunny days due to glare. Audio system could also have been a bit better, cannot use the storage bins on both front doors as the speakers housed on each side make the contents vibrate and resonate very annoyingly. 2.5 mm mp3 jack does not fit perfectly and has to be constantly adjusted despite a visit to the dealer – who claims that it is normal. No analog clock, the cars with the navigation system only have a clock on the display, no other clock available.

Storage: Insufficient storage bins, no place to put the mp3 player. Only the passenger seat has a cheap mesh elastic storage, could have used another one behind the driver’s seat.

For a 30 plus thousand car glare free mirror, reading lights in the rear and a comfort extension armrest should be standard not be an option ($200 installed price each). Subaru is targeting itself slowly up the food chain, in a near-luxury segment lack of the above mentioned items seems out of place.

Overall, the Outback is a great car. I love having the 5-spd, which the lack of turned me away from other wagons (Passat, Magnum). It drives great in the snow. I am in a band and having all the space is wonderful. I am able to get 30mpg+ out of this car. Perhaps others have lower mileage with an automatic tranny, but the 5-spd give good mileage. I like how the transmission is matched to the engine - very quick from a dead stop. Also, the ride is on the sporty side, with great cornering and grip.

I wish there was a premium stereo upgrade - spending and extra couple hundred $$$ for just a subwoofer is ridiculous. Also, the tailgate could be a tad wider to match the interior width. Every once in a while I have trouble loading something large without having to finesse it between the rubber seals. Factory standard privacy glass would be nice, too, but my dealer tinted my windows for free (I haul over $5k worth of equiment for my band - security is important).

Overall, I love my Subie. Quality of a Lexus with the price of a Honda.

I love my Subaru Outback. I can't wait until 2014 when I plan to purchase another one. There is plenty of room inside when the seats are folded down flat for bike, gear, stuff. I appreciate the extra height that the body is off the ground, has the features of a truck but the manuverability of a car. Everyone should own a Subaru. It is the perfect vehicle. 25/32mpg! For a full-sized car that is impressive. No major problems so far in 33 months of ownership.

It is a lifted wagon (or small SUV if you like) which is FUN to drive. Steering is direct and precise, body responses are prompt and always very sure-footed(even in bad weather).

But it doesn't really have any serious performance comparable to its sports character: the 2.5 engine only begins to pull after 3500rpm, the body leans quite a bit during cornering, the tires squeaks early( it's not entirely tire's fault, the suspension geometry has not been revised for the height lift up.)

The 2.5 engine vibrates and groans at low rpm, especially with the manual. The chassis feels not strong enough to handle the firm suspension, letting in some road noise and jittery ride on bad surfaces.

But on normal road surfaces, it rides firm and smooth. When the engines revs high, it still remain composed: smooth and easy to the ear. Road manner feels uber competent in ALL conditions, give you lots of confidence.

Legroom is limited for rear passengers, other than that, it feels right-sized. Interior feels simple and elegant to me. There are lots of standard winter equipments: heated seats, dimming mirror, heated rear view mirrors and wiper, fog lights...

The whole car feels like a trap... it gives you something nice and then make you ask for more.

i also am replacing an 05 wrx (blew the engine); so there is my basis of comparison. with a new baby, the family needs the room and i still get something that is somewhat sporty to drive. even though the car suffers from tremendous body roll/lean, it's still hard to break the back end loose and when it does slide, it's so controlled, it's alot of fun, it leaves you wanting more! tons more fun than the wrx, cause the wrx would never break free (must have been the michelins).
as i get older i appreciate the fit and finish and gobs of lux items in this vehicle (especially for the price).
it doesn't have all the goodies an audi or bmw wagon has but it can rock the road with them! and it kicks on things like volvo and vw and honda with city breed awd.
i really want to give this 5-stars, but it's the little things that tick me off; stuff subaru could do or package: bluetooth, updated gps/nav, backup camera, perimeter sensors, memory seat settings, true quality stereo (bose or something), etc. these are not hard items to include or bundle up. it's not a bad vehicle, why to they undersell themselves? and most of all...i want a 360hp flat-6, turbo, 6-speed manual option!!!

I had a 2001 L.L. Bean (6 cyl) that required Premium gas. Drove 160,00 miles. Traded it for a 2008 2.5 i L.L. Bean. The 2008 is a much better car, has more saftey items and gets much better gas mileage on regular gas. Subaru has made great strides since 2001. Keep up the good work!

I got this car as a rental. The head restraint makes the car undriveable for me; it is too far forward. I am 6' tall, so I don't know if a shorter person would have better luck. I suggest you pay close attention to it before deciding to buy it. I have tried for several days to adjust the seat back, seat height, and position of the head rest, but it is impossible to get comfortable. I ended up taking the thing all the way out and driving without it, kinda defeats the purpose.