A compact answer to SUVs that's growing dearer.
by Eric Peters
The compact-sized Subaru Outback is more powerful and opulent than ever - and it's also getting pricey.
While you weren't looking, the addition of a new six-cylinder engine and L.L. Bean/VDC package have pushed a loaded Outback into the low $30,000s ($29,495 for the L.L. Bean; $31,895 for the top-of-the-line VDC wagon). That's a lot for this fairly small, not especially prestigious car, and it threatens to undermine Subaru's strongest selling point: value.
Just a couple of years ago, a loaded Outback or Legacy wagon was priced in the mid-$20,000s; nicely equipped models sold for less than that. They were remarkable buys, with standard all-wheel-drive, a feature not typically found on modestly priced cars. They were also excellent alternatives to pricey and thirsty SUVs.
But at $30 grand? At this level, the Outback has placed itself in direct competition with larger, more powerful and capable vehicles, even a few near-luxury SUVs. For example, a Lexus RX300 FWD can be purchased for just a little more ($33,905) than the $31,895 VDC Outback. A number of very attractive SUVs - including the 2002 Mercury Mountaineer ($28,630 2WD; $30,610 w/4x4) - have base prices that are actually lower than both the L.L. Bean and VDC Outback's.
But here's where it really gets sketchy. Both the excellent Audi A4 Avant 1.8T with Quattro all-wheel-drive ($27,290) and the just-launched Volvo V40 wagon ($24,500) are priced literally thousands below the Subaru in its equivalent L.L. Bean or VDC form. BMW now offers AWD, too, on the 3-Series sedan - and for not that much more than you'd pay for an Outback VDC.
What's wrong with this picture?
Considered in isolation, the Outback L.L. Bean/VDC is a perfectly fine vehicle. It is versatile, looks pretty good, is nicely equipped, and has many worthwhile features, such as the new 3.0-liter 212-hp flat six engine and excellent Subaru AWD system. The dilemma for buyers - if it is one - is that they can choose from among many alternatives in the luxury/prestige segment that are equally good, if not better, for about the same or less money.
Meanwhile, on the lower end, other manufacturers have sneaked up on Subaru and are grabbing up the value-priced compact wagon market. Maybe they don't offer AWD, but a loaded up Daewoo Nubira wagon, or Ford Focus, or Saturn L-Series, has strong gravitational pull considering what you get for your bucks. A $10,000 price difference is hard to argue with, Crocodile Dundee's endorsement or not.
That said, what Subaru does have this year is that new 3-liter, 212-hp flat six "boxer" engine. This remedies the general criticism levied against Subarus over the years that they are slower than a piece of driftwood on the Mississippi. But once again, you get back to the dollar issue. You have to lay out almost $30 grand to get the six. And once you do, a sick feeling may come over you when you reflect that more powerful V-6 engines - and even a few V-8 engines - are offered by several similar vehicles in this price range (see above).
The smaller 2.5-liter engine used in base cars has been bumped up to 165 hp, which renders it adequate. You can get a stick shift with this engine, but not with the optional six.
As before, all Outbacks feature special exterior body cladding, different wheels and tires, decent ground clearance for light off-road capability, and so on. The L.L. Bean models add the extra trim you'd expect.
"Subaru" is a perfectly respectable nameplate, just not a luxury nameplate. Not yet anyhow. And it's probably not sound strategy to price vehicles like the Outback as if they were, and against such stiff competitors as the Audi A4 Avant and Volvo, to say nothing of the BMW 3-Series and various Lexus models. It just won't bear scrutiny.
One wants to like this vehicle, and if the money thing is not taken into account, there's no problem. But having to buy one when considering what else is out there - well, that's another kettle o' kippers, mate.
2001 Subaru Outback L.L. Bean 3.0 and 3.0 w/VDC
Base price range: $29,495-$31,895
Engine: 3.0-liter flat six, 212 hp
Transmission: four-speed automatic w/all-wheel-drive
Wheelbase: 104.3 in
Length: 187.4 in
Width: 68.7 in
Height: 63.3 in
Curb Weight: 3715 lb
EPA (city/hwy): 20/27 mpg (six-cylinder w/automatic)
Safety equipment: Dual front airbags, traction control, ABS
Major standard features: All-wheel-drive, automatic transmission, limited slip differential, traction control, air conditioning, leather, power sunroof, eight speaker audio system with CD player
Warranty: Three years/36,000 miles
© 2001 The Car Connection
