Its a Wagon.
SUV
Wagon!
SUV!
Its the old devil v angel routine one on each shoulder and the wickedest thing is, theyre both right.
The Outbackisa wagon disguised as an SUV, or maybethats the other way around?
Its an SUV when I visit my friend with the steep driveway, for there is no fear of scraping the front on arrival, or the rear on departure.Not even the tow bar.Mymatesgot a wagon, and he cant do that, so thats one point for SUV given the ground clearance.
But then,my wife and Ican see over the top of thewagonwith ease. You know thedrill,you arrive atyourfriends place with the steep driveway and before going in you have the chat across the car. Whatre theirkids names, again? Really? Surely thatsthe dogs name. So, given we can converse across the top of the Outback, that would make it more of a wagon.
Interesting, isnt it?
Theres the interior space of an SUV without the loaf of bread like drivability up the freeway on a windy day.To be fair, thats more Kombi than SUV, but you get the idea. Given the Outback is flatter and more streamlined than a typical SUV, it seems to drive more like a sedan: less drag, you know? But itsdefinitely nota sedan because I can climb into the boot looking for lost golf balls without feeling as if one of my kids might turn practical joker and shut me in. Not that they would or could because the Outback*Applicable for Outback AWD Sport and Outback AWD Touring only.has the automatic boot button, so its a nice,smooth open and close. Given my spy like reflexes, Id be out beforegetting stuck because just slowing the process of the boot stops the automatic close and the joke would be over.Mooohahahaha.
Thecabin spaceis massive, by the way.I always get tagged for driving to golf four sets of clubs in the boot (theres one guy Id like to put in there, too) and theres a stack of legroom for four adults as well. Im not convinced theres room forall oftheir stories, but thats a subject for another day.
Were past the pram stage, but Im confident we would have managed easily with our big old pram, and certainly the kidsbikes. As they gotolderwe went for the bikecarrierwhich is a must if youre wanting to take everything with you on holidays.
So internally, it has a distinct SUV feel, which is magic, because if I was after asports car,Id be surprised to find myself in the Outback. Having said that, it does have the gear changing paddles,soooooo Sports SUV, maybe? Sports Wagon?
The worst thing to say about the Outback is possibly the best thing. Its absurdly practical. Its literally perfect for the whole family, regardless of who is using it and given all the safety features, its perfect for our Learner and P-plate drivers.
But is the Outback a wagon, or an SUV?
Its practically both.
Actually. It is both. Wagon and SUV. Maybe it depends who youre bragging about your Outback to.
Andrew Daddo
Subaru Ambassador
04 May 2021
