Help on choice for 2005 Outback

I have just under 15,000 on a MY 2003 H6 with automatic. My overall average is 20.85. I am not a foot to the floor driver and live in New England. On "pure road" I get 25 to 27 MPG. Hope that helps you.

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Your best bet is a regular 4 cyl with automatic. You will get 23-26 avg, in city driving. Some momos just dislike auto transmissions. They change their tune when they have problems and there are no warranties on clutches and such. The best bet is to drive them youself. I have no trouble beating many vehicles at stoplights (esp in rain). One does not buy the outback for speed. If thats what you want buy a vette. Outbacks are comfortable reliable vehicles that are capable of handling some rough weather and a variety of conditionsand are perfect SUV replacements, Mileage, speed are not their sole purpose. As an all around vehicle I'm 100% happy. I would definitely buy another if they lose the integrated stereo and make the outback more rugged looking again. Hopefully sales will flop and they'll go back to what made the OB so unique.

I agree with this post: you don't need the turbo engine in the OBW to get satisfactory automatic transmission performance. My mother has the regular 2005 OBW 2.5i with an automatic transmission (after selling her 1998 Legacy OBW Limited with 89k miles, also automatic), and she's very happy with this new car after loving her 1998 all along.

I agree too. I have 2005 2.5i Outback 4 cylinder. It's excellent on gas. I think I easily get 24 in the city and even about 31 (according to car computer) on a highway. It's not exactly a race car ;), however in the sport mode it's perfectly fine. I never had any problem on any of the mountain passes in Washington state.

Subaru seems to set the CEL paramaters a bit tight on many of the codes...The light comes on much more frequently on my Subs than some of my otther OBDII vehicles even though nothing is really amiss. Very annoying. TG

I have 51,500 on a 2002 6 cyl OBW. I drive 70-75mph on the highway every day, a distance of 50 miles daily. I've gotten 25 mpg consistently. The car does "require" premium fuel which I faithfully put in.

In November 2004 I traded my 1999 Volvo S80 with 63000 miles for an Outback LLBean. I still have an 850 Turbo wagon. I sold the S80 because I was concerned with the cars extensive electronics. The LLBean comes standard with the H6 and 5-speed AT. I have now 2200 miles driven primarily in suburban traffic (Northern Kentucky with lots of hills and traffic). My average is 18 to 19 mpg. I have driven once for one-hour north through Cinci and back and averaged 23 mpg. I am not

100% satisfied yet, but I will wait until summer when I am using it on longer trips. I believe that I should be able to reach the advertised 25 mpg. How does the OB compare to my Volvos? It is lot more fun to drive. The H6 with the 5 speed AT is wonderful. The pick up is very similar to my Turbo Wagon. The seats are close, but not quiet there. The brakes are OK, but Volvo brakes are better. The suspension is acceptable considering it is an AWD and has a raised suspension. It drives similar to the 850 Turbo Wagon with the sports suspension, but the S80 was a much better road car. Overall, I am satisfied with the OB and I really enjoy the LLBean package.

Jaba,

You'll have to explain your comments. The 2.5 XT Wagon goes 0-60 in ~5.8 secs. One does not buy the outback for speed? Even the aspro 2.5 goes 0-60 in ~10.2 secs with gear in it. You must be looking at a Subaru brochure from the 1995.

The XT is a turbo. Gets poor mileage and asks for premium fuel. Also gets pricey. I'm sorry but 10.2 0-60 is not a speed demon. I cant' complain my 04 OBW is slow but its not a real necksnapper either. Thats not what I wanted. As an SUV alternative that gets good mileage its great.

Wow, I read that others are getting @25mpg with their 2.5 4 cyl. My 2005 2.5i 4 cyl. is getting about 20mpg. Most of my driving is on the highway, about 10 miles each way to work traveling at 60-65 mph. I wish that I could find one postive thing about my OBW. I'll keep looking. :O)

I checked the mpg this morning. After my ride to work at a constant 60mph, it said 20.7mpg.

I have an 04 OBW LL Bean, 30,000 miles. I consistently get 20 MPG city and

27 Highway.

How many miles do you have on your OBW?

2000 miles.

No car gets the EPA official mileage in real world driving. The they compute that in laboratory best case conditions. On a dyno, with no wind resistance, A/C, radio, rain, potholes or gravel. Then, they don't even measure the gas used. They measure the exhaust, and calculate what the fuel usage should be based on that.

We have an 04 Outback with the base 2.5i and the 4 speed auto. We get about 21.5 MPG (which is just under the EPA 19/26 figure). The car is no speed demon, but can get out of it's own way, especially if you're not afraid to use the gas pedal and rev the engine.

Most of that is urban/suburban stop and go in Seattle, which is pretty hilly. My wife's Prius went from 50 MPG down to 40 MPG when she joined a vanpool and the mileage went from 90% hiway to 90% around town.

We've had no trouble climbing hills and mountains around here, with the occasional hunting for gears while climbing really steep stuff (The hills that make trucks and busses slow down to 25 MPH). Unfortunately there's one of those on my regular route home from town.

Steve

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We just bought an Outback Limited and it is awesome. Our 2001 Outback averages about 26-27 MPG....my wife was pretty easy on it though.

I have the 2.5L 2002 Outback automatic. It's a reliable, comfortable car with very smooth transmission. Someone with a family, in hilly area or more aggressive driving habits may want the 6 cyl. If you live in snow country the all wheel drive is great, here in South calif it's not necessary.

Adam

My cars used to get the EPA rated mileage until 1996 when I bought my Ford Ranger XLT. EPA stated 18/24 mpg and I got 16/22 mpg from the time I bought it till when it was totaled with 75,000 miles. Still was waiting for "break-in" to occur to see improvement that others here & the salesmen talk about but I have never experienced. Before this my 1986 Honda Accord, and both of my Ford Probe GT's (1989 & 1993) got the EPA stated mileage from day one.

I've had a 2005 Forester XS with the 5 speed manual since last Thanksgiving which claims EPA 23/30 mpg and so far I have gotten 26/27 mpg in the winter mostly on the interstate at 65 mph, so I am pretty happy so far and hoping to see 30 in the spring. I relied on the EPA numbers in my choice of the Forester over the Ford Escape XLT.

Blair