Faults:

Minor LED lights for switches, gear indicators, right side of speedometer.

General Comments:

I am amazed at the negative reviews on this vehicle. I live at 9000' in the Rockies and have commuted in this car to work in the city for almost 10 years. It is sure-footed, and even with an automatic transmission, if I drop it into a low gear to climb snow and ice-covered hills, it has never let me down. I have routinely bypassed Audis and other more expensive vehicles with all or 4-wheel drive, who have had to pull to the shoulder, and made it home in blizzards.

The boxer engine means that gas mileage is not as wonderful as for other small cars, but that same low heavy engine makes for stability in the mountains.

When I can afford to buy another one, my husband has "dibs" on this one. So, its trade-in value (nearly $5k after all these years and miles) is just a number, and I can't wait to be a 2-Outback family in the mountains.

Faults:

Frameless doors windows shake at speed.

Numerous interior rattles.

No torque at low RPM.

Sluggish tranny and low response for quick lane change.

Harsh suspension on bad roads and questionable chassis stiffness.

General Comments:

Their reputation seems to be based on short term ownership. They aged pretty fast.

AWD system is reliable, as are most units built by New Venture Gear (Venture = GM & Chrysler), and they are common in Jeeps, BMW and you name it. Subaru was late to switch from viscous coupling to Gerotor clutch type (2008 compared to 1999 for Jeep). Surabu's supremacy in rallies stands on their low center of gravity. Nothing to do with the symmetric thing...

Faults:

Front brake rotors warped.

Lost oil pan bolt & lost the oil pan cover.

Front axle boot had a leak, both axles had to be replaced at 80000 miles.

General Comments:

Interior access buttons to windows, door locks, etc. do not light up & this is extremely hazardous when trying to exit the vehicle at night.

Love the quick get up and go when getting on the freeway!

Handles GREAT in the snow. Better than on dry land or in the rain!

Faults:

4 years and 130000km : runs like a charm, I've just changed the tires (every 60K), the front brake pads at 75K, one front suspension silent block at 120K, and the regular maintenance stuff.

You have to pay respect to the regular maintenance, otherwise it may cost a lot.

General Comments:

It's quiet, even on a cold winter mornings, it's quick, and it goes everywhere except some places where only hardcore 4x4 can go. It can carry a lot of stuff effortlessly.

Basically it's a great all rounder, and a serious competitor for diesel Volvo XC70 and Audi all road if you are not looking for a symbol on your driveway, but for an efficient AWD wagon.

It's only real competitor is the boxer diesel version, if you accept its noise at low revs and even more at low temperatures.

The handling vs comfort balance of many other SUVs is either too stiff on bad roads (BMW X3...) or too soft when cornering on good ones (Volvo XCs). The Outback offers a perfect balance in this regard.

It's a bit thirsty in town, but I don't care as I ride my bike to work :)

Running costs are decent otherwise : it's at least 500kg lighter than the competition, so tires and brake pads last twice as much.

Would I buy another one? Yes, but they don't sell it any more :-/

Here in France, since January 2009, we can only get boxer diesels in a luxury edition (leather, electric seats, HID's, GPS navigation...). No more LPG and no more basic edition.

Performance : 7 because it has what you need on open roads, even when packed with passengers and luggages.

I'd give a 10 to the 3.0R :-)

I rate dealers at 5/10 because there are too few of them, and I need to spend a lot of time for the regular maintenance.