'05 Subaru Outback Wagon XT (1 Viewer)

[Leila Dougan]

Call me crazy, but the gas prices don't really bother me. I guess I don't drive much (only a few miles a day) so it really doesn't add up for me. I mean, I might spend an extra few dollars every time I fill up (which currently is every 3-4 weeks) but it's hardly making a dent in my wallet. I'd be willing to sacrifice a few more dollars to have a car with a little power.

 

[Jay H]

I drive like almost nothing during the week, All my driving is mostly on the weekends when I'm hiking/backpacking/kayaking/skiing/snowshoeing/mountain biking. My '97 BMW which I recently had to fix only has 51k miles and most of that was pre-2000 when I started to bike to work. Since then, I bet I only put like 7000 miles per year or so on it.

Jay

 

[Philip_G]

I drive quite a bit, and gas prices still make almost no difference, maybe $50 a month?
I drive about 35 miles round trip a day to work. So maybe that isn't all that much.

 

[Scott L]

The Legacy STi is super sexy and is just coming out in Japan.



Pic 2 | Pic 3 | Pic 4

Rumored specs:

- 300-350hp boxer engine
- Twin Turbo
- AWD
- price from 35,000-45,000 but its still unclear

The sti model for the impreza is finally here, wonder how long this'll take.

Leila- http://auto.howstuffworks.com/question366.htm

Jay pistons facing each other? Did you mean facing away from each other?

PS- forgot to mention that the latest C&D road tested the 05 2.5XT Limited. 0-60 in 7.1, 15.6 in the quarter. eh middle of the road considering it weighs 3640lbs. They like the looks & performance but not the transmission.

 

[Jay H]

Scott, I guess that depends on what end of the piston you consider "up".

Yeah, would be nice if it weighed less but it does weigh less than the previous Outbacks. I think they used more aluminum, like in the hood and in some other places. I read the C&D article online...

That legacy STI's headlights sort of remind me of the new BMW 5-series lights with the wraparound lights..

The Forester 2.5XT on paper looks to be a rocket, the specs on that thing is like 0-60 in 5.3 seconds!

Jay

 

[Jay H]

Short note saying I picked up my new '05 Outback XT last night...wheeeee. It's nice, has a lot of nice stuff for my outdoor pursuits. The one downside is that half my friends who like the outdoors have either Subarus or Hondas so finding car at trailhead parking has now become harder. Has some nice pickup with the turbo (No boost guage though) and has a decent ride for a larger car. Noticeable body roll when doing turns at speed, braking is a lot harder than my previous car, a BMW 328i. I wont even try to compare the handling with my MR2 Spyder.

Obviously I'm breaking it in a bit so no really spirited driving yet.

Pros: Power, AWD, nice storage room, good ground clearence (8.7in), nice 6 CD changer in dash. very nice illuminated dashboard. Alarm chirp is fairly quiet rather than being obnoxiously loud, Nice safety features.

Cons: bigger than previous Outbacks, taller roofline. Seats could use more leg support or an adjustable length seat bottom (ala the BMW), sunglass holder is too small for my sunglasses, temporary spare tire.

The 5spd Auto is nice, kickdown is slow but you can use the sportshift mode to kick it into 4th gear even when in normal drive mode. Drove a small bit in the sportshift mode. Wish the buttons on the steering wheel were either wider apart or front/back.

Jay

 

[Jay H]

Short note saying I picked up my new '05 Outback XT last night...wheeeee. It's nice, has a lot of nice stuff for my outdoor pursuits. The one downside is that half my friends who like the outdoors have either Subarus or Hondas so finding car at trailhead parking has now become harder. Has some nice pickup with the turbo (No boost guage though) and has a decent ride for a larger car. Noticeable body roll when doing turns at speed, braking is a lot harder than my previous car, a BMW 328i. I wont even try to compare the handling with my MR2 Spyder.

Obviously I'm breaking it in a bit so no really spirited driving yet.

Pros: Power, AWD, nice storage room, good ground clearence (8.7in), nice 6 CD changer in dash. very nice illuminated dashboard. Alarm chirp is fairly quiet rather than being obnoxiously loud, Nice safety features.

Cons: bigger than previous Outbacks, taller roofline. Seats could use more leg support or an adjustable length seat bottom (ala the BMW), sunglass holder is too small for my sunglasses, temporary spare tire.

The 5spd Auto is nice, kickdown is slow but you can use the sportshift mode to kick it into 4th gear even when in normal drive mode. Drove a small bit in the sportshift mode. Wish the buttons on the steering wheel were either wider apart or front/back.

Jay

 

[Jason_Els]

Congratulations!!!

I hope you enjoy your scooby as much as I do mine!



As a proud owner of one I can confirm that it is just that.

 

[Jason_Els]

Congratulations!!!

I hope you enjoy your scooby as much as I do mine!



As a proud owner of one I can confirm that it is just that.

 

[Danny Tse]

Ever considered dragracing Porsches and Ferraris for pink slips?

 

[Danny Tse]

Ever considered dragracing Porsches and Ferraris for pink slips?

 

[Jay H]

Here are some pictures I just took. I just installed my Kayak J-carriers but found out my fork mounted bike carrier only supports the Thule bars right now. I have an older model, I think the newer ones come with a more universal bracket kit. Going to check Thule.com to see if I can retrofit my carrier to a newer fit kit... So right now I only have my kayak carrier on the top. Fortunately, my bike will fit in the back anyway with the seats down.

Pictures:

Front shot

Front 3/4 shot

back 3/4 shot

Back shot

jay

 

[Jay H]

Here are some pictures I just took. I just installed my Kayak J-carriers but found out my fork mounted bike carrier only supports the Thule bars right now. I have an older model, I think the newer ones come with a more universal bracket kit. Going to check Thule.com to see if I can retrofit my carrier to a newer fit kit... So right now I only have my kayak carrier on the top. Fortunately, my bike will fit in the back anyway with the seats down.

Pictures:

Front shot

Front 3/4 shot

back 3/4 shot

Back shot

jay

 

[Kirk Gunn]

Jay - airbrush the plate in the "Front Shot" !

Nice ride - looking good !

 

[Kirk Gunn]

Jay - airbrush the plate in the "Front Shot" !

Nice ride - looking good !

 

[Jay H]

Thanks Kirk, I actually beat ya to it.

Going to take it out kayaking this weekend, I need to figure out what to do with a bike carrier, seems like I need the Thule 889 which will fit factory bars unless I can mod my 589 which only fits thule or yakimas. The back feet sounds easy to modify cause all I need are two bars with cutouts as wide as the factory bars are. However, the front one is on a hinge and I would need a welder.

Jay

 

[Jim Ed]

Wonderful looking car... I am considering one myself... I also have road and mountain bikes. I will be adding a kayak this summer, they just openned a kayak park here in the metroplex. How is the backseat passenger room? Will it fit four adults, bike gear, bikes and a large ice chest?

thanks Jim Ed

 

[Jay H]

Hey Jim, haven't spent much time in the back seat! I think one might be able to fit 2 bikes (fork mount) and a J-carrier on the factory roof rack but it might be tight and you might encounter the 100lb weight limit. However, the factory cross bars only extend to the rails. If you were to go Thule/Yakima, the rack will be higher but the crossbars will extend over the rails for more room. And a J-carrier or a stacker will allow you to carry more kayaks than the flat carriers.

There should be a lot of room in the back to fit a cooler.. (Actually one of the options from Subaru is a cooler that runs off +12vDC.. ) and your bike gear. There are small cubby holes in the rear sides of the wagon area and also under the seat for little stuff, tools, handpumps, etc.

http://www.cars101.com/subaru/outback/outback2005.html

There is a picture with the Cubic Feet of storage and also the dimensions of the hatchback area.

The 100lb weight limit, it remains to be seen if this is a lawyer limitation or an actual design limitation. I know folks who run more without a problem.

What kind of kayaking do you do? Touring or WW?

Don't forget to go through IMBA or the ACA.. both offer Subarus through the VIP program.

Jay

 

[Jim Ed]

I am a member of IMBA, so I will have to look into it more. I think I might test drive one this weekend. I have done some open water (lake) and very calm white water. There are not alot of river options in Texas. I think I will by my own boat this summer. I still enjoy biking more than anything else at the moment. I have even sold some home theater gear to get bike gear. I was thinks a 3 bike sportsworks on the back, and a cage / kayak / 1 bike on the roof. It would be awesome weekend camper.

Jim Ed

 

[Jay H]

Yeah, the VIP program is excellent... You have to contact IMBA and they will send you and your dealer a letter which you bring with you when you buy. They say that you have to deal with the dealership you have preselected but I had no problem using another one. The dealership I preselected did not have them and couldn't tell me when they would get them so I went elsewhere.

You also get special pricing on all accessories and the Added Security warantee program.

As far as bike mounts, you'll find that neither Thule nor Yakima nor Saris have a good solution for using their carriers on the factory roof rack. The Thule 589xt that does "fit" the factory racks is a weird solution. It comes with a 31" load bar that will mount on top of the factory bar and then the bike carrier mounts to that.

I have found 2 fork mounted carriers that supposedly do fit the factory cross bars, one is the Rocky Mounts Noose Sl/SLX and the other is the Barrecrafters A859. Apparently, Barrecrafters is a big ski rack mfgr but very tiny in bikes and I can't find anybody online or retail that sells them.

However, Rocky Mounts is more popular and I'm going to look at one tomorrow.

Good luck, feel free to ask me any questions on it. I am going to Maine next week for some sea kayaking off the shore of Stonington and out on Acadia.. Should be fun!

Jay