2017 Subaru Outback: What’s Changed

CARS.COM

• Most significant changes: New Touring model is the most expensive version, and reverse automatic braking and automatic high beams are now included with the EyeSight Driver Assist Technology system. Limited model Subaru Outbacks get a standard moonroof and push-button start.
• Price change: Varies by Outback model. The base 2.5i is up $650, the 2.5i Premium is $300 more, the 2.5iLimited increases by $1,995 and the Subaru Outback 3.6R Limited is up $1,600. The destination charge is $25 more at $875.
• On sale: Now
• Which should you buy, 2016 or 2017? 2017 model year because of the additional safety features.

Related: More Subaru News

A new Touring model for 2017 becomes the top-shelf version of Subaru’s Outback, a wagon based on the Subaru Legacy sedan that dresses and acts like a crossover.

The Outback Touring redesign is available with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder or 3.6-liter six-cylinder engine. Standard features on this Subaru Outback include 18-inch alloy wheels, a dark gray grille, chrome exterior trim, heated steering wheel, woodgrain and piano-black interior trim, a navigation system with a 7-inch screen, a three-year satellite radio and traffic service subscription, and the Starlink Safety Plus emergency communications system.

Like all Outbacks, the new Touring model comes with all-wheel drive. The starting price for the 2.5i Touring is $36,870 and for the 3.6R Touring it is $39,070, including the $875 destination charge. The EyeSight Driver Assist Technology system is standard on the Outback Touring, and for 2017 it includes two new features: Reverse automatic braking uses four sonar sensors in the rear bumper to automatically stop the vehicle to avoid collisions, and automatic high beams dim the headlights when an oncoming vehicle is detected.

Subaru’s camera-based EyeSight system, which monitors adaptive cruise control and provides precollision braking and lane departure warning and prevention, is a $1,995 option on the Subaru Outback 2.5i Premium and 2.5i Limited and $1,595 on the 3.6R Limited.

Subaru’s base prices are up by $1,995 on the 2.5i Limited and $1,600 on the 3.6R Limited trims because a power moonroof and keyless access with push-button start are now standard.

The Outback seats five between the front and rear seats and comes with 8.7 inches of ground clearance, which makes it more capable off the beaten path than some crossovers. Acceleration in the redesigned Subaru Outback is modest with the 2.5-liter four-cylinder and spirited with the 3.6-liter six-cylinder. Both engines team with a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) that seems happier with Subaru’s six-cylinder.

The Outback’s prices are competitive with other compact and midsize crossovers, and its fuel economy ratings are better than several rivals, plus the available EyeSight system has received a top rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. All of that makes the Outback a not-quite-an-SUV worth considering.