Video: 2026 Subaru Outback Up Close: Practically Perfect?

There's new styling, there's more power, there's new equipment, there's a new interior, there's a new multimedia system, there's a lot to talk about with the new 2026 Subaru Outback, let's get started. The new styling of the Subaru Outback is a clear departure from the old soap bar wagon aesthetic, but only to a point. In spy shots, we saw the new upright boxy cabin styling and two inch taller roof line and worried that it was gonna be more Forester SUV than the Legacy wagon, but that turned out not to be the case at all. Yeah, there's still a much more formal roof line and greenhouse look to the Outback than it's ever had, but it still maintains its wagon proportions far more than a Forester does. The roof rack has also seen some design improvements, being easier to use and set up, and now featuring an 800 pound static and 220 pound dynamic load rating. There's also a 220 pound lateral load rating from the sides of the crossbars, which Subaru says enables you to safely hang a hammock or clothes line from the rack. Other Outback attributes still remain too. It still sits 8.7 inches above the pavement with more ground clearance than some dedicated SUVs, and it still comes with standard all-wheel drive with X-MODE to get you up and over challenging terrain. So all the stuff that made the Outback a favorite still remains. It just looks completely different from any outback that's come before it. The new styling takes a step back from the recent Subaru weirdness too, with cleaner, better proportioned trim over the wheel wells, a less busy front end, a smooth, full width taillight in the rear end. Just an overall look that makes us think someone finally busted down the door to the Subaru design studio and said, "Enough already!" If you want something even more butch however, there's a new Outback Wilderness model that does kick things up a notch with black plastic grills, fog lights, beefier cladding, and the thematic gold trim highlights. But none of that is out of place for a more off-road capable wilderness model. Inside, you've got massive improvements to just about everywhere you look and touch. The Outback's increasingly odd and unusual exterior styling was one of our main gripes with the old model, and that's been successfully addressed. But the old Outback's dated interior with its ancient gauges and terrible vertical touchscreen with integrated touch sensitive buttons for the climate control was another gripe. And those complaints have also apparently been heard. The Outback's new interior is fantastic, a total rethink of the old Subaru look. The 12.3 inch digital gauge cluster is fresh, modern, and far more configurable than the old analog gauges. The new multimedia screen, however, is a revelation. Subaru has gone from an old cranky, unloved, Linux based multimedia screen and software to the fully modern Google Android automotive based operating system. And while the Google stuff may not be flawless in any application in which we've tested it, it's a damn sight better than what Subaru had been using. The 12.1 inch display looks similar to Toyota's latest multimedia system, but it works better. The Subaru system offers a home screen, it's far more reconfigurable and it operates with a lightning speed, even in the early prototype model I sat in. All of the Outback's dashboard bits have been upgraded over the old model as Subaru recognized that switching frequently used systems to touchscreen controls in the last Outback was the wrong thing to do. They've rectified this too with large, easy to use hard buttons for the climate controls and other frequently used functions. The redone interior is just a home run. The driver's seating position is excellent, just high enough to give a commanding view out, but still low enough that it feels like you're in a wagon and not an SUV. The back seats are spacious with more headroom than before even with the moon roof and plenty of leg room. There's space for three people in the second row or drop the seats and enjoy cavernous cargo room that's a couple cubic feet larger than before, thanks again to that taller roof. It's all upholstered and upgraded faux leather materials as well, no more cloth seats for the Outback and it looks and feels much more premium than the outgoing model. The layout, the easy reach to all the controls, the bright and easy to read displays, the return of hard buttons, the spacious comfortable seats, the bigger cargo capacity, it's all just perfect. I can't point to anything and say that doesn't work. That doesn't happen often with new vehicle redesigns, but Subaru has done an amazing job here. While the new Outback looks quite different, it might not behave all that differently given that the power trains carry over largely unchanged. You still have a choice of a 2.5 liter flat four cylinder engine pumping out in a rather unremarkable 180 horsepower and 178 pounds feet of torque through a standard, continuously variable automatic transmission. But the optional engine found in the XT and Wilderness models is a Turbocharged 2.4 liter version of that engine making a much more robust 260 horsepower and 277 pounds feet of torque. That should get the Outback moving much more smartly. And as before, all-wheel drive is standard, just like it is on most Subaru models. The Wilderness model gets a lot more capable as well. While you can now get 19 inch wheels on your regular Outback, the wilderness goes with 17 inch wheels wrapped with Bridgestone Dueler All-terrain Tires. It also gets some suspension modifications, resulting in a nine and a half inch ride height and new electronically controlled shock absorbers that work with the Outback Wilderness's X-MODE offroad mode to better dampen the ride on rough terrain. X-MODE, which comes on every Outback, is now activated by a steering wheel button instead of digging through touchscreen menus as well, further enhancing the ease of using the Outback's off-road chops. From a safety standpoint, every Outback comes with the latest generation of EyeSight Driver Assist Technology as standard equipment. It's a laundry list of driver assist tech, including things like front pre-collision braking, adaptive cruise control, lane centering, lane departure warning, lane sway warning, et cetera, et cetera, the list is long, but a new hands-free highway cruise control system can now be had on the Outback. Much like General Motors' Super Cruise, it operates on specially mapped highway sections, requires the driver to always pay attention and works up to 85 miles per hour. Overall, I can't find anything I don't like about the new Outback. The only thing really missing is a hybrid model, and I'd be very surprised if one doesn't show up sometime during the seventh generation's model run. Subaru has transformed the cult classic that a lot of today's young buyers grew up in into a new, stylish, fully modern family truckster that has genuine appeal. They've managed to create something that should still appeal to the wagon loving Subaru stans who have kept the Outback going for 30 years now, and to people who hadn't previously considered one 'cause it just didn't look SUV-ish enough. The new 2026 Subaru Outback and Outback Wilderness won't be appearing in showrooms until early 2026, so it's almost a year away and we're gonna have to wait until closer to its on sale day to really get some final pricing and even some of the final specs of the car. But what they've changed has been really extraordinary, they fixed just about everything that we had a gripe with about the old Outback. These things are gonna be very popular, so if you'd like to get your hands on one of the first ones, better get friendly with your local Subaru dealer. Now, if you'd like to learn more about the new 2026 Subaru Outback or Outback Wilderness, you could look everything up at cars.com/news.