NOT SO ROUGH, STILL AS READY (some text hidden) --NONE--

BY ANDY ENRIGHT

Introductionword count: 67

If you appreciate the difference between genuine quality (as in reliability and customer satisfaction) versus what is dubbed 'perceived quality' (soft touch interiors and reassuring door slam sounds), you'll probably be a big fan of the Subaru Outback. Peerlessly reliable, the Outback is the most dependable car of its ilk and, as such, makes a very smart used buy. Here's what to keep your eyes peeled for.

Modelsword count: 14

Models Covered: 2.5, 3.0 petrol estate 2006- to date [S, SE , 3.0R, 3.0Rn]

Historyword count: 123

It's hard to believe that the Outback has been on sale in the UK for more than a decade but when Subaru announced the fourth generation car in 2005, it had a lot to live up to, successive generations getting better and better. Sales never really matched the car's ability though and the Outback never really sold in big numbers primarily because it was never offered with a diesel engine. So for 2005, the Outback.. again had no diesel. Quite why Subaru haven't been able to tie up an agreement for another manufacturer to supply them with oil burners is anyone's guess but with two engines and three trim levels, the Outback range was at least fairly easy to get a handle on.

What You Getword count: 373

Many customers will be sold the moment they clap eyes on the latest Outback, something the old model could never really rely upon. All the Subaru trademarks continue. The frameless windows, the boxer engines and the all-wheel drive transmissions are all present and correct, but the big difference is that the Outback is at last a car that your passengers will enjoy as much as you do. I remember once enthusing about an Outback's four-wheel drive system while at the same time spotting my wife's barely concealed disdain for a cupholder that grated cheaply from its aperture. There are certainly no such issues with the latest car. Subaru poached Andreas Zapatinas from Alfa Romeo for the design of this model and in doing so, they snagged a very capable designer. Certainly these days Subaru seem to have a little more integration between their engineering and design departments. In this guise, the Outback at last became the car that most car nuts wished it always had been. The styling was sharpened up, excised of all the fussy detailing and gawky lines. The basic silhouette still shouts Subaru, but the deftness of detail in the headlamps, the swage lines and the perceived tension in the body is something that prior to this model, had eluded the crayon-wielders at Subaru. Everything was just that little bit neater. The mirrors house Mercedes style side repeaters, the wheelarches bulge gently out, topped by a pronounced hip. The roof pillars are elegantly slim and the wheels do a better job of filling the arches. One can almost imagine Zapatinas taking a red pen to blueprints of the old car. If you think that the exterior lines are sharp, just wait until you drop into the cabin. Although it's not quite Audi or BMW quality, the fascia is one of the better designs out there with an aluminium strip running its length. Gone are the acres of brittle grey plastics, flimsy cupholders, scratchy fabrics and uninspiring dials that characterised previous models. In their place sits a dashboard with a sleekly industrial metallic finish, featuring overlapping aluminium-ringed dials, soft-touch surfaces and rubber and felt-lined door pockets and cubbies. Head and legroom are generous up front and the seats are reassuringly supportive.

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