• For more information on how to avoid pop-up ads and still support SkiTalk click HERE.

Subie/VW thoughts?

Snowfan

aka Eric Nelson
Skier
Joined
Oct 23, 2016
Posts
1,459
Location
Here and there.
thanks to everyone so far on this thread. I am doing the research myself this summer on Alltrack vs Outback. Going to keep my 07 Yukon XL, but 10 years and 131K later time for a different daily driver.

IMO a long test drive in each should reveal which one you like most. The VW has a fantastic engine and trans, and can be found with a manual trans. The Outback has an exceptional AWD system and feels light on its feet. Both are great cars and should return close to 30 mpg.
 

jzmtl

Intermidiot
Skier
Joined
Apr 25, 2017
Posts
323
Location
Montreal
Alltrack and Outback isn't the same size class eh? Former is a compact car whereas latter is midsize. Outback should have almost a foot longer cargo area (and overall length).

Notable feature for skiers is Alltrack has 40/20/40 folding rear seats, Outback only has 40/60.
 

luliski

Making fresh tracks
Skier
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
May 17, 2017
Posts
2,557
Location
California
I'm hoping not to have to get a new car until my daughter finishes college in two years, but it's good to think ahead. I'm going to let her take the 2014 Impreza to school in western New York because her she lives off campus (limited on-campus housing), and the area is just not very walkable or bike-friendly, and the public transportation is awful. That leaves me with the 2002 Honda CRV, AWD 5 speed manual. The CRV has been a great car, and I drove it across the country twice last year. But I want something more like a wagon or a hatchback for my next car. I had a 1988 VW Fox before the CRV, and I grew up with VWs and like the way they drive, so I'm thinking maybe Alltrack or Sportwagen for my next car. Or maybe another Subaru.
 

Philpug

Notorious P.U.G.
Admin
SkiTalk Tester
Joined
Nov 1, 2015
Posts
42,624
Location
Reno, eNVy
Alltrack and Outback isn't the same size class eh? Former is a compact car whereas latter is midsize. Outback should have almost a foot longer cargo area (and overall length).

Notable feature for skiers is Alltrack has 40/20/40 folding rear seats, Outback only has 40/60.

Yes, they are two different sized vehicles for sure, the Subie is more Passat sized and the Alltrack is more impreza sized. As far as the rear seats in the Alltrack, they also are a 60/40 but does offer a center pass through.

I'm hoping not to have to get a new car until my daughter finishes college in two years, but it's good to think ahead. I'm going to let her take the 2014 Impreza to school in western New York because her she lives off campus (limited on-campus housing), and the area is just not very walkable or bike-friendly, and the public transportation is awful. That leaves me with the 2002 Honda CRV, AWD 5 speed manual. The CRV has been a great car, and I drove it across the country twice last year. But I want something more like a wagon or a hatchback for my next car. I had a 1988 VW Fox before the CRV, and I grew up with VWs and like the way they drive, so I'm thinking maybe Alltrack or Sportwagen for my next car. Or maybe another Subaru.

Funny, we got our son a 2010 Impreza when he went to school in western NY, Rochester Institute of Technology.
 

luliski

Making fresh tracks
Skier
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
May 17, 2017
Posts
2,557
Location
California
Yes, they are two different sized vehicles for sure, the Subie is more Passat sized and the Alltrack is more impreza sized. As far as the rear seats in the Alltrack, they also are a 60/40 but does offer a center pass through.



Funny, we got our son a 2010 Impreza when he went to school in western NY, Rochester Institute of Technology.
Even funnier: that's where my daughter goes! So you know about the transportation issues there. Is your son still there?
 

Philpug

Notorious P.U.G.
Admin
SkiTalk Tester
Joined
Nov 1, 2015
Posts
42,624
Location
Reno, eNVy
Even funnier: that's where my daughter goes! So you know about the transportation issues there. Is your son still there?
Heh..He was in the Economics School. He graduated 6 years ago.
 

luliski

Making fresh tracks
Skier
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
May 17, 2017
Posts
2,557
Location
California
Heh..He was in the Economics School. He graduated 6 years ago.
My daughter is in Industrial Design and wants to design outdoor gear. She has an internship there over the summer working on a lift for sitzskiers (sp).
 

Philpug

Notorious P.U.G.
Admin
SkiTalk Tester
Joined
Nov 1, 2015
Posts
42,624
Location
Reno, eNVy
My daughter is in Industrial Design and wants to design outdoor gear. She has an internship there over the summer working on a lift for sitzskiers (sp).
Sounds like a great article for here.

Also...

Good: Dinosaur BBQ
Bad: Garbage Plates

Back to our regularly scheduled thread about Subarus and Volkswagens.
 

mdf

entering the Big Couloir
Skier
Team Gathermeister
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Nov 12, 2015
Posts
7,220
Location
Boston Suburbs
I don't personally like the CVT as I find the droning 4400rpm passing mode to be tortuous. I would far rather have a regular old manual box..or even the 5 speed automatic.
My wife and I always drove manual Subarus till one trade-in cycle when she couldn't get one in a reasonable amount of time. Since then she has had one old fashioned automatic, which in my opinion was undrivable, and the current CVT automatic, which is surprisingly acceptable. (And as much as I still love a manual, not in stop and go traffic, thanks....)
 

mdf

entering the Big Couloir
Skier
Team Gathermeister
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Nov 12, 2015
Posts
7,220
Location
Boston Suburbs
My wife's car and mine are both Imprezas, one model year apart, one manual and one CVT. I haven't double checked, but I'm pretty sure they have the same engine (guess I should). And to be fair, the CVT accelerates onto the freeway better than the manual. The manual is still more fun, though.
 

luliski

Making fresh tracks
Skier
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
May 17, 2017
Posts
2,557
Location
California
My wife and I always drove manual Subarus till one trade-in cycle when she couldn't get one in a reasonable amount of time. Since then she has had one old fashioned automatic, which in my opinion was undrivable, and the current CVT automatic, which is surprisingly acceptable. (And as much as I still love a manual, not in stop and go traffic, thanks....)
Yeah, I drove my manual CRV home in stop and go traffic yesterday. My foot still hurts.
 

colospgmike

Putting on skis
Skier
Joined
May 6, 2016
Posts
72
Location
Colorado Springs
Doing an unplanned test drive of a Subaru Crosstrek next few days. Finally getting the yukon into a body shop after my hit and run in the N Gondola Parking lot Dec 29th. According to the Breck police dept I was the 5th hit and run in 2 days. Most years I stay away from Summit county xmas to new years.
 

TahoeCharlie

...Major Tom...
Skier
Joined
Oct 15, 2016
Posts
356
Location
Lake Tahoe, Crystal Bay. NV
Alltrack wasn't out when I bought Forester last year, or it would've been a serious contender. The 40/20/40 folding seat alone would earn lots of points for it.

The most complaint I've heard regard CVT is that under hard acceleration it goes to a constant RPM without accelerating the car, but that only happens if the car has a hamster under the hood to begin with. My ski buddy has a CVT 3.5 Altima, I have a CVT turbo Forester, both will haul ass when pushed. We are both "car guys" more or less and neither of us has any complaint about CVT.

There are CVT's and there are "performance" CVT's. If you drive the regular kind, they are awful, IMHO, as they drone a lot and are very UN-sporty. However, Subie has done a very clever thing with the "performance" CVT in the Turbo's. They have electronically controlled it to have 6 or 8 "set" ratio's; that is, the hydraulics push the "cones" to set positions instead of being totally variable. This makes the shifting seem like a DCT (double clutch trany) as it steps up and down instantly - no droning. Several other car makers also do this, I believe. Plus you have paddle shifters that also shift "gears" and you can hold the CVT in any "gear" - great for sporty driving on mtn roads. You really have to drive one, they are totally different then the normal run-of-the-mill CVT's like in a CR-V. Also the Forester Turbo has 250 hp; a significant step up from the normal 170(?) hp subie - it makes for a really fun mtn car. I think CVT's get a bad rap because they are normally pared with low hp engines in "utility" cars and tuned for mileage.

Edit: Didn't see @Snowfan post when I made the above comments - his is an excellent post.
 
Last edited:

colospgmike

Putting on skis
Skier
Joined
May 6, 2016
Posts
72
Location
Colorado Springs
Been driving the rental Crosstrek for 3 days now. Biggest thing for me is going to be changing my frame of reference as I do the test drives this summer. Last 3 vehicles I have owned:
2001-04 F150 V8
04-07 Yukon XL V8
07 Yukon XL current
Wanting a smaller daily driver than I can still ski out of, and my job has changed. Been a Realtor for 16 years. We use to drive our clients from house to house during the buying process and that has gone away. The Yukon was (is) a fantastic platform for hauling clients, ski gear, camping gear, forest service roads up in the mountains. Ready for better MPG and easier to park.
Initial thoughts on the Crosstrek as this is the first subaru I have ever driven. Cant get out of its own way going from R to D. Is this a function of the CVT? This next thought is probably unfair but the Yukon is very plush road feel wise vs Crosstrek you really feel everything. This is probably a very apples to oranges comparison. Phil I would like to hear your thoughts on drive feel your Yukon XL vs Alltrack. Back in the day I had a 89 CRX that I bought new and put 150K on. Drove that thing allover Europe 91-96. Arrived in Colorado Springs 96 and quickly decided I didnt want to drive I-25 front range traffic w a standard so that was the end of my shifting days. Sigh.
 

Philpug

Notorious P.U.G.
Admin
SkiTalk Tester
Joined
Nov 1, 2015
Posts
42,624
Location
Reno, eNVy
This next thought is probably unfair but the Yukon is very plush road feel wise vs Crosstrek you really feel everything. This is probably a very apples to oranges comparison. Phil I would like to hear your thoughts on drive feel your Yukon XL vs Alltrack. Back in the day I had a 89 CRX that I bought new and put 150K on. Drove that thing allover Europe 91-96. Arrived in Colorado Springs 96 and quickly decided I didnt want to drive I-25 front range traffic w a standard so that was the end of my shifting days. Sigh.

Apples and Broccoli. They both fit their own need but I have never confused one for the other. The VW has a much more euro feel and the Yukon is as American as a Denny's Grand Slam breakfast.
 

Snowfan

aka Eric Nelson
Skier
Joined
Oct 23, 2016
Posts
1,459
Location
Here and there.
...Initial thoughts on the Crosstrek as this is the first subaru I have ever driven. Cant get out of its own way going from R to D. Is this a function of the CVT? This next thought is probably unfair but the Yukon is very plush road feel wise vs Crosstrek you really feel everything. This is probably a very apples to oranges comparison. Phil I would like to hear your thoughts on drive feel your Yukon XL vs Alltrack. Back in the day I had a 89 CRX that I bought new and put 150K on. Drove that thing allover Europe 91-96. Arrived in Colorado Springs 96 and quickly decided I didnt want to drive I-25 front range traffic w a standard so that was the end of my shifting days. Sigh.

Model year 2017 is the last for this generation Crosstrek. The next one, to be released in a month or two, is based on Subaru's 'Global Platform' and is a substantially better machine. Impreza switched to the global platform for 2017 and pretty much rendered the 'old' cars obsolete. Way better driveability. Expect the same with Crosstrek.

A 2018 would be worth waiting for.

My 17 Outback does not have any R to D delay or odd behavior so not sure what you experienced.
 
Last edited:

colospgmike

Putting on skis
Skier
Joined
May 6, 2016
Posts
72
Location
Colorado Springs
When I would back out of the driveway and shift from R to D bit of a delay getting going I dunno 1 sec nothing major but combined with pretty slow at start till the RPMs moved up made for pretty sluggish performance. Did a bit better sitting at a stop light in D and just getting off the brake and accelerating. Will be able to compare when I do the Outback test drive. Could also just be the Crosstrek being a rental and seeing some tough love from the various "owners". Could also be my level of expectation after driving nothing but V8's since 2001.
 

Philpug

Notorious P.U.G.
Admin
SkiTalk Tester
Joined
Nov 1, 2015
Posts
42,624
Location
Reno, eNVy
I will say the DSG isn't the smoothest off of the line, you have to pay attention to peddle pressure.
 

Sponsor

Top