New Subaru Outback unveiled with boxy styling and Wilderness sub-brand

Subaru has revealed the seventh-generation Outback, which looks to be more rugged than ever before. 

Aside from the new styling, the biggest news about this new Outback is the Wilderness sub-brand now part of the standard range, bringing with it off-road modifications to improve is capabilities. 

Beneath the bonnet of the standard Outback is a 2.5-litre four-cylinder boxer engine, that makes 137kW of power and 245Nm of torque. This is no change over the current model. 

Wilderness variants make use of a turbocharged version of the same engine, pumping out 194kW of power and 382Nm of torque. This is 8kW down on the WRX, but the Outback Wilderness gets an additional 32Nm of torque. 

As for fuel economy, Subaru claims a figure of 8.1l/100km for the standard Outback, whereas Wilderness models up this to 9.7l/100km. 

All Outback variants will get Subaru’s all-wheel drive system, and a continuously variable transmission with its “eight-speed” manual mode. 

Standard exterior equipment across the range includes 18-inch alloy wheels that are wrapped in 225/60 R18 Bridgestone rubber. 

All Outback models now get a dual-pinion electric power steering system as standard. According to Subaru, this system has been carried over from the WRX, and provides a quicker, more direct feeling to the steering system. 

Wilderness variants will get an electronically controlled damper system which looks to improve ride quality and stability off-road. 

On the inside, it gets a 12.1-inch infotainment display in the centre of the dash, which gets wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto connectivity. It also makes use of a 12.3-inch digital cluster. 

Subaru also notes that it has moved the climate controls back to physical buttons to reduce accidental inputs with gloves and such. 

New Zealand pricing and specification for this new Subaru Outback is yet to be revealed.