Subaru

[Doug]

Has anyone driven a Subaru off road? Are they any good once you leave the pavement?

 

[Tombs]

I've ran the hell out of an old XT6 in snow deep enough it was plowing it up over the hood and onto the roof, without getting stuck. Only time I managed to hang it up on anything was when I completely beached the chassis on a deep ditch, which it still got out of under its own power with enough rocking.

I'd say they're pretty capable off road. Especially with bigger tires and a lift. That car did have a button to lock the center diff, though. And first gear was low enough you didn't have to give it gas to release the clutch.

 

[Jin]

I've had two Foresters (04 XS & 04 XT). I'm not taking them on serious trails or rock crawling. Excellent on dirt, snow and sand. Ground clearance would be the first challenge you run into.

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk

 

[Tactically Fat]

Subaru's CVTs will always be their weak points.

That and head gaskets, apparently.

Start adding in larger wheels and tires and you really add strain to the drive-line.

And unless you want a manual transmission (which isn't necessarily all that easy to do off roading) - then Subaru probably isn't the best platform.

 

[Butch627]

Some context on where you would want to drive and under what conditions might be helpful.

 

[snorko]

I drove an Outback from 2012-2018 and have been in a Forester since. published ground clearance is around 9"-9.5" and the lack of traditional axles makes it a pretty clean underside. I never had a problem in snow.

I am an appraiser and do a lot of bulk land and corridors. Think 15,000 acres of reclaimed strip mined lan, 25 mile rail corridors, etc. No, I would not want to rock climb in one but I have never not been able to go where I wanted. I previously drove a Jeep Grand Cherokee and a Dodge Dakota 4WD so I have an idea what they can do. The one significant weakness is tires. I would not go down a road that was 100% deep soft mud. I am soon to need new tires and will probably stay with an all season tread, but it is tempting to get a slightly more aggressive tire.

 

[TheGhostRider]

I’ve driven jeeps exclusively since 1985… Until 2014.
I traded my 2001 Jeep Cherokee in on a 2013 Subaru Crosstrek. It would run circles around my Wranglers and Cherokees in stock platform.
I get 30 mpg on the highway and goes anywhere I point it.
Love that thing.

 

[manifest destiny]

Subaru isn't going to rock climb, ford a river or go through DEEP mud. But the chances of getting stuck anywhere else is very low. We abused a 1980's Subaru driving it down into wooded hollers to fetch firewood. The hatch was missing. Passenger door wouldn't open. The overhead light wouldn't turn off. Clutch slipped a little. Between our ignorance and sadistic intent towards that car, we never got it stuck. Not once.

 

[Ark]

Subaru's CVTs will always be their weak points.

Other people when you ask them if they could un-invent one thing:

"Nuclear weapons!" "Nerve gas!" "Twitter!"

Me:

"The CVT."

 

[gregkl]

I drove an Outback from 2012-2018 and have been in a Forester since. published ground clearance is around 9"-9.5" and the lack of traditional axles makes it a pretty clean underside. I never had a problem in snow.

I am an appraiser and do a lot of bulk land and corridors. Think 15,000 acres of reclaimed strip mined lan, 25 mile rail corridors, etc. No, I would not want to rock climb in one but I have never not been able to go where I wanted. I previously drove a Jeep Grand Cherokee and a Dodge Dakota 4WD so I have an idea what they can do. The one significant weakness is tires. I would not go down a road that was 100% deep soft mud. I am soon to need new tires and will probably stay with an all season tread, but it is tempting to get a slightly more aggressive tire.

Snorko, get a set of these:

 

[snorko]

When it's time for a new daily driver, let the metamorphosis begin...

 

[NobeyamaGP]

I've daily driven an 05 WRX for over 10 years now. It has a 1.5" lift and Yokohama all-terrains and the only time i've gotten stuck is in a particularly tall snow drift pulling into my driveway where I didn't have enough momentum to make my way through it. So long as I can carry momentum, I've been able to get around in dirt, mud, snow, etc without getting stuck. Like others have mentioned, I've been in snow deep enough to plow with the front end and so long as I didn't stop I had no issues getting through. It's been a remarkable little car.

 

[russc2542]

Avoid a CVT at all costs. Avoid the newer ones with eyesight and all the nanny crap. My FIL has spent more on repairs in 3 years and 90k WITH a service contract/insurance/extended warranty thing, than I did on my 18 year old Baja in 4-5 years and 38k. Almost all the problems were with equipment my Baja didn't even have.

Headgaskets are an over-hyped failure. 90% of the time they just leak oil externally. I got my NA Baja with them leaking and sold it 38k later with them still leaking. They don't "blow" the head gaskets (combustion chamber failures) any more than the average car from what I've seen. Turbos use MLS gaskets and are usually only a problem when modded without tuning.

As for offroad... that's largely up to the tires.

ATs use active center diffs, after slippage they tighten up. MTs usually use viscous center diffs to always provide some lockup at the expense of never fully locking. Only rear LSD used was also viscous unless you got a top performance edition. Most are geared too tall for actual crawling but just rough unpaved terrain they do better than the average sedan. Do some research on weights and gearing between models before you buy, I've heard lots of comments on the forums and failbook about how the Bajas (like mine) are so much slower than, say, a forester. well yea, it's 400lbs lighter with shorter gears.

I haven't done any serious offroading with mine but in the generous snow last year I drove around my wife's car stuck in the driveway to try to pull her out. As long as the weight's on the tires it'll move. *Note that due to the viscous center and rear diff's limited total lockup, you need weight on all 4 tires. start getting one airborne and it'll stop quick.

 

[manifest destiny]

Avoid a CVT at all costs. Avoid the newer ones with eyesight and all the nanny crap. My FIL has spent more on repairs in 3 years and 90k WITH a service contract/insurance/extended warranty thing, than I did on my 18 year old Baja in 4-5 years and 38k. Almost all the problems were with equipment my Baja didn't even have.

Headgaskets are an over-hyped failure. 90% of the time they just leak oil externally. I got my NA Baja with them leaking and sold it 38k later with them still leaking. They don't "blow" the head gaskets (combustion chamber failures) any more than the average car from what I've seen. Turbos use MLS gaskets and are usually only a problem when modded without tuning.

As for offroad... that's largely up to the tires.

ATs use active center diffs, after slippage they tighten up. MTs usually use viscous center diffs to always provide some lockup at the expense of never fully locking. Only rear LSD used was also viscous unless you got a top performance edition. Most are geared too tall for actual crawling but just rough unpaved terrain they do better than the average sedan. Do some research on weights and gearing between models before you buy, I've heard lots of comments on the forums and failbook about how the Bajas (like mine) are so much slower than, say, a forester. well yea, it's 400lbs lighter with shorter gears.

I haven't done any serious offroading with mine but in the generous snow last year I drove around my wife's car stuck in the driveway to try to pull her out. As long as the weight's on the tires it'll move. *Note that due to the viscous center and rear diff's limited total lockup, you need weight on all 4 tires. start getting one airborne and it'll stop quick.

This. For a commuter car that needs to travel on snow/ice and park on grass/dirt, it's hard to beat a stock Subaru. Per my previous post, I've helped to beat the snot out of a Subaru. I would just point out that one doesn't see too many Subaru's with extensive mods. One also doesn't see many stuck on the side of the road. CVT's, per say, aren't inherently bad.

 

[russc2542]

This. For a commuter car that needs to travel on snow/ice and park on grass/dirt, it's hard to beat a stock Subaru. Per my previous post, I've helped to beat the snot out of a Subaru. I would just point out that one doesn't see too many Subaru's with extensive mods. One also doesn't see many stuck on the side of the road. CVT's, per say, aren't inherently bad.

CVTs are the spawn of Satan. Inherently, no but in execution, yes. Like communism, they're great on paper but leave you wanting in reality. Granted subaru rates them to tow as much as the other transmissions and they've come a LONG ways since 20 years ago but no, just no. We've coming full circle with them where people are complaining about the engine just sitting at a certain RPM because of them so automakers are programming in steps like it's a traditional auto. I'll take a good, old fashioned, mechanical drivetrain, manual transmission any day of the week.

I mention modding because headgaskets were mentioned up-thread and that's a great way to blow them. That and there are a lot of modded turbo subies. Not a lot of engine-modded NAs because there are turbos. I thought about modding my NA and putting together a list that was more expensive than a turbo Baja... so I got that instead.

 

[manifest destiny]

I wish they still made the baja. And maybe tweaked it or allowed for aftermarket tweaking. It was the modern BRAT but never really caught on. CVT's? It seems like they're ideal on paper but never work out in practice. The alternative of 6-10 speed trannies don't seem much better. Towing with a Subaru is rather limited at any rate. And manual transmission? Practically unheard of in daily drivers.

 

[Usmccookie]

Similar ground clearance to a jeep cherokee.
8.7" compare to 8.6" iirc

 

[OkieGirl]

Following...

Looking at the Outback Wilderness for next year and currently researching the maker. I drive 'em till the wheels fall off so the next one will need to make the transition to rural living in a few years; must be capable of handling curved roads where there are significant drop offs and changes in terrain. Mostly paved but the final 5+ miles home are after the blacktop ends...

 

[COOPADUP]

I wish they still made the baja. And maybe tweaked it or allowed for aftermarket tweaking. It was the modern BRAT but never really caught on. CVT's? It seems like they're ideal on paper but never work out in practice. The alternative of 6-10 speed trannies don't seem much better. Towing with a Subaru is rather limited at any rate. And manual transmission? Practically unheard of in daily drivers.

I asked about manual transmissions when I purchased a 2017 outback, they won’t even make them in the US.

 

[Tactically Fat]

I asked about manual transmissions when I purchased a 2017 outback, they won’t even make them in the US.

Right now, I think the Crosstek is the only one with an available manual.