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Subaru launches production of Ascent crossover in Indiana

Subaru began production Monday of the new Ascent, its much-anticipated three-row crossover, at its plant in Lafayette, Ind. It's set to arrive at dealers in June as a 2019 model and will start at $32,970, including shipping. The Ascent joins the Impreza, Legacy and Outback as vehicles built at the plant. It'll compete with three-row utility vehicles like the Honda Pilot, Toyota Highlander, Chevrolet Traverse and Volkswagen Atlas. (Read our comparison of the Ascent to the former two here.) Subaru built around 364,000 vehicles at the Indiana plant last year and expects the Ascent to nudge that up to around 400,000 vehicles a year. The automaker spent $140 million and added 1,200 jobs at Lafayette to support the Ascent. The company in late 2016 shifted production of the Impreza sedan and hatchback to the factory, its lone manufacturing site outside of Japan, to free up room at its plant in Gunma Prefecture for the hot-selling Crosstrek, which has been singlehandedly lifting Subaru's U.S. sales lately. A Subaru spokesman told Autoblog recently that the company hopes to sell 60,000 Ascents in the first year and had already booked more than 4,000 sold orders on the vehicle from customers who hadn't seen or driven it. The Ascent will come in either seven- or eight-seat configurations, is offered in all-wheel-drive and is based on a modified version of the same Subaru Global Platform that underpins the Impreza. It's powered by an all-new 2.4-liter turbocharged boxer four-cylinder that makes 260 horsepower and 277 pound-feet of torque. It fills a slot formerly occupied by the Tribeca, Subaru's last three-row vehicle, which was discontinued in 2014. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

2015 Subaru Outback wading into NY show fray

The current-generation Subaru Outback was never going to win any beauty contests with its blend of rugged SUV looks and station wagon design. Still, it's found lots of fans - even five years after its launch, the Outback was Subaru's second-highest selling model in 2013. With the reveal of the next-generation 2015 Legacy at the Chicago Auto Show, it should be no surprise that Car and Driver says Subaru will reveal the next Outback at the New York Auto Show in April.
If previous generations are any indication, the next Outback will likely borrow liberally from the new Legacy, including its platform and engines. In addition to its five-door, station wagon design, the Outback will almost assuredly feature added body cladding and a higher ride height than the Legacy. Subaru's big push with the new Legacy will be to improve interior quality and comfort with liquid-filled engine mounts, an acoustic glass windshield, increased sound deadening, new infotainment systems and new safety tech. All of these will probably appear in the Outback as well.
After its rumored New York reveal, the 2015 Outback is expected to go on sale around the same time as the new Legacy in the summer of 2014.

2021 Subaru Outback Review | Still marching to its own drum

The Subaru Outback has always been different. At first, it was weird for a wagon since it had standard all-wheel drive, a ride height lift and rugged styling flourishes. Today, it's weird simply for being a wagon – all others have effectively disappeared, and it really only competes with small crossovers. And against those, the 2021 Subaru Outback makes a tremendous case for itself. Though it rides high off the ground with more clearance than the vast majority of SUVs, it's ultimately still lower overall, making it feel more carlike when behind the wheel and making for easier loading for roof-mounted equipment. Its longer wheelbase provides a smoother, more sophisticated ride as well as more space between seating rows. Its cargo area is also shockingly voluminous. Throw in its abundance of safety and infotainment tech, standard all-wheel drive, solid reliability ratings and improved interior quality with last year's redesign, and you have a vehicle that's easy to recommend. We even deemed it a superior choice to Subaru's own compact crossover, the Forester. What's new for 2021? After being completely redesigned last year, the Outback gains two new standard features for 2021: steering responsive LED headlights and a rear seat reminder that alerts you to check in the back seat for children before exiting the car. What are the Outback interior and in-car technology like? Nearly every 2021 Outback comes with a vertically oriented 11.6-inch touchscreen (and even that lone exception comes with a pair of 7-inch units, pictured above right). Its functionality isn't flawless, as the audio controls when using Apple CarPlay are compromised, and the colorful graphics are a bit cartoonish and have an aftermarket look to them. Still, it's generally easy to use, read and reach. Feature content is excellent as well (see pricing and features section below). Unfortunately, typical for Subaru, stereo sound quality is poor. In terms of design, we can't say the interior is especially attractive, but materials quality is stronger than it was in the past. The buttons and switches have a high-quality feel to them, while even the base trim gets simulated leather stitched together on the dash, doors and center console. There's also a welcome injection of color found in the Touring (tasteful brown leather pictured above) and the Onyx Edition pictured below (gray and black "StarTex" vinyl accented in electric green). How big is the Outback? Think a wagon is smaller than an SUV?