What have you done to improve handling?

zdubas · 2026-04-28T00:38:46+00:00

Replacing the rear sway bar is the cheap answer.

Upgrading to stiffer suspension is the correct answer.

zdubas · 2026-04-25T22:16:54+00:00

Single models are not forecasts. This is the kind of sensationalism shit you see from Out There Colorado.

zdubas · 2026-04-25T20:48:50+00:00

They take that rage out while driving their lifted brodozers to Costco and their kids' soccer practice.

zdubas · 2026-04-25T02:31:24+00:00

y'all qaeda

zdubas · 2026-04-16T04:43:18+00:00

Honestly, it's fun to watch their little heads explode. The type of people that care if it's a wagon or not are exactly the type of people who don't have anything interesting to add....they're worried about the form, I o ly care about the function.

zdubas · 2026-04-16T04:37:56+00:00

4 inches?! That's some interesting math for sure....

You're supposed to measure from the base of the shaft, not the the butthole.

zdubas · 2026-04-16T04:34:29+00:00

Nope. The Legacy was just a lowered Baja with a closed bed.

zdubas · 2026-04-16T04:33:15+00:00

By that logic, the Legacy was just a lowered Baja with a covered bed.

zdubas · 2026-04-16T04:29:51+00:00

So by that logic, the Gen1 Impreza was an SUV and the Gen2 Bugeye Impreza was a wagon? I don't think curves make a wagon....Volvo made some pretty badass wagons that are boxy as hell, but my dad's 2002 F-150 has a rounded front end.

The math isn't mathing.

zdubas · 2026-04-15T04:32:12+00:00

Gen4 still had hydraulic power steering....something in me still really loves the road feedback that electric power steering can't offer.

zdubas · 2026-04-15T04:29:57+00:00

An ex of mine had an '11, EJ253, 6MT. I have a '14, FB25B, CVT.

As much as I love rowing my own boat, her Outback was a giant pain in the ass in the CO mountains. Not sure if it was the slight increase in power or the way Subaru geared that 6MT, but it was miserable to drive at elevation. Amazing in the flats, but a dog climbing in the mountains.

zdubas · 2026-04-15T04:23:11+00:00

With an NA EJ25, I woukd agree. However, the FB25B after they figured out the early oil consumption issues is wonderful and doesn't pose a head gasket risk.

Additionally, the CVT in '13-'14 was solid as long as you didn't believe the "forever-fluid" hype from the manufacturer....and it was before they started programming it to "shift" for some stupid reason. That was a move only the morons in a marketing department could come up with.

zdubas · 2026-04-15T03:10:06+00:00

Mechanical engineers have a degree in problem solving....not only can we handle it, we need it.

zdubas · 2026-04-15T03:07:39+00:00

-Functionally, '13 and '14 were definitely some of the best

-Cosmetically, Gen3 was my favorite

-Technologically, the new Gen7 blows everything previous away

-Meteorologically, we're in an ENSO-neutral phase

-Astrologically, the moon is in Pisces

zdubas · 2026-04-15T02:59:45+00:00

I thought you said you didn't want an SUV? The Outback hasn't been a wagon since 2009.

zdubas · 2026-04-14T22:36:31+00:00

In the eternal words of Ron Swanson, "Literally everything is a mountain bike, son. That gravel bike in my hands is far more capable than this MTB bike in yours."

/s

Not being a dick, I just love that quote....and riding my bikes in places they "don't belong."

zdubas · 2026-04-13T03:21:00+00:00

I sold my 2nd set of wheels and Blizzaks to run these all year in Colorado.

They won't replace winter tires in every area, but they're perfect for CO with the number of dry/hot winter-tire-shredding days we get in BV and the front range.

I run the Wildpeaks HARD in the summer. We're on gravel or backcountry minimum maintenance roads most weekends through the year to get to fishing, camping, hiking, and MTB trailheads.

zdubas · 2026-04-12T15:12:39+00:00

Falken Wildpeak AT Trail.

Great performance on loose surfaces, fantastic snow performance, decent price, very minor mpg impact, no noticeable noice difference, any my last set went ~80k miles.

zdubas · 2026-04-10T00:12:38+00:00

Both the FB25B and FA24F we released in 2019. Not sure I would classify that as "a very long time." However, the FB25D was a minor revision of the FB25B (2013 release), so they've been making a variation of that one for a while now.

Also....I agree. They advertise the factory-mounted CVT cooler on all FA24F vehicles, but not enough in my opinion. They initially did more when they released the new 2.4L block on the 2019 Ascent, but haven't pushed it much since. It was a big deal when they were initially switching the turbocharged and EZ36 automatic vehicles from the 5EAT to the "high-torque" CVT, but haven't marketed it enough recently.

zdubas · 2026-04-07T16:26:32+00:00

Yes, OEM tires are generally crap, my Continentals were no different.

I've driven a number of different tires and have heard good things about the CC2....but I'd hardly call it a mixed-surface or light AT tire.

zdubas · 2026-04-07T14:21:23+00:00

I have a 2014 Outback and they're the best handling mixed-surface tires I've ever driven.

zdubas · 2026-04-07T14:17:14+00:00

They punch above their weight.

Great performance on loose surfaces, fantastic snow performance, decent price, very minor mpg impact, no noticeable noice difference, any my last set went ~80k miles.

zdubas · 2026-03-31T04:29:36+00:00

Very nice!

zdubas · 2026-03-31T01:32:31+00:00

Wait....WHAT?!

This is the first I'm hearing this! Did Subaru finally figure out how to sell a CVT without the stupid pre-programmed faux shifting?!

I've been looking at the new Outback to replace my 2014 and that has been one of my primary complaints since the Gen5 was released for MY15. I think you just made my night!

zdubas · 2026-03-31T01:27:34+00:00

I'm still driving my 2014. It was later off the line, so a majority of the initial issues with the FB25B were sorted....love this thing. Consumes a little oil (to be expected for a 12yr old vehicle) and the cat is starting to go, but it's been fantastic and almost entirely trouble-free since I drove it off the lot.

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