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Honda CR-V vs. Subaru Outback

28 messages,  Last post on Mar 31, 2009 at 11:54 AM

You are in the Subaru Legacy & Outback Forum.

What is this discussion about? Subaru Outback, Honda CR-V, Car Buying, Sedan, Wagon

Messages Page 3 of 3

#19 of 28 Re: I own a 2007 Outback; trading it in for 2009 CR-V ... [denver5357] by ateixeira

Mar 17, 2009 (8:05 am)

Replying to: denver5357 (Mar 16, 2009 2:21 pm)
The 2009 Forester is certainly less quirky, though I still miss our spunky 1998 Forester. It had tons of character, and ours was reliable.

#20 of 28 Re: I own a 2007 Outback; trading it in for 2009 CR-V ... [ateixeira] by denver5357

Mar 17, 2009 (8:15 am)

Replying to: ateixeira (Mar 17, 2009 8:05 am)
Understood. And I considered the new Foresters, which I like design-wise much better than the older, boxy versions. But at this point my wife is done with Subarus. She lost confidence in the brand, and I have my orders.

#21 of 28 Re: I own a 2007 Outback; trading it in for 2009 CR-V ... [denver5357] by ateixeira

Mar 17, 2009 (9:12 am)

Replying to: denver5357 (Mar 17, 2009 8:15 am)
Yeah, and I wouldn't push her. You would have nothing to gain. Even if it's the perfect car it's not like she'd give you credit for it.
 
You'd sure be blamed if it wasn't!
 
You know what I miss? The unpainted bumper and cladding. The 1998 was bullet proof. You hit something and the bumper would bounce back in to place, magically self-healing. It was incredibly durable and easy to keep clean.

#22 of 28 Re: I own a 2007 Outback; trading it in for 2009 CR-V ... [denver5357] by blueiedgod

Mar 19, 2009 (9:39 am)

Replying to: denver5357 (Mar 15, 2009 10:06 am)
- It has issues starting, especially at altitude. One time my wife took our son skiing at about 9500 feet and it wouldn't start. She eventually got it going with use of the gas pedal, and when we called the dealer, they said this is common and it is a quirk of a Subaru. My wife has been reluctant to take the car into the mountains ever since.
 
I would file a complaint with NHTSA for not having this information in the OWNER's MANUAL. The CR-V manual states to have throttle partially open when starting at higher altitudes, or extreme cold.

#23 of 28 Re: I own a 2007 Outback; trading it in for 2009 CR-V ... [blueiedgod] by ateixeira

Mar 20, 2009 (12:48 pm)

Replying to: blueiedgod (Mar 19, 2009 9:39 am)
I think the dealer was full of it. There's no way that's normal.
 
Half the vehicles in the ski mountain parking lot are Subarus, are they kidding? There would be hundreds of them stranded if that were normal.

#24 of 28 Re: Honda CR-V vs. Subaru Outback [ateixeira] by radar1

Mar 24, 2009 (8:20 pm)

Replying to: ateixeira (Jun 30, 2008 8:07 am)
The IIHS just rated the Forester and CR-V in the new rollover test. Forester scored well (good) and will remain a "top safety pick" but the CR-V did not score as well (marginal) and will be dropped as a "top safety pick" next year.
http://www.iihs.org/news/rss/pr032409.html
I like the cargo space in the Outback, it has a long floor area so I have less need to stack items vertically, and the back seat folds flat, and I like the ability to tow my pop-up camper while carrying 2 kayaks on top. The Outback is rated to pull 2700 lbs.
 
John

#25 of 28 Re: Honda CR-V vs. Subaru Outback [radar1] by denver5357

Mar 28, 2009 (7:57 am)

Replying to: radar1 (Mar 24, 2009 8:20 pm)
I think that''s the issue ... if all you need is cargo space, the Outback may work for you. If you want space for rear seat passengers and even the driver and front-seat passenger, the CR-V is far more comfortable and also provides cargo space.

#26 of 28 Re: Honda CR-V vs. Subaru Outback [denver5357] by nornet

Mar 28, 2009 (8:13 am)

Replying to: denver5357 (Mar 28, 2009 7:57 am)
The legroom in the 2010 Subaru is supposed to be 5" more than last years. I bought a 2007 Outback and it's tight back there on anything other than city drives. With the extra room, the Subaru will be the clear winner. There's no comparison between the 2 when it comes to driveability.

#27 of 28 Re: Honda CR-V vs. Subaru Outback [nornet] by denver5357

Mar 28, 2009 (9:52 am)

Replying to: nornet (Mar 28, 2009 8:13 am)
Well, I think that's a matter of opinion. We owned a 2007 Outback and traded it in (see earlier post), and driveability (which can mean different things to different people) was IMO a big part of that.

#28 of 28 Re: Honda CR-V vs. Subaru Outback [radar1] by ateixeira

Mar 31, 2009 (11:54 am)

Replying to: radar1 (Mar 24, 2009 8:20 pm)
I saw that (in another thread). That's very disappointing given all the hype over Honda's ACE body protection.
 
I've noticed a trend with crash tests in the small SUV segment.
 
Subaru does well right off the bat. For instance the 99 Forester earned a "Good" in the frontal offset test, the first in class to do so. The new roof crush test appears and again Subaru does well right away, the first time it's tested.
 
Honda and Toyota tend to learn their lessons, i.e. they get it right on the 2nd attempt. Note how they tend to have middling scores at first, but then improve with redesigns and catch up to Subaru. I bet the next generations of the CR-V and RAV4 will match the Forester's roof crush resistance, in fact I'd bet on it.
 
Finally, the Koreans always seem to be 2 steps behind. Very disappointing that they finally were improving on their frontal scores and then we see dismal scores for the roof structure.
 
Kudos to Subaru, though, for getting it right from the get-go.

Messages Page 3 of 3

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