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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 4

#13 of 28 I own a 2007 Outback; trading it in for 2009 CR-V ... by denver5357

Mar 15, 2009 (10:06 am)

Just noticed this thread and thought I would chime in, as it fits my situation.
 
We bought a 2007 Outback "iwagon" two years ago. We have two kids under 9, and we wanted a safe, reliable vehicle with better mileage than an SUV that could go in the snow in the winter.
 
The Outback is safe. And it goes in the snow. But we aren't sure about reliability, and it can be as annoying as heck. After two years, our observations:
 
- Not enough width in the front seats; we're not huge people, but my knees are cramped on both sides no matter how I adjust the seat and wheel. Thought I could used to it but instead it has become more annoying (maybe I'm getting bigger?!).
- Not enough room in the back seat for the kids in their car seats ... and even if our oldest goes without a booster, if he is behind me, he is cramped. If Subaru only had taken 5 inches from the cargo area and put them in the back seat ... you rarely use that cargo room, and when you do need it, fold the seats down. But no.
- 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. It also turns over very - I mean, very - slowly in weather below 15 degrees F. I have a '93 Corolla that doesn't do that. We thought it was a battery problem and replaced it with a higher end battery. Still does it. I called Subaru of America and they assigned a case number, but no one ever contacted me.
- We have a 4 cyl AT, and it shifts back and forth almost randomly when we take it up a long incline. Very annoying. Again, my '93 Corolla, with far less horsepower, at least shifts in a logical fashion on inclines.
- The brakes have begun grinding .. a low, deep sound. Dealer said it was excess brake dust and cleaned them off for free. Grinding continued. It isn't every time. Doesn't seem to correlate to cold. It comes and goes. Never had a car do this.
- The bizarre tire pressure monitoring system comes on every other time we have a big change in daytime temp one day to daytime temp the next day (which where I live can be as much as 60 degrees). The dealer said the TPMS gives false positives so we ignored it for a few weeks, then had the tires checked during oil change and two were indeed low. That has happened twice in two years (different tires) ... why do these tires seem to lose air so easily? Neither of our other cars have this issue. We don't know whether to trust the TPMS or not, and I'm back to checking manually just like in 1985.
 
People where we live who have Subarus seem to love them, but our experienced has been poor. The car is sound. It just seems to have weird issues that are the opposite of what we would like, and some of them get at the very heart of what a car should do - work well. So we've been test driving the CR-V and RAV-4, and we are close to trading in the Outback and buying the Honda (also underpowered, but at least it shifts normally and has a 3rd gear lock for consistent power).
 
Our last remaing question: Is a CR-V as good in the snow as an Outback?
 
That's our .02's.

#14 of 28 by rsholland

Mar 15, 2009 (12:08 pm)

Our last remaing question: Is a CR-V as good in the snow as an Outback?
 
No. The CRV has an on-demand AWD, meaning it's only AWD when the front wheels slip, otherwise it's a FWD car. Not so with the Outback, or any Subaru, as they have full-time AWD.
 
Bob

#15 of 28 Re: [rsholland] by krzyss

Mar 15, 2009 (6:21 pm)

Replying to: rsholland (Mar 15, 2009 12:08 pm)
"We have a 4 cyl AT"
 
this particular Subaru AWD is very similar to Honda's.
 
You want to be safe in snow, ice and whatever winter throws at you at elevation of 9500 feet you use winter tires, probably studless ice tires like Blizzak WS-60.
And do not use them with less than half of the tread left in winter.
 
Krzys
 
PS TPMS as any device that is supposed to help humans in very uncomplicated endavour causes more problems than it solves. Say thank you to your congressman or representative and do not forget Ford and Firestone/Bridgestone.
 
PS2 What oil are you using in winter?

#16 of 28 Re: [krzyss] Outback vs. CR-V by denver5357

Mar 15, 2009 (7:07 pm)

Replying to: krzyss (Mar 15, 2009 6:21 pm)
Thanks for the tire tip ... for the Outback, I assume? Or CR-V? Or both?
 
Don't use a special oil in winter ... have had the Outback serviced only at the dealer (usually do that until warranty is over), so whatever they put in is what we use. I assume it is the correct oil.

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

Mar 16, 2009 (1:32 pm)

Replying to: denver5357 (Mar 15, 2009 10:06 am)
A lot of people asked for more room so the 2010 model is getting it. I read somewhere that rear legroom would increase by a whopping 4 inches!

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

Mar 16, 2009 (2:21 pm)

Replying to: ateixeira (Mar 16, 2009 1:32 pm)
Four inches doesn't sound like a lot, but in terms of rear leg room it is. It would solve our problem, for instance - at least with the room for the kids. But too late for us to wait, and all the "quirkiness" of the Subaru isn't cute to us.

#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.

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