Performance
Comfort
Fuel Economy
Fun To Drive
Interior Design
Exterior Design
Build Quality
Reliability
Review
WARNING!!! On 8/27/12, we bought a used 2006 Subaru Outback XT with @70K miles. On our first trip to Vermont, with about 400# of dogs and luggage in the back, new all-weather tires and a driver with a spotless 48-year record, on a flat straightaway at @30 mph in snow flurries, the car crept into the oncoming lane. My husband managed to tweek it back into our lane in time to avoid a head-on collision, but the car then spun out of control and hit a tree. The air bags broke both our sternums. I am a very small woman and was unable to breathe right afterwards. It was @9pm and the road was just starting to freeze, so we had slowed down from 50 mph. We ended up sideways in the road with smashed headlights--helpless. My husband managed to climb out and while trying to open my door to attend to me, had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit by an oncoming car that then t-boned my side of our car with me still in it.
They took me out on a back board. We both ended up in the hospital with broken sternums and assorted bumps, including a huge knot on my head where it smashed against the side window when the other car struck our car after the wreck--had it been going much faster, I'm sure I'd be dead. A huge local two-day search restored our two dogs to us, fortunately. We lost the car--totaled, just like us. Costs ran high for medical, transport home to CT, new car, etc. The intense, disabling pain lasted many weeks and I still have pain when the weather is bad--probably always will.
In researching why the air bags nearly killed us both, I ran across the "ghost walking" term on line. Undoubtedly, that was the cause of the accident, since my husband had noted earlier on the trip that the car was handling like there was a cross wind even though there was none. That was our only warning of what awaited us that night.
We have owned four Subarus and were dedicated fans. I still own an '09 WRX which I love, but the unconscionable failure of Subaru to "own" this design defect and notify owners and dealers about this very-dangerous problem with the rear toe-in under moderate loads nearly cost us our lives, and a great deal of pain and money.
I had spent a lot of time researching this vehicle prior to purchase but didn't run across this issue--and am amazed that the 2005-09 Outback wagons still have a near-spotless safety record despite this VERY-serious design flaw. If Subaru handles this like they handle most design problems, nothing will come of our report to them and to NHTSA. Perspective buyers of the '05-'09 Subaru Outback wagons (American version only), should research this thoroughly. It only happens to some cars under certain load and road conditions. It you know about the potential problem you can have it checked and fixed (@$500-$1,000) but Subaru is mum about it. Be careful, people. This defect is a killer waiting to strike. I'm sorry that we only owned the car for about a month before it was totaled, so don't have some other details available like gas mileage, etc.