# Subaru outback vs VW sportswagon 2011 new? **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** outback, subaru\ **Created:** [April 6, 2011, 8:07am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/subaru-outback-vs-vw-sportswagon-2011-new/63419 "2011-04-06T08:07:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kenneth\_John](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/d78d45/32.png) [@Kenneth\_John](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Kenneth_John)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 8:07am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/subaru-outback-vs-vw-sportswagon-2011-new/63419/1 "2011-04-06T08:07:13Z")
I have narrowed it down to Outback 2.5 Premium or the Sportswagon 2.5 gas (not deisel). Amy comments or suggestions? ---
**Author:** ![Kenneth\_John](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/d78d45/32.png) [@Kenneth\_John](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Kenneth_John)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 8:37am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/subaru-outback-vs-vw-sportswagon-2011-new/63419/2 "2011-04-06T08:37:51Z")
I am looking for a comfortable ride with good gas economy, and can carry some stuff (e.g. a dog and luggage) and a wife. ---
**Author:** ![andrew\_j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/91b2a8/32.png) [@andrew\_j](https://community.cartalk.com/u/andrew_j)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 4:49pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/subaru-outback-vs-vw-sportswagon-2011-new/63419/3 "2011-04-06T16:49:52Z")
Personal preference. I think the VW will give a very minor MPG advantage however lacks AWD. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/1/d/1d47c66a543aa6c5a7873bb2320858f978ff52ed.png) [@system](https://community.cartalk.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 5:01pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/subaru-outback-vs-vw-sportswagon-2011-new/63419/4 "2011-04-06T17:01:59Z")
The Subaru is easier to work on and history shows they have a lower failure rate than VW. Not to mention AWD. ---
**Author:** ![riggyrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@riggyrow](https://community.cartalk.com/u/riggyrow)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 5:19pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/subaru-outback-vs-vw-sportswagon-2011-new/63419/5 "2011-04-06T17:19:03Z")
Having owned both (5 VWs and 2 Subes), I would lean strongly toward the Subaru. The VW is probably going to be more fun to drive, but it’s also _probably_ going to be more expensive to maintain and repair. ---
**Author:** ![Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/joseph_e_meehan/32/21_2.png) [@Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Joseph_E_Meehan)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 6:29pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/subaru-outback-vs-vw-sportswagon-2011-new/63419/6 "2011-04-06T18:29:23Z")
No matter which car you choose (I suggest a test drive in both). I would recommend listing your wife first, not somewhere after the dog and the luggage. ? ---
**Author:** ![mcparadise](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mcparadise/32/32_2.png) [@mcparadise](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mcparadise)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 9:56pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/subaru-outback-vs-vw-sportswagon-2011-new/63419/7 "2011-04-06T21:56:02Z")
It’s a coin toss. Buy the one your wife prefers. ---
**Author:** ![Bladecutter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@Bladecutter](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Bladecutter)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:06pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/subaru-outback-vs-vw-sportswagon-2011-new/63419/8 "2011-04-07T20:06:22Z")
I can’t in good faith encourage anyone to buy a Subaru Outback. My friend and his ex-wife own a pair of them ('06 and '07). Both cars are devoid of any actual personality, and the interiors in them feel hard in places they should be soft, most notably the drivers door armrest. No leg room either for taller passengers in the front seat. Granted the new ones are entirely different, so much so that they turned them into SUV’s, which is what their marketing said that they were better than for so many year. Go figure. Plus, the typical drivers here in the Boulder/Denver area are rolling roadblocks in the things, and are really, really bad drivers in foul weather, as they need to have the AWD to compensate for their lack of winter driving skills. Since the engines don’t make any real amount of power at this altitude, all they have to do is mash the gas pedal, and the car goes, but not very quickly. So, chose the VW. It has personality, and is actually a wagon, not an SUV made by a company that used to claim they don’t make SUV’s. BC.