Ben Lockwood, PhDThe SUVification of the Subaru Outback is my villain origin story
john fink ok!! :goat:@benlockwood we have a 2017 forester and hard same. The earlier foresters much more to my liking.
Christopher Brown@adr @benlockwood We had a 2004 Forester and a 2017 Forester. The 2004 was by far our favorite. We just traded our busted ass 2017 in for another brand.
disorderlyf@adr @benlockwood That's what I don't get! We have an SUV version of the Outback! I literally thought that's what the Forrester was supposed to be?!
Ruth [☕️ 👩🏻💻📚✍🏻🧵🪡🍵]@benlockwood yeah, so that's a thing -- we want a Subaru next but we've got mixed feelings
Slyence@benlockwood they’re listening to what their customers want
Joe Brockmeier@Slyence @benlockwood are they, though? Cause I’m a customer and they’ve lost me with the behemoth they’re calling an Outback now.
Sara@jzb @Slyence @benlockwood yeah, our household owns two Subarus and we're all pretty grossed out by this
MaddieM4@Slyence @benlockwood for a long time, lesbians were the main* customers for Subaru, and they actually rescued the brand from bankruptcy. I don't know a lesbian that would be caught dead in the recent offerings. So really they're chasing other brands' customers, poorly, in a way that simply becomes compelling to nobody.
*I don't say exclusive here, but even the non-sapphic customers for the Outback and Forrester were still there for the same practicality and design language, and are generally going to be equally alienated by SUVification.
@Slyence @benlockwood I don't want this and specifically an Outback is high on my shortlist for when I inevitably need to buy a car
@benlockwood no joke! I bought one in 2017, and love it. Had it serviced recently and had a 2026 Outback as a loaner. Needlessly oversized.
My wife didn’t even clock it as an Outback when she saw it in the drive. She asked what model it was and was appalled when I told her it was an Outback.
I’ll be driving my 2017 until it falls apart or I can’t drive anymore, apparently.
TrickTim@jzb @benlockwood
My kid will be getting my Outback when he starts driving.
I'm gonna get me a cargo e-bike.
My kid will be getting my Outback when he starts driving.
I'm gonna get me a cargo e-bike.
Liliane Fontenot@benlockwood omg I literally complain about this at least once a month. I used to drive a 2002 model Forester and despite being SUV shape it was physically smaller than the Outbacks are today.
aburtch@benlockwood Longtime Subaru driver here and this makes me sad. I had a 2000 Outback (the first year it was a standalone model and not a package option on their wagon) and loved it, then got a 2012 Outback. But I loved them because they were wagons and NOT SUVs. Switched to the Crosstrek because I don’t want to drive an SUV.
MsMerope@benlockwood
Totally agree
I couldn't believe that was a subie when I saw it in the wild. I thought it was some new breed of toyota.
I drive a 2023 Crosstrek. It's okay, but my old subie impreza had more storage capacity. All the damn electronics take up so much room!
There's not a day goes by when I'm not sad about trading in that old 2001 subaru
(fixing the old one was more expensive than buying the new one though)
trachelipus@benlockwood We had both an early Outback and a Forester. The Outback was great in snow, the Forester pretty decent. Great ground clearance on both. I tried one of the newer Outbacks, ugh, it was a barge. Told the sales dude, "Drives like it came out of Detroit." I tried an Impreza, and it sucked in snow; it couldn't climb over a plow swale. That was the end of us being Subaru customers.
millennial fulcrum@benlockwood will NOBODY think of the plight of the automotive engineers?
the fact they are dealing with is that under-4s have no natural predators and they are simply not going to kill themselves.
so what other choice do the automotive engineers have.
Ryan M@benlockwood yes, Subura has lost the trail. We’re going to drive our 2018 crosstrek until the engine gives out
Hugs4friends ♾🇺🇦 🇵🇸😷@benlockwood From style to substandard.
Coles Street Pothole@benlockwood Had a 2001 Forester (now ruined) and now a 2015 Outback. For 25 years they have bloated their most popular vehicles in search of more sales, but wind up alienating their loyal core. So sad.
AO Smith@benlockwood
I miss station wagons!
I miss station wagons!
CassandraVert@benlockwood Why do people want station wagons but can't call them station wagons? This is a station wagon. For SUV see 1996 Ford Explorer, 1985 Pathfinder, or 2002 Chevy Tahoe.
smells of bikes@benlockwood Now include a Loyale/Leone for back when they were actually small wagons. Sigh.
yashpheh 👁️❤️️🇳🇱🧀@benlockwood @ 2026 model.
"You think you hate it now, but wait 'til you drive it."
"You think you hate it now, but wait 'til you drive it."
John🥛@benlockwood same mpg
@benlockwood WHAT HAVE THEY DONE TO MY BOI?!
fra@benlockwood shittification of cars :/