Well... I did it this morning. I am having a custom-built Subaru Outback 6 cyl 3.6 Limited, moonroof and nav systems, battery warmer, block heat, all the irons. I test-drove a new one and I was impressed. Very little road noise, a 35 ft turn radius and superb handling. In about a month, my trusty Jeep will be the Whole Foods/Trader Joe's commuting car and my Subaru will be the Snowshoe/Stowe transportation module.

After looking at a number of vehicles, my preference was the Subaru. As to the handling, I have one anecdote from about 5 years ago, when we went to Aspen. After renting the Subaru in Peña Airport in Denver, we started up the trek to Aspen. No sooner we had crossed the Front Range, a blizzard ensued and we drove in almost whiteout conditions. The AWD performed flawlessly. But just in case, I will get snow chains.

I'd upgrade to top of the line snow tires first before messing with chains. Kwillg6 would be help there. Chains won't help much w/ the biggest weakness of a Subie, too much snow on the underside.

I have a 2010 Subaru Outback and its great - I would buy again. A couple recommendations:

1. Get an extra set of wheels and good snow tires. My preference is Blizzaks - they've never let me down but I'm sure there are other good ones. My Premium came with 17" wheels but my snow wheels are 16" to give more tire/snow clearance (however speedometer may be off about 2mph). However the 3.6 uses a larger brake so the old OEM 16" will not fit over the caliper.

2. Due to small tire/fender clearance, snow chains can be a challenge (check the owners manual for details). I have not needed them and don't have any but I hear some folks purchase the low profile wire ones.

3. The Outback rear will "sway" very bad in cross winds. The factory rear sway bar is way too small and the car can be hard to handle in windy conditions. To fix - I along with many other people changed out the rear sway bar (<$100) with a larger bar. Good info at this site:

http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/

(go down to Models - Gen 4 2010-Present

4. Check the above subaru site for the "shakes". Most cars do NOT have it but some have a problem with shaking at speeds over 70 mph (TSP issued, etc - some fixed some not). You should test drive your new car when it arrives to ensure you don't have a "shaker". Again, no problems with mine.


Driving to Snowshoe from Alexandria, I average about 28mpg.

Enjoy!

Thanks a million. I had researched the shakes episodes and most 2012 reviewers had agreed that it had been eliminated (I can't imagine how since the body style hasn't changed, perhaps a new tire manufacturer?).

I probably wouldn't go with any of these, but if pushed would do ford only because of the reliability I have had with my f150. I will never do another Chrysler product. I can give the list of poor quality items/issues I have had with my Durango. The hemi is about the only thing going for it. Subaru's are ok, but sill a car and low to ground. A 6 cylinder f150 sits 4 and gets 23mpg. I would I've up a couple mpg and get the v8.

I really had my heart set on a Hybrid this year. However, the technology just isn't there if I'm going to get a 4WD or an AWD. So I finally decided on the 2012 Subaru 3.6R Limited and got an incredible price (about 4K below list price from USAA buying service and god knows how much below MSRP...) Moonroof, full Nav system, block heater, leather interior, etc.... Paying cash for the vehicle also helped. Since then, however, Subaru had a stop shipment on Outbacks, Imprezas and other models due to a recall for Master Brake Cylinders. I understand that FINALLY my vehicle is inbound and should get it next week...

The comment on the Blizzaks is opportune and I'm planning to get them too. The main reason for a new car is for safety in Winter, so whatever it takes...

My dream car = Ford Excursion...3 tons of V10 fun! Outgrew the Wrangler and the Cherokee. Working on an eBay deal...will see. Can't wait to climb the SS backside in the snow! Would be right at home at SS...4-door/4wd pickups seem quite popular up there too.

WON IT!!! 2005 Ford Excursion LOADED. Delivery from Texas. Big at home, but just another one-of-the-boyz at SS. Wonder if you can buy snow plows on eBay? LOL

I took delivery of my new "Ruby Suby" last week. I love the car. Plenty of power and good gas mileage. The navigation system takes some getting used to it, having an interface totally different than the Garmin nuvi that I'm used to, and the interface with the iPhone is a bit quirky, as you can't have both the bluetooth phone AND the iPod music feature going on at the same time. So now I have my iPhone only as a phone device via bluetooth and my old iPod as a music center. Of course, the Sirius/XM satellite works wonders too. And the heated seats... Oh the heated seats... I bought a Yakima Cargo box and it certainly does its job as the main trunk space... The trunk is now devoted to Tango's boudoir with a mattress, blanket and non-spill water dish. The Jeep is now the putzing around town vehicle and the Suby is the long-distance carrier....

[img]https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/dWWQGG-D2VUGGrkA4ixKoXlfwZAlFoyOQMp9K-x7YAs?feat=directlink[/img]
[img]https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/7RrAPHtWZ5PgVGGzDxN8VXlfwZAlFoyOQMp9K-x7YAs?feat=directlink[/img]
[img]https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/WRP80laRhHXX2iEgmsGo6nlfwZAlFoyOQMp9K-x7YAs?feat=directlink[/img]

I do like the color!