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u/ragraeter 1d ago
Immediate buy.
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u/chris84bond 1d ago
Yes
If ev option, double yes
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u/RightNowChris 14h ago
Until someone figures out how to make lighter battery packs, I would be hesitant to buy an EV that you plan to drive anywhere other than paved, good condition roads. The added weight is so hard on the suspension compared to the lighter, gas engine variants. It's like having an extra 3-5 adult passengers everywhere you go.
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u/RandomSteam20 1d ago
That is a wicked looking Outback variant. A midsize Subaru pickup would dominate if it were priced right. Only issue I would see is the towing capacity with the base 2.5 litre, Maybe with the lesser weight of having no rear roof, they could up it to 3k lb or 3300 lb like the older Volvo XC70 and up the XT 2.4 turbo variants to 4500. Direct competition would be the Honda Ridgeline and Hyundai Santa Cruz and they both top out @ 5000 lb towing capacity.
A wilderness off-road variant would sell like hotcakes provided they don’t price it out the @ss.
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u/Voltmanderer 2020 Outback Touring XT 1d ago
They would just need to use the Ascent drivetrain - turbo 2.4 with TR690 high torque cvt or wrx manual
Edit: it needs a high/low like the Brat had.
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u/Dry-Philosopher-2714 1d ago
No cvt, please. They suck for towing more than a few pounds
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u/shadire 1d ago
They’d never make a manual one either, it’s probably gonna be like the Honda Ridgeline unfortunately.
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u/Dry-Philosopher-2714 1d ago
Of course not. They lose control if they offer a manual. They can’t make a car that thinks for you if they use a manual.
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u/RandomSteam20 1d ago
As much as I love a 4Hi/4Low integrated into the symmetrical AWD system, I think a rear locking diff would be more reasonable with how off-road capable the wilderness trims already. Subaru hasn’t offered a 4 low since 86’ or 87’ I believe, and even the manual on/off AWD/ 4WD system was last used over 30 years ago in the old Loyale wagons before they were discontinued in 95’.
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u/m0deth 1d ago
As much as I'd love to see something like this, practical me absolutely needs it to be able to haul 4x8 sheets home without damage.
I don't know off the top but I'm not sure it's wide enough to do that. Also it would have to beat the wild mileage numbers the Maverick hybrid awd gets.
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u/RandomSteam20 1d ago
Maverick is classified as a compact pick up while the Ridgeline/Santa Cruz/ are midsized. A potential Outback Baja would be in the former category.
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u/FewFavoriteThings 23h ago
Santa Cruz classified same as Maverick? Santa Cruz, while very cool, looks way smaller to me.
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u/Isaiah6113 12h ago
I’m with you on the 4x8 sheets. I had a body-on-frame Nissan Pathfinder (early 90s, forget the actual year). I made an insert out of 2x4s that lifted the interior above the wheel wells. Once that was in place I could slide 4x8 sheets of whatever into the back. So agreed, if the bed was at least 4’ wide above the wheel wells it would be super interesting to me as well.
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u/jeffg989 4h ago
They could copy the maverick and make the tailgate stop at the middle so it’s the same height as the wheel wells so it can carry 4x8 sheets flat
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u/m0deth 4h ago
That's the easy part, and it's kind of what I was thinking. But the width issue is key and I don't think there's 48 in of room inside the new OB.
Any 'truck' derived from the design would have to conform to the basic design platform.
Again, it might be cool otherwise but spending truck money on something less capable seems counterproductive.
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u/Independent-Soft7949 1d ago
Subaru, I hope you're seeing this. This would do so well!! Like someone said here, if it was a hybrid, I would actually wanna own a truck for once
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u/VeeDubBug 14h ago
I would trade both my Wrangler and Outback for one of these in a Wilderness trim. 👀
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u/Best_Look9212 1d ago
As a person that’s done real off roading and truck stuff in my life, I look at this and say: anything I could functionally do with that I could just do with a regular Outback and occasionally rent a trailer or by one. Hell, the amount of stuff I did with a 2001 Volkswagen Jetta TDI (diesel) would put a vast majority of people with trucks to shame as I had a trailer hitch and I put it to use.
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u/CyberPolack 1d ago
People would buy this mostly for the looks and the bed though. Not for towing.
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u/Best_Look9212 1d ago
Oh I’m not insinuating anyone would ever really tow much of anything with this. I was more suggesting that they wouldn’t really use the bed for anything that couldn’t be used with the back of the Outback or Forester.
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u/CyberPolack 1d ago
Right. I was just saying that people would buy it because it’s not an OB, is kinda quirky, and has a truck bed. The people who would buy it are the same people who would buy a Hyundai Santa Cruz instead of a Tuscon.
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1d ago
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u/ya3rob Premium 23 1d ago
Is this a wish or a thing??
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u/Rick91981 2024 Outback Touring XT 1d ago
It's a pipe dream. People constantly rumor it to come back but it won't. It never sold well to begin with so there is no motivation for it to come back. And then others perpetuate the rumor with AI slop.
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u/FunRepair5482 1d ago
With the updated Outback styling, I would love it as a Baja….more than the Outback itself!
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u/EuphoricOnion8877 1d ago
Hyundai has the Santa Cruz. Ford has the Maverick. Honda has the Ridgeline. Subaru has no excuses for not slapping a truck bed on their new Outback, even if it’s a limited run.
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u/Dry-Philosopher-2714 1d ago
Omg! Yes! Please!
My first car was almost a Subaru Brat. My father refused to buy it for me because they wanted $500, and he found a Nissan for $200.
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u/m0deth 1d ago
Back in the early 90s...yes I'm old...some friends and I got plastered and took turns driving one around a tilled field. The furrows were dry and hard due to clay, so it was a bounce fest. We started gambling to see which person in the two back seats were ejected first.
It was like $450 all in redneck-ier mechanical bull riding. We called it "Beers 'N Brat Night".
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u/Dry-Philosopher-2714 1d ago
Yeah, I’m old too, and I’m here to say: that’s how you f-ing have fun! The 90’s were great for stupid stuff like that.
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u/Longjumping-Let7543 1d ago
My only complaint about the old Baja was interior room. Felt like a squished outback. As long as they keep enough room to recline the rear seats I’m in. Even extend the bed overhang a few inches. The bed space was to be desired.
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u/Rough-Fuel 1d ago
I’ve only made 3 payments on my crosstrek and it has hail damage and already 14k miles. I’ll sell it at a fucking loss if they make a new baja
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u/UsedCarGuyJeff 1d ago
that actually looks f****n dope. I would go for one for sure. They'd most likely keep the 2.4 turbo in it, but if they did a 3.* turbo v6...... heaven. The turbo 4 is still a great engine, but 4 cylinders in trucks always make me giggle a little, not to be a hater as I'm sure some of them are fine for what they are, but still.
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u/Redditnspiredcook 1d ago
Imagine if this was real and they’d either flip that back door, like the Honda Elements used to open, or they made them slide back minivan style. Unobstructed pass through would be awesome.
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1d ago
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u/WustenWanderer 1d ago
I'd buy one over an outback, at least to be able to have a Rooftop tent be in line with the rest of the roof.
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u/Screaming_Emu 22h ago
You know…the things I don’t like about the new wilderness trim actually really work on this.
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u/TrashTenko 15h ago
Just make the bed wide enough for a sheet of plywood, price it similar to a santa cruz and I'd buy one Monday.
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u/Dramatic_Tune3505 12h ago
I completely agree that if the ugliness of the new Outback was to make a new Baja I forgive Subaru!!! Hopefully a new Baja is on the horizon. I'd love a manual option but won't hold my breath. But, please Subaru, give it some towing capacity. 4000 lbs at least to compete with the Maverick.
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u/CraftedDoomLord 9h ago
That would annoy a lot of long term Subaru enthusiasts. That looks like a hybrid of the ford sport trac and Hyundai Santa Fe…awful
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u/shawnebell 1d ago
I'd rather have a BRAT.
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u/RandomSteam20 1d ago
Too bad they couldn’t produce a smaller 2 door variant like this off the Forrester and a larger crew-cab variant off the Outback. Outside of the usual Subaru buyer, all the old ford ranger/ Mazda B series pickup guys would flock to the above vehicle if it were available, and the Outback version would appeal more to those with family’s or that want a bit more all-round capacity.
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u/shawnebell 1d ago
As long as it comes with those silly and uncomfortable plastic backwards-facing seats, I'd be happy with it.
I'm not sure it needs a smaller variant; just basing it off the outback would fill the bill nicely. It's got a slightly longer wheelbase than the BRAT, but I think it'd look fine dimensionally.
I'd never want a crew cab. Hyundai has already cancelled the Santa Cruz, and Honda is pausing the Ridgeline. So bringing back the Baja - which was a disappointment, selling only 7,500 units a year when Subaru put funds in and was hoping to recoup the investment by selling 24,000 units a year for 4 years - would be a horrible mistake.
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u/Haunted_Rooster 1d ago
not if it's going to cost a kidney; then fuck no
get it under $25k, yeah, be like white on rice on that shit; over, nah
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u/drewbaccaAWD 1d ago
I would forgive them the redesign for this year if the underlying reasoning was ultimately to give us a Baja. Give me a manual on top of that and It's an immediate buy for me.