This is Subaru’s first diesel – what makes it so unusual?

Subaru and Porsche – what do these to seemingly opposing car makes have in common?  They are the only 2 car companies who stick to their horizontally-opposed engine layouts.  But where other companies are adding diesels, Subaru has held back.

Customer demand has seen a proliferation of diesels in various types of vehicles.  Subaru, renowned for their charismatic thrumming boxer fours, most loudly audible in the WRX and STI sports sedans, have stayed with this winning formula for years.  It lists under this layout’s benefits a more compact engine which can be installed lower in the car, thereby better positioning its centre of gravity.

Sticking to its guns, it refused to outsource (as is the tendency with some engines) or design a diesel engine that is not a boxer.  “Boxer” refers to the horizontal opposing movements of pistons in this engine structure, rather than the usual vertical in-line engines of most other cars.  Subaru engineers’ insistence on staying with their beloved boxer rewarded them by building the world’s first boxer diesel engine.

In addition to the Subaru staple 2.5 boxer un-turbo’d 4 and 3.6 boxer 6 (the latter made defunct in 2013) the 2.0D engine was added to the Outback in 2010.  With 110kW and 350Nm it competes well to other “normal” 4-cylinder 2-litre diesels, and has its max torque distributed across a usable 1800 to 2400 rpm.  Retained, luckily, is the pleasurable burble so strongly associated with boxer engines.  On the downside, it needs servicing every 10 000 km, yet comes with a reduced-distance 60 000 km service plan where the 2.5i gets 75 000 km free.

Subaru is one of the believers of the gear-less CVT it calls Lineartronic – in fact the company does not offer a proper automatic gearbox.  Fortunately Subaru spent some time improving the experience from the usual CVT monotone to a more stepped-gear program, and includes “gear” shift paddles to boost the impression it is gearshifting (which it isn’t).  Better control of the revs improve the sensation, and likely helps improve the fuel consumption, given at average of 6.5 l/100km.

Outback, despite being named after the Australian landscape, is positioned as an outdoorsy station wagon ideally suited to the South African market – it connects the everyday street duties to the holiday/weekend explorer dots.  Its renowned All-Wheel-Drive underpinning means the Outback is very capable on rough roads and even through some off-road obstacles.  The normal station wagon driving style has a hidden surprise – generous 213mm ground clearance is ascribed to the boxer engine’s compactness.

The Outback and Forester, let's remember, were 2 of the pioneering off-roadish station wagon kind.  So it makes sense to let them get the high-demand diesels, right?  Actually, the Forester has grown into an SUV, but ironically it is only available in petrol power.  Outback competes against the Audi A4 allroad quattro (think A4 Avant with more height and protective cladding) and the soon to be re-introduced Volvo XC70 – its original old rival, which also faced the Audi allroad (a previous A6 Avant based candidate).  The Outback is a bigger vehicle than the A4 allroad, with much more station wagon space.  The Outback also boasts innovative roof rails – built-in stowable cross-bars can swing out for use, or hide away when off duty.

The Outback will set you back R427k for the 2.5i Premium, R434k for the 2.5i-S Premium, and a gap to R479k for this 2.0D Premium.

Catering for on- and off-road adventures, the world’s only diesel boxer in the capable cross-over station wagon Outback makes a superb all-rounder.