The real answer for pretty much any car buyer’s situation is not Miata, it’s the Subaru Outback. Few other vehicles that can be everything to everyone like the Outback. For 2018 Subaru’s best-selling car gets a little bit better with upgraded technology and styling.
Subaru is a scrappy little automaker whose sales figures make the brand somewhat oblivious to the fact that the auto sales, in general, are slowing down. For the past nine years, Subaru has sold more Outbacks than it has the year before. In 2016 over 182,000 people bought what they thought was a “crossover” which is really just a lifted Legacy wagon. The Outback is the reason the Volkswagen Alltrack exists and is why Buick will not be selling us a regular Regal wagon, but rather the lifted and cladded Regal TourX.
Americans buy wagons, as long as they can pretend that they are “rugged” crossovers.
The 2015 Outback was a huge leap from the model that came before, and for 2018 Subaru has kept the same car but tweaked a few minor details with the hope that the automaker will have yet another record sales year for their best selling model.
Most notably is the addition of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto to Subaru’s Starlink infotainment unit. That touchscreen also grows in size from 6.2 inches to 6.5 inches. An 8-inch unit is also available on the upper trim models. The 2018 model also gets new roof rails and steering adaptive headlights.
While you might not be able to see the what’s different on the outside, Subaru has given the 2018 Outback “a bolder, more rugged looking face for 2018” and speaking of that cladding that everyone loves, Subaru says it has been redesigned for better protection from mud and stones.
The 2018 Outback will make its official debut a the New York Auto Show alongside the all new Crosstrek, and the much anticipated three-row crossover.