Wait, What Did Subaru Do To The 2026 Outback?
The 2026 Subaru Outback is here and it's certainly something different. The new Outback is still definably a Subaru. It has a boxer engine, a ton of safety oriented features, all wheel drive, and it's a tall wagon and/or SUV-shaped thing. The shape, really, is the biggest change for the 2026 model year, which serves as the first year of the seventh generation of Outback, and the 30th anniversary of the model altogether.
While the previous generation Outback, and all of its many editions, skirted the line between wagon and SUV, the 2026 Outback blurs that line even further, short of a full dive into the sport utility side.
Underneath the exterior, it's not a lot different than what Outback drivers are used to. The 2.5-liter that sat inside Outbacks for years is still there, just tweaked a bit ("revised" according to Subaru). It generates 180 horsepower (actually a two horsepower drop from the 2025 model year). The spicier 2.4-liter turbocharged boxer engine in the Outback XT and Outback Wilderness still makes 260 horsepower.
More SUV, less wagon
The biggest change, of course, is the exterior. The 2026 Outback must have gone through a CrossFit phase as it looks beefier and taller than the previous generation by a significant margin. Ground clearance at 8.7 inches is unchanged (aside from the Wilderness models), but the two-inch taller roofline gives it a more pronounced "forehead," so to speak, and a much more SUV-like side profile. It's leaning closer to Kia Telluride or Jeep Wagoneer styling than the more traditional wagon of years past.
If it hasn't already, the 2026 Outback will spark arguments online about what encompasses a true station wagon and differentiates it from an SUV. For what it's worth, Subaru itself calls it an SUV in the press release, and with the new generation, all semblance to the Subaru Legacy (which it was formerly based upon) is completely gone.
"Along the sides," Subaru says, "the Outback retains its signature proportions but adapts its silhouette with a boxier profile to emphasize its height and durability." Whether or not the new styling will attract new Subaru drivers is yet to be seen, but given that the automaker has sold over 3 million Outbacks over the many years and generations it has been around, it probably won't be much of a problem.
Bigger and a little more spacious
On the inside of the Outback-ier Outback is a 12.1-inch infotainment screen and a 12.3-inch gauge cluster. Physical buttons return for the HVAC controls (yay!). All the extra outward dimensions do, in fact, translate to greater interior space: Most notably, you get two extra cubic feet — for a total of 34.6 cubic feet — behind the last row of seats.
With the revised exterior, Subaru says it's upwards of 10% quieter on the inside. In an extra eco-friendly move, the headliner is comprised of recycled plastic bottles.
Towing specifications, the actual weight of the thing, and fuel economy numbers are not available as of yet. With the extra exterior dimensions, the weight will probably go up, and the fuel economy might drop a little bit, but that — like official pricing — will need to wait until closer to launch for confirmation. For reference, though, the current 2025 Outback starts at a very reasonable $29,010. The 2026 Outback is expected to launch late this year, at which point Outback fans new and old can see for themselves if bigger means better.