Despite the Outback being axed in its native Japan, Australian owners can rest easy knowing it is safe here in Australia. And better yet, a next-generation model is in the works.
It's been teased in spy shots and conceptualised in fresh renders published by Carscoops, which show it as a more no-frills, family-friendly SUV.
Most notably, spy shots in heavy camouflage show the Outback is poised to lose its iconic raised-wagon design, trading it for a more conventional, boxier SUV design, one that is sure to be a bigger hit with the current market.
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That would position the next generation Outback as an alternative option to the Subaru Forester, giving Subaru more breadth in the medium SUV market, a sensible move given the Forester is Subaru’s best-selling model in Australia and neck-and-neck with the Crosstrek and Outback in the US.
That would leave the Crosstrek as Subaru’s only off-road high-riding wagon, which overtook the Outback this year in popularity and is currently leading it by 1100 sales locally to October.
The next generation Outback still appears to embody many of the off-road traits that have made it an icon for the brand for the past 30 years.
Spy shots show it with a healthy ground clearance, plastic wheel arches and roof racks. The raised roofline will make for even more cargo space in the boot and second row.
CarScoops renders have imagined a front-end that is barely distinguishable from the facelifted Forester model on sale in the US, which is poised to arrive in Australia next year.
Down the sides and to the rear, it incorporates more of the Outback’s iconic looks, namely through its thick plastic panelling and tail-lights that curve onto the rear quarter panels. The render shows it fitted with an LED light bar in between both lights.
The interior is expected to get a complete overhaul, which is likely to add a digital driver’s display and a larger multimedia touchscreen. It is expected to maintain some physical buttons and hard-wearing materials, too.
In terms of engines, the Outback is highly likely to gain hybrid power from Toyota.
It could use the hybrid set up already employed on the Crosstrek in Japan, which is expected to be offered in the Forester when it arrives in Australia next year.
It combines a 2.5-litre ‘boxer’ engine, paired to twin electric motors. One is a motor generator and the other is a traction motor that is capable of a combined output of 88kW.
The entire configuration will deliver a combined output of 206kW/479Nm on the Crosstrek, while Subaru claims a driving range of more than 1000km, making it the longest-cruising Subaru ever.
Subaru isn’t likely to abandon pure internal combustion on the Outback just yet, either, with the current 2.5-litre flat-four and 2.4-litre turbocharged flat-four engines expected to remain part of the equation. They produce 138kW/245Nm and 183kW/350Nm, respectively.
There’s also rumours of an all-electric version of the Outback as well, with Subaru trademarking the name e-Outback earlier this year.
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