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Posted December, 2005

Road Test: 2006 Subaru Tribeca

The End of the SUV As We Know It?

By Kevin S. Lowery

It's true that the public and the automobile manufacturers are changing the way we look at the SUV. With Katrina and Rita sending gas prices soaring (at the time of this writing they are still higher than the pre-hurricane prices) Americans are now looking differently at the cost of filling up at the pump and mpg. It's like a rerun of Jimmy Carter, the Oil Embargo and the ‘70s! Oh, my!

I didn't need Subaru's crystal-ball-like "Dust in the Wind" commercials to tell me about the decline of the SUV. Some five years ago, I predicted sales of the SUV (mostly the gas-guzzling behemoths) would slump. It has. So, it's with anticipation that I awaited our Subaru Tribeca. (An unusual name for a car, since it's the name of one of Manhattan's neighborhoods, standing for TRIangle BElow CAnal Street.) But hey, If it can make it there...

The Subaru B9 Tribeca is an all-new model for 2006, the flagship of the Subaru line-up. It's based on a radically altered Legacy/Outback platform. More amazing is that Subaru is still building every vehicle off the same platform. The wheelbase is longer and lengthier, the track has been widened and includes standard 18-inch aluminum-alloy wheels (vs.17-inch for Outback). Unlike Subaru's past vehicles, the Tribeca sits higher—what most of us have come to expect in an SUV.

Technically—according to Subaru—it isn't an SUV, but a CUV, a crossover between a sedan and a traditional SUV. This new segment of automobile maximizes headroom and the driver's expanded viewing capability, and that also describes the Tribeca. It's taller than other Subaru vehicles with 8.7 inches of clearance below the vehicle.

For those who like "to look down on" those of us with a sedan, this is a Subaru for you. And there are plenty of amenities inside that you would expect in a top-of-the-line automobile. It includes a luxurious interior with twin cockpit design, flowing, sculptured dash and center console, large, clear electroluminescent gauge displays, and standard seven-inch vehicle information display screen (also used by available navigation system). There is an automatic climate control system and audio system; ambient interior lighting in front and rear footwells and "shower" lighting for the console. You'll find four cupholders, two front and two back making stopping off at the convenience store, well, more convenient. The second row seats feature 40/20/40 folding/reclining rear seat backrest and 60/40 split seat cushion with eight-inch slide range; third row seats (when equipped) fold flat in 50/50 split for more flexible cargo space usage. The seven-passenger model includes a rear-seat air conditioning fan speed control in the second row. The leather-wrapped steering wheel features remote audio system controls, available rear-seat DVD entertainment system featuring nine-inch diagonal wide-screen LCD, two sets of wireless headphones and remote inputs for games, MP3 music players and video cameras. Available navigation system on seven-seat limited model and a 100-watt six-speaker CD player, single in-dash.

A majority of the dashboard controls were located in the center and organized in a way that made little ergonomic sense to us. Perhaps that was just due to the overcrowding of it. The new electroluminescent gauge display was unnerving. Though its luminosity is white and very accurate it's also piercingly bright. I felt like I was a deer looking directly into halogen headlights. I kept them so low they were nearly turned off the entire time I had the vehicle.

The seating was comfortable and roomy (not bolstered.) The ride, however, was not as smooth as I have come to expect from a Subaru—certainly not a top-of-the-line automobile.

Let me start off by staying that the exterior design of a car is subjective. And we seem to be going through a period of car design that is more chunky and jarring than subtle and graceful. That said, the design of the Tribeca's exterior was very, um, creative. The car is a decent design right up to, but not including the grille. Subaru calls it "distinctive." What I'd call it isn't fit for print. Worse, it can be seen a mile away and I'm not sure that is a good thing. To be fair, altering the grille has been popular with many other manufacturers, of late. And that is a shame since the shape of it is what helps make a brand recognized on the road. I had many people come up to me saying "What is that?" The history of the automobile is littered with similar attempts, both good and not. You decide.

Under the hood, the Tribeca has a 250-horsepower 3.0-liter, six-cylinder boxer engine with 219lb-ft of torque at 4200rpm. That is teamed to a five-speed automatic transmission (with sportshift) and the most advanced version of Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive with vehicle Dynamics Control (VDC). Still, the engine lacked more low-end torque than I would have liked.

While the vehicle's gas mileage is as good or better than those in its class, 18/23 , it's not earth shattering. Our vehicle (admittedly, loaded with all the bells and whistles) had a total suggested retail price of $38,320 about the same price as the vehicle it replaces, the Outback VDC.

Overall, the Subaru Tribeca is a good first try at a crossover vehicle. I am looking forward to the second generation and am anticipating a hybrid version. That would TRULY be the end of the SUV as we know it. R&D