Last June I bought a 2015 Outback limited CPO car. I'm not even going to get into all the things they didn't do with the CPO inspection. Let's just say someone was asleep when doing the inspection on a 36,000 miles car.

The car had to have a new nav/radio head unit installed which was not good, so another one was installed. I have never been able to get Sirius categories listed and from what I read it is a Subaru problem. Maybe it will never be fixed.

The car mysteriously loses coolant. I had them do a pressure check, it lost 2 pounds in 10 minutes and tech says that is ok. Hm? Still has coolant disappearing and fan boys on the OB forum say evaporation. Not thrilled.

It has an automatic lift gate that doesn't always work. It never does it for tech and they say it is ok.

On a recent 2500 mile trip the drivers seat and position almost had me feeling like I would never walk again.

I forgot that changing spark plugs on a Subbie 2.5 requires a motor mount loosened and placing my car jack under the motor. Hm...not thrilled.

There is an issue with the brake pedal. If the car sits for several days, getting back in the car has the brake pedal hardened. It is a push button start and I have to push with great force to get the pedal down far enough to engage the starter.

Then comes the CVT. I hate the CVT and from what I've read the CX-5 is a 6 speed regular.

There is more but I'm not going there but the cars nickname is boomarang. Reason is that it keeps boomeranging back to the dealer for work. So far it has all been warranty work. I sold a Volvo V50 in perfect shape. People who bought that V50 (oh how I wish I still had it) looked at my Subbie and said they had owned the same model OB. They got rid of it because of all the trips back to the dealer.

While shopping I test drove a CX-5 and liked it. The problem was that I like leather interior and they didn't have any cars with leather. Apparently the Touring has leather and is AWD. I want AWD, Nav, Sirius and such things.

I imagine that a Touring or Grand Touring would fit my needs. I buy my cars in cash and looking at 2015 / 2016 seems to fit what I would feel comfortable writing a check.

Are any years better or worse?

 

No. They're all pretty much the same (give or take) as far as reliability goes. That's not to say that **** doesn't happen. It's a mass produced vehicle (like the OB), but overall the CX-5 is a very solid offering. My first year production 2.0 liter has been absolutely trouble-free for 50k miles.

 

The 2016 "refresh" added a lot of new/better items even though it was not the newer model. The infotainment being the biggest plus for some. I have a 2016 GT AWD and it is the most solid vehicle I have owned ( 27 cars and counting). I'd go for the 2016 if I were in the market for used. The last year of a multi year model is usually good because most things are sorted out by then.

 

A few things that I don't want but they seem hard to NOT have with the leather interior.

I don't want -
Electric parking brake
Eyesight
Electric rear lift gate

Possible to meet the qualifications of the above three on a 2016 with leather?

 

I have owned 1986, 1992, 2000 and 2010 Outbacks. They are a decent car, but after a 2014 Mazda 6 and 2016 CX-5, I'm not looking back. The Mazdas handle much better and I've not had the ****ling issues I had with my Outbacks. Wheel bearings seemed to be a thing with the ones I owned.

 

I've owed 5 subbies. This current 2015 does not seem to be as robust as the previous subbies.

Just finished a 2015 Grand Touring test drive and it made me dislike the CVT even more than I do now. The 6 speed trans was smooth, no rubber band feeling like the CVT.

I think the outback has more cargo room but not a big deal to me. I would like having the three split seats back again (Outback is two split).

The subbie does have a few more stars for the interior such as a power passenger seat and I think the Subbie's Harman Kardon speaker system sounds better than the CX-5 Bose and that was a bit disappointing. Wonder why? On the highway I may have heard more noise than the Subbie.

But the feel of the drive was nicer to me. It was a FWD and I do want an AWD. I told the sales guy if we decide on a CX-5 the sale will depend on how much we get hurt on a trade-in. Having only owned the OB for 6 months puts us at a disadvantage. Normally I sell my cars outright but I paid 24,500 for the OB. I wouldn't be selling a $7,000 car and most people are capable of writing the check for the OB. So I would have to deal with people who need a loan and that type of sale takes longer. I told the sales guy if it hurts too much $$$$ I'll learn to live with the CVT.

 

You're going to take a beating on a trade. I always sell my cars myself. If someone is shopping for a $20k+ used car they will generally know where their financing is going to come from. My philosophy is "Why buy retail and sell wholesale?"

 

I'm 66 years old and I've owned a lot of cars. In all of my purchases, I think there was only one trade (in the 1970's) but all the rest were sold to individuals. I would probably take a $3500 hit. Ouch!

But it may be a no go anyhow. Took my wife back for her to ride. She has a bad back / hip and said that the seats feel too firm. On our long multi thousand mile trips I want her to be comfortable. On the other hand, I thought the drivers side was more comfortable to drive than the OB.

I like the sporty feel of the CX-5 and the 6 speed trans was really good. Maybe cloth would be more comfortable for her.

 

I'm 66 years old and I've owned a lot of cars. In all of my purchases, I think there was only one trade (in the 1970's) but all the rest were sold to individuals. I would probably take a $3500 hit. Ouch!

But it may be a no go anyhow. Took my wife back for her to ride. She has a bad back / hip and said that the seats feel too firm. On our long multi thousand mile trips I want her to be comfortable. On the other hand, I thought the drivers side was more comfortable to drive than the OB.

I like the sporty feel of the CX-5 and the 6 speed trans was really good. Maybe cloth would be more comfortable for her.