Subaru vs Midsize Truck for mountain roads

[txtransplant]

Most of the folks in this thread trashing Subarus have never owned one, and therefore have no idea what they’re talking about.

Subaru symmetrical AWD is extremely capable in terms of traction. Your tradeoffs are going to be less ground clearance and less clearance for chains, if you ever need them.

I’d say a stock outback with AT tires could handle 90% of the roads I’ve been on hunting. I had a 2019 Outback previously.

The Taco will give you not only more capability (lift, bigger tires, locking diffs) but also more storage capacity (especially if you throw a topper on the bed).

I’ve hunted out of both an Outback and a 2nd Gen 4Runner. Both of them leave me feeling cramped for storage.

I’d get a Taco and not look back.

 

[elkhunter505]

Yes, tow your atv behind your Subaru

I mean it probably would work with the turbo engine

 

[Fireflyfishing]

I was in this dilemma about a year back. I test drove and really liked the Wilderness Outback. I ended up finding a really nice 22 Tacoma with low miles and a 6 speed and bought that instead. Either would be fine for the Missoula area, but I would caution you on the 4th gen Tacomas for reliability. Definitely the 2024s. That’s why I ended up with a 2022.

Honestly, 98% of the roads I’ve encountered in and around the Missoula area are doable with a Wilderness Outback. The rougher roads are all gated come hunting season anyway. As others have mentioned, ground clearance is the main limitation…I would’t be concerned with crazy Moab rocks…it would be snow come late hunting season. Also, snow on north facing slopes in the high country come spring.

Tacomas get shit gas mileage for what they are IMO…

Tacomas are cool and handy…up to a point. As others have stated you will need a full sized truck to do “real” truck tasks. My situation is a bit different than yours though. I have an F350 diesel I use for towing and “real” truck use in addition to my Tacoma.

Toyotas and Subarus go for a premium in the Missoula area. I would look to buy one out of state…like Spokane, for a better overall deal.

 

[elkhunter505]

I was in this dilemma about a year back. I test drove and really liked the Wilderness Outback. I ended up finding a really nice 22 Tacoma with low miles and a 6 speed and bought that instead. Either would be fine for the Missoula area, but I would caution you on the 4th gen Tacomas for reliability. Definitely the 2024s. That’s why I ended up with a 2022.

Honestly, 98% of the roads I’ve encountered in and around the Missoula area are doable with a Wilderness Outback. The rougher roads are all gated come hunting season anyway. As others have mentioned, ground clearance is the main limitation…I would’t be concerned with crazy Moab rocks…it would be snow come late hunting season. Also, snow on north facing slopes in the high country come spring.

Tacomas get shit gas mileage for what they are IMO…

Tacomas are cool and handy…up to a point. As others have stated you will need a full sized truck to do “real” truck tasks. My situation is a bit different than yours though. I have an F350 diesel I use for towing and “real” truck use in addition to my Tacoma.

Toyotas and Subarus go for a premium in the Missoula area. I would look to buy one out of state…like Spokane, for a better overall deal.

Yeah for sure. I will be going home for Christmas and am debating driving back to NM so I could trade the truck in there for something that is going to be cheaper and have 0 rust at all. I don’t have any reason to do “real” truck stuff at this point. I do enjoy being able to pick up furniture on Facebook from time to time but the amount of money I would save on gas is pretty crazy when I look at how many trips I take out to Bozeman and back. I’m in the analysis paralysis phase right now with this as I have been driving a truck whether it be midsize or full size since 2014 so it would be a reasonably big change.

 

[Terrapin]

We’ve had ten Subarus and eleven Toyotas (four drivers… teenage boys). We live in N Idaho and have crappy roads.

The Subarus are fantastic to slick & snow covered roads. I definitely prefer them over the Toyota 4WD system. The Toyota AWD is pretty good, but Subaru is better.

The Subarus do fine on dirt & rocky roads as far as traction. You’ll definitely bottom out more, but they don’t seem to get high centered… probably because of the asymmetric AWD… whatever that is.

The main downside is the suspension & drivetrain is not very heavily built. Great for pavement & fuel economy, but a steady diet seems to beat them loose. Seems like I had a lot of struts and drivetrain bills from Les Schwab. But I also had teenage rally drivers with girlfriends that lived on washboard roads.

I’ve done almost nothing to my Toyotas… maybe one clutch & a water pump in 30 years.

That being said, if I was back in graduate school (shudder) and I didn’t need a truck bed for hauling wood & dead coyotes like I did in graduate school, I would absolutely hunt out of a Subaru. A $7500 Forester will go 275,000 miles & get 30 mpg.


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[Fireflyfishing]

Yeah for sure. I will be going home for Christmas and am debating driving back to NM so I could trade the truck in there for something that is going to be cheaper and have 0 rust at all. I don’t have any reason to do “real” truck stuff at this point. I do enjoy being able to pick up furniture on Facebook from time to time but the amount of money I would save on gas is pretty crazy when I look at how many trips I take out to Bozeman and back. I’m in the analysis paralysis phase right now with this as I have been driving a truck whether it be midsize or full size since 2014 so it would be a reasonably big change.

What’s your budget?

Since you’ve been a truck guy, it would be hard to be without a truck IMO. I started driving my first PU at 16 and have had a PU since. I’m 46 now. Cars have come and gone for me, but I’ve always had a PU truck. When I’ve gone to one vehicle in the past, I always kept my truck. But that’s me…and that has always worked for me.

Do you intend on putting a camper shell on a truck, if that’s your final decision? At that point, I think it’s a wash as far as utility as there’s lots of inclosed room in an Outback. Yes, you can take a shell off, but it’s never as convenient as it seems. For some, it’s not really an option depending on their living situation.

 

[elkhunter505]

What’s your budget?

Since you’ve been a truck guy, it would be hard to be without a truck IMO. I started driving my first PU at 16 and have had a PU since. I’m 46 now. Cars have come and gone for me, but I’ve always had a PU truck. When I’ve gone to one vehicle in the past, I always kept my truck. But that’s me…and that has always worked for me.

Do you intend on putting a camper shell on a truck, if that’s your final decision? At that point, I think it’s a wash as far as utility as there’s lots of inclosed room in an Outback. Yes, you can take a shell off, but it’s never as convenient as it seems. For some, it’s not really an option depending on their living situation.

Right now my payments are about $380 ish a month which does suck but my lack of student loans has me able to afford it solidly. The insurance and gas on the f150 are expensive but I can comfortably afford that. So right now I think I’m looking at max 25Kish. I’m trolling Facebook looking for older tacomas from time to time as well and there’s one in NM that piqued my interest, 2002 and immaculate but 305K on the engine. Having a lower payment would definitely be preferred if I could get that and more reliability/maneuverability. In particular I’ve become more interested in the older ones as I feel confident in my mechanical ability up until I’m dealing with engine internals or transmissions. I’ve done quite a bit of front end work on my other trucks in the past and YouTube university is solid.

Also if I ended up getting a Tacoma, I would 100% be looking for a shell immediately. My f150 has a shell that I found on Facebook and I do like having the bed be relatively weatherproof.

 

[txtransplant]

@Terrapin symetrical AWD means that 50% of the toque is delivered to each axle. Most AWD systems are not 50/50, so while those do drive both axles, you’re not getting as much torque to the front tires. Subaru symmetrical AWD is way better than other brands’ AWD as a result.

Totally agree with everything you said - Subaru built for pavement, but with good off-road creds, not as good ground clearance. Tacoma built for off road, not going to be as well behaved on icy or snowy pavement.

Edit to add an example: modern hybrid AWD Toyota vehicles will display how much torque each axle is getting, and you’d be surprised - most of the time it’s only driving one axle to begin with. The second axle is driven if you accelerate harder or if the tires are slipping, and I assume it helps with gas mileage to drive only one axle, but nonetheless most of the actual time you’re using the accelerator only one axle is pushing the vehicle.

 

[Fireflyfishing]

2002 and immaculate but 305K on the engine.

This would be a hard no for me. I don’t care how “durable” Toyotas are, this is a crap ton of miles.

 

[elkhunter505]

This would be a hard no for me. I don’t care how “durable” Toyotas are, this is a crap ton of miles.

Yeah found another one too with way less but not as fancy which would be fine. Only reason being I have a friend who’s about to crest 375K on her 4Runner with all the coolant and oil leaks in the world and no desire to fix it. Sounds like it would be a head gasket. Thing is about to rust through the whole frame and just keeps on ticking.