Subaru Liberty Exiga Review & Road Test

Pros: Smooth engine / CVT combination; spacious cabin & cargo area; AWD grip; comfortable ride

Cons: Uncovered storage; second- & third-row ventilation; wing mirror visibility; speedometer error

By Matt Brogan | January 21st, 2010

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Price: $20,880 to $34,440

Our Rating:

Performance, Ride & Handling	3.5
Comfort and Interior	3
Quality & Design	4
Value & Features	4
Safety	5
Green	3.5

Liberty Exiga is clever package that’s pleasant to drive and great value for money.

Model Tested:

2010 Subaru Liberty Exiga 2.5i; 2.5-litre, four-cylinder, petrol; six-speed CVT; wagon – $37,490*

Smooth engine / CVT combination; spacious cabin & cargo area; AWD grip; comfortable ride
Uncovered storage; second- & third-row ventilation; wing mirror visibility; speedometer error

CarAdvice Rating:

Remember when a six-seater meant two vinyl bench seats, ventilation via the outboard passenger’s armpit and a frontal shiatsu massage from Dad’s elbow every time he changed gears? I know I do, and if our school holidays were anything to go by, the Subaru Liberty Exiga would have come as a god-send.

The latest people mover to join an increasingly busy market segment, Subaru’s Liberty Exiga features three rows of two — a move necessary to score a five-star ANCAP rating due to the seven-seat model’s centre lap belt — allowing more than enough space to spread out, even for lanky teens.

Reader reviews of the SUBARU LIBERTY

November 18th, 2011

By: DaveH

Rating:

I have two Liberties, one station wagon and the other a sedan. Both have been flawless with a growing family, hand... Read more

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December 16th, 2011

By: Mr Gaspo

Rating:

Overall a decent car. Its main virtues are in its handling and AWD grip. I also think it looks better than the c... Read more

January 9th, 2012

By: Krosbow

Rating:

The 2005 Subaru Liberty GT is an interesting and sometimes understated car, combining the best of the Japanese aut... Read more

January 18th, 2012

By: Gary Radley

Rating:

The new 2012 model gets 10 way driver power seats, leather throughout, rear view camera, new 4.3" USB media center... Read more

January 24th, 2012

By: Sin Yaw (Tom), Lim

Rating:

I like the car overall and good value for money. Read more

The competition

Alex

Speedo Error…

My MY07 Forester XT has the exacpt same problem. So does my Father-in-laws 1998 Forester, My uncles 2003 Outback and my mums 2006 WRX…

It drives me mad, I drive everywhere 10kms over just to keep up with the traffic!

In three years I have not had one ticket, nore has my wife, and yet we both drive with 10kms over showig ont he speedo at all times. we have past hundreds of cameras and speed traps as well.

Wierd.

Howie-R31

Get some bigger bling and it’ll be right :p
david

I have the same issue with my 98 Forester. I remember reading somewhere that subaru do it on purpose as a safety measure.

o

holden must to the opposite then lol

riceboy

if it was exact speed or under reported on actual speed, people would sue subaru for their speeding fines…

gmac

I have the same problem with my 07 Outback. My wife was following me in it the other day we were both doing 110 on the speedo but she was miles behind me

Save it for the track

Hence the problem of the ‘self righteous’ tootling along in the right lane on a multi lane road, and worse a freeway, simply because their speedo shows them a particular reading. Older versions of ADR’s allowed a 10% +/- variance, whereas I believe the newer ADR standard will only allow readings up to 4km/h + 10% lower. So, vehicles prior to 2006, could be displaying a speed of 110, but actually be travelling anywhere between 99 and 121, which can be quite a difference. Under the 2006 onward ADR, a vehicle speedo cannot display a speed lower than actual, but can potentially display 125 and only be doing the actual 110. So such a vehicle actually displaying 110, would actually be travelling at 95-97km/h (give or take). Likely driven by some self righteous git in the right lane, who if they eventually do move over tut-tut at those of us who actually KNOW what our speedo variances are, and therefore what speed we ARE travelling at. From my use of many V8 and turbo Holdens and Fords over the years, I know that Holdens generally indicate a higher speed than actual, usually around 5-6km/h at about 100, and the Ford’s are usually about 2-4km/h variance at the moment.

Tony

so what you’re saying is the car is designed for a larger wheel/tyre combo but they couldn’t be bother recalibrating the speedp for the lower size

nice cost cutting

kimmik

No, its because Subaru owners are more likely than, say, toyota or merc owners to put bigger wheel/tires on their cars.

Subaru is trying to make those owner’s job easier, as they will not have to recalibrate the speedo.

Furthermore, its also because wrx and sti models use the same speedo as the normal models. A cost saving measure probably.

i own an 08 impreza.

david

It looks like a shoebox ! Bring back the old liberty

Baddass

The Exiga is based on the old-gen Liberty, so essentially you are getting the old model, but with different looks.

davie

Its an interesting car but could fade into the background against some high profile competition including the honda van thingy, kia, hyaundai and the tarago.

I have already seen one driving around but Subaru needs to market this one properley!
Classic

It may be clever, but that won’t mean anything to the masses when it’s just so butt ugly.
Safety First

Just some questions, are the third row seats rated for adults? Are the middle seats on a slide mechanism to allow more leg room for the rear? Why do the manufacturers of multi seat vehicles fitted with Roof mount DVD’s insit on supplying only two sets of headphones????? Like (and Subaru are not robinson carouso here) this thing seats four kids, the screen is possitioned for all to see, supply it with four headsets instead of charging an extra $50.00 a piece for them!!!!!

As to the car itself, It may struggle due to the market being crowded with other “established” names that can carry seven and look (arguably) better. Hopefully this isn’t the direction that Subaru are going to be forced into taking, having a vehicle in every market place like it’s newfound bed partner. How many wagins does Subaru think they can reasonably sell in Australia???
David T

You are right on the marketing, that is why in Australia this is marketed as a “Liberty” Exiga rather than the completely different vehicle it is in other markets.
I’m not even sure that it has the same platform as the Liberty Wagon & Outback?
Joe

Beluga whale comes to mind..

Those rims don’t do the car ANY justice whatsoever.
Callous Aussie

Damn that is an ugly car. How have Subaru gone so far backwards on styling?

Sam 300TD

Part ownership by Toyota would be half the answer to that i suspect.

Mark

I thought the designers had gone crazy when I saw the Liberty sedan. Then I see this appalling design

That car looks shockingly terrible. Looks like a chinese copy.
MK

I fear Subaru wil go the same way as SAAB, the engineering is there but the styling is going backwards.
Beemer

No AC vents for second or third row??? Gee the kids in the third row better hope it dosnt get too hot back there.
motogp fan

subaru styling is getting worse, looks like a daewoo
spellbound

Saw my first onelast week , live near a scoobie dealer , oh its uglier than the liberty , fail
Me

Looks like they took a Nissan Cube and added some curves.

I don’t know what is happening to Subaru, their cars used to look great, and now…
black horse

What have subaru done bringing out a car that looks so old. They’ve taken huge backwards step in design.
p

Just how many wagons does Subaru need? ? ? ? They already have the Forester (2.5L), Liberty wagons (2.5 + 3.0L), then they have the Tribeca, and now this…..and the thing is this Exiga is also based on the Forester, essentially sharing the same dashboard, door trims, etc), same mechanicals, similar size except an extra seat & a bit more headroom. I can’t help but feel it’s fighting for the same market segment as it’s siblings.

And it looks sooo UGLY & BORING.

Every time they release a model……….it always shocks ppl in a bad way.
filippo

So, it’s no oil painting but still much nicer looking than the Honda Odyssey. If Subaru could find a way to fit a proper seatbelt in the middle position (it’s not rocket science for god’s sake) and then release it as a 7 seater, they’d be onto a winner.

t

Odyssey nails that abomination!

the honda looks wild for a people mover!

filippo

The difference though is that the Exiga looks like a station wagon (albeit not a very attractive one), where the Odyssey is unmistakeably a people mover. Many women simply will not drive something so bus-looking.

PROJET-L

It looks like a Pope Mobile!
At least the front is coherent in design,
unlike the Liberty which is a train wreck.

Terrible.
maximark

Look like a pregnant liberty
Myke

Is Subaru having a competition with Ssangyong on who can put the smallest wheels on a people-mover?
btgil

I was thinking to downsize my people mover into Exiga because of its AWD. But after seeing one in the showroom I changed my mind. Korean SUVs such as Santa Fe/Sorento/Captiva seem to tick more boxes …
Nick K

Ugly and stupid with only 6 seats. I also sports el-cheap hard plastics in the cabin (this is a slush mould free zone). FAIL Subaru. The Koreans are going to each your lunch unless you make cars that are aspirational. I predict Exiga will disappear from the market within 2 years. Subaru have good thing going with boxer engines and AWD… for gods sake hire the bloke that is styling Kias these days, what the F@#K is going on with Subaru design these days?

http://www.caradvice.com.au OSU811

i doubt that it will disappear, Subaru doesnt have a history of just deleting models!
if anything they go about fixing the mistakes quickly rather than give up eg (TRIBECA) the update new styling of the 3.6 model was a massive improvement!

mike

I cant believe fillipi that you think its nicer looking than an Odyssey.
http://www.7-seater-cars.co.uk 7Seatercars

Great Article, just tweeted it. Do you know when this is available in the UK?
t

Suby sure make some gumby lookin cars now, and i think this thing takes the cake..

UGLY and all out of proportion.
Jerome

It looks like a 15 year old Mazda, but extra ugly.

How subaru keep screwing up designs is beyond me.
cruickster

Yeah, I am not sure what is going on re: design at Subaru either. However I think their engineering is great and that is why I just purcahsed a new liberty wagon. Yes not the most attractive car around but a far better ride than our Calais V sportwagon albeit without a lot of the fruit. But lets face it do you really need every single gadget in a car nowadays. At least I sit in the car so don’t have to look at it all the time but I know that it will grow on me. On another tangent why don’t they reduce the manufacture of their 2.5 petrol and make more diesel. There is demand for them, especially if they had an auto. My 5 cents worth.

nick

You still have to put up with the Liberty’s interior from the driver’s seat…

Safety First

I don’t normally post negative comments regarding any vehicles looks, but looking through the Subaru side of our opperation, I have to admit that I have done a complete about face….
I used to think the current Forrester was teh worst looking thing Subaru had done, but these days, after all the new releases, I’ll admit that I was wrong! Forrester is the only vehicle on their lot that I find “acceptably styled”! The others, including Imprezza Hatch, are just not correct. and this rivals Tribecca in the metal…
Carl

As i read the first few comments i thought to myself “is everybody blind, why hasn’t anyone commented on how ghastly this thing is???)but then the later comments made me feel more in tune with most other people!!

Subaru……..please stop it already with these hideous cars and design something decent for a change!!!! your build quality is right up there now all you need is a designer and/or executives with good taste.
Hung Low

I seen one on the road, pictures do not do it justice! It is uglier in the flesh and would have to be one of the worst looking cars in a while. Subaru are over rated these days, the last Liberty is a keeper though!
NickBoghaan

Don’t know what you’re on about, classy looking fleet. All of the Subaru cars.
Love them so much, got one for everyday of the week.
Gazza

A practical car for large families that don’t want an SUV or a glorified delivery van. I probably would have looked at this when we had a young family if it had been around. We outgrew our Forester and the Outback was longer but exactly the same width.
As for Suburu design, I reckon it’s more than a coincidence that their design has gone downhill since Toyota took over GM’s shareholding in 2005.
GM used to leave them alone, the power merchants at Toyota wouldn’t be able to do that, they’d have to have their say.
JarJar

Fugly!
GULAG

U G L Y, looks silly, inside is a mish-mash, and WAY overpriced
Sam 300TD

Yes, its ugly. But about those Luggage covers, that is poor form. Consider this, my 1981 300TD came standard with a retractable colour-coded vinyl luggage cover and a retractable cargo net. Both of which can be operated while the rear seats are up or down or with the 40% split rear seat folded down. Don’t mean to brag, (which I am ) but that’s a 30 year old car, where have Subaru’s brains gone? If you want to sell an ugly car, make it practical as hell, like a 300TD!
Joker

It makes me wonder why CA aren’t critiquing the looks of the latest Subie’s in their reviews? Do they all like the styling? Surely not.
Motor gave the Impreza and Liberty (particularly the Liberty) an absolute rimming.
Be a little more dangerous CA , speak your thoughts or are you letting us do it for you? hehe
Rusticle

Recent quotes : ‘Is Subaru having a competition with Ssangyong on who can put the smallest wheels on a people-mover?’ ‘… It is uglier in the flesh and would have to be one of the worst looking cars in a while. Subaru are over rated these days …’ etc etc. >>> Gentle men and women seem obsessed about looks over the enginering. My 96 Graxel X is doing fine and I will see an Exiga in the flesh asap – i really dont see this constant issue here. Personally I will fit taller tyres and use the extra space for soft camping or touring – DO the seats come out easily ??? Drove a Korando yesterday and I must do my washing now
http://Caradive jordan

Gosh some of these bad comments grow up. subaru is like that now i think there cars are really nice!!! im thinking of buying one of these.i love the design of this its better then the od-yssey
Phee

Subaru hitting it’s lowest point with design. For the first time I would rather have the previous model than the current high arched Subaru’s
BP

This car was a FAIL!!! Axed many months ago now & i’ve only ever seen 2. Tribeca even lasted longer lol.