2025 Subaru Outback Wilderness vs. 2026 Honda Passport Trailsport: Which One Is Right For You?

Both will make you look tougher and can do more than their more pedestrian counterparts

Mild off-roading is most definitely a thing in the world of crossovers and SUVS. If your weekends are spent between bumpy dirt trails and Costco runs to load up on foodstuffs, both the 2025 Subaru Outback Wilderness and 2025 Honda Passport TrailSport should be squarely in your automotive shopping crosshairs. You have no plans to go rock crawling or dune bashing, but you’re also planning to do more than just go car camping.

Both specially trimmed models are built for the do-just-about-everything life with their elevated ground clearance, chunkier tires, off-road-leaning drive modes, space, daily comfort, and user-friendly tech. But they take different approaches: the Outback is a toughened wagon with rally-bred all-wheel drive and a turbo boxer four; the Passport is a brawny-ish, two-row SUV with a velvety V6. Here’s how they stack up so you can pick the one that’s right for you.

Powertrain and performance

The good news for the Outback Wilderness is that it features an upgraded, turbocharged 2.4-liter boxer four-cylinder under the hood, producing 260 hp and 277 lb-ft of torque through a high-torque CVT tuned with a lower final drive for improved slow-speed control. It’s torquey, relaxed, and delivers 23 mpg combined, pretty good for something rolling on all-terrain tires and standing nearly ten inches off the ground. It will launch to 60 mph from a standstill in just under six seconds, very respectable for a mild off-road family hauler that weighs almost 4,000 pounds. 

• Ground clearance: 9.5 inches (vs. 8.7 on other Outbacks)
• Angles: 20.0° approach / 21.2° breakover / 22.5° departure
• Wheels & tires: 17-inch wheels on Yokohama Geolandar A/T 225/65R17 
• Protection: off-road cladding and a standard front skid plate
• Tech: Dual-function X-MODE adds Snow/Dirt and Deep Snow/Mud programs plus a low-ratio gradient control for steep work
• Towing: 3,500 pounds with the turbocharged engine.

The Honda Passport TrailSport gets two more cylinders but no forced induction. It goes classic with a naturally-aspirated 3.5-liter V6 that delivers 280 hp and 262 lb-ft with a 9-speed automatic and standard torque-vectoring AWD. EPA ratings land at 21 mpg combined, so you’ll visit the pump more often than in the Subaru, but the delivery is buttery smooth and confidently quick. 0-60 mph takes a slower 7.3 seconds. It’ll get outrun by the Outback, which is no surprise given the Passport TrailSport’s hefty 4,782-lb curb weight.

• Ground clearance: 8.3 inches
• Angles: 23° approach / 16.7° breakover / 23.1° departure
• Wheels & tires: 18-inch wheels on General Grabber A/T Sport 275/60R-18 113T M+S, off-road-tuned suspension,
• Protection: body cladding and skid plates
• Tech: Honda’s i-VTM4 torque-vectoring AWD and Intelligent Traction Management with Snow/Sand/Mud modes
• Towing: 5,000 pounds

Passenger comfort, space & cargo space

Neither of these vehicles is a slouch when it comes to space and comfort. The Subaru Outback Wilderness comes standard with StarTex water-repellent upholstery for easy cleaning and solid levels of comfort. It also offers 39.5 inches of rear legroom, which means it should be able to accommodate tall adults sitting behind tall adults. The Outback also provides 39.1 inches of rear headroom and 57.4 inches of shoulder room. Its towing abilities are modest but not bad for a turbocharged four-cylinder wagon. 

• Standard equipment: Heated front seats, heated rear outboard seats, and a heated steering wheel
• Passenger volume: 107.5 cu ft. is still generous for a midsize wagon, but not SUV-huge.
• Outback cargo volume: 32.6 cubic feet behind the second row; 75.6 cubic feet with the seats folded flat.

The Honda Passport TrailSport is the larger of the two in terms of overall space. It has 40.9 inches of rear legroom, a smidge more than the Outback. In TrailSport trim, it has 39.6 inches of rear headroom and 61.7 inches of shoulder room. 

• Passenger volume: 119.1 cubic feet. 
• Passport cargo volume: 44.0 cubic feet behind row 2; 83.8 cubic feet with the seats folded flat.

If you regularly tow a small camper or boat or just want a more capacious cargo hold, the Passport is the tool. If your adventures lean lighter and you prefer a lower load floor, the Outback Wilderness is the right choice. There’s more passenger space in the Passport TrailSport, but both vehicles are accommodating for adults.

Tech, controls, and safety 

Although these types of vehicles aren’t exactly tech-forward with the largest and most advanced touchscreens, they provide solid infotainment systems that get the job done. Subaru has a large portrait-oriented touchscreen that dominates the dash and bleeds into the lower portion of the center stack. It’s colorful, but the responsiveness could be better, and some vehicle operations are buried deeply in menu layers.

• 11.6-inch portrait touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto. Runs on Subaru’s STARLINK software suite.
• A Harman Kardon premium audio system with 12 speakers is standard.
• There’s a lack of knobs for climate, but the system does have temp adjustment buttons and small physical audio knobs. The steering wheel controls and traditional shift knob are very easy to use.
• EyeSight driver-assist suite (adaptive cruise, lane centering, pre-collision braking) is standard, along with Blind Sport Detection with Lane Change Assist and Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, High Beam Assist, a 180-Degree Front View Monitor, and a rear vision camera. The Outback line is also an IIHS Top Safety Pick.

The TrailSport version comes standard with a 12.3-inch landscape-oriented color touchscreen. It’s not as fancy-looking as the one in the Outback, but it’s easier to navigate and responds better to inputs. The Passport TrailSport includes leatherette and cloth seats, as well as heated front seats. In terms of physical-knob friendliness, it’s hard to beat the Passport, which borrows many of the controls and ergonomics from the CR-V and Civic. The pushbutton shifter is less intuitive than the traditional shifter in the Outback.

• The infotainment touchscreen is an 8-inch landscape-oriented unit. It’s basic but responsive, and the menus are easy to use.
• Switchgear is some of the best in the industry with large, knurled climate control knobs and a physical audio knob located just below the infotainment screen.
• Safety tech includes Collision Mitigation Braking System with Advanced Pedestrian Detection, Road Departure Mitigation, Blind Spot Information w/Lane Change Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control with Low-Speed Follow, Lane Keeping Assist System, parking sensors, and a rearview camera. The new Passport also scored “good” in all IIHS testing.

Price

The Subaru Outback Wilderness has a base price of $41,710, while the Honda Passport TrailSport starts at $48,450. That’s a price difference of $6,740, a significant delta that puts the price advantage well into Subaru’s court. Both vehicles come with standard all-wheel drive, excellent mild off-roading capabilities, distinct trim styling, spacious interiors, and solid infotainment and safety tech.

Final thoughts

Both models are impressive in their own right. Each one can get dirty, and both are easy to live with day-to-day. If your adventures value agility and efficiency, the Outback Wilderness is the sweet spot. If you need space and muscle with honest light-trail chops, the Passport TrailSport is the safer bet. Pick the one that matches the way you actually adventure, not just the way you like to look in the REI parking lot.