Sticker price: $24,320 (2.5i, manual)
Invoice price: $22,948
Kelley Blue Book Fair Purchase Price: $22,330
Resale value: 3-year: 57%; 5-year: 41%
MPG: City: 22; Hwy: 29

Standard all-wheel drive makes the Outback wagon a perennial pick for adventurous families. It’s grown taller over the years, giving you more ground clearance than most wagons. For 2014, the Outback builds on its reputation for reliability and roominess (it has 34 cubic feet of storage space behind the second row) and ups its game with enhanced features. For example, the all-weather package of heated seats and mirrors and windshield-wiper de-icer is now standard equipment. EyeSight, which incorporates adaptive cruise control (to automatically slow down if you get too close to the vehicle in front of you), pre-collision braking and lane-departure warning, is now available on all but the base models, as is a rearview camera.