One of the things I chose the Subaru for was it's fuel economy. Was told by the salesman that I'd likely see between 27-30 mpg. I very seldom get less than 32 or 33 mpg, and quite often better. Most any road trip will see 36-37 mpg average.
I tend to talk mine up like it's really something, but it's the lowest end base model. I went out the door for $24.5K including tax. It does have everything that I want on a car, and then some.
I built a small utility trailer some years back that I could buy back from it's owner. He is older now and never uses it. And I might put a hitch on the Outback and do that for very occasional use.
If I wanted to pull a trailer on a regular basis, I'd have a truck.
