The other type of CVT is an eCVT and is part of a hybrid powertrain. Subaru uses a conventional belt and pulley CVT. Like you I am leery of CVTs in general and especially for towing. It was the reason we went with a RAV4 over another CR-V when we replaced my wife’s daily driver in 2019.
However, there is no doubt CVTs have gotten better over time. Many have a sport or towing mode for better performance when towing The Outback is a very popular tow vehicle for 13’ers, and I have yet to hear of a transmission failure. If you travel
light and your driving style is conservative, and if you don’t spend too much time in mountains and other severe towing conditions, I expect you will find it satisfactory.
In base trim, rated 2700/270#, Outback is one of the better towing values out there for a 13’ trailer. There aren’t many sub-$30K options left with at least 2500# tow rating for a 13’er. If I could afford the turbo upgrade, I’d probably be looking at a few other options, including the Mazda CX-50. Mazda uses conventional automatic transmissions.