How Much Can The Forester Carry?

PF_Flyer · October 2006

Ask your Forester cargo capacity questions here.

au1994 · February 2006

Hello Forester owners,

I'm considering replacing my 4Runner with a Forester and was wondering about cargo capacity. I know it will not be as large as the 4Runner, but was wondering what the 'real world' experience is. It looks like the shock towers intrude quite a bit in back. My hauling mostly consists of 3 dogs, Home Depot runs and antique finds so I'm not looking to haul big items.

Love the Forester and can't wait to bid the 4Runner and its horrible gas mileage and ride good bye. BTW, I'm considering the LL Bean Edition. Any news of upcoming incentives would be appreciated as well.

poodog13 · February 2006

I'm considering replacing my 4Runner with a Forester and was wondering about cargo capacity

I leased a 99 4Runner and my wife now owns a 2005 Forester. We routinely take it for holiday trips to the in-laws, both for extra cargo space and better gas mileage compared to my 2003 Nissan Maxima. We typically have enough space for our stuff, a dog cage, and gifts around Christmas time. Also was able to manage with some creative packing to get four young adults plus gear on a vacation trip without completely eliminating rear/side visibility. That's all with the back seat still up, the seat folds flat and that adds a bunch more space.

Not going to be as much room as your 4Runner, but an acceptable trade off given much improved gas mileage.

au1994 · February 2006

thanks poodog, I'm thinking the same thing about the MPG. It's not getting any cheaper!!

rochcom · February 2006

With the rear seat folded, I managed to load an 18 cubic foot refrigerator. I could not quite close the hatch and had to tie it. I originally bought the Forester for a business that required loading many boxes of magazines. It worked very well. Withe the back seat in use, it can still hold lots of stuff.

dstew1 · March 2006

The largest single item I've carried in my Forester was a 95 gallon waste bin. I had to fold the seats down, naturally, but the rear gate closed with minimal effort. The bin was about 46" tall and the rear cargo space is about 62" deep, but the bulk of the bin was more of an issue when pushing it further back because the floor to ceiling height tapers a bit.

au1994 · March 2006

thanks to you both. I suspect the Forester will suit my cargo needs just fine, an occasional bulky item, dogs etc.

I'm playing with the numbers now to see when I can ditch the 4Runner and its 16 mpg and horrible front seats!

kavoom · March 2006

HEY!, as of today March 1, Subaru added a thousand bucks to the incentive. My girlfriend will by getting hers on Saturday...

We got a big multi-drawer dresser in mine and closed the door. The surprised people at the Antique store that helped suddenly became very interested in my Forester... asking lots of questions

Oh and dogs love Foresters. They have a higher deck in them than anything else so a good size dog and can sit an look out. Her 65 lb part lab mix hates her old Jimmy and loves my Forester.

toasterpilot · March 2006

Consumer Reports has just come out and, according to the scant coverage in my newspaper, Forester was rated the best small SUV.

Recently, I have filled my Forester with enough 7" baseboard, door and window casing to trim out two rooms. I also fit a table and three chairs. If you can't fit it in your Forester, you need a lift gate or a loading dock.

ateixeira · March 2006

For as long as I can remember...

I think there was one single year where the RAV4 topped it, but every other year since 1998 Forester has been their favorite.

Cargo space is good, I put an oversized clothes washer inside still in the box, and closed the hatch.

I've had 5 sheets of plywood on the roof rack. A double dresser as well, solid wood too.

It will still be an adjustment to downsize, however.

Daniel - lube the sway bar bushings with lithium grease, see if that helps quiet things down. Inspect all the rubber boots to see if any are torn also. Grease leaks out and then gets noisy (happened to our 626).

-juice

once_for_all · March 2006

10' PVC pipe and conduit fit just fine going from the rear to the front passenger foot well.

It is amazing what will actually go in a Forester.

Of course, with Juice's trailer and roof rack, there is NOTHING that won't go on the outside

John

toasterpilot · March 2006

At these big box home improvement stores they will let you cut moldings so that you don't have to wrangle a 16 ft piece of trim. The thinner stuff will flex so that I can put it into the passenger foot well and bend it into the hatch.

10 feet seems to be a workable length for everything. Sometimes I have to crack a window and let something stick out.

One advantage to a small SUV (and Forester is the best of these) is that you don't have to climb into the driver seat--you just sit down. It's the easiest transition from being out-of-car to in-car that I've ever experienced.

When you add up all the extra seats, cup holders and DVD players in a larger SUV, the Forester probably has more cargo space.

once_for_all · March 2006

agreed, great car and versatile as all get out.

Just wish sometimes it had a cheesier interior (like the Honda Element) for the dirty stuff.

I really should be in a Baja, but I can't fit into their zero clearance sunroof only cab.

John

ateixeira · October 2006

Here's a nice pic I dug up! :shades:

PF_Flyer · October 2006

Hey... there's still AIR in there. You call that a LOAD??? :P

kavoom · October 2006

Pshaw! nothing...

I put a full size antique dresser in and shut the door. The people helping me at the antique store and passers by were amazed. So was I.

I see you have the green Forester. Mine too. I love it. And the Forester is a great dog car. It is the only vehicle my girlfriend's dog can see out of while lying down inside...with his head up. He loves it too.

I have an 04 which my girlfriend didn't really like...and 18 months later, she bought one... and loves it.

ateixeira · October 2006

I've had a extra-deep double dresser on the roof, does that count? It was still in the box.

I've also put 5 sheets of plywood on that roof.

Inside, my biggest load was probably a clothes dryer, much bigger than that photo.

-juice

terry92270 · October 2006

I had all the exterior lights for a 2500 sq. ft. home, five ceiling fans, eleven wall sconces, two over-sink bathroom fixtures and a half bath vanity and sink, along with faucet kit, all in one load, from Home Depot!

once_for_all · October 2006

I found a great deal on laminate flooring, so I loaded up...I didn't check weight til I got home, but I had 45 boxes at 31 lbs each plus my 200lbs. It was a gingerly drive home, but it wasn't quite sitting on the springs either. The Lowe's guys were stuck on the "load your pickup" thought until they saw my Forester. We actually had room for another 6 boxes.

John

ateixeira · October 2006

Holy cow, that's 1600 pounds! :surprise:

Nearly double the rated payload. Don't too that too often, I'm sure the braking performance would suffer if you needed them.

-juice

once_for_all · October 2006

lol it wasn't the braking performance, it was the 31 lb boxes flying forward in the case of a sudden stop that worried me

John

ateixeira · October 2006

I don't think the stock brakes could pull that weight to a hault quickly enough for that to happen.

-juice

terry92270 · October 2006

once_for_all · October 2006

oh, I am positive I can lock the brakes up with that kind of load. But those boxes of flooring are the ones with the slippery shoes

You think about it, the brakes are designed to handle a 1,000 lb trailer and some load in the car. They have plenty of oomph. Now they aren't going to stay cool if they see heavy use, but short term np.

John

How Much Can The Forester Carry?

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