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Comments
I think that the fancier ones are even articulated so that you can lower the rack with the bikes still mounted.
I'd hope after market hitch is much cheaper than the Subaru hitch. Would you help me with what brand(s) you recommend?
I don't think there's much of a difference between hitches. U-Haul will sell you one and mount it for half the amount Subaru charges. Or you can go to a company that specialzes in hitches.
-Frank
Keep'em coming! I assume that pic was also taken in southern Utah?
-Frank
Just thought I'd share my latest bright idea. I'm finding that I prefer the ride of an 09 BaseX over the 09 LimitedX. I'm sure it's the narrower higher profile tires that soften the ride just a bit. I like all the Limited features (adjustable lumber is a must for me) so I'm thinking about having the dealer swap some 16" base wheels for the 17" Limited wheels. I know I will prefer the 16" tires because I'm more of a boulevard cruiser than a canyon carver. Has anyone looked in their 09 owners manual and found out what the lug nut torgue is?
Thanks Mike
I can't believe that it is mounted so low, and not adjustable... My 12 year old Explorer was way better than this, power adjust on both sides.
Any ideas??
Sage Green, very interesting color, seems to change with the light.
Bruce
This isn't quite a solution, but perhaps a direction to head....
On the last subaru I bought, I was concerned that the seats would not sit back far enough for a friend of mine who was very tall. The dealer actually unbolted the seats, moved them back a few inches. He adjusted it so both front seats were the same and so that both myself and my friend would fit comfortably and reach the pedals. The one caveat with that adjustment was that you wouldn't be able to have a very short legged person drive the car, as the slider to adjust the seat still had the same range as originally. It worked great.
PS I have the green too. It is a great color. I'm loving it more every day. I really like how it changes color under the different lighting. I'm thinking about getting a bra to protect the finish...
I have found that you can "pause" the CD. Just press the mute button on the steering wheel. It not only reduces the sound, but pauses the CD. When you hit it again, it starts playing again just where it left off.
Great picture, BTW!
I did a quick look at the way the seat is bolted to the floor. In front, the connector is kinda L shaped, as it has both a horizontal and vertical component. This would be hard to deal with if I wanted to add some sort of spacer to raise the seat. I would have to have something fabricated at a machine shop. I am sure that anything I did would void all sorts of warranty clauses, and could have a safety issue if not done well.
When my wife sits in the passenger seat, she can hardly see out, so it is an issue we will either learn to live with, or bite the bullet and have something custom made. Seems like a new "Limited" level vehicle would have better passenger seat controls in this day and age.
I wonder if a drivers seat from a British car (right hand drive) could be installed as a replacement?? Even a manually adjusting seat would be welcome.
Bruce
I did take a look at the seat and it looks like the British seat might be your best bet (although expensive)...if it fits. Subaru could design another mount/riser with the slider, and do it fairly easily. But, it might take some time if it isn't already in the works. The mount/riser is riveted to the slider piece. That probably would have been the best place for a few washers, but with it being riveted, it is not worth fooling with IMHO, and as you mentioned safety issues would take over.
Why don't you call Subaru customer service and ask them directly? Perhaps they have had enough comments about this issue to have something in the works.
Although I don't have the Limited, I'm surprised, like you, that they didn't have this covered(in all models). I think the issue is more with the size and placement of the cowl than it is with the seat. The seat is an easier fix of course.... I'm guessing the cowl placement is there for safety.
In the meantime, another poster noted that his girlfriend sat on a pillow or some such. Not optimal, but it'll work. :sick:
Good Luck
Once I am able to drive it more than 10 miles to the train station, I will give you my impressions.
Phil
Given the '09 XT likes to guzzle gas around town (18 -19 mpg , which is pretty crummy), I really wonder if for city/suburban driving, something like the Escape Hybrid makes more sense.
Then again, the Escape's AWD does not seem as sophisicated as the Foresters.
I'd still take that with a grain of salt, though--I have a friend with a Highlander hybrid, and he says he doesn't get close to the rated mileage, while I've found the Forester's rating to be pretty accurate.
Has anyone had experience using the extended warranty offered by subaruwrxparts.com? It sounds like it is factory backed but is it really? Is it better to go this direction, rather than purchasing it from the dealer?
You can get the warranty from any dealership, and if you search and shop around you will find diverse prices for the same coverage. Some dealerships discount so that tells me that the price is negotiable.
I didn't pick up on anything in anybody's replies to your question that knocks Subaru's reliability. I am a new Subaru owner, so I can't speak from personal experience, but I've gone through several Subaru forums and it looks to me like Subaru owners are very pleased with reliability. In fact, reliability was a key factor for me. Subaru gets top reviews on reliability.
Whether to get an extended warranty is strictly a matter of personal preference, since nobody has a crystal ball to look into their car's future. Some people like the cushion and are willing to risk a little extra money for it. If I have Subaru bucks going stale at some point, I may use them on a warranty. Keep in mind that automakers will on average make money off of warranties. They know how to write them to avoid big losses. The house always wins.
I like your Subaru bucks idea. I will look into getting a card.
We made a bad choice with the last car we purchased. It was an 01 Volvo Cross Country. Consumers Reports rates it as a car to avoid for a used car. We paid out $6000 total for maintenance and other issues since 2003 when we bought it as a certified pre-owned vehicle. The extended warranty didn't cover a lot of it but did pay out $2000 more so the total spent was $8000. None of those repairs were major items.
We are hoping that we will not experience that with Subaru. Granted, Volvo is more expensive to repair, for example a timing belt is $750.
1. Passenger side under dash cover is not well secured (if you put hand on it, you can lift it up and down (pivoted from the front)).
2. Rear reclining seats rattle when going over bumps (locking mechanism is not very secure).
Dealer's waiting for answers from Subaru, and admitted first year Subies need tweaks just like any other first year car.
Still, compared to the GM first year's I've driven, the Subie doesn't have anywhere as many glitches.
We've also got an '01 Forester S automatic, which is my wife's car. I've also driven a '09 Forester turbo a couple of months ago.
The new Forester is better in every way compared to my wife's '01 model. It's not even close. As to fun? Well, I'm used to driving a WRX, so to me neither Forester (the '01 or '09) are what I consider "fun" to drive. Pleasant? Yes, very pleasant. More fun than other vehicles in this class? Most definitely! Would I consider a new Forester to replace the old one? Absolutely!
Bob
I've really had to change the way I drive to really enjoy this car. Cruise slightly off the accelerator, nice and easy, no racing, no more trying to beat people off the line. It's just not really an option in this car, unless you're racing a Yugo
djm
Where the XT fell down was interior quality; MT described the XT as a parts bin approach .vs. the Tiguan's superior quality.
MT said if the Tiguan were $5 K cheaper (at XT price point), they would have probably rated it first.
However, what MT did not say (but another review did) is the Tiguan's AWD is the same as the current R32's, which is to say it's FWD unless it detects loss of traction, at which point it switches to AWD.
I call it smart marketing. The fact that the Impreza and the Forester share the same dash and a number of other interior parts I think is great—and very smart on Subaru's part. Why design different parts for two different vehicles if you don't have to. That's just wasted money—money that could be put to better use in terms of developing stuff that's truly important and/or will the make the vehicles better.
Bob
To answer your question, I think my boring, soft-suspension non-turbo '09 Bean is fun, fun, fun. We really enjoy taking it through the winding, hilly roads around Austin. Maybe it's because this is our first all-wheel-drive, not to mention our first car with a moonroof, so we are comparing it to more staid vehicles, but still, we are really happy with our choice. There's more to fun than suspensions and turbos.
I'd say take a good, long test drive or three in both the X and XT series and make your decision, and don't let a reviewer define fun for you or scare you off a great car.
I do have a few questions I would like to ask the Subaru faithful that may help me decide when to buy.
1. Is there a 5 speed auto tranny in the works and when might that appear?
2. When will a diesel engine show up in an American Forester?
3. What is direct injection and how does that impact performance/economy?
4. Can anyone tell me the difference between the 16" and 17" wheels and how they would alter the driving characteristics of the Forester?
5. And, finally, is there a Subaru news source that a person could stay in contact with that reveals what changes are coming and when to the Forester?
Thanks in advance for any info you can assist me with.
--John
1) You will more likely see a CVT transmission, although a 5EAT is possible. I know the 2010 Legacy and Outback will get a CVT in most models, and I expect it to trickle down to other Subies as well.
2) Probably in about 2 years.
3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_Stratified_Injection
4) The 17" equipped Foresters have 225/55 sized tires, which is a wider and lower profile tire than what's found on 16" equipped Foresters (215/65). So you can expect the benefits usually associated with lower profile tire, that being slightly sharper and improved handling.
5) This forum is an excellent choice. If you can put up with a bunch of constantly bickering children, you can also try NASIOC.
Bob
Now if I didn't have a WRX (or Outback Sport) to cross-reference it to, I would say the new Forester is a ton of fun. I think if you had both a WRX (or normal Impreza) and Forester in your garage, you'd agree.
Bob
I have to say, having this dealer loaner for 3 days, I've come to appreciate the new Forester even more. It's really an excellent car, and I'd recommend it to anyone.
Bob
2. I came across an old article ('99) on the Subaru global site that said they had an electric hybrid coming in '01 that was suppose to get 50% more fuel economy. "A great town car." http://www.subaru-global.com/news1999n000496.html Anyone have any updates on this?
2) Subaru was developing their own hybrid system, but that was put on hold or canceled once they hooked up with Toyota. I just heard yesterday that the all-new 2010 Legacy and Outback may offer a hybrid model, most likely done with Toyota's help. No word as to when or if it will be sold here.
Bob
I have driven a car at 147 MPH, a bike at 120 MPH, driven cars with 500 HP that were great fun in a straight line but not so much in curves, and cars that could corner on rails but didn't have lots of torque or HP to spare, but they were all fun in their own way.
I have evolved to a point where I think balance is most important. A vehicle that can maintain a high average speed to a destination is now most satisfying. I am sure I would love an XT, and a WRX/STi for that matter, but I can say that one of my most satisfying cars ever was my 01 Forester L, 5 spd, with the 50/50 AWD split. I added the Impreza rear sway bar and loved the results.
I always got a kick as vehicles with much larger engines tried to stay with me on curvy country roads. They would close the gap somewhat on straight parts of the road then panic and hit the brakes hard when they realized that they couldn't do the corners as smooth and fast as I could. They would fall way behind in the curves then accelerate hard to catch up, only to have to hit the brakes again soon. Their 2 sigma was much higher than mine, and I also got much better gas mileage than they did along that trip, not to mention brake life.
I still have fun driving my 06 Forester Premium with auto, but it really could use the sway bar. Balance is again the key, and is one of the reasons I like the Tribeca, but everyone has to judge for themselves because they have to live with it.
Their focus, however, seems strictly track-oriented.
So if you want your Subaru to perform better on the track (less lean, firmer ride, more responsive handling), Cobb has engine flashes, suspension mods and other goodies available for many Subarus.
....but, as of site check yesterday, nothing yet for the '09 Forester. And frankly, do lowered springs make sense for a Forester?
FYI, I've found the Forester leans in turns only when you drive it __very hard__. If that is what you wish, you might want to swap out the Geolander tires for something better.
The one exception I made was by taking the extended factory warranty on my old Yukon XL. Two significant repairs were needed, neither of which they covered and whose total cost was still less than the warranty. I won't make that mistake again, and didn't even think twice about it for the Subaru.
So you know where I come from, I am a strong believer in insurance where it matters : car, home,life, disability and travel medical are very important because they can change your life or the lives of your loved ones if something terrible happens. Extended car warrantees just don't make that cut.
I haven't driven the 09 yet but I am surprised to hear some people not liking the handling. My salesman is a "car guy" and he raved about the handling changes and balance. He said it was like a mini-Tribeca on the balance axis.
I guess I will have to go drive one. I have been waiting because my wife is due to upgrade her 05 Bean, but she seems in no hurry. That alone speaks to how much we like all the Foresters we have had. Before them we used to trade up about every 3 years because we were sick of what we had and wanted something new and different. I am sure getting older has had a lot to do with that, but all our Foresters have been great, enjoyable vehicles.
I really liked the 07 Tribeca when I drove it, except for the premium gas and I felt it needed a bit more power/torque. I have resisted driving the 08 because it might start me down a path I am not ready for.
I wouldn't be surprised if a bar off one of the new Impreza models fit the
09 Forester, but haven't heard anything yet, or even checked the diameter difference. Jamie (SubieGal) at AllSubaru would be on top of this.
Motor Trend complained about the '09 XT leaning too much in turns, once again while testing on a track.
Uh.... what is a Forester for? The track??? :confuse:
If COBB can improve some damping characteristics of the Forester on rough roads (some reports suggest the '09's underdamped), well and good. But cutting its heigth down and making it track-rigid seems contrary to its spirit, and I suspect that stiff suspension would probably make a Forester miserablely skittish on Catalina-Island class roads.
Are there sanctioned Forester racing events devoted solely to paved, smooth race tracks ?? :surprise:
1. Does anyone know what this tool is for?
2. Is it suppose to come with the Premium model Forester?
Thx
You can get the bar wholesale plus some tech support at WWW.ALLSUBARU.COM Toll Free: 800 516-8869 (Carter Subaru Seattle)
Be sure you get the larger bushings & brackets. I tried to make it work with the smaller ones but it was NO GO! A excellent easy, inexpensive modifcation - even I could do it in an hour. Toughest part was place the bolts on the passenger side.
The instruction doesn't look much different than what I went through on my 01 so I am not afraid of that. My compressor and air tools make jobs like that pretty easy. I have been only concerned about breaking the tabs and having to get them re-welded, you know, Murphy's Law.
While I like the 09 from what I have seen there are some things they changed that I don't like. I am not a leather fan, and you can no longer get the power seat with the Premium, so I will probably keep my perfectly fine 06 for a while. I guess I should rethink the bar and make the move on it. Thanks!
Have any Forester owners here used Michelin Primacy tires? If so, how are they working out?
When they wear down to close to the "Lincoln penny head" level they start to not work so well, so my wife recently chose to replace them a bit earlier than she could have legally. She replaced her Yokos with Michelin Pilot Exaltos but no winter with them yet. She loves them in the dry and the rain though.