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2014 Forester Off-Road Experience
I'm interested to hear about the performance of the 2014 Foresters off road.
Specifically, how does the regular (base model) CVT perform off road in crawling, hill climbing and steep-start situations?
Does it seem like the gearing is low enough?
Is the throttle control comfortable?
I've always had manual transmissions, and I may end up with a 2.5 Premium 6-speed manual Forester, but the CVT is interesting and tempting.
I do a lot of exploring on old roads in the high desert and mountains and think the Forester would be great for it, I just can't decide which transmission would be best, manual or CVT?
Currently I have a 2007 2.5i Impreza sedan with a 5-speed manual, and it does surprisingly well on a lot of the old dirt roads, but I really want the higher clearance of a Forester.
Specifically, how does the regular (base model) CVT perform off road in crawling, hill climbing and steep-start situations?
Does it seem like the gearing is low enough?
Is the throttle control comfortable?
I've always had manual transmissions, and I may end up with a 2.5 Premium 6-speed manual Forester, but the CVT is interesting and tempting.
I do a lot of exploring on old roads in the high desert and mountains and think the Forester would be great for it, I just can't decide which transmission would be best, manual or CVT?
Currently I have a 2007 2.5i Impreza sedan with a 5-speed manual, and it does surprisingly well on a lot of the old dirt roads, but I really want the higher clearance of a Forester.
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Comments
John
Note that the non-XT CVT does not have a manual mode (i.e., no paddle shifters). It has (D)rive and (L)ow; no (M)anual selection.
The Limited and Touring (and all XT models) have an X-mode that should help with off road situations.
I like the look of the CrossTrek, and would be very tempted if it had the 2.5 motor, but the 2.0 is just a little weak for the weight.
I live in the west and do a lot of driving in the mountains, so every bit of power is used.
I've done the calculations of the transmission and final drive gear ratios, and the 2014 Forester equipped with the 6M transmission is geared slightly lower in first gear than the CVT (at its low end) due to the final drives used.
Roughly speaking, in 1st/low, for each revolution of the driveline, the manual transmission Forester travels 5.7 inches while the CVT version travels about 6.5 inches.
For my purposes, the lower gearing is more important than the slight gas mileage benefit of the higher geared CVT version.
The non-turbo will be "okay," while the turbo will be "excellent."
Bob
For winter driving, be sure to replace the XT's Bridgestone Duelers with Nokian WRG2/WRG3 as the Bridgestone tires perform poorly on ice.
Great advice on the tires. I live at 7800 feet and have steep mountain roads and driveway (who needs Disneyland) to negotiate. Also would like something not as off-road capable as my Jeep Rubicon I'm selling but able to safely drive back roads in mountains. Test drove the 2014 Forester XT the other day and really liked it but have been advised against turbo's by friend who is Subaru mechanic. However, from what I've read on other posts, methinks he's thinking of the pre-2011 models. BTW got a price of $30,601 ($1000 off inv) before taxes, DMV, Doc fees from Reno dealer. Any comments/advice on any/all of this would be much appreciated.
I've got a 2009 WRX with over 92K and have not had any problems with the turbo or the engine. Also, turbos lose less power at altitude than non-turbos.
It's like anything else: if you follow the maintenance schedule, change the oil, you won't have any problems.
Bob
FYI, my 2014 Premium Forester came equipped with Yokohama Geolanders
I ended up getting a CVT-equipped Premium model 2014 Forester. Last week I took it on an extended trip into the desert around Death Valley and did a fair amount of jeep road exploring -- Hanaupah Canyon, Sperry Wash, Hunter Mountain Road...etc. I was very happy with the crawling and steep-start performance. There are only a few times I have occasionally missed having a manual transmission. To an amazing degree, the CVT is tuned right and performs very well.
Congrats! Enjoy the new ride.
Bob