New Subaru Forester Owners - Give Us Your Report!
Congratulations on your new Forester! This is the place to let us know how much you love it!
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The Forester was a car I had admired from afar for a long time. Actually the first test drive was before we had narrowed to three, early on in the looking. I personally did FOUR more test drives - three on the X that we wound up buying, and one on an XT. I didn't need the turbo, in fact our '06 (new by the way) Forester X has five big hp more than our naturally aspirated 2000 S70 Volvo, which has been fine - also with five speed.
Why didn't SOMEBODY tell me I would LOVE this car??!?!?!! :-)
I think I like every single thing about it - one exception see below - I love the size; I am six ft two and couldn't even reach the middle of the roof to wash it on one of those truck based SUV's. I love the quality. The transmission linkage is very good, not BMW quality but close enough. I have always preferred light steering cars, this has it as well as tight at center. Suspension is clearly better than a truck based ride. So........except for..........
I HATE the Hill Holder. I might be able to live with it for the traffic lights on a hill deal, although I've been driving stick shift cars for 45 (!) years and pride myself on being to get a car moving in that situation. Problem is the darned thing works in reverse too. Our garage is flat, but just outside of it the driveway slopes down a little, and I am accustomed to getting the car moving till it starts down that little slope, then pushing in the clutch. This car stops when I do that, so I'm left with having to use the power of the engine to push against the brakes all the way down the hill. Unless I am missing something. I have tried to sorta blast out backwards, kick it in neutral before the brakes come on to stop it, THEN coast down in neutral. I don't care to have to perfect that maneuver over the life of this car. So.......
Can the Hill Holder be disabled?
Thanks for the help from this forum during my search for a car.
It should only stop if you put the brake on in the process. The clutch alone won't engage the hillholder, the brake needs to be activated first in order to seal the ball valve check in the master cylinder.
I have learned not to activate hillholder when backing downhill in reverse. If you release the parking brake, start rolling, and do not apply the brake again, the Forester will not stop.
The benefits of the HH, IMO, outweigh the constraints.
John
Thanks. The salesman did say that it gets less grabby with time, right away. Having only had the car for 24 hours, I guess I need to calm down a LITTLE bit about this feature. It just seems annoying to deal with in so many situations (of backing, e.g.) where I really don't even get to use its benefit, but rather have to work around it.
thanks for the info
-juice
Fred
Goodness! Step confidently into the 21st Century! :shades:
Yep, it takes me back to the 19th century. Sittin' up thar on the stagecoach, ridin' shotgun maybe, nothin' but big sky ahead, lookin out for injuns while heppin' the cap'n by grabbin the brake lever when he says to. You got a real feel for your wagon when you do your own shiftin'
The ladies seem to like it too, at least mine does - she will not have an automatic.
applejf
I appreciate a stick, like when I had the Viper, or another power car. Just have never found them more than a bother on low power ones, is all...
Though I will admit on one particular 10 hour trip from CT back to MD it was a bit painful and I did wish for an auto. For bumper-to-bumper traffic it's just easier.
-juice
I really love the following:
Overall size of the car - kinda small but holds plenty of stuff
Steering - very light, incredibly quick and sensitive - better than our BMW 3 series
Driver's power seat (we have the base x model but with the Premium upgrade)
Styling is to my liking
Headlight power is very good at night
Interior look and quality - wish I could have gotten leather w/o turbo
Manual transmission shifting feel - EXCELLENT, solid, reliable, easy shifting
Continued, 'what I love' list
Quality of accessories: the bra for the hood and front end is a really good design,
it fits very tight, almost too tight to easily install, no wrinkles, stable in wind, covers a lot of the car. I also like the rear rubber mat that I purchased from
Subaru. Again, an excellent fit, high quality.
MPG is not exceptional, but I am satisfied. It regularly gets 23 in town, 29 highway. I'm easy on the throttle.
I don't care for the following:
Hill holder feature. It would be mighty nice to have a switch on the dash to
enable/disable the Hill holder.
I am seeing the jerkiness near zero throttle, while in motion, that has been
mentioned in another post or two.
Really can't think of anything else that turns me off about the car. Really glad we purchased it. Also looked at Pontiac Vibe, Volvo V50, Mazda Sportwagon, '06 Outlander, Honda Element (close second to the Forester during test drives but am glad we went with the Sube). I will definitely consider purchasing another Subaru next time, if our experiences hold.
Hillholder - can be adjusted so that it is activated only when you're truly facing an uphill rollback situation. Try a Google on something like "hillholder Forester". I found a posting (Subiemods and Peety also come to mind as keywords) with pictures that 'splained the adjustment process.
When I first got my FXS, I found this feature to be a pain until I did my homework, held my breath and fixed it with a pair of metric wrenches. I suspect the hillholder is why I had trouble with my initial test drives in a Forester. The hillholder wasn't adjusted properly in the demo car, so I kept stalling the Subie when taking off from a dead stop on the slightest inclines.
Jerkiness at zero throttle. Other makes of cars with stick shifts have this to some degree, some worse than others. The car that I replaced with the FXS (a BMW 525i) was a pain in stop'n'go in hot weather. After 10 minutes of bumper-bumper, it would develop a really bad case of the judders that would homogenize your innards.
-juice
You can always justify it by saying that you want to break it in for Tati to drive later on...
It really depends on whether my brother pays me back or not, he said he would. I know, don't hold my breath! :sick:
-juice
When I first got my FXS, I found this feature to be a pain until I did my homework, held my breath and fixed it with a pair of metric wrenches. I suspect the hillholder is why I had trouble with my initial test drives in a Forester. The hillholder wasn't adjusted properly in the demo car, so I kept stalling the Subie when taking off from a dead stop on the slightest inclines.
Thanks for the ideas. I have asked the local dealer's main Subaru service guy about having it adjusted (not during an appointment, just stopped in to get a feel for their service dept.). He popped the hood and expressed surprise when he looked at the device - it apparently has been redesigned, maybe only for the 2006 version; for sure since he last looked at one. I am about to get to where I can live with it. The only time in the last month when it bothered me was this week, backing out of a very tight space where I had to see-saw the direction about three times, and it was on an incline. On mine anyway, the clutch has to come ALL the way out before the HH will release, and I didn't have the room on that seesawing to let it all the way out without risking plowing into another car. I really do think an enable/disable switch somewhere is needed.
When I bought the new one had a similar problem during the first month, but after repair car has been running like a top. Now has about 9000 miles.
This car feels much bigger and much more solid than the 1999 even though dimensions are similar. And the increased horsepower is great. I can cruise at 80mph with no sense that the car is at its limit. The 1999 brakes felt a bit
soft. Not so on the 2006. And while the 1999 had a twitchy
acceleration from stop, the new one is as smooth as can be.
Interior is nice. Fantastic, huge sunroof, and sunroof comes with a pop up wind deflector that makes it much quieter than the 1999. The LLBean has leather seats and a nice wood/leather steering wheel.
So I am very happy with this car.
Any suggestions for improvement. Minor. The switches for the interior lights and the sun roof are in the same location and have the same shape. Different design for one or the other or a lighted switch would help. And I would like a bit more thigh support (eg. longer seat) but I have found that since my 1970 volvo most cars do not have what I want here.
And the color. It is a light green. I don't see many this color. Beautiful and does not show the dirt.
This is my wife's car and she loves it.
Paul D
My only regret is not getting the LL Bean one for the leather seats.
I received the gauranteed trade in thing from Subaru (traded in my 04 Forester X) and they basically made me a deal I couldn't refuse almost coming out even on my 04. IT really is a deal...particularly if you are at the max miles to be eligible as I was.
I am definitely noticing subtle differences between the two. The suspension and handling are different. IT looks like a subtle retuning. The rear end is not quite as tight as the 04 and the steering is not quite the same... I noted this on another board, but with the new looks (06) and the items I am noticing, it appears they were appealing to "soccer moms"
I am not saying the difference is good or bad...just different. And I doubt most people would even notice. I will have to say that all the goodies in the premium package are nice. I love that sunroof. And I like all the safety items that plain X doesn't have e.g. four wheel disc, limited slip rear differential and I guess they all have the electronic force distribution brakes.
Braking is improved as it the take off. The fly by wire throttle and perhaps the extra 8 horsepower over my old 04 must be behind that.
-juice
I purchased a 2006 because of top safety ratings -- strong passenger cage, side airbags -- and would have added stability control had it been available.
Would also like to see Subaru upgrade to automatic 5-speed transmission.
-juice
...I did not see this color selection offered on any other sites for new Subies....Are my eyes going bad or are they just starting to supply this color for the new Forester?
...It's the same light green color that is offered on the Impreza wagon...
solo....
-juice
The dealer just got their first automatic XT Sport on the lot, so I took a look. The package consists of a) VDC, b) cloth seats (4-way manual adjust), and c) a redesigned grille. With this, the total price actually drops by almost $1000, due principally to elimination of leather/electric seats. Why Subaru would configure a VDC-enabled XT only in this manner isn't at all clear to me.
More after I take delivery...
It's a beautiful color with the Urban grey combo...and beige interior...
-juice
I don't know if this model will be available in Canada. Anyone?
So, which is safer (base models ) and a better choice..?? Very difficult decision for me...........could somebody help......please..!!
The CRV also sometimes has difficulty determining when to send power to the rear on marginal surfaces such as somewhat slippery surfaces or driving in soft sand on the beach.
I can't speak to the other items you mentioned in terms of "canceling" out the negatives of the CRV system. The new '07 CRV is much nicer inside from what I can see. Unfortunately a full-size spare tire is no longer available. I also don't like the new tapering rear-quarter window, as that cuts down on rear visibility.
I haven't driven the new CRV, but my daughter has an '04 CRV, and we have an '01 Forester. The Forester handles better and is more fun to drive, but the CRV is much roomier, both for passengers and cargo.
I think you would be happy with either. You just need to decide what's most important for you. I think the CRV is more practical and probably more useful on a day-to-day basis. However, it may not put as many grins on your face while driving as the Forester would.
Bob
Two complaints:
1) Wish I didn't have to pay extra for the crossbars
2) There is a bothersome vibration in the driver's door speaker (not sure about the other door). Would like to know if it's tinny speakers or a repairable problem.
Oh, and unlike some, I like the appearance of of the front end. It's different, and it double-take stares.
regards terry.b
The bad news -- it's behind the glove box, and getting to it isn't exactly easy (note: I am a very infrequent and unskilled "mechanic". I'm sure others here will say it's not that hard a job.)
Here's the other thing -- I had an 04 base Forester, and I know that that air filter wasn't standard equipment for that trim. A lot of dealers installed them as a default option, but mine didn't. So if the same was true in 03, you might not even have one in there right now. But it's a very easy part to get, and it comes with fairly straightforward installation instructions.
Can i get a copy of aowners service mnul that come standard off the web - it just shows you the satndard things that the car has or how they work
-Frank
-juice