2009 Subaru Forester

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Comments

  • kurtamaxxxguykurtamaxxxguy Member Posts: 1,798
    Yes, I did try to keep that in mind. They did like the XT in many ways.

    However, it's surprising there's so much disparity over the XT's auto trans. Nearly all the reviews [non-permissible content removed] over it being only 4 speed, then many go on to say it works ok. What they _don't_ mention is the autotrans torque converter's adjusting within each gear range, especially on cruise control to avoid gear changing on small hills.

    Still, I wonder if Subaru will bow to the wind and put a 5AT into Forester for '10?
  • bigfrank3bigfrank3 Member Posts: 426
    They switched to that design a few years back, and the problem is worse than just Winter blades. I have not been able to find any after-market wipers for the rear at all. When I needed to replace I had to get the Subaru inserts and just change the rubber.

    If it is any consolation I am also in New England and have not had any significant problem with it icing up to the point of it being no help.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    It's Thursday and that means time again for the longest running chat here in CarSpace, the Subaru Crew! The chat opens at 8:45 pm ET and runs until 10 pm ET. I hope you're able to join us tonight for another enjoyable evening with members of the Crew!
    See you there!
  • tinycadontinycadon Member Posts: 287
    Kurtamax, I noticed the buzzing door this morning, it was about 40 degrees here, only reason I noticed is because of your post. I could barely hear it with the radio on, so I shut it off and yup, there it was. It seamed to go away after the engine warmed up, I didn't notice it after the blue thermostat went out, might just be the higher rpms at idle when cold?
  • pharmd718pharmd718 Member Posts: 78
    I noticed that car washes tend to hook the front tires of the car and drag it along the length of the car wash. Can this set up demage the all wheel drive system?
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Potentially, yes.

    A wet floor will help things slip, but the tires would still be fighting the AWD system, especially the viscous coupling on a manual-equipped model. If the front wheel is fixed, and the rear wheels are forced to turn, something has to give.

    I'd hand wash it anyway. :shades:
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Well, it is also an adaptive transmission. Perhaps it has trouble adjusting to the herky-jerky off road world, where the driving is never really smooth.

    Out in the real world, i.e. on pavement, this is my favorite automatic transmission; best I have ever driven. Far better than Toyota's U151E 5 speed.

    Shifts are quick, smooth, intuitive, responsive. I can't say enough nice things about it.
  • dmuttdmutt Member Posts: 48
    I would like to see a 5-spd auto tranny as well. But, the 4-spd 4th gear may be almost identical to the 5th gear of the 5-spd. I have a 2004 Tundra that is a 4-spd auto. In 2005 Toyota went to a 5-spd auto. This was the case. The extra gear was place between 2nd and 3rd gear where the 4-spd auto had the largest gearing gap. I have also seen this in a couple other vehicles that have made the switch as well. The 6-spd auto's seem to have a little more ratio for less rpm's in top gear.
    A CVT transmission? Have not a clue.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Only if it's as good, in other ways, as the current 4 speed.

    I'm telling you, Subaru 4EAT > Toyota's U151E 5 speed.
  • kurtamaxxxguykurtamaxxxguy Member Posts: 1,798
    I suspect it's interior of car warming enough so plastic no longer buzzes.

    Tomorrow I'll drive to work with the rear windows open so the interior doesn't warm up. If doors are still buzzing when I get to work (3 miles) I'll have better idea what's going on.
  • luckyhuskyluckyhusky Member Posts: 3
    When I realease the acceleration and stop giving more gas, the speed of the forester will go down very fast, and other cars such as Honda CR-V or Toyota RAV 4 (all FWD) don't have this problem.

    Is it normal for a 09 forester and is it due to the difference of AWD and FWD?
  • p0926p0926 Member Posts: 4,423
    The extra gear was place between 2nd and 3rd gear where the 4-spd auto had the largest gearing gap.

    Although what it really could use is a taller gear for hwy cruising, I bet if Subaru added a 5th gear in the middle (where none is needed) 90% of the people bashing the 4-AT would immediately become satisfied. I believe that's called the placebo effect :P

    -Frank
  • kurtamaxxxguykurtamaxxxguy Member Posts: 1,798
    Foresters seem to need more breaking in than most cars. Also, depending on which one you have, the tires may have a fair bit of rolling resistance.

    At first my XT needed gas just to roll down a slight hill, and its mileage was not all that great at around 17 in town and 24 on the road. At just over 5000 miles, and with Nokian tires, it now rolls down the same hill w/o needing any throttle, and has improved its mileage by around 2 - 3 mpg.

    Other possibilities are your parking brake is dragging, tire pressure is too low, etc.

    However, an AWD car will never do as well wrt MPG as a similar FWD car, due to loss of power and additional frictions within the AWD mechanism.
  • gooch5gooch5 Member Posts: 14
    I just got my XT tonight. Coming from an 07' CRV I am amazed at the acceleration of the Forester. The forester has a very tight turning radius compared to the CRV but the CRV handles turns better IMO. It's obviously very soon but I am pleased with the smooth ride and road noise is about the same as my Honda. I am pretty disappointed with the cheap [non-permissible content removed] radio but I knew this getting into the lease.
  • oregonboyoregonboy Member Posts: 1,650
    I thought that the Foresters handling was supposed to be one of its strengths. What is the problem? Too much understeer perhaps? I seem to recall a discussion here about using heavier rear anti sway-bars.
  • gooch5gooch5 Member Posts: 14
    Not that it is a problem, but the the forester leans into the turn more. The Honda CRV suspension was more firm than the forester.
  • p0926p0926 Member Posts: 4,423
    If it bothers you, increasing the firmness of the suspension isn't that expensive to do. Of course there will be a trade-off, a firmer suspension means a stiffer ride. My 04 Forester doesn't lean hardly at all in turns but it also has a firmer ride ;)

    -Frank
  • kurtamaxxxguykurtamaxxxguy Member Posts: 1,798
    Odd. XT handling seems all over the map. Some reviews praise it, others say it leans like crazy.
    If I drive my '09 XT really hard (sports car style), which is rare, it'll lean. But in normal to moderate driving, including a very twisty mountain road, XT leaned far less than the '08 Outbacks or '04 Malibu Maxx I drove.

    Then again, XT's nearly 9 inches off the ground.
  • oregonboyoregonboy Member Posts: 1,650
    After doing a little more reading, I think that the best Forester for "grins" would be an older XT with a 5-spd manual:

    better handling + better acceleration = more fun :shades:
  • gooch5gooch5 Member Posts: 14
    I would agree. At normal driving speeds it does not lean. If you take a highway round-about entrance @ 40mph it will lean. I was just comparing it to an 07 honda crv. The CRV would not lean at the same speeds.
  • luckyhuskyluckyhusky Member Posts: 3
    Thanks for your reply. I really love AWD, though most times it seems useless in Texas.
  • kurtamaxxxguykurtamaxxxguy Member Posts: 1,798
    One advantage of AWD is you have 4 wheels working when you accelerate.
    If I need to accelerate hard in the XT (not often, but sometimes), it just goes. It does not spin tires, drift sideways, blow clouds of smoke, etc.
    Also on rainy days, they'll be less of spinning driving wheels when you accelerate from a stop sign, on a hill, etc.
    By comparison, my former Malibu Maxx, a (I am told) popular car down in Texas, loved to spin its tires whenever the road got marginal, giving me several nasty surprises.
  • p0926p0926 Member Posts: 4,423
    After doing a little more reading, I think that the best Forester for "grins" would be an older XT with a 5-spd manual:

    better handling + better acceleration = more fun


    Hmmmm, what a coincidence, that's exactly what I'm driving ;)

    0-60 in 5.3 secs.... YeeHaahhhh!!!!! :shades:
  • mgagnemgagne Member Posts: 8
    I live in Canada and I have rattle in the center seat belt of my 2009 Forester. Does somebody have it fix by a dealer or else. I try to anchor it firmly in the roof and it did not work. I extend the seat belt to the seat and buckles it up and it did work this time, no more rattle, by I prefer to hide it in the roof.

    Does somebody have a trick?

    Thanks, excuse my english,

    Michel
  • pgb0517pgb0517 Member Posts: 84
    Well, that depends on what part of Texas yo're talkin' about, pardner! I love our Forester on the Texas hill-country two-lanes. It's like you can feel the AWD power coming up through the driver's seat. Maybe it's just psychological, but we appreciate the difference. The car makes it "feel" easy.
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    Anybody trying to buy an X/T in New England? I've scouted the entire Boston Metro to almost 50 miles out and there is not even one available. They have dozens of 2.5's in every color/option/transmission available, but zero X/T's. It's been that way since probably the end of August. Are they sold before the dealers even get them?
  • kurtamaxxxguykurtamaxxxguy Member Posts: 1,798
    Per cars101.com, XT's make up 6% of Forester imports.
    Last March, dealer in Portland OR had only 2 out of around 20 Foresters they got; they got mine from trade with dealer 40 miles away (was the only white XT in Oregon at the time).
    Now they have none. :cry:

    Other dealers I searched in Portland have 1 or 2 XT's out of 30 - 40 Foresters in Inventory. :(

    Perhaps now that CU and Motor Trend's top-rated XT, supplies are getting tight? :confuse:
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    Wow, only 6% huh?

    I could have swore that there was some sort of stop sale on Turbo models when the model first came out. Don't quote me on this, because it might have been the WRX's that were issued but since the motors are the same maybe it got carried over to the Foresters?

    Although with the thing racking up the kudos and ever increasing sales, it may be just be that they're selling as quickly as the plant can crank them out. :shades:
  • kurtamaxxxguykurtamaxxxguy Member Posts: 1,798
    Yes there was a Forester XT turbo stop-sale, because a limited number of engines got past inspection that could suffer bearing failure. That only lasted a few weeks, though, and Subaru supplied its dealers info and test kits to test for that specific condition.
  • kkrtrekkkrtrek Member Posts: 51
    I am also in Oregon--Southern Oregon. The local dealer has 25 Foresters, four turbos, and ZERO X-Limiteds. The Portland dealer I searched (just now) has 63 Foresters, 21 of which are X-Limiteds. What's with that? Seems like inventory management is weird. I cannot imagine people springing for the turbos where I live, but not the Limiteds. Maybe they are buying Limiteds and not turbos. My suspicion is not much of anything is selling these days. That's why the uneven distribution of the models seems especially odd.

    I don't know about Subarus specifically, but I suspect any automaker that wants to not have sales fall 30-50% is going to have to introduce some incentives very soon , if they haven't already.
  • franksubiefranksubie Member Posts: 1
    Porsche uses the the Boxer, Honda (motorcycles), BMW (motorcycles), Ferrari, as did Volkswagen, and there are still many old bugs and wagons on the road, there are also many aircraft engines with this design.
  • volkovvolkov Member Posts: 1,306
    So six months ago I was within a hair of signing on the 09 Forester ; heck I thought I might actually get one before Juice. In the end I opted to wait and see the limited which I then decided I wanted in large part because I preferred the feel of the leather driver's seat which felt more substantial than the cloth. The Limited that I want still won't arrive until early December, and now the WRX has arrived at the dealer to try and tempt me away. I have to wait until Saturday, but I'll be sure and update everyone after the test drive.
  • mleomleo Member Posts: 10
    We just picked up our new 09 last yesterday. awesome!

    The only problem is we don't have front plates in our state and the state we bought it in does. The dealer drilled holes right through the front bumper! I need to cover them up so I'm looking for a clean license plate 'delete' solution. I don't want to put a novelty plate on the front if I don't have to. Anybody have a good source for a small subtle black 'bar' plate that will just cover where the plate goes?
  • p0926p0926 Member Posts: 4,423
    Check with your dealer to see if they have some plastic plugs for the holes. If so, they should be able to paint them to match the body color.

    -Frank
  • p0926p0926 Member Posts: 4,423
    I'm sure that the new WRX will be great car but comparing it to a Forester is similar to comparing apples and oranges. I think you need to take a step back and reevaluate what it is that you want/need.

    Back in 2003 when I was looking at getting my XT, I also considered getting the WRX wagon but while it was a great ride, it didn't really meet my needs for a more versatile vehicle with lots of utility. Getting the XT version of the Forester was my compromise between functionality and fun ;)

    -Frank
  • volkovvolkov Member Posts: 1,306
    Well, it really is a lot closer than one might think. I went through the same thought process last time. Both vehicles offer what I need : reliability, AWD, seating and room for 3 in the back, and a wagon style trunk, and my no-compromise wants : a sun-roof and heated seats.
    The utility advantage you talk about of the F-XT over a WRX 5 door is minimal and was even less back in 03. Better ground clearance and slightly larger cargo area are all I can think of, and not once in 4 1/2 years has the WRX failed to perform in any situation it's been needed. The WRX wagon still offers terrific utility - in the past 2 months alone I've hauled 10x8' fence posts, two 5'x3' display cabinets, the two dogs multiple times (seats were down, but the two don't fit in the cargo area of the forester either) and hauled an old hot tub in my trailer to the city dump. In that last case, I did wish I had taken the truck instead because the last kilometre was severely rutted dirt and mud, but the WRX powered through with no complaint.
    Either of the Forester or the WRX will meet my day to day needs so lucky me I get to let emotion decided here. I have the advantage of already owning a much larger family vehicle which is more capable in the cargo and off-road realms anyway and which is called to task in the limited cases in which that's needed. Even so, I can't think of a single situation where I left the WRX at home but would have taken a Forester. So for me, at this stage it's about staying with a car which is more fun to drive, or one which offers more refinement. Bolstering the WRX chances are the fact that I'll be leasing, and the payments are actually $70 lower per month for the WRX versus a Forester Limited and I get to keep using my current winters which have lots of life left in them.
  • saedavesaedave Member Posts: 694
    You did not mention one other advantage of the Forester: Several inches higher hip point for better vision ahead and narrower rear quarter sheet metal for better rear vision.

    However, $70/month less for the WRX certainly changes the equation unless higher insurance cost for the WRX eats the difference. Dop you have insurance quotes for each?
  • crashdavisfmcrashdavisfm Member Posts: 22
    http://www.perrinperformance.com/products/show/179

    I got the perrin one. You can install it perrin side in, so it's just plain black. I put the perrin side out, even tho I don't have any perrin parts installed. Dumb, but I like the plate regardless. I did have to get some plastic plugs to put into the holes to install it correctly. But it looks nice.

    aj
  • volkovvolkov Member Posts: 1,306
    The insurance cost last time was a dead heat. I haven't rechecked, but my WRX rates have gradually gone down. I am lucky to have a good record and live outside a large city. My WRX rates would be a few hundred more per year if I lived in Vancouver for example.
  • p0926p0926 Member Posts: 4,423
    I still say you're comparing apples to oranges. The Forester is a small SUV/CUV whereas the WRX is a sport wagon. IRT utility, according to Edmunds, the WRX's cargo volume is 19 & 44 cu ft. Compared to the Forester's 31 & 63 cu ft, that's a huge difference. I also have two big dogs and that reason alone swayed me to getting the Forester since it provide not only significantly more room for them but also a near vertical rear window. The later is important so the dogs' heads (and noses!) wouldn't be banging into the glass. Now if like you I already had a large hauler and therefore the utility aspect wasn’t nearly as important… then I think the WRX would be much more fun to drive while still offering a modicum of utility :)

    -Frank
  • volkovvolkov Member Posts: 1,306
    I should be clear, if this was to be our primary family vehicle, the WRX would be a compromise and the Forester is without a doubt the better choice. My mind still isn't made up, and the test drive is still pending. I do keep reminding myself that the WRX is nowhere near the rush to drive that it once was.
    BTW you got me to follow up on insurance costs and the WRX now is $25 per month more. Add in my estimated $25 more per month in gas and the TCOO becomes basically a dead heat.
  • kmartinkmartin Member Posts: 427
    I am wondering if a regular-sized folding wheelchair will fit in the back of the new Forester. My soon-to-be 99 yr old grandma travels with us a lot.

    I also wonder about the entry/exit for the back seat especially...how easy is it to get in and out without bending or straining too much? Been looking a this model and I'm thinking down the road a year or so.

    Thx in advance for your input!

    -Karen in AZ-
  • saedavesaedave Member Posts: 694
    Back seat entry in a friend's new Forester is much better than in my 05 Outback.
  • p0926p0926 Member Posts: 4,423
    The Forester makes an excellent choice for those with less than perfect mobility. You don't sit down into it like most sedans and you don't have to pull yourself up into it like with many SUVs and trucks. According to Goldilocks, It's just the right height ;)

    -Frank
  • kurtamaxxxguykurtamaxxxguy Member Posts: 1,798
    For '09 Forester, my guess is a wheelchair should fit, but it would be good to try it out in advance.

    Rear entry/exit's pretty easy. Plenty of room for the legs to slide past the seat; far better than the '08 Outback, the latter of which has virtually no toe space.
  • kmartinkmartin Member Posts: 427
    Excellent info, thanks all of you! I will keep it in mind :-)

    -Karen-
  • jopopsyjopopsy Member Posts: 65
    Hey Gang,

    I've been reading that the double wishbone suspension in the new 09 Forester handles more 'sloppy' then the outgoing strut design. I took a 09 for a test drive and really couldn't tell a differance in the handling from my old 05.

    Does anybody notice sloppier handling? Does the newer Forester handle more poorly then a CR-V? I always associated Subaru's with handling - this would be a first for me if the Honda does it better.

    ???
  • bikerguy3bikerguy3 Member Posts: 43
    I have an '09 Forester w/ Premium package, PZEV, manual xmission.

    I haven't spent much time driving previous Forester models, nor the CR-V - but have owned/driven many performance cars/SUV's over the years. My opinion is that the 09 Forester handles quite well. Not a lot of body roll, etc. It especially handles solidly driving over the street speedbumps and storm grate dips near my house.

    I would definitely not say it handles "sloppy"...in fact, if anything the response to
    steering input is [almost] overly quick & precise. When I first bought mine, I had a mild complaint that the steering feel was too light and reactive. Then I learned the tire pressure had not been properly adjusted (they were running about 50 psi coming off the boat)...once the tires were properly inflated, it was much better.

    So - no complaints from me in regards to 09 Forester handling.
  • volkovvolkov Member Posts: 1,306
    On my extended test drives, I did not find the Forester sloppy for an SUV with 8" of clearance. I don't have enough time in the old model to compare though. I think that too often people confuse "less choppy" with sloppy. Comparing the old to new Imprezas which also changed to the rear multilink, the new versions are much more settled when hitting road irregularities during a turn.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    First off, congrats!

    I would just find some short screws to plug the holes - maybe some with a hex bolt pattern. It could even look good.

    As for handling, within the norm of the compact SUV class, the Forester is not sloppy at all.

    When you start comparing to a WRX, well, lower a Forester 3 inches and chop off some weight, and then you end up with...well, a WRX. :D
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