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Subaru Forester (up to 2005)
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Comments
I'd keep an eye on it. If it persists, you should take it into the dealer to have it documented and looked at.
Ken
But open moonroof too much
Balding turbulence
Five-seven-five is the way
You're a little off
Not here to chew out
Simply trying out new role
The Haiku Police
I'm building trouble-free miles rapidly on my '03 XS. I plan on keeping the car for 7 to 8 years and maybe accumulating 160,000 miles total. Can anyone suggest a Subaru dealer--anywhere in the US--who might offer the best price on the Subaru Exended Warranty?
I've noticed a questionable "whine" or "hum" coming from the transmission that can be felt as a buzzing through the accelerator on my foot. Started 1-2 months ago, although I thought it was just road noise at first. It is not.
The noise/feeling comes through when the car is pulling/accelerating at around 30-45mph around 2000-2200rpm. I cannot tell what "gear" it's in, since it's an auto tranny. The whining noise is audible in the cabin as well.
Has anyone experienced this? Sign of transmission trouble or need to have the tranny checked? I'm at 16K miles and about 2-3 weeks overdue on a service which will be handled next week.
Thanks,
burnsmr4
burnsmr4: Hard to tell what it might be based on your description, but be sure to have your dealer document the concern and look at it. Since it occurs at a particular speed and engine RPM, it seems like it could be tranny related. Have you tried replicating the problem with the gear selector in other than "D"?
Ken
Don
As for the puff of smoke -- what color was it? White usually indicates some type of coolant leak, whereas blue indicates oil. Which dealer do you use? Santa Cruz Subaru is awesome and Carlsen Subaru is pretty good. Take you vehicle in and have your concerns documented thoroughly.
harkey1: I think all auto climate control systems make more use of the A/C. Not only is it set to kick in when the cabin goes above a certain temperature, but it also will kick in based on the the vent direction (ie. defrost).
Ken
Ken
burnsmr4
Our neighbor saw the puff of smoke as my wife was driving but did not tell us the color. I'll need to ask her.
We bought the car at Albany Ford Subaru and have had them do the service. They are very convenient to where we live. Anyone else have experience with them?
Don
Type Two post: "All fuels in a specified octane rating - no matter what the brand - are the same," and this is backed up by testimonies by retired station owners who purchase the stuff. "Pricing and highly subjective popular perception drive the bottom line" is the line.
So, what is the consumer to believe?
This is annoying when it is cold out, and wastes fuel and power. So I simply press the A/C button to override that when it turns on. Even though the AUTO light also turns off, the climate control stays in automatic mode with the A/C simply overridden. This has worked out pretty well for me.
What the controls are lacking, and which I have seen in other Auto climate systems, in an ECON mode which minimizes the use of A/C. (I think the LL Bean and VDC Outback have the Economy mode.)
As far as the A/C turning on when you press RECIRC, mine does not do that, but A/C will turn on when you press the Defog button, by design. Are you sure you're not getting your buttons mixed up?
Elliot
Did you notice any difference in the performance of the transmission?
Gene
Don: Albany Subaru doesn't have a very good reputation for both sales and service (how was your experience?). In fact, I used to live just minutes away in El Cerrito, but I went to Broadway Subaru (Oakland) to buy my Forester.
You can bring your Subaru into any dealer to have it looked at. My experience has been that it is well worth the effort of going to a better dealer for service. Again, Carlsen Subaru and Santa Cruz Subaru have both been good. I believe Diablo out in Walnut Creek and Marin Subaru are good also, but I don't have any personal experience with them. Broadway Subaru is quite small and not worth going to.
Joe: As you see from my post, I am of the first camp. I honestly believe that you get what you pay for in gas. While octane is one measure of the product's characteristics, there are other things that affect the gas like the detergent package and most importantly, quality control. Although I have no empirical evidence, I wouldn't be surprised if gas from a generic brand had more variation in octane readings, for example, than a major brand.
Now, whether the difference is perceptible in your particular vehicle is a different question. Some vehicles will run fine on the cheap stuff while others are very sensitive to it -- even within the same make and model. I think that's why you'll always hear the opposite argument that gas is gas. It really comes down to what works for you.
In my experience with other Subaru owners, it seems that changing the brand of gas sometimes alleviates a certain problem. Assuming that no other variable has changed, my guess is that there has to be some differences between brands of gas.
Ken
The Forester owns me
I'd have owned the Forester
If I'd have paid
CASH
http://www.mc.cc.md.us/Departments/hpolscrv/mthomas.htm
Ken
Jon
I've also recieved the transmission recall but plan on letting the dealer get plenty of practice before I take mine in.
As to gas mileage I get 19-21 in purely city driving, on 87 octane Mobil but when I drove back from the White Mountains in New Hampshire to Peabody MA, I got 27.1 mpg.
Thanks to everyone for making time spent on this group so rewarding.
Larry
Thanks
Larry
Subaru has a reputation for finding the tackiest fabrics available anywhere in the world and pouncing on them as seat cover materials. In one previous Subaru, we thought a dog had eaten multicolored dog biscuits, and then thrown up all over the interior. But the Forrester we drove was distinctly not bad....which is an improvement.
Gene
Moonroof glory for nighttime!
See the Subaru cluster glowing up high
But watch those daytime birds when they let fly
Steve, Host
Thanks for the link I enjoyed it.
We traveled a lot when we were kids. We would always look for the signs to read a new jingle.
There are other things in his review, like the mention of a poor power to weight ratio that make me wonder just what he was testing, or what he considers a good power to weight ratio.
Personally, I was disappointed that Subaru put upgrades like the cold weather package and a CD player into the 03 base Outback as standard features, when you can't even get side airbags as an option. This is one of the reasons that we bought a Forester rather than an Outback this summer.
I'd like to see Subaru put both side front airbags and side curtain airbags on all their cars as standard equipment, as Volkswagen seems to be doing.
I purchased the Tweeter Kit and Compass/Auto-Dimming Mirror online, and installed them myself. The Tweeter Kit was SO EASY to do, it makes me angry to think a dealer charges about $40 to do something that took a non-mechanic like me less than five minutes, to do both sides! (Great sound upgrade too!!)
The Compass mirror required a screwdriver and took about ten minutes to install. Another very easy job for a non-mechanic.
So in fifteen minutes, I saved approximately $100! Nice work if you can get it!!!
By the way, if you're interested in pricing, my '03 XS 5-speed was $21,198 - a very good, end-of-calendar year price.
According to Edmunds, the 2003 4WD RAV4 with 5 Speed Manual weighs in at 2,877 lbs, and produces 148 HP at 6000RPM and 142 ft-lbs of Torque at 4000 RPM.
In his review of the 2003 Subaru Forester, Dan Heraud writes, "Performance: Acceleration especially pick-up is very average given the poor weight-to-power ratio. This mediocrity is emphasized when driving uphill or carrying a full load."
According to Edmunds, the heaviest Forester, the XS with Premium, Automatic Transmission, Moon Roof, and Leather weighs in at 3,175 lbs. The lightest Forester, the X with 5 Speed Manual weighs in at 3,090 lbs. All Foresters produce 165 HP at 5600 RPM and 166 ft-lbs of Torque at 4000 RPM.
The Power to Weight ratios are:
Toyota RAV 4 4WD, 5Spd = 19.44 HP/lb
Toyota RAV 4 2WD, 5Spd = 19.09 HP/lb
Forester XS Premium, Auto, Leather = 19.24 HP/lb
Forester XS Premium, Auto = 18.96 HP/lb
Forester X, 5 Spd = 18.72 HP/lb
As should be fairly evident, the numbers are fairly close, so it is absurd to claim the Forester with better power to weight ratios has "poor" numbers while the RAV4 has "good" ones.
Previously, he was wrong when he wrote, "However, only the high-end version gets 4 front airbags. " and he concludes his review with another stunner. "The automatic Forester is easier to sell on the used-car market than the manual-transmission version, given its longer list of amenities."
As far as I know, the only amenity available with an automatic on the '03 Forester line is leather.
Forester X is the BEST out the bunch with only 18.72lbs per HP!!
Obviously the guy "reviewing" the RAV4 and the Forester is giving a lot of people wrong information. We should all chip in to buy him a calculator.
It's sad to see that there are "reviewers" out there that don't know how to do their job or can't be objective. It's bad enough sales people are not in tune with what they sell...
tidester, host
Thanks, I should have double checked. I have it right on my spreadsheet.
Before all the blame goes on M. Heraud, I have to say it sounds like he was reviewing the 2002 Forester.
He claims in the Overview that the Forester comes in either the L or S trims. Yet that was just underneath where he talks about 2003 re-design.
Even though elsewhere on the web he is referred to as a noted Canadian auto reviewer, there is nothing in his review on a mainly US site that says it is applicable only to Canadian vehicles.
Heck, even the Subaru Canada site lists the same trims, X and XS, as we get.
I wonder what kind of report card we should give him?
Re the Canadian Forester, I think the only difference in our line-up vs that of the US is that you CAN get the XS with leather and a five-speed up here.
Re Car Talk’s comment: "In one previous Subaru, we thought a dog had eaten multicolored dog biscuits, and then thrown up all over the interior." I think the fabric they were referring to was that of the 98-00 Forester S. I must confess that IMO they're description was fairly accurate!
-Frank P.
- ken
-------------------------------------------------
Hello Frank,
Thank you for writing to MSN Autos regarding your feedback on Mr. Daniel Heraud's 2003 Toyota RAV4 and 2003 Subaru Forester auto reviews. We do apologize if your expectations were not met and if there were incorrect or misleading information presented on the review. We appreciate the time you took to send us your thoughts about the said review and we will forward it to MSN Autos Editorial team specifically to Mr. Heraud for further evaluation and research.
For future reference, instructions and other helpful information pertaining to MSN Autos go to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) located at http://autos.msn.com/help/FAQ.aspx
We hope you are enjoying MSN Autos and we do look forward in meeting all of your future service needs.
Thank you for using MSN Autos.
Sincerely,
Sheryl
MSN Autos Customer Support
- Lou
They replaced timing belt, spark plugs and did a bunch of other things. They charge $754+tax for this. During the service, they also found my brake pads worn out (10% left), small leak in water pump and in the radiator.
Radiator and water pump was replaced free of charge, under warranty.
Total for service+brakes+rental+tax came to about $1200. I paid with SubaruBucks coupons accumulated from my old MBNA and current CHASE Subaru cards. That was sweet: not to have to use "real" money. I also bought a ski rack with remaining SubaruBucks.
Forester drives pretty much the same (btw feels louder inside than my Baja loaner) as before. Brakes feel better now but still much mushier than Baja's. Steering somehow feels a bit lighter now. Baja's steering was light too but very precise.
The only bad thing is that I'm now totally out of SubaruBucks! Time for another shopping spree!
The steering might feel lighter due to new power steering fluid or tire rotation/air pressure. Did they touch any of those?
Ken
I posted a while back, but perhaps wasn't clear about what I'm looking for. Can anyone recommend a dealer with a heck of a good price on Subaru Extended Warranties? I'm especially interested in the Subaru Gold. Since dealers can set their own resale prices on Subaru warranties, who's selling them cheapest?