Subaru Forester 1998-2015Change

I have owned my Forester for about 4 years and in that time I have spent just about what I paid for the car in repairs.
One of the control arms broke when I was on the highway and just about caused me to roll the car. Not a lot of fun. Apparently it is a recall issue. And although I took it to the dealer for work three times and had them look for any potential problems none of them checked my control arms. This honestly almost cost me my life. Repairing this would have cost me about $3000 but after much waiting and B.S. Subaru covered it.

Outside of that I have replaced the entire air conditioning system ($1500) Timing belt, Break lines, and now the transmission is failing and is sitting in the shop waiting to get an estimate. If it is more than a few hundred bucks I am going to drive the thing off a cliff as fast as I can make the thing go.

I would not call this a reliable car. The other thing is that there are very few dealerships compared to the big three. This can make it tricky when getting service.

It is a tank and deals with foul weather extremely well. For this I love it. The roof racks work very well and for its age it looks good.

I seriously wish that I could share in the great reliability stories that people here share. At this point I am looking at other brands.

This suv is the best on the market. I will never own a different suv. The ride and the preformance is second to none. The power and the comfort is awesome if you want sporty and classy this is the suv you should look at. The interior is so roomy and the panels are easy to navigate. The sharp features and the body design are second to none.

The best stable and safe vehicle i ever gave to my wife specially in winter time in Canada, Convenient with a spacious trunk

My husband bought 2007 Subaru Forester that was blue with a beige interior and had awesome reviews. The right price and a good looking car to boot! Well, shortly after buying it, everything that could go wrong did. It had the transmission go out, the catalytic converter, you name it it happened. It fell apart so badly that he couldn't even sell it for a good price. We had to sell it to a mechanic as a "shell", as in car body but not working, for a whopping $200. And he maintained the heck out of it with a reputable mechanic! You would think if you stayed on top of the maintenance it would be okay; well, not with this car! He spent about $5000 buying it and then he spent about $3000 repairing it. And then, a ton of other things went out and the cost to fix it is over $4000! Ridiculous! I was still attached to the car because of its looks and thought I had myself a lemon the first time. I found one in mint condition, that looked just like the first one I had and thought about buying it. Then I read that they had fixed everything that I had! Plus some! The engine had been replaced! Red flag! I had to replace mine, too, and it only had 130,000 miles! Stay away! Find yourself another car! Don't be suckered in by its looks, it will make you sorry and broke!

This is the jack of all cars and is exceptionally reliable. I purchased my 2007 Forester in 2014 with 90K, one owner and in beautiful condition, a deal I couldn't pass up. I have owned it 3 years and it now has 160K and I have had no issues with it. What are the chances of buying a 7 year old car, adding 70,000km and have nothing break. There is also no rust to be found anywhere on the body. This has been the most reliable car I have ever owned. It is also a car that does everything. AWD for bad weather, 28mpg average, roof racks for my toys, hitch and enough power to tow my bigger toys, huge trunk for moving or road trips, reliable and easy on my pocket book. What more could somebody ask for in a vehicle. I was already a fan of Subaru before I bought this car but after owning one for 3 years I feel my next car down the road will also be a Subaru.

I have driven this Subaru for nine years and, it still rides as smooth as the day we bought her home.My Subaru is easy on Gas,not a guzzler like some mobiles I've owned.In all the nine years we've had this SUV,she has cost us next to pennies.A great SUV with lots of spacious room to sit comfortably,also excellent for anyone who has a large Family to take them fishing or camping.There is a hitch behind for a Camper.,great for those who love camping or just taking long rides in the country.My favorite thing about the Subaru Forrester is that it's great on and off the road.With the four wheel drive,I haven't got stuck in the snow once.It is a very dependable vehicle that will get you to where ever you want to go.Nothing like it.

This is the first Subaru that I have owned. I was looking for a small SUV and I had done a lot of research on them and I was impressed with the Forester. I have had the Forester for almost a month and here are of my additional observations:
Ride: Smooth, quiet and stable;
Acceleration: Quick, better than expected;
Visibility: Excellent with huge windshield and large windows all around;
Sunroof: Largest I've ever seen;
Car quality: solid as a rock;
Safety: There isn't a safer car on the road;
Seating comfort and space: Excellent;
Cargo capacity: Copious;
Gas Mileage: I averaged 33MPG for the first 1000 miles.
The Forester is not as swoopy looking as some of its competition but is still a handsome well built compact wagon like utility vehicle.

Canadian winters are a blast in the fozz. This is a great vehicle to fuel my travels. Drove it across the country as soon as I bought it and it's done me well since then. Surprisingly good on gas. Overall I love my Forester and I'm definitely in the Subie family for life.

This is a decent car, but since it's old, I can't drive long distances. I've had it for a while and it hasn't started being unreliable since recently.

I love my Subaru forester. It is 10 years old and still running. I have taken it offloading for the past three years and it has performed amazingly well. The roof rack is exceptionally helpful for my canoe which I bring out every year.

This car is the best handling vehicle we've ever owned. It performs so well in every season, in any road conditions, it was well worth the price. We expect to have it for years to come.

Many lemons this year. Bought used from Subie dealer
Check engine light on during test drive. Hey, no biggie, just a sensor replaced before purchase.
Hmm, I did notice the clutch was iffy then. I should be able to get many more km out of this...

Clutch and engine (well known problem with the 2.5 then) go south.

Great car when it worked. Awesome in a Canadian winter. Zoom-zoom in summer. Models after this year got larger.

reliable AWD technology. Great stability in curves. Feul economy needs improvement. Interior and exterior styling not at par with its competitors. Affordable maintenance fees. Feels more truck like driving a truck than a car. Great overall visibility when driving.

It was a great deal to start with, a $400CAD turn-key needing a little work. It was originally just a wheel bearing, but i needed a new spindle, axle, core, brakes, bearing, seals, etc. Tuned into $1400CAD of a venture. 100% WORTH IT!

This subaru is the best car I've ever had for winter ,ice or snow no problem .Also plenty of room and it is not a huge car .

Car has been great since day one. I love the extras (like heated seats and mirrors) but with the seats would breath a little better. Backseat is a bit cramped for 3 people.
Over all, love this car and will be looking for another Subaru in the future!

Test drove the 2016 Forester yesterday. It looks beautiful inside and out but it drives like a boat at sea. It does not handle as well as my 2011 Forester which is roomier and it drives like a car. I think I am going to keep my 2011 around for a few more years.

If you are considering buying this car.....don't.....it has to be the most unreliable car I have ever owned - within 4 years of owning it (the car was meticulously maintained)....the most common problem happened....the head gasket.....cost met $3K to fix it and it was just over the manufacturer's warranty period...complained to the manufacturer and they basically said sorry about your luck but did nothing....got it fixed....two years later same problem and the automatic transmission crapped out.....stay away....go buy something more reliable. Only reason I gave this car a rating of 1 out of 5 is I could not give it zero....if I could have...I would have given it a negative rating....

Decent car other than oil consumption. Subaru says it's normal. Oh Yeah? Now at 125K engine went on it. Would I buy another one as this was my second.. probably not

I'm going to start by saying I've owned 3 or 4 Subaru's. Ranging from 2002-2010. This is by far the most reliable one I have owned (2004). It currently has 347,000km on it. All original with the only real repairs being Water Pump + Timing Belt at 165,000. Brakes, Oil changes, and an o2 sensor last year.
All winter, flawless handling, nothing will compare. 600KM on a full tank that costs about 40$ to fill. Roof racks to carry snowboards, fold down rear seats with LOTS of cargo room. The motor is not as peppy as the WRX or STi, but it is far from sluggish at 175hp.
I would recommend Subaru to anybody looking for a great Daily driver, or just a temporary winter vehicle.

I own a 2014 Subaru Forester 2.5i Touring Model with manual transmission. It is a great vehicle. This is my 2nd Subaru Forester. However, be aware of the additional maintenance cost of putting 1 quart (~1 liter) of oil for every 1200 miles (~2000 kms). This is what Subaru considers normal. Reference Subaru bulletin TSB 02-157-14R and there are numerous articles online regarding this.

It is a great vehicle. It is a comfortable ride and handles well (I live in an area where there is winter). I just wish I knew about the "normal" oil consumption prior to purchasing it as my first ever new vehicle.

I'm not trying to scare anyone off from purchasing this vehicle. It is a great vehicle. I just want to ensure that everyone factors this into their budget of ongoing maintenance costs.

Please note that the 1 star for performance and reliability are strictly related to what I deem excessive oil consumption rate. It might seem normal to others. Other than that I would have given it a 5 in both categories.

A great mid size SUV best among its class , highly reliable specially in winter conditions. Economical fuel consumption, plenty of cargo space , comfortable interior , large sun roof and all round visibility , sport shift with AWD with excellent maneuverability and reasonably low maintenance.

I am the original owner of this car and it has served me well. Nothing more than standard maintenance and wear-and-tear and the perfect size for moving large loads, yet small enough that it can be fuel-efficient. This make & model has received several safety awards.

We absolutely love this car! From the unparalleled safety record to to the GPS system, Bluetooth, and iPod connection there was never anything we were left wishing for. Additional features like the reclining back seats, heated windshield wipers, and heated seats ensure everyone is comfortable.

Climbing steep snow-covered hills on the way to our chalet was a breeze in the Subaru Forester. The All-Wheel Drive grips like crazy and the wheels don't spin. Turning radius is outstanding, making parking easy.

Fuel economy is so-so as there is more friction with the AWD system - when you take your foot off the gas, it slows down quickly rather than coasting as other cars do. That's the price of having the best traction of any car I've ever driven.