Forester Subaru Forester Named Motor Trend 2009 Sport/Utility of the Year

[PanterroR]

"We are proud and honored to receive this award for the Subaru
Forester," said Thomas J. Doll, executive vice president, Subaru of
America. "The previous Forester had become a byword for practicality and
durability and we knew the 2009 Forester had a tough act to follow. So, we
made the new Forester bigger, more powerful and more economical than
ever-while retaining its legendary reliability and safety, only in a more
complete package. The improvements to the new Forester are also being
reflected in consumer demand, with sales up 32% over the previous year."

Priced from $19,995 the all-new Subaru Forester represents a $1,200
reduction over the entry price of the previous model. It is available with
either a 170-hp 2.5-liter boxer engine or a 224-hp turbocharged engine.
Blending utility with performance and comfort, the 2009 Forester is built
on an all-new platform featuring a 3.6-inch longer wheelbase (now 103.0
inches) that improves ride and interior space, especially rear seat
legroom. The 2009 Forester also features increased hip and shoulder room.

Living up to Subaru's legendary safety record, the Forester and offers
cutting-edge safety technology, including Subaru's ring reinforcement
safety system, front, seat-mounted side, and three-row side-curtain airbags
and ABS. Subaru Vehicle Dynamics Control (VDC) system, which incorporates
stability and traction control systems with a roll-over sensor, is also
standard equipment.

The Subaru Forester recently received the highest possible ratings in
frontal and side impact crash tests by the governments' National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). In addition to a five-star frontal
and side impact crash-test rating, the 2009 Forester received a four-star
rollover resistance rating.

To judge contenders for the award, MOTOR TREND's editorial staff
conducted exhaustive off-road, street and track testing, and carefully
considered essentials such as driving performance, safety and features.
MOTOR TREND'S Sport/Utility of the Year is not a comparison test. Each
contender was evaluated against three simple criteria: superiority
(engineering, design, utilization of resources); significance (its impact
on the market), and value (what buyers get for their money versus the
competition).

http://www.prnewswire.com/

 

[Sunny]

I used to like the old one - a lot in fact, but the new one just looks crap.

 

[Monster]

Despite the crappy new look and poor interior quality, the new Forester is selling like hot cakes in Australia. There must be something about it that we don't see.

 

[martinbo]

Subaru South Africa lent my wife and I a new Forester XT to evaluate for a couple of days. Now, considering we've already had two Forries, the fact of the matter is this: we've ordered one.

For those that are interested here's my low-down on the difference between the two:

Ride quality is bordering on the exceptional. It is a massive improvement over the outgoing model and is well suited to our ever-deteriorating pocked, potholed and patchworked roads. Where high frequency suspension reactions send through a discernable shock into the cabin in the old car, the new car rides over short, sharp ridges with aplomb. The all-new double-wishbone suspension has much more vertical travel too – I suspect this will result in even better off-road capability – and this hampers outright handling ability compared with the old car. When pushing on in extremis one becomes aware of two (as opposed to one in the old car) suspension moments resulting in a driving experience that is very different from the old model. When cornering at speed through faster sweeps with less lateral force, the car rolls only slightly - staying more upright and level than the old car. In contrast, the old car will roll immediately – irrespective of the corner – and then load the suspension. However, where the old car now stays planted, the new XT undergoes a second, slightly confidence-sapping suspension movement when the lateral G starts building up. As a result, the car feels springy and unsettled when driven “Subaru-style”. With that said, despite the lighter, less interactive helm, the new car turns in better than its predecessor and has a rear end that is more responsive to throttle input. The car pivots around its centre axis better. I was quite surprised as to how much more lively the back end felt – again quite unsettling for the uninitiated or inexperienced but altogether benign as a result of the unobtrusive but ever-present electronic stability control.

What is an improvement is the overall convenience and comfort associated with the motoring experience. The clutch is much lighter and far more pleasant to use in traffic and the brakes are more responsive – losing that first centimetre of sponginess prevalent in the old model. The pedals are much nicer to use too and the gear lever has a slicker, less mechanical feel. The defining outcome is that my wife far prefers driving this car compared to the more manly outgoing XT. In short, it’s a nicer car to drive but it’s not a better driver’s car. My short stint in the old girl to work today reaffirmed this position. Subjectively, it feels slower and less powerful than the old model but that familiar turbo urge is still there – so too is the car’s healthy appetite for combustible fluids.

The interior is typically Forester – well screwed together but with only hard plastics used throughout. The sound system is a step down from the old car but the addition of an iPod jack is a welcome convenience. Interior ambience at night is very inviting with soft blue LED downlighters and buttons that light up bright red. The clocks are dismal – the graphics and typeface are kitsch and aren’t purposeful in the idiom of the performance model in the Forester line up. Interior space is a boon and the little one is much more comfortable sitting behind me now. Visibility afforded by the higher driving position is good but the car certainly does feel its size in confined spaces.

Overall it’s a better product with tons more mainstream appeal. It will appeal to a much broader spectrum of SUV buyers in this burgeoning and ever-important segment. Existing owners will no doubt welcome the additional comfort and convenience and only the most hardcore of Forester aficionados (me included) will bemoan the deterioration of outright handling ability. With this in mind, I have to be realistic and give the car its due; the new suspension layout and characteristics provide for much greater scope regarding suspension tune-ability. A little bit of stiffening and tweaking here and there won’t significantly detract from the overall ride quality. This new layout surely lays the foundation for sharper handling, more powerful models without having to incur the concession in the ride-quality department as seen in the previous generation XT.

The new car is far easier on the eye than the old model in the metal too!

 

[bmer]

Congratulations, Martin! When are you due to receive the car?

 

[martinbo]

Congratulations, Martin! When are you due to receive the car?

Thanks mate... we're hoping to get the car around end-November! Looking forward to it. If all goes according to plan, one of its first tasks will be to go on a dive trip to Mozambique with the whole family. That extra 25 mm worth of ground clearance is going to come in handy.

 

[Giannis]

Subaru South Africa lent my wife and I a new Forester XT to evaluate for a couple of days. Now, considering we've already had two Forries, the fact of the matter is this: we've ordered one.

For those that are interested here's my low-down on the difference between the two:



The new car is far easier on the eye than the old model in the metal too!

Very nice review and congrats on the order, too!
One question though. Isn't the execive use of hard plastics in the interior very annoying?

 

[martinbo]

^ Thanks Giannis and great question.

In truth, the answer is a mixed yes and no... For me, hard plastics aren't the end of the world. Of course - I like a good prod of soft, quality dashboard polyurethane like any other but I place build solidity and a rattle-free ride much more highly. I hate rattles. So because the new dashboard is at least solidly constructed, once on the move, the fact that the IP surface doesn't depress .25 of a millimetre becomes a secondary consideration.

That said... my comment to Subaru would be, if you're going to go el-cheapo, hard plastics at least have the good grace to match those el-cheapo, hard plastics in the various cabin surfaces. The sad fact is that the door cap material is different to the dash-top is different to the underside of the IP and so on. It's this lack of consistency in the texture and sheen of the plastics that completely destroys any impression of quality surfaces. Subaru are darned lucky that they have such a strong product in just about every other area in order to get away with this. On any other vehicle it would be a deal-breaker; on a Forester it's simply a case of same-old, same-old.

 

[bmer]

Thanks mate... we're hoping to get the car around end-November! Looking forward to it. If all goes according to plan, one of its first tasks will be to go on a dive trip to Mozambique with the whole family. That extra 25 mm worth of ground clearance is going to come in handy.

It's just over one month to go then!

That trip sure sounds like an adventure to me!

 

[Tarek]

Congrats Martin

And the Safari is gonna be loads of fun

 

[Merc1]

Motor Trend - Sport/Utility Of The Year: Subaru Forester

Clearcut: Soaring Fuel Prices and a Fizzling Economy Have Made It a Jungle Out There, But This Year's Winner Is Easy to See for the Trees


It would be easy to say that this year's winner is a knee-jerk reaction, that the editors of Motor Trend responded to the skyrocketing cost of gasoline like the rest of the driving public by abruptly abandoning the traditional SUV formula for something smaller, more fuel-efficient, greener, more, well, forest-y. It would be easy to categorize our selection of the Subaru Forester as Motor Trend's 2009 Sport/Utility of the Year as a choice made solely at the pump, but it wouldn't be true.

Sure, our Subaru Forester 2.5XT contender posted the best observed fuel-economy numbers (16.0 mpg) for an all-wheel-drive SUV in this year's competition, but that's not the whole story.

So how does a small, quirky, former airplane manufacturer from the Gunma prefecture of Japan finish first among surprise offerings from established players and bold moves by newcomers? How does it beat a chest-thumping, head-turning macho mobile known as the BMW X6? How, when Ford wraps stylish sheetmetal around a Gulfstream V interior and calls it Flex? How can it win, when Kia serves notice to the entire category with its own body-on-frame, V-8-powered Borrego, and Infiniti conjures up seven-speed transmissions and jaw-dropping bird's-eye-view monitoring systems?


Full Article: 2009 Subaru Forester - 2009 Motor Trend Sport/Utility Of The Year - Motor Trend


M

 

[Merc1]

Re: Motor Trend - Sport/Utility Of The Year: Subaru Forester

Martin, congats on the new Subie.

M

 

[martinbo]

Re: Motor Trend - Sport/Utility Of The Year: Subaru Forester

^ Thanks Marcus, but we haven't got it yet - we're holding thumbs that there'll be sufficient stock availability! Can you imagine... a waiting list on a Forester. The irony.

 

[Merc1]

Re: Motor Trend - Sport/Utility Of The Year: Subaru Forester

Well they're unique cars so I can see it. Kinda like what Saabs used to be, characterful and different enough to stand out.

M

 

[martinbo]

Re: Motor Trend - Sport/Utility Of The Year: Subaru Forester

Well folks... it is done. I took delivery of a demo model Forester XT in pearlescent white today. Black interior, Xenons, 2600 km on the clock - got a good deal all in all.

Good bye to cherished SLY - you were an absolute star! I hope you make your new owner as happy and engaged as me.

I haven't got the camera here - heck I still owe you guys pics from JIMS auto show - but I hope to post pics soon.

 

[PanterroR]

All the best, my friend! Hope it's gonna serve you just like the old one!

Many happy miles!

 

[bmer]

Congratulations again, Martin! I can only imagine how great you must feel right now! Enjoy it!

 

[Giannis]

Well, congrats from me too! I know that you will just enjoy the car as much as you can!

Many happy and safe miles my friend!

 

[Yperion]

Congrats Martin , since i bought my first Japanese car (and one that's actually made in a Japanese factory also) last year and i 'm really happy with it i think that you made (once more) a wise choise.

Those who speak about cheap plastics obviously haven't seen how mediocre the build quality is in the VW Tiguan , Ford Kuga or the Opel Antara. I would take a Forester over those three in an instant...

 

[martinbo]

Thanks all.

Yannis look, the plastics are downright shite. But build quality and refinement are top-notch. Controls as usual are precise and nice to use; steering's a bit light and the rear axle's springs are too soft. One can just feel that the car's put together properly. Yes, it's Japanese and yes, it doesn't carry the on-road presence of a Q5 or GLK but it's my third turbo Forester now and that's the faith that I place in the product.

But the benefits for the family are huge; much better interior space, better std equipment [even the sound system's got some good quality! ] much more comfortable ride and still some good enough handling to keep me entertained.

It's distinctly less grunty than the old car, more sedate (definitely a little slower) and less of a hooligan. But then again, I'm also getting on and such antics in an SUV are rather unbecoming in any event. It's a great lifestyle vehicle - truly the best of both worlds.

Mozambique: Here. I. Come.