Faults:

Right rear wheel bearing at 7,000 miles.

Clutch pressure plate at 31,000 miles.

Spark plug wires at 39,000 miles.

Two front wheel bearings at 56,000 miles; Rear set howling and grinding at 57,000 miles.

General Comments:

Dealers balk at honoring warranty claims, make human yet hard to accept mistakes.

Service advisors are rude and combative.

They forgot to torque the bolt connecting the starter to the battery when they did the clutch.

It's a very pleasant and capable car let down by some dumb design choices (too small, sealed wheel bearings) and unfortunate supplier choices (faulty clutch pressure plate).

Faults:

Check engine light is on most of the time. Have to have converter cleared and reset, but comes back on again.

Head gaskets started leaking at 105,000 miles. Now needs to be replaced. Very expensive.

Radiator doesn't work properly and needs to be replaced as well.

General Comments:

Transmission is jerky.

Hard to stabilize on the highway.

Lots of wind and tire noise inside the cabin.

Seats are small and uncomfortable.

Faults:

My transmission died at 76230 miles. It is now being rebuilt. I took it to the dealer the only thing they could tell me was that it was internal transmission failure and I would need a new transmission to the tune of $4182.13 to have it replaced. However no specifics were provided by the dealer as to why or how the transmission went out on such a low mileage car.

Are there others who have experienced a the need for a transmission replacement at such a low mileage? I have not had the car even a year and I think the dealer missed some details when they sold me this car.

General Comments:

I love my car, but am really disappointed by this turn of events.

Twice I have called Subaru headquarters and they have not called me back in one week and they did not call me back today either, although I was told again that I would get a call back.

Faults:

Our Forester gave us no problems until recently when it hit 104,000 miles. An oxygen sensor failed and a knock sensor failed causing engine problems. After getting it back from the dealership we discovered a gear in the front differential had broken. Fixing the differential would require extensive labor costs. The alternative would be to replace the transmission.

General Comments:

The Forester handles wonderfully well in snow and does not hydroplane as bad as other vehicles in heavy rain. I really appreciated the side airbags and other safety factors. It felt like the brakes were a little soft, in other words it seemed to take longer to stop the vehicle than I think it should. It was also not very peppy when merging or passing on the highway.

Faults:

Purchased this high-end model 2001 Forester 'NEW' in October 2000.

Body, fit and finish are excellent.

The rest of it ~ Passenger front legroom is poor and cramped. My old 64 Volkswagen bug had more space front and back than this luxury model Subaru Forester.

First problem encountered was the weird odd offset position of the gas pedal. To operate the vehicle, the driver needs to position the foot slightly angled to left. Within a few minutes time, the ankle gets cramped. My wife, who is a 5' 6" Asian woman, myself and others who've driven this car all suffer the same problem. Cruise control is the only remedy on trips longer than about 30-minutes duration. This is NOT a "road car" and is an ordeal for a vacation trip unless driven my deformed midgets.

Windshields are a big problem for this car. The smallest pebble or bump cracks and destroys the Subaru branded windshield. It's as if the glass itself is not tempered correctly or at all. Right now, we are on our fourth (4th) windshield, which have averaged out to one replacement per year owned. According to auto glass companies, the only windshield available for this car is the Subaru brand made somewhere in the third world where they probably don't even own windshields.

Climate control, defrost and vent system are POOR. Window fogging especially in the spring and fall seasons is another nuisance. Best to shut off the defrost and carry a rag to swipe clear the window interiors.

Now we come to the electrical problems. Headlight wiring harnesses overhead and the insulation melts causing short circuits. Dash lights and instruments go on and off mysteriously. Had a Subaru dealer check out this car at various times. After numerous visits and hundreds of dollars worth of diagnostics, nothing has been fixed and the electrics seem to be getting even quirkier. Wife left early this morning at dawn with no working headlights again. Only the rear and brake lights are now functioning.

Lots more defects include leaking windows, power door locks that malfunction, power windows that stick in the down position and have to be lifted manually, flimsy cargo strap anchors that are just symbolic and break off with first use. There's more, but I'm tired of typing...

General Comments:

Handles very well.

Engine seems reliable, but for a 4-cylinder it drinks gasoline like a wino swills down cheap Thunderbolt wine