Faults:

My clutch went at 65,000 miles but since it has been replaced the car is acting fine.

The driver's fabric seat is starting to wear out.

General Comments:

The Subaru Forester is seriously quick and jumps out of 1st gear quicker than you can read ths sentence. Car & Driver stated that the Forester XT will do zero to sixty in 5.3 seconds and it certainltly seems like they were right. This performance comes at a price though as the Forester XT is quite thirsty with premium fuel - getting about only 17 miles per gallon.

The ride is a very comfortable, but is also too "soft," and simply not on par with the car's outstanding acceleration.

The Forester has plenty of cargo space, and along with its AWD it's quite a practical vehicle.

Faults:

The transmission totally died about 4 and a half years after I purchased it brand new.

General Comments:

I really love this Forester, but the transmission going out so soon after I purchased it has soured me on getting another one.

The driver seat fabric wore out after a year. I don't think I'm too tough on car seats! The gas mileage is okay for an SUV, which is good at this point in time. There's a lot to like about the Forester - space, easy to pull seats down, smaller sized SUV, AWD...

Working with the dealer and other Subaru folks has been a nightmare. They aren't helpful, they are deceptive and they charge up the wazoo. I purchased 2 rear-window wipers at 2 different dealers. One charged me 3 TIMES as much as the other, and both were pricey to begin with. That has been the worst part of owning a Subaru for me.

Faults:

Nothing of note.

General Comments:

Great car with surprisingly sporty handling for a tall AWD station wagon. Roomy interior, but actually smaller than a 3 series BMW. Really fun to drive and easy to park. Large sun roof, fully automated climate control, convenient in-dash 6 CD player with a console to store the CD cases, four cup holders. Lots of head and leg room front and rear.

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

This car is very reliable and the handling is quite good.

However, the paintwork is below average and very prone to scratching. Seats are uncomfortable and bumpers are quite weak. This is the reason why I'll considering Honda or Toyota next time. Seeing new scratches every now and then is very annoying.

My Forester is quite good, but sorry Subaru I think the new CR-V and RAV-6 are better now!

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong with this vehicle.

General Comments:

Fun vehicle to drive, and also very useful.

Pros:

Acceleration, front seat space, features per dollar, safety ratings, reliability, tonnes of cargo space.

Cons:

Poor gas consumption when not driven properly, no rear seat space.

Overall an excellent vehicle, but if you don't need the power, just get the 2.5XS.

Faults:

Right rear wheel bearing went out at 35K miles and now at 68K miles it is going out again. Seems to be a problem with the Forrester that Subaru will not back up.

General Comments:

Acceleration is weak and rides loud.

Faults:

It had three minor defects when I got it at one year old. I suspect they were manufacturing defects not spotted by the first owner:

Front passenger seat belt height adjustment jammed.

Front passenger door didn't turn on interior light.

Nearside headlamp height adjuster didn't work.

General Comments:

A big change from a top-heavy SUV. Performance, handling and economy are all somewhere in between an SUV and a fast estate. And so is off-road ability which is, realistically, limited to occasional rough tracks by the lowish ride height and long overhangs and lack of underside protection. The automatic gearbox is a mixture of good and indifferent; overtaking performance on kick-down is impressive, but it can be hesitant in its decision making.

Rear seat room is a bit marginal, but to improve that would either lose boot space or increase the overall length of the car, which is handily compact.