Faults:

Nothing so far, and is normal, having a new Japanese car.

General Comments:

The Forester we bought, we intend to use it so the whole family can go out week-ends, outdoors without being concerned about bad roads, mud and so on.

When we got the car from the dealer, we were all blown away about the car. My mom and dad said that this is a very very elegant car.

I chose the 2 liter non-turbo engine because it's more economical, and at 1200 KM on the clock the engines swallows just 10-11 liters/100 in town. Yes maybe the on-board computer isn't accurate, but one thing is certain: the consumption will drop a bit more as the car will reach 8000 KM.

This car is the perfect compromise (if I can call it like that) between a street car and an off-roader. You can easily speed up to make some nice cornering, and you also can crawl mud roads. Of course my personal opinion would be that the steering doesn't become tight at high speeds, you can still enter a curve just with your finger on the steer, so this is not very good, you need to be focusing on driving.

The engine, a 2 liter boxer engine is doing a great job. I really love the differential switch (which triggers the limited slip differential) located near the hand brake, and I also love the great number of airbags, ABS, ESP and the hill assistant system. Of course the symmetrical all wheel drive is also a tech candy, which makes Subaru to be a distinctive piece of car. The overwhelming technical part of the car is working hard so the driver doesn't have to. More than that, the driver has some nice tools to challenge a large number of terrains.

The cockpit is truly breath taking, and it looked like it was intended to cheer you and relax you, when after a hard day at work, you enter this car and go home. Absolutely magical!!!

I was and I still am amazed about it, of course is not a Lexus, or Range Rover, but at 30.000 euros I think you get a good elegant car, all techy features, safety on the road, and a Japanese product.

My opinion is that the German and French car manufactures should kiss the Japanese's feet and quickly grab a pencil and a notebook because the have a lot to learn when it comes to reliability, driver oriented products, and so on.

The thing that annoyed me at this car was the fact that the protection steel shields placed underneath the car are optional, but they aren't in production yet; the dealer told me the reason would be some safety regulation not met by them yet. So here I am waiting...

I don't say "go and buy it, it's the best you can get" but instead I would say that opening your eyes can make a difference. A short drive test will clarify the situation, and maybe you will feel that little "something" about the car that you can't explain, and you woke up signing the papers for one like mind controlled freak.

Faults:

None has gone wrong so far. Of course I would not expect this to happen with a brand new car.

General Comments:

It seems to be pretty potent, although all Subaru owners say that it starts to go much better after 10K km on the clock.

Drive feeling is like a normal car on the road, you feel driving AWD on sharp curves - handles like on rails. I've made a short trip through a country off-road, mostly mud and small bumps, although it was not a challenge for the car - it was the first challenge for me (I've never dared to enter there with my previous car)

The saloon looks pretty well laid out, passengers feel comfortable in the back, although I don't very much like the plastic feel of the dashboard - but that is reality, most modern cars have this plastic feel.

Trip computer shows only average economy, not the momentary fuel consumption, which Subaru could put on at no extra cost.

The service guys are not very supportive, they also keep the service prices high.

Faults:

Headlight had moisture in it almost from the beginning; dealer replaced and the problem went away. They said it was bad casting of the plastic.

Alignment isn't perfect any more (the steering wheel is a hair to the right when driving straight on the highway).

The transmission does downshift more than I'd like, but probably just because the engine isn't overly powerful.

General Comments:

I'm very tall (6'5") and the headroom in the forester is EXCELLENT. My head brushes the ceiling in many cars, but has inches to spare in the Forester. Legroom is another story, my knees brush against the steering wheel, but not as much as in the Outback.

For being a AWD SUV, the car feels and handles like a car.

Handles really well in the snow, as expected.