Cons: Shifter, noisy, extreme character, smallish back seat, suspension not up to motor/chassis.
The Bottom Line: A practical sleeper low on refinement. The suspension disappoints but it can cheaply fulfil many different missions in varying weather conditions very QUICKLY!
I have driven a 2004 Subaru Forester 2.5 XT (T as in TURBO) since I bought one new in January of 2004 for 23,000 dollars. I have had it for almost three trouble free years of snow belt driving and have used it mostly for commuting to work in mixed highway/city in rain or shine. It has never left me wishing for another vehicle and has prooved itself an excellent general purpose vehicle capable of fulfilling just about any mission reasonably well while providing great thrills. My family is very split on it because those who like a fast, fun to drive car adore it while those more interested in comfort are turned off by its, ahem, rather EXTREME personality. My wife always wants to take it because its fun to drive and in her catloving opinion has "feline reflexes"; my father always asks if I will be needing it with a wink and my mother (just like the Toyota Tacoma truck) won't get in it because the sudden power and dodgy handling make her feel "unsafe".
First off I have to comment that the deal-maker was the VIN number, as in starting with the letter "J". I know that made in Japan is no promise of reliability but in general given the same car company those made in Japan tend to be more reliable (such as Lexus vs Toyota). This car was one of the most reliable in consumer reports' 2004 issue and that is something very important to me and my family. Subsequent ownership has supported the survey results in that in the first 25,000 miles I have not had a single failure except the air bag light coming on and this was because of a faulty fuse which was easily and quickly replaced. Occasionaly it made a noise on the highway at high speeds as well, but that noise tended to occur after it was parked in a damp area and resolved upon application of the brakes. Eventually it got worse and at the 30,000 mile service check they found the brake rotors had warped and replaced them under warranty. In actuality, this had been a problem for many Forestesr, but other than that it runs as well, if not better than brand new. I know 30,000 miles isn't much to fully evaluate reliability, but I read in the car mags that drive some long term european or american cars that are already falling apart, so I am OK with my subaru so far.
One more thing I should mention is that the car burns a quart of oil every 3,000 or so miles. This is normal and expected of the turbo models. I took very good care of it and even took the time to break it in. Other XT owners say the same thing. For this reason, I just check the oil every month or two, add as neccessary and change it every 5k miles. Due to the shorter intervals, I don't bother with synthetic.
Doing your own maintenance is also very easy because the engine compartment is open, lacks a cover for the motor and is accessible. The only problem is that there is a splash guard or plastic shield under the motor which is very difficult to open and has cantankerous plastic screws that just don't want to budge! The hardest thing of changing the oil is actually securing the cover back into place. However, the car is a joy to work on otherwise and has well marked caps for all the neccessary fluids IE, the washer fluid, the oil, the brake fluid etc.
The safety factor is very high, given the AWD, antilock brakes, side air bags and excellent crash protection. The vehicle actually has a U-shaped bar in the front which helps distribute the impact in an offset crash. Practically speaking in a 40mph OFFSET (the standard is 30mph) crash, you have a 99% chance of walking away unharmed with at most, a broken left foot and only if the foot is resting against the firewall. The steering wheel would only move less than 1/2 a cm (that's nothing) and the rest of your family would be OK if they wore their seatbelts. If it's any indication firefighters that I have met through my work, who often have to extricate people from crashes and know which cars are good and which ones are not, love Subarus. One nit I need to pick here is that the brakes are only barely adequate. For the 160hp base model they would be fine, but this car has a power to weight ratio of about 13.666 pounds per hp. The 210 is underrated to get under the threshold of 14 where insurance companies start to get all huffed and puffed, but it is still a very strong power to weight ratio! It doesn't stop like a car of this power should and when braking hard the rear end does wag more than you would like, especially in disconnected or slippery terrain.
The practicality factor is also excellent. It's a smallish car that can easily make work of larger SUV's, both leaving them in the dust in city traffic and entering in parking spots they otherwise couln't poach. Only a mini cooper would have better luck parallel parking. However, despite it's easy to maneuver space with unprecedentedly tight turn radius (34 feet!), it has a cavernous trunk, an attribute made even better by folding back the rear seat. Oftentimes I have been stuck with having to give a number of baggage bearing passengers a ride, fitting them and their stuff quite easily. Due to the AWD and the driveshaft which takes away from rear room, the rear seats are a bit tight, but the whole package can and will seat 5 in a pinch without too much trouble. Overall, I bought this car when things were starting to get serious with my then girlfriend with the possibility of having a family, and I am glad that I did because the room is more than enough to go around... can't wait for that infant seat!
The driving experience is quite frankly EXHILIRATING. Car and Driver wasn't kidding when they described the motor as HEROIC. On paper, it can generate 0-60 in the low 5's and a 1/4 mile in the high 13's. Those numbers are on par with some of the best times of the legendary 1960's muscle cars! You have to try this car to believe what it can really do. There was never once a situation that I felt it didn't have enough power; actually, this kind of oomph can go to your head. Even better is that despite the turbocharger supplying the extra power, there is not a huge spoolup or on/off phenomenon. Kept in its fat, wide powerband it wants to go and knowing how easy it is to blast off will make you impatient when big, slow SUV's crowd the highway. Off boost and under 1800RPM yes, its sluggish and reluctant but the short gears help keep the motor in its sweet spot and the passing power is there in abundance even when tooling around at very low speeds, especially at low speeds! It has very useable power that helps you jump in and out of the sedate american traffic, even if they accelerate to try and squeeze you in! Boost comes on around 2000RPM where decent power starts and then the motor goes "on cam" at 3000RPM rapidly increasing in urgency. It quickly goes up the whole rev range with a neck snapping "rip" of acceleration all the way to around 6000RPM after which it starts to fade to its 6800RPM redline. It does well in most conditions provided RPMS's are over 2000 but excels from standing start takeoffs.
This car can accelerate off the line from 0-30mph in 1.3 seconds, which is faster than the 660hp Ferrari Enzo and to my knowledge is a record for off the line acceleration. You can embarass Camaros, Corvettes, bling SUV's, 350Z's and anything you want from a stoplight. Once you get underway you might not have such a big advantage but the rolling aceleration, though not as good is also very impressive for this type of vehicle. I remember an old car mag commercial for the Ford Taurus SHO stating that you need the stoplights to catch your breath in between bursts of acceleration, and this applies very much to this turbo breadbox. There was some skepticism about this type of performance out of only 210hp so dyno tests were run revealing about 175ish hp at the wheels, the difference being there because of driveline losses. That number is slightly more than what 2.0 liter WRX's were getting which means is that if the 2.0 WRX has 227 NET horsepower, the forester XT probably has a bit more, likely in the neighborhood of 230-240.
The transmission is geared very SHORT, meaning that the power is on RIGHT NOW as soon as you want it. This is perhaps the most thrilling part of the design as all too often cars have taller gears in deference of the EPA bean counters. Driven as it should be, you will find it hard to beat 20mph and likely get 18 or worse, regardless of city or highway. Using the cruise control at 55mph you can pull in the mid high 20's, but this car is so exciting to wind through the gears and back that I almost never use the cruise. Some may complain about bad mileage, but to get this kind of performance in a wagon you need to look at the Audi S-4 which costs twice as much, and the 23 grand price difference will buy you lots of gas!
Of course, the bland styling works in your favor because the first indication anyone will have of your stellar performance is when they see your taillights. This works well for ticket evasion as well as reasonable insurance rate. Actually, the insurance costs less per dollar of new car than the non turbo XS, being $1500 more expensive to buy, but only 27 dollars more expensive to insure. What is priceless was the look on my neighbor when I blew right by his Cayenne S on the onramp. Compared to him whom I easily smoked, what I get and what it costs is just fine by me!
The major drawback is that the motor is a bit quirky and doesn't like to be short shifted. Given the short gears it's easy to make it sing but the ratios are so short you have to change every few MPH, more like a race car gearbox, so people desiring a relaxed driving experience or used to auto trannies would be better advised avoiding this manual. It's also very notchy and rubbery, making grinding noises if rushed so quick up and downshifts are difficult at best. The motor is so powerful you don't need to bang it around the gearbox to perform, but if you're tearing through apexes on the back roads, the less than sterling linkage and abrupt clutch does take away some of the driving pleasure.
The driving position is also very good. You have a nice station wagon design (look at the plates on the door calling it a PASSENGER car, not an SUV) giving you 360 degree visibility, which is nice when looking around as you have to fight your way through reluctant traffic. The seats are reasonably comfortable and even slightly (but only slightly) supportive to high G cornering. You can get away with a long trip but after 1-2 hours it starts to drag on you. Not bad for this price range, but it's not for those used to a Lexus either.
Overall comfort is decent, especially because you have nice things like a decent stereo, power windows, and climate control. It's nothing to write home about, and there is a certain amount of wind and engine noise, but the latter is so satisfying with its turbo whine that once you are blasting off in this pocket rocket, you will forget to even turn on the radio! Again, this car is a bit loud and not for the luxury oriented. Being able to fit even tall people, their dog, their gear and their friends in at least adequate comfort is more than I need for my 20 minute commute to work every day. One gripe regarding the climate control is that the system is very stupid in terms of intelligence. It works best at average temperatures but the bigger the temperature difference between what you request and the inside is, the worse it works. Sometimes the sensor warms up faster than you do so it gives you average temperature air when in the back seat or your hands are still 30 degrees. Other times the car is already warm and it spits air hot enough to burn your hands. However, it does tend to warm the car much faster than average which combined with the AWD and heated seats make for one of the nicest "getting into the car in cold weather and pulling out of your driveway" experiences ever.
The AWD system is a champ, plain and simple. My job has it that I have to get to work every day on time regardless of weather, sometimes at crazy hours. Thanks to AWD and not one but TWO limited slip differentials, traction is never a problem. I can ford 6 inches of unploughed snow with ease and even in slush or mud on the uphill drive right on through without a problem. It does have a slightly panic inspiring reaction of throwing out the tail under power even with the wheel straight. This is what car fanatics call "power oversteer" and it's there in spades for those who know how to tame it, allowing you to make opposite lock powerslides at will should you so desire. The problem is that the differentials are made to maximize traction and therefore not being torsens will not respond as quickly. The front wheel requires some spin before the rears start to catch, but then the transition is VERY abrupt. In slippery conditions under part throttle this is fine but if you want to do some performance driving in the dry applying the throttle is not as safe or satisfying as a more rear biased AWD like in the WRX. Even the most gung ho car nut like me will have to conceed that sometimes that reaction can be inconvenient and a little unsafe. I attribute it to the sudden rush of power when the turbo kicks in (it spools very easily, even when you don't want to) and contributes to brash, unrefined feel. This car tends to be right at home when conditions are slippery, but in dry tarmac sometimes leaves you wishing for something more resoponsive.
As good as the motor and chassis is, this factor isn't helped any by the suspension and tires which leave a lot to be desired. The car rolls in hard cornering with the stock tires protesting and sqealing very easily. It understeers a lot and requires that you need to turn the steering wheel a lot more to corner in dry tarmac than a comparable FWD or RWD car. This can be tamed by braking harder and earlier and then applying power earlier to slide that rear end around but is ill advisable except in country back roads and still leaves you dealing with too much body roll. I have upgraded the tires recently after the stock ones wore out to all season high performance types and found somewhat more crisp responses, but the body roll and understeer issues remain.
Frankly, I don't know what to make of this. I have driven and owned other high performance cars with more aggressive suspensions and feel that each has its strengths. In dry smooth asphalt, a sports car/sedan naturally will be more satisfying, but those types of cars get very upset over bumps, expansion joints, snow or other unforseen ground imperfections. I can drive the forester over some pretty lousy roads and the ride is not only stable, but also safe. I have never been able to push a car that much on the slushy or uneven grounds as much as the Subaru; almost nothing upsets it. As a tradeoff I have to live with the fact that it is a jack of all trades and master of none in the handling department when those sport sedans tailgate me on high speed corners. (come straightaway they shrink mighty fast in that rearview mirror, though!)
As Mkaresh put it, this is a more powerful Forester but it is still a regular forester in most other aspects. It gives more power than just about any car south of the $50,000 border but doesn't quite tame the grunt as it should. I think the WRX or the WRX STI are both more satisfying to drive. However, the WRX even in wagon form has far less interior room. The WRX STI is definately the best of the turbo subarus hands down, but it lacks a wagon and is pricier. The turbo power does unmask some of the Forester's shortcomings, but it is a very complete vehicle in terms of its ability to shine in multiple areas. I would rate it four stars, subtracting one for its suspension and brake omissions, but that would be a very high four stars. It's a small car that you can drive like a small car, retaining a nimble nature and yet has more cargo space than almost any other 23,000 dollar car. It has a great AWD system, offers so many nice to have options and pretty much can leave any car eating its dust, at least on the acceleration. Because of its uniqueness in being an overpowered and overacheiving compact wagon, for a driving enthusiast who has family needs like I do I would strongly recommend this vehicle and thus upgrade it to 5 stars. I am willing to forgive the car's handling shortomings because this forester does have a power advantage over WRX's, even the new 2.5's. However, when cross shopping with an STi the decision is a much more difficult one, and you can read my review of the STi to see why.
Overall, this is one of the most fun to drive cars I have ever owned. It is quicker than a sports car, doesn't handle as well as one but costs less, attracts less attention and allows tremendous practicality. I can have my fun in the back roads and then go pick up my wife, kids, their gear and drive around in any road condition I need, come hell or high water which in my line of work is almost every day. This car is not for the faint of heart given its quirks, lack of refinement, and extreme character. However, if you want a practical sleeper that can safely and cheaply face a diversity of roles and still compete with Viagra or whatever else you like for jollies, look no further!
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