Normally, I am not interested in new-release cars. I'm the cautious type who likes to wait at least a couple of years to see how the model develops. So even though I've been very impressed with Subaru models before, I didn't take much notice when they released their SUV, the Forester.

But when my father-in-law drove over in his new Forester, I suddenly got interested. I was impressed, but still cautious, even when three more friends/relatives all bought Foresters as well. But after listening to what they had to say, as well as doing my own research, I decided to jump on the bandwagon for the 98 models. Even better, I had a great excuse when my wife and I found out we were going to have a baby - what better time to get a bigger car.

The Forester is great for anybody who wants a mid-sized station wagon. It's also a great choice for those who are looking for a light-duty SUV. The Forester is a vehicle that will suit a lot of people, because it's very versatile.

One of the best things about the Forester is the way it drives. It's much more like a car than a truck, which both my wife and I are happy with. The handling is absolutely superb, even in bad weather conditions, which is something we see a lot of. The Subaru All-Wheel-Drive is fantastic, cornering and braking are smooth, and I was pleasantly surprised by the power of the two-liter four-cylinder engine, as both power and acceleration were quite acceptable.

While the Forester wasn't designed with serious off-road adventurers in mind, it is very well-suited for weekend camping trips, dirt-roads and pulling a trailer. In fact, it has twice the towing capacity of Toyota's RAV-4 and Honda's CR-V.

Another factor that was important to us, since we were about to have a baby, was SAFETY. We were happy to know that the Forester came with airbags, ABS and was the only SUV to meet the federal safety standards for passenger cars. This was one of the issues my wife had brought up when I told her I thought we ought to look at the Forester - she'd heard that SUV's had a lot of safety issues, so we were very happy to find out that the Forester didn't have those problems.

Other things we liked about the Forester include:

Cargo space - plenty of room for groceries, stroller, baby bag, etc. The Forester has about the same amount of cargo space as any other in this class - I think the Honda may have a bit more, but not much.

Visibility - Even though the seats are lower, more like a family car, you still have good vision in all four directions.

Looks - Ok, it's not the kind of head-turner that causes whip-lash, but we're happy with the look of the Forester - better than the Honda, but if looks were the only thing that mattered, the RAV-4 would be the winner. Too bad for Toyota, there's more to cars than looks.

As for the bad points, there are only a few:

Seats - At first, I didn't say anything about the seats being a bit uncomfortable - I find most carseats to be uncomfortable. But I have heard it from at least a half-dozen other people, so I think this is something Subaru needs to look at. I've heard the 99 models got new seats, but I don't know if they're more comfortable.

Radio controls - Very few car-makers have mastered the ability to always put every knob, lever and control in the absolute perfect spot for everybody, but I sure wish somebody would. I don't like fiddly controls of any kind, and the Forester's radio controls are a bit small and difficult to deal with.

There is also one feature of the Forester that I can't make up my mind about - the storage areas. There are over 20 "cubby holes" throughout the Forester where you can put all sorts of things - maps, sunglasses, first aid kid, etc. At first, I thought this was great! My wife and I had a blast finding all the storage areas and coming up with brilliant uses for them. But now, we find that we either don't use them, can't remember what's in them, or find little "surprises" left by our two-year-old son. Still, they're bound to be handy for something!

Other than those minor details, the Subaru Forester is a joy to own and absolutely wonderful to drive. I highly recommend it!