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Brucester
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Brucester
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PostThu Sep 06, 2018 7:50 pm 
Thinking of selling or trading my Scion to get a Forrester. Economy city cars don't last as long when you expose them to gravel roads. They're just not made for that kind of use. Forrester.... What year? Probably not new, maybe a 5speed to avoid the CVT drama. Not wanting surprises down the road like I've experienced with the Scion brand. I like the Crosstrek but I don't know much about them. I've heard even stock they're great on 4wd trails in Colorado. I like the Honda Element even though it's not made anymore. It just seems to sit low. I was going to look at Toyota Tacoma's but they're pricy even used! Do I need a truck, really? Advice for a perspective Subie buyer? The best Forrester years?

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Old Not Bold Hiker



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PostThu Sep 06, 2018 8:08 pm 
Brucester wrote:
Thinking of selling or trading my Scion to get a Forrester. Economy city cars don't las as long when you expose them to gravel roads. They're just not made for that kind of use. Probably not new, maybe a 5speed to avoid the CVT drama. I like the Crosstrek but the Forrester seems not as "shiny." I was going to look at Toyota Tacoma's but they still get low mpg and they're pricy even used! The best Forrester years?
Forester was redesigned in 2014. Do not buy one previous to that, unless you are ok with having a gutless car that gets poor gas mileage and blows head gaskets. What CVT drama? We haven't had a problem yet with either of our Subie CVT's. Knock on wood. I think they have further refined the CVT in recent years. Our CVT has spent extensive time on rough dirt and gravel roads, plus I haul a roof rack full of heavy kayaks or sail like paddleboards up a few thousand feet on average a couple times a week in the summer at 70mph. I don't understand the point to the Crosstrek. It is a jacked up, heavy Impreza with big tires. The 2.0 engine is adequate for the Impreza but is pushing its limits in the Crosstrek and therefore doesn't get its rated gas mileage in most situations. The Forester effectively gets the same gas mileage in real world situations, has much more guts with the 2.5 engine, more space inside, and costs about the same for equivalent trim level. But I will say the Crosstrek LOOKS cooler than the somewhat boring looking Forester. I did replace the rear stabilizer bar (cheap and easy mod) in both the Impreza and Forester with a beefier version which made the Impreza into a sports car and gave decent handling capability to the Forester. Highly recommended mod. I personally think my Forester handles Oregon gravel roads more smoothly and is more stable than my Bro-in-laws Audi, which cost 2-4 times more. Audi's are more common than Subarus in Bend, due to a heavy influx of people with money to burn from outside of the Northwest. Outback was redesigned in 2015. Also a good consideration with a tiny bit more internal space than the Forester.
Elk Lake, Oregon, 8/28/18
Elk Lake, Oregon, 8/28/18

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RichP
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PostThu Sep 06, 2018 9:17 pm 
The 2019 Forester has quite few new details. Not available quite yet but I'm seriously thinking about getting one. My '04 has served me well. Not too happy with no manual transmission option, but it's time for change. https://www.planetsubaru.com/2019-subaru-forester-changes.htm

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ejain
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PostSat Sep 08, 2018 12:16 pm 
Brucester wrote:
Advice for a perspective Subie buyer?
https://eric.jain.name/2016/09/17/subaru-crosstrek/

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Old Not Bold Hiker



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Old Not Bold Hiker
PostSat Sep 08, 2018 12:43 pm 
ejain wrote:
Brucester wrote:
Advice for a perspective Subie buyer?
https://eric.jain.name/2016/09/17/subaru-crosstrek/
Per the "article" I included Carter Subaru in my search for our new Subarus (2012 and 2014) and was mystified as to how Carter has a reputation for being a great place to buy cars. Definitely the highest price of any dealership in the greater Seattle area and absolutely NOT willing to negotiate. Definitely check out truecar and Edmunds for pricing and notice very carefully what you are pricing. i.e. trim level and add-ons. We ordered our Impreza Premium for significant savings by avoiding a bunch of crap the dealer had on the cars in stock. We happened to find the exact model/"stuff" we were looking for on a Forester in stock at the dealer we bought through and nailed down a "fair price" per Truecar etc. I am not one to spend a couple weeks getting another $100 off the price of the car and feel its ok for the dealer to get a fair profit, but I won't pay an extra grand because the Salesman says his kids are going to starve if they bring the price down further to a reasonable amount. Definitely compare engines, REAL fuel mileage, and cost between Crosstrek and Forester and ask yourself if having that cool looking Crosstrek instead of the average looking Forester is worth getting less value with the Crosstrek. Just my opinion, your priorities may differ.

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ejain
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ejain
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PostSat Sep 08, 2018 2:45 pm 
boot up wrote:
Definitely compare engines, REAL fuel mileage, and cost between Crosstrek and Forester and ask yourself if having that cool looking Crosstrek instead of the average looking Forester is worth getting less value with the Crosstrek.
So far I've averaged just over 34 mpg with the Crosstrek. On trips with smooth roads and minimal traffic I get 40+ mpg. The Forester costs a bit more, but has more space, and an option for more powerful engine (which you'd definitely need if you wanted to tow anything).

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Old Not Bold Hiker



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PostSat Sep 08, 2018 3:16 pm 
ejain wrote:
boot up wrote:
Definitely compare engines, REAL fuel mileage, and cost between Crosstrek and Forester and ask yourself if having that cool looking Crosstrek instead of the average looking Forester is worth getting less value with the Crosstrek.
So far I've averaged just over 34 mpg with the Crosstrek. On trips with smooth roads and minimal traffic I get 40+ mpg. The Forester costs a bit more, but has more space, and an option for more powerful engine (which you'd definitely need if you wanted to tow anything).
Your experience with the Crosstrek mpg is certainly not "average" according to fueleconomy.gov. In mixed driving, it appears most people are getting mid to high 20's mpg. I suppose I can claim I easily average 34mpg with the Forester and can get 40mpg with the right conditions. I noticed on my recent trip to Smith Rock that my round trip was 40mpg average with some 70mph highway in the mix. Stock engine in the Crosstrek is the 2.0L, stock engine in the Forester is 2.5L. The 2.0L engine gas mileage drops off significantly in our Impreza over 65mph, and I am guessing that is more so in the Crosstrek, much more than our Forester 2.5L drops off at higher speeds. They had a turbo option for the Forester, but I personally avoid turbos of any kind due to reliability with turbos in general. I don't know what you are referring to with a "more powerful engine option" in the Forester. Maybe you are thinking of the Outback? Tigermn has the 3.6L larger Outback engine, and it is indeed insanely fast for passing, and would work well for towing as it also has a heavier duty CVT. I have towed a modest sized Uhaul trailer over to Portland and back with the Forester over Government Camp pass with no problem, but would not consider it designed for heavy towing....buy an Outback for that purpose. I have loaded it down with two of our large, heavy kayaks(Hobie Pedal kayaks) on the roof and headed up to the mountain lakes often, which requires travelling 70mph to keep up with traffic. When my bro-in-laws Crosstrek was doing that, he was lucky to get up to 40mph going up the mountain, with a line of angry cars behind him. Your choice though.

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ejain
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ejain
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PostSat Sep 08, 2018 4:17 pm 
boot up wrote:
Your experience with the Crosstrek mpg is certainly not "average" according to fueleconomy.gov. In mixed driving, it appears most people are getting mid to high 20's mpg.
I drive around mostly with the (adaptive) cruise control engaged, so that might help a bit :-)

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Brian Curtis
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Brian Curtis
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PostSat Sep 08, 2018 7:12 pm 
Subaru does major redesigns on all their models every 5 years. In 2017 the Imprezza was redesigned, in 2018 the Crosstrek, and for 2019 it is the Forester. For 2019 Subaru will also be producing a plug-in hybrid Crosstrek, but details have not yet been released. Crosstrek is the smallest of the SUV or XUV models. Add 6" for a Forester and another 6" for an Outback. In older models the Crosstrek had less clearance, but as of the 2018 model year the Crosstrek, Forester, and Outback all have the same clearance. When talk turns to MPG you have to establish if everybody is talking about actual mileage calculated from miles driven and gallons of gas added, or if they are talking about the MPG the car is reporting. Subarus, and probably most auto manufacturer's cars to one degree or another, overreport their gas mileage by a significant amount. I track my mileage with Fuelly and, as of this writing, we are averaging 32.0 mpg. We do not live in Seattle and do not regularly have to drive in city traffic. (but when we do the adaptive cruise control is fantastic). When we chose our Subaru Crosstrek (after our Ford Escape suddenly died almost exactly a year ago) we decided that we wanted to prioritize small size and the highest mileage we could get in a good clearance vehicle. We ended up settling on the Crosstrek and it is, easily, the best vehicle I have ever owned. If you are looking at used cars it is definitely worth remembering the the 2018 Crosstrek redesign was a significant upgrade so not everything I say will apply to older model years. My first real test of the Crosstrek's trailhead ability was on a road I had driven a couple times in the Escape. I had always made it, but it was always an extremely stressful drive. In the Crosstrek it was not at all stressful. I kept waiting for the bad spots. I also drove through a washout I would not have even tried in the Escape. A real 4x4 wouldn't have put a wheel in the air like I got, but the Crosstrek didn't miss a beat and had no problem at all. I assume that the Forester or Outback would have made it through with similar aplomb.

that elitist from silverdale wanted to tell me that all carnes are bad--Studebaker Hoch
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Bedivere
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Bedivere
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PostSat Sep 08, 2018 9:35 pm 
Subaru does turbos right. They've been using them for a long time and failures are rare. I wouldn't hesitate to but a turbo model (though the 6 cylinder, if still available, has advantages if towing) and am considering buying another WRX.

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PostSun Sep 09, 2018 7:36 am 
I will say my bro-in-law, who says his Crosstrek is gutless, also considers it their go-to car for intense conditions Winter driving, preferring it to both the BMW SUV he had and his current Audi SUV. He calls it his "tractor". He keeps Blizzaks on it year round. He also used to use it backroading instead of the BMW, especially after getting stranded way out in the middle of nowhere thanks to the BMW having no spare tire.

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ejain
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PostSun Sep 09, 2018 8:33 pm 
Brian Curtis wrote:
I track my mileage with Fuelly
I used that service for a long time, too, but now rely on an app (Automatic) that captures data from the ODB port. This appears to be at least as accurate, and more detailed (can review fuel consumption per trip, rather than just between fill-ups).

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wildernessed
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PostMon Sep 10, 2018 10:51 am 
Over 110k' on my 2006 Subaru Forester mostly to and from TH and on forest roads outside and inside in great condition considering the age we also have a 2016 Crosstek my wife predominantly uses I have been very satisfied with its performance and traction overall. I keep the most aggressive mud and snow tires on it I can find.

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Brucester
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PostMon Sep 10, 2018 8:11 pm 
The whole CVT thing is blown out of proportion? Why do so many mechanics not like them or have nothing but negative things to say about them? I read a never do list of things not to do with a CVT it seemed obvious. Take care of your car?! Although I like my automatic, I may check out the 5 speed's. Is it true they're more expensive now? A friend said that and it seemed odd. How's the sleep in the Forrester? For the six footer? Couples? The sound system? Speaker placement? Scion got that right. The sound is really good for stock. Maybe to get you pumped up for the 3,000 dollar shop bill you'll have to pay before 49,000 miles? I've ridden in more Subies than I thought! Joanna's Outback, Eric's Outback, Brian's Outback, Kevin's Outback, Monty's Forrester and Rich's Forrester. In that order lol.gif I guess that sums it up for me. Cargurus would be my next step.

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Bernardo
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PostMon Sep 10, 2018 8:21 pm 
Anyone want to sell an old Forester that runs well? Recent grad needs a car. PM me with mileage and price if interested.

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