The 2010 Subaru Forester is an excellent small SUV choice if you avoid the pricey options and aren't looking either for sportiness or luxury. See more photos of the Forester in today's slideshow. (Photos by Brady Holt)
In too many cases, descriptions of a car as “basic” or “honest” or “competent but unexciting” are employed as attempts to excuse a bad car for being uncompetitive. “Sure, Car X isn’t going to appeal to a driving enthusiast, but it’s just fine for someone who wants good basic transportation,” far too many car reviews will conclude.
Reviews like that, of cars that are inexcusably inferior to competitors that would serve the same sort of consumer far better, cheapen the phrase of “honest transportation” to a euphemism for “bad.”
The 2010 Subaru Forester compact SUV – which spent a week with the DC Car Examiner – is good, honest, basic, competent but unexciting transportation. And it outdoes its competition at providing the virtues that make it so.
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The Forester is utilitarian, with a tall, boxy shape and big windows that makes for excellent interior space and visibility. No styling flourishes like the swoopy rooflines or windowlines that adorn too many of this Subaru’s competitors detract from this car’s raison d’être of practicality.
But as part of the Forester’s utility is hauling passengers instead of just cargo, so it can’t be basic to the point of uncomfortable. Aside from a particularly unpleasant center-rear seating position – occupants have a hard, narrow seat that’s designed to deploy an armrest and a pair of cupholders more than keep a passenger there comfortable – the car executes this admirably. Four adults will be comfortable on the spacious, well-shaped seats, and they get padded armrests both in the center and on their door panels.
This confirms the finding from a brief test drive of the Forester this spring for a comparison review of seven compact SUVs, in which this Subaru placed second, falling narrowly short of the win for having higher noise levels and some cheaper interior materials than the Toyota RAV4 that nabbed first place. (Since then, a redesigned Chevrolet Equinox went on sale that trumps both this Subaru and that Toyota in overall refinement.)
Spending a week with the car was intended to answer the question of how significant the Forester’s weaknesses proved to be in the real world. When a car is allowed to fade into the background over time, are its noise levels or the quality of its plastics things that stand out as problems?
The Forester, like most other Subarus from the last decade, is powered by a 2.5-liter horizontally-opposed four-cylinder engine, an unconventional setup that is designed to work well with the all-wheel-drive system standard on every Subaru. Some loyalists swear by this engine and its distinctive sound; others might complain it produces a harsh, unpleasant racket, especially at higher rpms.
And although the Forester has sufficient power for most situations, including interstate merging, high-speed hills force the four-speed automatic transmission down to where the engine will sometimes roar near redline – good neither for refinement nor fuel economy (though the 27.1 miles per gallon the tested Forester averaged over 500 miles was certainly impressive).
Wind noise resulting from the car’s boxy shape and large outside mirrors also mars the Forester’s overall sense of refinement, and its slabsided nature makes it prone to some highway-speed wander in high winds. The ride is pleasant but not plush; it does a particularly good job at cushioning low speed bumps, but can be slightly unsettled at higher speeds.
Inside, the quality issues never make the Forester feel junky. Aside from a broken rear-seat recliner (which is possibly attributable to abuse from other auto journalists) the car’s interior is mostly well-designed to be comfortable where it should be – and nowhere else. The padded door panel armrests mentioned above typify this: the padding is limited to where the elbow falls, the rest of the armrest is hard.
But with a sticker price of nearly $30,000 as tested, too many plastic pieces on the dash and upper door panels look and feel a bit cheap, as do the climate control system’s knobs. (The wiper and turn signal stalks move more nicely.) Some luxury is expected from a car at this price point.
Of course, you certainly don’t have to spend anywhere near $30,000 to buy a Subaru Forester. Base models start at around $20,000, the same as they sold for a decade ago. Skip the leather, automatic climate controls, and the navigation system – which doesn’t work so well anyway – and go for the 2.5X Premium model with the optional “cold weather package.” The sticker price is just over $25,000, and Fitzgerald Auto Malls will sell you one no-haggle for $23,547.
That’s a price point where the Forester can be justified as the utility vehicle it’s supposed to be: a practical, sturdy, reliable vehicle that can motor its way through any weather conditions and that is rated to come out in an accident better than any competitor. It’s a price point where a car that’s basic transportation done right is just fine, and you can make it an even better deal by losing the sunroof, automatic transmission, and alloy wheels and buying one out the door for under $20,000.
Sure, the Subaru Forester isn’t going to appeal to the driving enthusiast – at least, not without its available turbocharged engine. The driving enthusiast would want more steering feel and much quicker responses, and probably a bit more power. There are also some buyers who will be willing to pay a bit extra to buy a competitor with a quieter ride and a nicer interior.
But the Forester is just fine for someone who wants good basic transportation. In fact, if that person requires cargo-carrying practicality and all-weather usability, it’s the best basic transportation available.
Provided, of course, you go easy on the options.
See more photos of the Forester in today's slideshow, and read more details about the car using the links below; each page is illustrated with even more detailed photos.
Day 1: Introduction Vehicle tested: 2010 Subaru Forester Key specifications:
Day 3: Cargo management
Day 5: Interior details
Day 7: Navigation system
Day 8: Exterior size
Full review
Vehicle base price (MSRP): $20,295
Version tested: 2.5X Limited
Version base price (MSRP): $25,995
Vehicle price as tested (MSRP): $29,148
Estimated transaction price as tested: $26,653
Odometer at beginning of test: 3,055 miles
Odometer at end of test: 3,558 miles
Test vehicle provided by: Subaru of America
Length: 179.5 inches
Width: 70.1 inches
Height: 66.9 inches
Wheelbase: 103.0 inches
Weight: 3,360 pounds
Cargo volume behind rear seat: 30.8 cubic feet
Cargo volume behind front seats: 63.0 cubic feet
Turning radius: 17.2 feet
Engine (as tested): 2.5-liter H4 with 170 horsepower
Transmission: 4-speed automatic
EPA city mileage: 20 miles per gallon
EPA highway mileage: 26 miles per gallon
Observed gas mileage during test: 27.1 miles per gallon
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