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2009 Subaru Forester

3747 messages,  Last post on Oct 15, 2012 at 3:22 PM

You are in the Subaru Forester Forum.

What is this discussion about? Subaru Forester, Future Vehicle, Wagon

Messages Page 150 of 376

#1483 of 3747 2009 Forester by gldllbn

May 30, 2008 (7:20 pm)

Hi,
 
I'm the lucky owner of a new 2009 Forester, my second Forester. The first one was a 2006. Got such a great deal with the guaranteed trade-in program going on now.
 
Anyway, I do have the experience now to compare the 2009 with an earlier model, and I must say that I am greatly impressed. All those niggly complaints I had about space and that my husband (6'4") had about leg room and ride are g-o-n-e. I got the LLBean model with the navigation and just had the bluetooth accessory installed to be in conformance with California's no-cellphone rule going into effect in July. Once I figured out how to synch my phone with the set, it worked fine.
 
Every day that I drive this car I marvel at all the changes Subaru made. I call them the 3 S's--safety, space, and style. Am sure that this model will get the 5-star rating just like the others. Space is so available (although I think they sacrificed a bit of space behind the rear seat to increase the legroom) and they brought the deck up and somehow decreased the wheel wells for more space across. And STYLE, well, inside and out it's stylin'. I added the body side moldings to protect against dings in the door and wheel well mouldings which really look great.
 
My last highway trip got me 27.6 MPH going 65 with cruise control on for about an hour. I though that that was pretty nice.
 
I am really impressed with what Subaru did with this model!
 
Nancy

#1484 of 3747 Subaru Schedued Service by unresolved

May 31, 2008 (5:38 am)

I asked the dealer to fax me the current costs for scheduled service. The figures they sent me were 3,750 24.95 (seems typical for oil change.7,500 mile service was 144.95 ( which seems kind of high) and 332.95 at 15,000 which seems to be really high. I am a big believer in preventive maintenance and I religiously everything in the manual. That is why the scheduled maintenance seemed high to me. I also notice that at 45,000 miles they are recomending a power steering flush. Is this something new? I can't ever remember having the power steering flushed although I think I had my brain flushed a couple of times. I am just curious if these are typical costs. Thanks in advance for the help.
 
By the way any thoughts on the comparison between the rogue and the Forester. The Rogues seems to have higher tech toys and the sexier look. At this stage in my life the only thing sexy i might have would be my car.

#1485 of 3747 Re: Subaru Schedued Service [unresolved] by bigfrank3

May 31, 2008 (10:52 am)

Replying to: unresolved (May 31, 2008 5:38 am)
I think these are more typical:
 
http://www.vanbortelsubaru.com/ServiceSpecials.asp
 
Again, you need to be careful of the difference between what the dealer recommends and what Subaru does.
 
I don't see a power steering flush anywhere.

#1486 of 3747 Re: Subaru Schedued Service [bigfrank3] by volkov

May 31, 2008 (3:02 pm)

Replying to: bigfrank3 (May 31, 2008 10:52 am)
They are both more aggressive than recommended by SOA
 
http://content.subaru.com/sub/media/pdf/schedules/2009SchedFed.pdf
 
They do not require LOAF until 7500 unless driven in severe conditions. Then add basically usual inspections at 15k and inspection and plugs at 30k.
I guess it all depends how much you drive, but at 10k miles per year that would be less than $600 over 3 years. That's pretty typical isn't it? I stick to the manual, not what my dealership service manager wants from me. I consider winter as severe conditions so bring the schedule forward accordingly.

#1487 of 3747 Re: 2009 Forester [gldllbn] by redrose1

May 31, 2008 (4:10 pm)

Replying to: gldllbn (May 30, 2008 7:20 pm)
Congrats on your new Forester! Is your model a turbo?

#1488 of 3747 the subaru hood protector by kurtamaxxxguy

May 31, 2008 (8:41 pm)

...took a local dealer around an hour to install. They remove a rubber strip under the hood lip, mount small brackets to the hood lip underside, then attach the plastic overlay (with small rubberized bumpers) onto these and over the front lip of the hood.
 
Cavets? The label warns against using abrasive cleaners on it, or slamming the hood down. The shield also makes it a bit harder to get fingers under the hood to raise it.
 
Hopefully it does the job. Cost was $95 (dealer gave me a discount). Workmanship proved their good service reputation and I will be back there for the 3K oil change.

#1489 of 3747 09 2.5x llb Camellla Red, 1000mi by birdboy

Jun 01, 2008 (5:40 am)

So far I am liking my new Forester. I am new to Subaru. The power seems just right and a bit more pep than I expected. On the Jersey turnpike I averaged 31mpg driving with cruise on 60-65 mph. This number , if it is realistic is welcome news to me as well as using reg gas. The negatives i have observed are that the interior , for the upgraded model is way too cheap in feel. Too much hard plastic both in look and feel.The large sunroof is great however, should be tinted darker . I put some static cling window tint on it for the summer months. The radio face seems a bit clouded in bright light and is harder to read. the technician says it is fine. Does anyone else notice this? Also my driver mirror glass vibrates and has a bit of a shake when driving. Anyone else notice it.I also used small stick on circle mirrors to improve blind spot visability. I was also undecided between Rogue and Forester. I believe that i made the right choice even though the Rougue is sportier looking. Rearview visability was very poor, and cargo area was too small.any questions?

#1490 of 3747 Re: 09 2.5x llb Camellla Red, 1000mi [birdboy] by redrose1

Jun 01, 2008 (7:34 am)

Replying to: birdboy (Jun 01, 2008 5:40 am)
We too are considering the Forester - did you ever look at the Rav4? We are deciding between them.

#1491 of 3747 Re: 09 2.5x llb Camellla Red, 1000mi [redrose1] by arnabc

Jun 01, 2008 (1:18 pm)

Replying to: redrose1 (Jun 01, 2008 7:34 am)
we just bought a 2.5x with the premium package. we researched and drove the rav-4, the cr-v, and the outlander. here are our impressions vis a vis the forester:
 
aesthetics:
 
the forester has the best interior in the class, hands-down. and the panoramic moonroof cannot be beat. the rav-4 was second with nothing particularly nice or ugly about it, though the plastics seem much cheaper. the outlander was nice except for two things: a massive front-dash area with a lot of unusable space between the windscreen and the front; and the auxillary jack for mp3 players is in an impossible to get to location. the crv is just ugly on the inside, and the driver's arm-rest is uncomfortable. in the same general price-range the forester feels like it belongs in a price class above. and it has much better visibility than the rav-4 and the crv. the outlander is pretty good in this area as well.
 
in terms of exteriors, the outlander is probably the sharpest looking. we placed the forester 2nd. the rav-4 lost points for the ugly spare tire placement and the side-hinge rear door. the cr-v is boring on the outside.
 
cargo space:
 
we have two 50 pound dogs and so this was a major consideration for us. the outlander probably has the largest usable dog space with the forester a close-second. i say "usable" because the rav-4 has 3 cubic feet more, but a lot of horizontal space is chewed up by the cup-holders etc. for the optional third row seats. not a big deal if you don't have dogs, but if you have two that have to be in there together, losing 7 inches of horizontal space is big.
 
the drive:
 
i had some trepidation because of the reviews of the 4-speed automatic, but i have to say i was pleasantly surprised. it doesn't have the power of the rav-4 v6 obviously, or the outlander v6, but the feel was comparable to the 5 and 6 speed v4 rav4 and i4 outlander models.
 
on the whole, the forester gave us the most bang for the buck. we paid $23,412 for the automatic 2.5x with the premium package. this was about the same for the basic rav4 v4 but with a whole lot more features. the outlander probably compares most favourably at the price but the things the outlander was marginally better for (cargo, 6 speed shift) did not outweigh the things the forester is clearly far better for (the interior--especially that moonroof!). and the outlander has lower rated mileage, and probably lower resale value down the road.
 
overall, i would rank the class as follows, adjusted for price:
 
1. forester
2. outlander
3. rav4
4. crv
 
if you want more power and a 5 or 6 speed shift, the rav-4 and outlander v6's might appeal more; but we are not amateur rally drivers and the forester seemed more than adequate for our needs, and a huge jump in power over our 2000 camry. and while it might be nice to occasionally have more power to pass grandma and grandpa on the freeway, it is always nice to be in such a nice interior.
 
finally, we bought our car from a local fixed price dealership (walser subaru in burnsville, mn). i can't tell you how much of a pleasure it is dealing with fixed-price dealerships compared to regular commission-based places. we might have paid a few hundred more, but it was worth it for the lack of smarm, scam and sleaze.
 
hope this is helpful to someone else looking.

#1492 of 3747 Re: 09 2.5x llb Camellla Red, 1000mi [birdboy] by jeffmc

Jun 01, 2008 (3:23 pm)

Replying to: birdboy (Jun 01, 2008 5:40 am)
"The radio face seems a bit clouded in bright light and is harder to read."
 
I know we already asked if it had the film still on it, but here's another silly question: is the brightness all the way up? It should have a little bit more difficult "click" on the dial than the rest to reach the brightest setting in the range.

Messages Page 150 of 376

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