2024 Subaru Forester

The starting price for the 2024 Subaru Forester is $27,095 for the base model, an MSRP that excludes the destination charge of $1,295. From there, you'll pay $30,295 for the Premium, $31,865 for the Sport, and $34,920 for the Wilderness. The most luxurious trims, the Limited and Touring, cost $33,975 and $37,395, respectively.

很容易推荐t的溢价和体育heir extra comfort features without the hefty price hike, but the Wilderness is by far the most capable model. It has an enhanced suspension setup with increased ground clearance and 17-inch wheels with all-terrain tires. If you do go for the Sport, the one extra option we'd recommend is the larger eight-inch touchscreen.

The news is generally good inside the Subaru Forester, where the interior has a decent mix of features and solid build quality. There are enough angles on the dashboard to make it mildly interesting to look at, and most of the controls fall easily to hand. The standard 6.5-inch infotainment display is tiny, and the Forester lacks a high-tech digital driver's display, but these aren't dealbreakers for most shopping in this segment. The base model has manual seats and automatic climate control, but you'll have to spend more on goodies like a power-adjustable driver's seat, heated front seats, and a better infotainment system.

There is enough interior space for five adults in the Subaru Forester. Even six-footers should be comfortable in the second row, thanks to generous legroom and headroom. Large door openings ease ingress and egress, and the driver has a useful view in all directions, so parking or changing lanes isn't a chore. Base models don't get power-adjustment to make it easy to find the best seating position, and heating is only available from the Premium on the front perches. Rear outboard seats get heating only at the top of the range.

Without a sunroof, the base model has the best cargo space specs of 28.9 cubic feet behind the second row. That drops to 26.9 cubic feet for all other trims. When the 60/40 rear seats are folded flat (a process that can be accomplished with a one-touch mechanism on the top three trims), the base model has 74.2 cubes in total. For the others, that figure is 69.1. Grocery bag and tie-down hooks are standard, but only the Limited and Touring have a standard powered rear gate with automatic closing and a height memory function.

Besides front cupholders, all trims besides the base have a fold-down rear armrest housing another two cupholders. The base and Premium miss out on a removable cargo area tray, but all get an overhead console to store your sunglasses. There is a multi-function front center console, door pockets, and the usual glovebox that is a decent size.

The lower trim levels lose out on some of the nicer materials found on pricier models, but all Foresters are generally solidly built. All models besides the base variant have a leather-wrapped steering wheel, and all but the base and Premium have a leather-wrapped shift lever.

For the seats, there is conservative gray cloth on the cheapest model. The Premium adds nicer cloth in either black or gray, depending on the exterior color. Sport cloth in gray with orange stitching is unique to the Sport, while the Wilderness gets gray textured StarTex water-repellent upholstery. The Forester gets more luxurious after this, with leather in gray or black on the Limited, while the Touring has black or Saddle Brown leather. Besides the Sport, the interior colors for the Forester are rather demure.

Although it doesn't have the most tech-forward cabin in the class, the Forester has all the essentials. The Base trim is just that, however, with manually adjustable front seats, single-zone automatic climate control, auto-on/off headlights, and not much else to get excited about. Higher up in the lineup, the Subaru gets push-button start, dual-zone automatic climate control, a power rear gate with automatic closing, heated front seats, and a power-adjustable front seat. Only the top-spec Touring has a power front passenger seat, heated rear outboard seats, a heated steering wheel, and a memory system for the driver.

The standard Subaru Starlink infotainment system has a small 6.5-inch color touchscreen. We'd recommend upgrading to the eight-inch touchscreen that's optional on the Sport and standard on the top three trims. Regardless of the screen size, all variants have Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Bluetooth connectivity, and a USB port. The base model misses out on SiriusXM, HD Radio, and the dual front USB ports of all other trims. It also has just four speakers for its sound system, whereas the mid-range trims have six. The Touring gets a nine-speaker Harman Kardon premium sound system, along with navigation. 4G LTE Wi-Fi capability is standard on all trims but the base model.

The more powerful turbocharged engine in the Subaru Outback isn't available in the Forester, which sticks with a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter Boxer four-cylinder mill. Producing 182 hp and 176 lb-ft of torque, the engine gets the basic job done but can feel sluggish when overtaking at high speeds or negotiating steep inclines with a full family on board. Based on independent tests, the 0-60 mph time for the Subaru Forester is around eight seconds. It may sound slow, but to be fair, this will be more than sufficient for most - no one is buying a car like this for rapid acceleration. The top speed is also largely irrelevant for a vehicle like this.

A CVT is the only transmission option, another aspect that rewards more relaxed commuting over any sporty aspirations. The Sport, Limited, and Touring have a manual mode that mimics a seven-speed transmission, while the Wilderness has an eight-speed manual mode. The best towing capacity goes to the Wilderness at 3,000 lbs; all other models can only tow up to 1,500 lbs.

With standard AWD as part of its drivetrain, the 2024 Forester grips well and can tackle mildly challenging dirt roads without breaking a sweat, especially the Wilderness, with its superior ground clearance and slightly shorter wheelbase. On normal roads, the Forester rides very comfortably, arguably more important than anything else for a vehicle of this kind. Through the curves, there is noticeable body roll, and understeer arrives early, so it won't provide any thrills, but neither does it display any nervous behavior that would put off less confident drivers.

Fuel economy specs for the Subaru Forester are commendable at 26/33/29 mpg city/highway/combined. The more rugged Wilderness isn't as efficient at 25/28/26 mpg, but that's the price to pay for its superior towing and off-roading abilities. By comparison, the Mazda CX-50 manages up to 27 mpg combined. For even better efficiency in this segment, consider the Honda CR-V or Toyota RAV4 Hybrid (up to 40 mpg combined in both cases).

The Forester's 16.6-gallon fuel tank capacity allows for a range of up to 481 miles.

You won't find a poor safety review of the Subaru Forester in the USA. The 2024 model returned a five-star overall safety score from the NHTSA, and the 2023 version was named a Top Safety Pick by the IIHS. It wasn't completely perfect in the latter evaluation, as the tougher moderate overlap front and side tests returned Marginal and Acceptable ratings, respectively, downgraded from Good in the original tests. Still, this is evidently a safe vehicle.

All versions have the EyeSight safety suite equipped as standard. It consists of pre-collision braking, pre-collision throttle management, lane departure and sway warning, and adaptive cruise control with lane centering. The Forester also comes with high beam assist, vehicle dynamics control, traction control, a rearview camera, and seven airbags.

安全设备高可用范围includes reverse automatic braking, blind-spot detection with lane change assist and rear cross-traffic alert, and a driver distraction mitigation system. To keep an eye on any obstacles in the world that could damage the underbody, the Wilderness has a 180-degree front-view monitor.

You have to go all the way back to the 2019 model year to find the last recalls that affected the Subaru Forester, so this fifth-generation model has been highly reliable. That's supported by a JD Power rating of 84 out of 100 for quality and reliability, most recently applicable to 2023 Subaru Forester models.

The excellent reliability partially softens the blow of the rather ordinary warranty, which runs to three years/36,000 miles for the 2024 Subaru Forester. For the powertrain, the warranty is for five years/60,000 miles. Unfortunately, the Forester does not have complimentary scheduled maintenance.

Although Subaru made a few small changes to the Forester's exterior, they haven't been able to turn this into a stylish SUV. There is nothing graceful about its appearance, but the rugged look with plenty of black cladding will appeal to the outdoorsy types that buy Subarus. The base model rides on plain 17-inch steel wheels, while all other trims have alloys measuring 17 to 18 inches. LED steering responsive headlights, are standard, while all trims besides the base model have LED foglights, a roof spoiler, a windshield wiper de-icer, and a panoramic power moonroof. A single stainless steel exhaust outlet is found on all but the entry-level and Premium trims.

The Subaru Forester is an honest and sensible package in its class. It strays closer to traditional SUV characteristics like off-roading capability, dependable mechanicals, and practical rather than glamorous styling. With its superior safety ratings and no reported issues for most of this generation's life cycle, it's a vehicle you can expect to keep for several years before worrying about upgrading. On the downside, the lack of a turbocharged engine sees it lose some ground to rivals, and something like the Mazda CX-50 ticks the mild off-roading box while being far more stylish. Regardless of that, the Forester is a competent crossover that deserves a look.