2025 Subaru Forester: Some updates, but the small SUV keeps soldiering on
In the first part of a three-part small-SUV comparison, we continue to believe the Forester should be renamed the Steady Eddie — it won’t dazzle but will serve faithfully. But how's the reliability?
2025 Subaru Forester Touring vs. 2025 Hyundai Tucson Limited vs. 2025 Mazda CX-50 Turbo: Battle of a few of the many, many small SUV choices.
This week: Subaru Forester
Price: $41,390 as tested. No options on the test vehicle.
Conventional wisdom: Car and Driver likes the “practical cabin, plush ride, plenty of standard driver-assists” but not the “noisy flat-four engine, bland handling, could use a bit more power.”
Marketer’s pitch: “Love begins with trust.”
Reality: Still a pleasant companion, but not rocking your world. I guess that is something like love.
What’s new: The small SUV is a highly popular category, pretty much pushing out the sedan and station wagon with its ride height, comfort, and price point.
Subaru’s version gets a new look inside and out for 2025. The company touts the revised Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive with faster response, and its top crash rating in the recent IIHS test.
Competition: Dodge Hornet, Honda CR-V, Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage, Mazda CX-50, Toyota RAV4, just to name a few.
Up to speed: The Forester tested was no hot rod, but it held its own getting onto highways and passing.
The 2.5-liter boxer four-cylinder engine brings 180 horses to the race. It gets to 60 mph in 8.3 seconds, according to Car and Driver.
I’d definitely love to try the hybrid version, but that’s not on the menu until 2026, it appears.
Shifty: The continuously variable transmission operates nicely, without a lot of whine from the engine or feeling like a golf cart, and it doesn’t seem to interfere with acceleration. There’s an 8-speed shift mode, but I usually find it a little vague and not worth the bother.
On the road: The Forester keeps its direct handling from previous incarnations, responding to steering inputs like a soldier at the ready. There’s not a lot of fun to be had, but that’s OK. This is the typical theme for a Subaru, and it’s a welcome feeling.
Highway riding is nice, although it can be a little stiff over road seams.
The biggish midsize SUV is nice to maneuver in tight driveways, easily swinging from point to point and saving a lot of turning.
Driver’s Seat: The Forester provides a welcoming cabin for front-seat passengers. The seats are comfortable and roomy, and sit fairly upright; the windshield remains far closer to vertical than most vehicles, as in previous versions of the SUV, and this gives it a more traditional feel.
The dashboard hasn’t changed much, with dials for speedometer and tachometer, plus the usual information in between in the Subaru spaceship typeface. It’s easy to scroll through and find what you want to know.
Friends and stuff: Rear-seat passengers get a nice experience, reports Sturgis Kid 4.0. And he’d know, because that’s after five hours of I-95 riding. The wings are a little unusual, more around the shoulders than the hips, but he didn’t feel the need to adjust himself a lot. The seat also reclines, a bonus.
Legroom and headroom are ample, although foot room under the seat is minimal, because the front seats sit so low.
Cargo space is 29.6 cubic feet behind the rear seat and 74.4 cubic feet with the seat folded.
Towing capacity is 1,500 pounds.
Play some tunes: Subaru’s tall 11.5-inch infotainment screen remains the focal point of the dashboard. It’s definitely clear, and the home menu icons are big and easy to use. (Note that the Touring is top of the line; some lesser Foresters get small screens.)
I managed to hook up my iPhone through StarLink the first time, and had an easier time connecting each subsequent time; I have had connection issues in previous Subarus. But after the initial drive, I was never able to view my phone’s map screen again. Annoying.
Sound from the Harman Kardon 11-speaker system is very good, about an A-.
Keeping warm and cool: The small HVAC portion of the display screen operated air source and blower speed, plus the seat heating and ventilation. It could be a bit of an attention-stealer but also not that hard to adjust to.
Buttons on either side adjust the temperature, which is a help.
Fuel economy: The Forester displayed a disappointing 22 mpg until we took it on the trip to Washington; then it was boosted to a more rewarding 26.
Where it’s built: Gunma, Japan
How it’s built: Consumer Reports gives the 2025 Forester predicted reliability of 5 out of 5.
But I’ve been getting lots of reports of expensive repairs needed in Subarus in general over the last several months. Consumer Reports’ own data shows the Forester’s reliability brightened in 2022, after a few middling years since 2019. Before that, the vehicle was consistently a 2 out of 5. Let’s hope they’re right.
Next week: 2025 Hyundai Tucson Limited