2004 Forester Advice...

[yvrwfc]

Hi,
I just got a demo 04' Forester XS vehiclel from the dealer for my test
drive/evaluation... I am interested to hear any existing owners of the 2004
model.... Recommended, Average or lemon?

I am planning to retire my 1989 Civic which deserves a life time achievement
and low maintenance awards.. considering either CR-V or Forester... wonder
any comments ?

Thanks..

will
B.C. (Canada)

 

[Rob Munach]

Hi,
I just got a demo 04' Forester XS vehiclel from the dealer for my test
drive/evaluation... I am interested to hear any existing owners of the 2004
model.... Recommended, Average or lemon?

I am planning to retire my 1989 Civic which deserves a life time achievement
and low maintenance awards.. considering either CR-V or Forester... wonder
any comments ?

Thanks..

will
B.C. (Canada)

We have a 2001 Forester and our friends have a 2002 CRV. The CRV has
more interior room and a convenient pass thru from the front to the rear
seat. Other than that, I think the Forester is a much better vehicle. It
handles better, has a better AWD system (in the manual transmission
model, anyhow) and has much better visibility. It also has a liftgate on
the rear that shields you from rain instead of the awful door on the
back of the CRV.

 

[Edward Hayes]

My 2000 Forester AT has 56,000 miles and no problems. I drove a Forester and
CRV on a winding bumpy test drive and the CRV was not nearly as stable or
comfortable. In addition; my Automatic AWD is far superior to the front
wheel drive CRV + emergency 2 rear wheel. eddie

 

[yvrwfc]

thks for u2's tips..

after the test drive yesterday/today.. my conclusion for the 2004 Forester
XS:

Good
- overall handling,, particularly when turning on a winding road/hiways..
stable and felt solid when turning

- reasonable height/size...and good cargo space for my work boxes and summer
camping gears/bike and Fall hiking stuffs..

- nice look/style (silver+grey trim.. quite nice.. and light grey interior)
for sure this is a stn wagon that the driver can wear suit/tie or hiking
outfit when driving it....

Concerns or questions?
- i think the cross bars are making "squeaky noise" on hi ways.. is this
common ?

- the shift gears are a little looser than my civic.. (maybe i just need to
get used to it..)

- the accelerator is also quite sensitive.. particularly felt that on 1st
gear..

- the back seats are tight.. it's actually a 4passenger wagon (not 5 as
advertised).. leg room at the back seats is also tight..; but ok for driver
seat

- my biggest concern though... is actually this what i called "hesitation"
feeling.. it's kind of hard to say..what it is.. i felt that when i was in
2nd/3rd or 4th gear... I felt it was "almost" like a slight "jerk" . even
though i did not release the gas pedal while cruising on a regular road on
my 3rd gear (probably around 40-60km/hr speed)... it also felt like the car
was not 'warmed up ' enough... it's doing this 'coughing'.. kind of thing..
it's not really that dramatic but obvious enough that i noticed that.. the
sales guy told me it's becos of the 4WD... and the sensitivity of the
accelerator.. anyone could help explain this ?

The more that I read and reseach, the more that I feel Forester is better
than CR-V... and their price is fairly compatible...

any comments?

 

[Charles Gillen]

- i think the cross bars are making "squeaky noise" on hi ways.. is
this common ?

I took mine off until I really need them. Anyhow, to seriously carry
anything you would have to replace them with the optional flat bars or some
specialized carrier. The 03 and 04 Foresters no longer have cargo rub
strips on the roof to carry suitcases or boxes.

The more that I read and reseach, the more that I feel Forester is
better than CR-V... and their price is fairly compatible...

My wife has an 03 Forester XS+ manual shift with under 2000 miles on it.
Yesterday we made a 500-mile round highway trip cruising at 80 mph.
Steering, handling and ride were fine, while the engine felt like a real
winner... so effortless we often were startled to see the speedometer reach
95 MPH with a heavy foot. Even my wife felt perfectly comfortable driving
through the dark at 80 MPH. We've never noticed any hesitation, jerking,
or coughing such as you mentioned.

My wife had traded up from a '98 Honda Civic seday, but now enjoys the
added power, higher driving position, great visibility, and responsive
handling. I enjoy thinking she's now in a much safer, solid car. We're
looking forward to Winter :^)

 

[Mark]

Hi,
I just got a demo 04' Forester XS vehiclel from the dealer for my test
drive/evaluation... I am interested to hear any existing owners of the 2004
model.... Recommended, Average or lemon?

I am planning to retire my 1989 Civic which deserves a life time achievement
and low maintenance awards.. considering either CR-V or Forester... wonder
any comments ?

Thanks..

will
B.C. (Canada)

My wife has a 03 Forester (auto) and I have a 02 WRX (manual). The
selling point for me is the all wheel drive system. it's just amazing.
I have never driven any car that can match this traction of the
Subaru.

The true test for me was turning right or left from a stop sign when
it's raining. Most cars (and trucks) will spin the outside wheel when
making that turn. Even my Dodge Ram with posi-traction did this to a
small extent. However in the Subaru, it just pulls away even with the
pedel to the floor. You just can't spin a wheel in a Subaru no matter
how hard you try.

When we took these cars on a test drive, the sales person took us to a
gravel parking lot. He then reved the engine and poped the clutch (in
the automatic he justed gased it) and the wheels did not spin, they
just pulled away nice and smooth. If a cop ever stops you for peeling
away from a stop light, he has to be lying! It's fun to pull up to a
red light when it's raining and drag race a camaro/mustang. Really
pisses off the other driver when they just sit their spinning their
wheels and your smoothly driving away (ok, childish.. I know)

I know my wife drives loves her Forester and puts about 100 miles on
it a day. So far it's been a great car. In snow and ice it behaves
great and I know she feels safer in this car than her last one
(camry). Her only complaint is the seats are not very confortable for
long distance. However I've driven her car for 500 miles in a day
without any problems.

 

[Alan]

Get the XT.

 

[Jason]

this
common ?

I have a 2003 Forester XS premium (with the power moonroof) and it
also makes a squeaking noise when driving, (especially when moonroof
is open) I thought it might be the moonroof or the sunshade, but since
you are having the same concern on an XS, perhaps it is the crossbars!
I may try removing them to see if the squeaking goes away.

 

[Edward Hayes]

There is a dimension that the crossbars are supposed to by placed at. My
2000 Forester are shaped like an airplane wing and the thick edge is suppose
to face forward. In addition; the front bar is to be placed after the "B"
pillar and the rear bar should be placed after the "C" pillar. Don't know
about different shaped crossbars but, I suspect there are recommendations
for others. Also make sure they are tightened securely as the crossbars are
put on at the dealer and probability not assigned to their top mechanic.
eddie

 

[Apu McRodrigues Ibn Hottab]

Get the XT.

Tsss. There is no Civic equivalent for that

 

[Stoney]

Good review of your experience with the Forester. I wondered if you had compared the handling of
any model Toyota with AWD or Honda AWD before or since you bought the Forester.. I have
questioned a couple of people who have Subs and they say they are never stopped by snow or ice.
However, one middle aged lady said her 99 was highly reliable, but on long trips it was not
comfortable. That ws discouraging. Her major reason for that was it has no arm rest. Maybe the
later models have one.. We expect to look at the Forester or Outback for use on hilly city streets
in harsh winters in the North Carolina mountains. This interest is not for off road use, although
we would encounter some unpaved roads in the area, but those are generally covered with small
gravel. The alternatives would be to go slightly larger to the Highlander Toyota or Honda Pilot.
But they are more expensive. It would be useful to be able to pull a small utility or camping
trailer, but that is not mandatory..

Comments appreciated.

Stoney

 

[Edward Hayes]

My 2000 Forester pulls a 1600 lb 18 foot center consul boat w 90hp Johnson +
stuff easy on flat roads. I have not tried on hi or long hills. A higher
center armrest was avail option on my 2000 and maybe on a 2004. Over priced
but appreciated on longer trips. I have 56,000 trouble free miles and runs
as new. eddie

 

[Alan]

We found the OBW to be more comfortable than the Forester. Also, the
interior is more plush. Surprisingly, the OBW has a higher ground clearance
(7.9 vs 7.3 inches). If you do go with the Forester, you should get the arm
rest extension. The Forester XT (turbo) is (much) faster than an OBW 6,
though the OBW 6 is more than suficient.

 

[TransFixed]

We found the OBW to be more comfortable than the Forester. Also, the
interior is more plush. Surprisingly, the OBW has a higher ground clearance
(7.9 vs 7.3 inches). If you do go with the Forester, you should get the arm
rest extension. The Forester XT (turbo) is (much) faster than an OBW 6,
though the OBW 6 is more than suficient.

The OBW is listed at 7.3", the Forester at 7.5". I believe all the H6
models are 7.9". So the H4 OBW is the lowest, and between the Forester
and any of the others the difference is almost negligible.

- D.

 

[Edward Hayes]

I preferred the Forester for several reasons. The Forester offers much
better visibility which makes it safer in the traffic I drive in and in
addition: overhang is less so not easy to hang up if you go on bad fire
roads. I use my Forester often on 6 hour trips and find it quit comfortable.
Buy which ever fits your driving style as their all excellent vehicles.
eddie

 

[Stoney]

Thanks to you and Alan for the info. Since posting, I have found some reviews
that left me with another question. The AWD with a manual transmission is not
the same as that in a stick. I gather the stick has the preferred design. Was
yours stick or automatic? And do you have snow and ice to contend with?

Stoney

 

[sandman]

Slightly off topic (then again, the Impreza and Forester share the same
platform)...but regarding the auto here's my experince.....
We have the Automatic TS 03 wagon and have driven in the worst snowstorm
conditions in N.England and NY state (remember the Christmas blizzard last
year?..felt like we were the only car on the road). Since there was no one
on the road at that time and the snow was thick...I pushed the car to the
limits of the RE92's....still went and never got stuck..there was some wheel
spining (could feel a 4's spinning) before getting out at some deepsnow.. I
would purposely try to get stuck in the corners knowing the weight was on
one side (even though I didn't have limited slip-diff). That was a great
time to see how well the Impreza held. Auto or stick...shouldn't be a
difference in the snow. Still performed very well. Now if I had winters
tires...probably be invincible. Come this winter...I say bring it
on...uggghh!

ST

PS: We almost bought the Forester too...cruise control was the deciding
factor and since the TS 03 finally had it (02 didn't) we opt for the TS
instead. Can't go wrong with either.

 

[H. Whelply]

Why is the viscous coupling center differential used with the stick
preferable to the continuously-variable transfer clutch on the automatic?

HW

Thanks to you and Alan for the info. Since posting, I have found some reviews
that left me with another question. The AWD with a manual transmission is not
the same as that in a stick. I gather the stick has the preferred

design...

 

[Edward Hayes]

The continuous variable clutch pack is extremely good as it is always
engaged and offers faster repine to torque changing conditions. It was
referred to as the thinking ahead transmission.

 

[Mike Snyir]

First one was a 1999 Forester and now a 2002 Forester S.
I can see myself driving a 2006 model. Never a problem, best vehicle
I've had in 30 years of driving hadns down.