2019 Subaru Forester

[P Thought]

X (whatever that means), $21,000, 20,000 miles. We're thinking about a "retirement car" to replace my wife's Honda CRV, which has like 110,000 miles on it.

The Forester has had a good reputation, I think. Have they screwed up the new ones, anyone know?

Or maybe we should fix up the Honda a bit (air conditioner, gate seals, maybe timing belt) and keep it.

Comments or suggestions?

 

[popthree]

2019 with 20k already? dang folks don't waste time putting the miles on these days huh?

20k is just getting broke in either way i suppose.

my wife has a 2017 we bought new in oct 2016. it has 29k on it now. we have had 1 problem with it. there was a switch in the shifter that tells the ignition it's in park and ok to turn off the car. that switch failed and we had a tough time getting the key out of the ignition. it was a warranty repair... the weird thing was, getting on the calendar for service was difficult. they were booked solid for 2 months... recall work. luckily our vehicle had no recalls.. they also provided a new outback to drive while our forester was in for service. the only problem now is, we now want an outback.

 

[imwjl]

I prefer the longer wheelbase of the Outback but latest generation Forester seems to be the best mannered version yet.

Does it have EyeSight? I would not buy a late model car without AEB and adaptive cruise now that I've had both for a while.

My mother asked me to help with all her car shopping recently so I've driven the Honda/Acura, Toyota/Lexus, VW and Subaru offerings. The Subaru low center of gravity was very apparent.

As a ski area director and seeing our service roads I can say for sure Subaru AWD better than others is not hype. Over and over there are times when Subarus and Audis don't get stuck but others do. Something interesting about that comparison is our Outback and my mother in law's Outback made us all feel like idiots for what we've spent on more expensive European wagons.

One comment on popthree's post. We have a late model Toyota and the Outback. Service backlogs from recall issues have been a problem. A friend with Fords and a Tesla has also complained.

An associate just got the outgoing Outback on purpose even though 2020s are out now. He said there was a dealer demo plus factory incentive or soft money both making it very attractive compared to other models or waiting for a 2020. My local dealer had several loaners or demos all on sale so maybe that's going on all over??? It could be an opportunity for the nicer riding Outback.

 

[KC]

110k on a Honda ain't much, I don't think. Should have another 90k left before trouble time. But the Forester is a good choice, awd is great in snow and handy in rain, where it helps with hydroplaning. I've put 110k on an outback that I bought new and it hasn't let me down yet, nothing but routine maintenance. Mine was 21k new, though -- I know prices have gone up but 21k for a used car seems kind of stiff. Check with the internet sales people at Carter, up in Seattle, and see what they'll sell you a new one for. Not affiliated, just a happy customer.

 

[DavidP]

I had to replace my Forester a couple years ago when it got totalled in an accident. I was prepared to replace with another Forester until I test-drove an Outback... Outback has a lot more for not that much more $$, with near-identical mileage. I bought the Outback. Keep in mind we're talking 2017, so the 2019 Forester is a newer-generation version.

 

[Milspec]

The Forrester is a very popular vehicle with the rural mail carriers in my office. It takes a lot to hold up to the kind of abuse that rural mail carriers can dish out. Parts are not cheap, so brakes are pricey, but you rarely need to fix anything. Still a very solid vehicle.

 

[Mike Eskimo]

My wife just started leasing a CrossTrek and loves it.

Zero down, pennies a month, 15,000 miles a year.

She was coming out of a loaded Ford Escape and crazy enough, the backseat in the CrossTrek is reputed to be much bigger than the Escape’s. I have not and will never sit in the backseat but my son and my wife’s friends say so.

 

[nojazzhere]

X (whatever that means), $21,000, 20,000 miles. We're thinking about a "retirement car" to replace my wife's Honda CRV, which has like 110,000 miles on it.

The Forester has had a good reputation, I think. Have they screwed up the new ones, anyone know?

Or maybe we should fix up the Honda a bit (air conditioner, gate seals, maybe timing belt) and keep it.

Comments or suggestions?

You don't say what year your CRV is, but I agree 110,000 miles is just getting broken in......which MAY mean it's a good time to sell. When is it due for timing belt replacement?
You didn't ask, but I and others have had really good results with Kias. My 2006 Sedona has 160,000+ miles, with no significant problems, and still going strong.
I've long been told (anecdotally) that Subarus are expensive to have work done. (?)

 

[Deeve]

My chief objection to the Subaru we owned (for about a decade) was the speed it went through tires.
And how slow it went off the line (our previous vehicle was a Mazda 626 w/ stick - yeah!)

Dealer blamed AWD, then looked over @ Mrs Deeve and asked if she raced other moms... (insert frown of incredulity here)
We're back to a front-wheel drive Mazda M5 mama-van and haven't missed the AWD yet.

Other than the fast tires and slow acceleration, though, the Subaru was an okay car for a couple that only goes 5-7,000 mi per year.
My sister and niece also have Foresters and like 'em.

Peace - Deeve

 

[BorderRadio]

I wanted the new 2019 Forrester Sport but it was too much in the end, so got a new Crosstrek. I’m already a convert though, my wife got me into them with her 2010 Outback. I’d go Forrester if I were you, it’s that good.

 

[popthree]

There is some weirdness about tires. We havent had to put on a set yet....still look pretty much new after 3 years and almost 30k...but we did have to replace a tire within thr first 15k....and it was then that I found out about thw AWD intolerance for tires with slightly varied tread wear. The tires must be within 3/64 ...or is it 3/32nd? of one another or it voids the vehicles tranny and AWD system warranty. If you need to replace only 1 tire while having 3 tires halfway through their life, you must have the new one shaved down to match the old tires.

 

[Count]

X means base model, 20,000 on the clock is nothing for a Subbie, grab it.

 

[BILL-NOW]

X probably means the xcar has "X-MODE", which is standard on all 2019 Foresters except the base model. It improves the car's performance in low traction conditions.

 

[P Thought]

X probably means the xcar has "X-MODE", which is standard on all 2019 Foresters except the base model. It improves the car's performance in low traction conditions.

I think that's right. It appears this is the first step up from the base model. The owner lives about 40 miles away, but works in town here, so we scoped it out today in the parking lot.

 

[stealyerface]

X is for X-Mode. Standard on all Subarus

Will be either a Base, Premium, or Limited.

Premium will have heated seats and a possible moon roof. Limited goes to leather, standard moonroof and heated seats.

A base model with 21k miles on a ‘19 is probably a fleet and/or Rental car.

***edit***. Just saw the part about previous owner. If they are original, 20k a year is a lot of miles, depending on when it went into service

$20k seems fair for a 19. Send me the VIN. I’ll run it through Subaru and see what I can find about its history.

~syf

 

[oatsoda]

Got a 2017 Forester and love it. Drive a lot for work, in horrible winter weather too. Got about 80000 miles on it already. Did about 1100 last week. Was driving a Tundra 4x4 v8, subs gets nearly twice the mileage and is better in the snow and ice, and nearly as much ground clearance.

Hate the way the out backs drive, but I know lots dig them.

 

[tvvoodoo]

I work in auto service, (not a subaru dealer), had a chance to just sit in a 2018 just briefly, it immediately felt like home... loved the sightlines, control layout. I immediately felt I could travel long trips in that unit feel comfortable and be on top of things around me.

 

[boris bubbanov]

I work in auto service, (not a subaru dealer), had a chance to just sit in a 2018 just briefly, it immediately felt like home... loved the sightlines, control layout. I immediately felt I could travel long trips in that unit feel comfortable and be on top of things around me.

I think you can quickly eliminate a bunch of vehicles from your "look" list in this way........

But the only way to know if you can put thousands upon thousands of miles on a vehicle w/o wanting to shoot yourself - is to actually drive the miles.

Btw, I don't think the miles are high in this case. I was just noticing that on just one car of our fleet (7 cars) we put 50,000 miles on this '06 9-5 wagon in just 24 months. It is really about the style of driving and the kinds of miles. Commuting and the cut and thrust of seizing that urban parking space is worst, but pounding down gravel tracks is not that far behind.

+

Subarus really are everywhere, esp. in places such as WA and OR (mount rainier was thick with them) and at least a third of them are Foresters, but just about anything would stand out better than a CRV. But I would keep the CRV, provided it has never been wrecked or flooded. By all means, top priority to replacing that timing belt, whether you're keeping it for sure or not.

 

[popthree]

My daughter drives a crv.It has 135k on it, an 06 model. It has NO timing belt, but instead, a chain. I like that.

 

[BorderRadio]

There is some weirdness about tires. We havent had to put on a set yet....still look pretty much new after 3 years and almost 30k...but we did have to replace a tire within thr first 15k....and it was then that I found out about thw AWD intolerance for tires with slightly varied tread wear. The tires must be within 3/64 ...or is it 3/32nd? of one another or it voids the vehicles tranny and AWD system warranty. If you need to replace only 1 tire while having 3 tires halfway through their life, you must have the new one shaved down to match the old tires.

This is the partial downside yes. I ran over some tar/asphalt goop on my tires a few weeks ago and threw off the balance. Had I not known about the care needed for AWD, I might of left it, but no, I spent several hours carefully cleaning each tire. The dealer did the rest.

My daughter drives a crv.It has 135k on it, an 06 model. It has NO timing belt, but instead, a chain. I like that.

It's an interference engine, I wouldn't care if it was a chain made of titanium. It is nice to have a little longer amount of time before it needs to be changed, though.