2009 Subaru Forester Photo Gallery

Last week Kelsey Mays delivered his first thoughts on the all-new 2009 Subaru Forester. For the most part, he was impressed. Today he’s put together a photo gallery from the test-drive event he attended. We’ll bring you his full review later this week. Until then, check out the 50-plus photos below. If you have any questions for Kelsey, leave them in the comments.

Comments

[DL]

how's the suspension? our 2004 XS seems to have the worst of both worlds -- doesn't soak up bumps well at all, but leans like there's no tomorrow with the least bit of speed through the twisties.

i can't tell if the XT came with the manual, or just one of the normally aspirated? which suspension, in the XT or the non-turbo, do you recommend for regular use (with maybe some spirited driving) on normal roads?

[Kelsey M]

DL, I found myself at odds with some of the other journos at the event -- I thought body roll was adequately controlled for a small SUV, but some thought it was still too much. The suspension doesn't soak up on-road bumps as well as some competitors, but it felt relatively comfortable and quieter than before. Subaru says the suspension tuning is identical between the turbo and non-turbo this year, but the turbo now comes only with a 4AT. Honestly, I'd pass on it -- the automatic takes a while to downshift, and the turbo doesn't really get up and go if you're not punching the gas hard. With the stick shift, the regular engine is just fine -- and it shouldn't be too hard to find one, as a Subaru spokesman said he expects some 25 percent of those buying the normal engine to choose the stick.

[Bowrider]

Is it just me or is there an article on the Forester at least once a week? I could be wrong, but it seems like this car is constantly being showcased.

[Kevin Fulk]

Where is the gallery? All I see is one small picture and a large orange box below it. Also, are these photos available in high resolution versions?

[Dave T.]

Bowrider,
When new cars come out we try to cover them extensively because that's when a lot of people are looking for information on them. The longer the Forester is on the market the less coverage you'll see. We treat a lot of popular new models in the same way like the Chevy Malibu and Honda Accord in 2007.

[Dave T.]

Kevin,
It seems the site we use for the gallery player is temporarily down. Hit control+refresh and the player should be fine in IE. But I'm still having issues in Firefox myself.

[Bowrider]

Got it. Thanks.

[RaslDasl]

Is there any push button start available in the US? I thought I saw a picture of the Japanese model with a push button.

[Kelsey M]

Nope, just regular keyless entry.

[Lucien W. Dupont]

I'm curious about how good the navigation system is, and how the integration with the radio works. Does it display song names for those stations that support RDS?

[Sara]

I'm trying to decide between the new Forester and a Honda CRV, comparably equipped. I drive a lot, highway and town. I carry one dog, in a kennel. I sometimes park in a field which could be muddy. I drive in snow but stay home if there is more than 8 or 10 inches. I put a lot of miles on a car. My 2005 Honda CRV has 99,000. MPG is important but so is safety. What should I consider when comparing these two SUVs?

[Ed Gober]

The way I see it they spent a lot of time and money to "upgrade" the Forester but missed one of the main points - the transmission! The 4-speed is strictly "old school" in my book and it is the key reason I would not consider buying one - the same is true for the Rav-4 4 cylinder. Get with the program guys!