Testing the new Subaru Forester

DW (English)

The new Subaru Forester, now available as a mild-hybrid. Does this latest iteration of the popular SUV fulfill its promise of consuming less fuel while retaining its off-road DNA? REV puts it to the test.

Transcript

00:00Subaru has been around since 1958 and the brand is very well known for its cars with

00:13boxer engines and all-wheel drive.

00:15And one of the most successful models is the Forester.

00:19This right here is the newest generation, number 6.

00:22We'll check it out right now.

00:23Welcome to REV.

00:24Subaru is the world's largest manufacturer of all-wheel drive passenger cars.

00:31New Forester features the well-known boxer engine, 136 horsepower, combined with a small

00:39electric engine and a small battery that will help it save some fuel and also drive purely

00:46electric for around 2 kilometers.

00:48But that's not the main point of that hybrid system.

00:52It's a mild hybrid.

00:53It is built to help the car use less fuel.

00:59What you have to admit, though, is an average consumption of around 8 liters per 100 kilometers

01:04for an engine that delivers only 136 horsepower is quite a big number.

01:14On the other hand, for that, you get a lot of comfort.

01:17What you shouldn't do, though, is press the gas pedal too hard, because the 136 horsepower

01:23will not be able to help you very much and it will get quite noisy if you do that.

01:31Let's just check it out.

01:35As you can hear, this gets quite loud, but we don't accelerate very quickly.

01:41This car is made for relaxed cruising and that works really good.

01:45It's not made for excessive speeds, especially because the top speed is a whopping 188 kilometers

01:50an hour.

01:54Thanks to its symmetrical all-wheel drive and 220 millimeters of ground clearance, the

02:00Forester is also very well suited for off-road driving.

02:05So let's take it for a spin.

02:07Like most Subaru models available in Germany, the Forester features symmetrical full-time

02:12all-wheel drive.

02:14That means that from the longitudinally mounted boxer engine to the rear differential, the

02:19entire drivetrain, and therefore the center of gravity, are located along the vehicle's

02:24center line.

02:26And with active torque split, the system ensures optimum torque distribution between the front

02:30and rear wheels.

02:36Subaru put a lot of thoughts and effort into the optimization of comfort in this car, and

02:42that means the noise that arrives in the interior should be the least possible amount.

02:50And through a lot of research and measuring and then changing things to the car, they

02:57managed to bring down the level of noise in the interior by around 40 percent, and you

03:03can really feel that.

03:06Driving this car, the general driving impression is very silent.

03:13Since its market launch in 1997, Subaru has been able to sell more than 5 million Forester

03:24cars worldwide, and that is quite an impressive number.

03:36The interior of the new Forester looks absolutely okay.

03:41I like the design of the steering wheel.

03:44It has quite a lot of buttons, to be fair, but that way, of course, you can operate vehicle

03:50functions without having to take your hands away from the steering wheel.

03:56Apart from that, the infotainment system in the middle is vertically aligned, so it looks

04:03more like your usual smartphone, and it operates the same way.

04:07It has, like, these apps that you can use, and everything is pretty intuitive.

04:12You can change the temperature with these physical buttons, which is quite good.

04:23The infotainment system features wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, which is very

04:27good.

04:28Furthermore, you have wireless charging down here, and if your smartphone doesn't support

04:32that, you also have two USB sockets.

04:35And all of that comes as standard in every version of the Forester.

04:42The Forester's trunk can fit between 508 and 1,731 liters of cargo.

04:51Other things that come as standard in every Forester are heated seats at the front, heated

04:57side-view mirrors, and a rear-view camera.

05:00Of course, with a lot of standard equipment, and considering this is quite a big car, you

05:10will have quite a big entry-level price.

05:14Around 40,500 euros in Germany is not exactly cheap, but then on the other hand, as I mentioned,

05:20you get a lot for your money.

05:22A recent U.S. study has found Subaru cars to be the most reliable on the market, especially

05:34the Impreza and the Forester.

05:40And you can also see that with the warranty that Subaru gives on any of their cars, five

05:46years, 160,000 kilometers, a full warranty.

05:50That means the parts and also the cost of workmanship.

06:00Summing up my Forester experience, I have to say the car is very good-looking.

06:05I like the design and 40% of noise reduction in the interior is very noticeable and it

06:13makes for a smooth ride.

06:16Of course, like any other car, it has minor flaws.

06:19One thing I didn't like is 136 horsepower, that is not exactly very powerful.

06:26It is okay for the car, but I would have wished for a little more.

06:30If you're looking for a reliable and off-road capable companion, then this might just be

06:36the car for you.

06:37On the plus side, the Subaru Forester is a very spacious, quiet car, ideally suited for

06:43relaxed long-distance trips while still being able to tow heavy loads and go off-road if

06:48needed.

06:49On the downside, it could benefit from more power and it consumes a relatively large amount

06:55of fuel.

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