2018 Subaru Forester 2.5i Touring
MSRP: $36,090
Color: Dark Metallic Grey
Interior: Saddle Brown
22 CITY/28 HWY
We took this everywhere during our test drive! From the jobsite, to school pick ups to the grocery store. And we had plenty of weather variations in between.
Features I liked:
- Front seat view is open & spacious – I could see everything coming at me! • •
- Saddle Brown interior gave it a rich & look inside
- Panoramic Roof – this makes the car seem incredibly open & is standard in the cost for this model
- Standard AWD did great in the snow
- Reverse Automatic Braking – yes, this came in handy when someone walked behind the car in parking lot while they were staring at their phone 😀
- The Forester is a genuinely useful crossover with room, a view, and—most important—utility.
- Rear seats have plenty of legroom
- Approx. 26 MGP during my test drive
- Interior Room: According to Cars.usnews.com – “Cargo space is one of the Forester’s best attributes. With the rear seats up, it has more than 34 cubic feet of space, which is enough room for more than two dozen carry-on bags or outdoor sporting equipment like camping gear. With the rear seats down, this Subaru provides nearly 75 cubic feet of cargo room, which is enough space to transport even some furniture. ” This would have been great for hauling around donated pet food from Colorado Pet Pantry (unfortunately I didn’t get to do that this time)
- Bumpin’ loud stereo with the harmon/kardon premium audio
Things I wasn’t crazy about:
- Hard plastics on interior
- Not many bells & whistles in technology or comfort in the backseat (the kids opinion)
- Apple CarPlay or Android Auto
- Jumpy throttle response
My Overall Opinion:
Great car for families with kids who are active or people who need versatility for lugging things around. Tons of room for cargo. Not a super complicated car with good gas mileage and a comfortable interior. It felt solid & reliable but not cheap.
What’s New on the 2018 Subaru Forester
• EyeSight® Driver Assist Technology, Reverse Automatic Braking and High Beam Assist are now standard on 2.5i Touring and 2.0XT Touring
• Active Torque Vectoring now standard for 2.0XT Touring
• Cargo area cover now standard for 2.5i Limited and Touring
• New Forester 2.5i Black Edition is an upgrade from the 2.5i Premium, with Lineartronic CVT featuring 6-speed manual
shift mode, X-Mode and Hill Descent Control; 18-in. black alloy wheels; Steering Responsive Headlights; Sport front grille with chrome frame; All-Weather Package; Auto On/Off Headlights; Welcome Lighting; fog lights; Crystal Black Silica exterior badges and mirrors; cloth upholstery with simulated leather bolsters; leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift handle with silver stitching and chrome interior door handles
Standard Features for this model & price point
• Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive
• Vehicle Dynamics Control
• X-MODE® featuring Hill Descent Control
• Auto-on/off headlights
• Leather-wrapped steering wheel and shifter handle
• Welcome Lighting
• Driver’s auto-up/down power window
• Rear-vision camera
• Panoramic moonroof
• All-Weather Package
• SUBARU STARLINK Connected Services
Key Features on Forester 2.5i Touring
• EyeSight System EyeSight® Driver Assist Technology[1] is the culmination of everything Subaru engineers know about safety. Adding confidence to every trip, EyeSight monitors traffic movement, optimizes cruise control, and warns you if you sway outside your lane. The Pre-Collision Braking feature can even apply full braking force in emergency situations, helping you avoid or reduce frontal impacts. When equipped with EyeSight, all 2018 Subaru models receive the highest possible rating for front crash prevention by the IIHS.
• High Beam Assist
• Reverse Automatic Braking
• Blind Spot Detection/Rear Cross Traffic Alert
• STARLINK 7.0” Multimedia Navigation with harman/kardon premium audio
• 10-way power driver’s seat with power lumbar and 2-position memory
• High-grade instrument cluster with LCD display
• Keyless Access with Push-Button Start
• LED headlights, low and high beam
• One-touch folding rear seatback
• Heated steering wheel
• Saddle Brown perforated leather trimmed upholstery
• 18-in. alloy wheels
• Dual-zone automatic climate control
More comparison info:
- According to Car & Driver: Slotting above the smaller Crosstrek and below the larger but similarly priced Outback, the 2018 Subaru Forester is the brand’s compact offering and one of its best-selling models. Like other Subaru models except for the BRZ coupe, the Forester comes standard with all-wheel drive. For now, it’s also the only crossover sold by Subaru that’s available with a turbocharged engine.
- Has AWD standard (which is an upgrade in the CR-V)
- The Outback is the next model up and is the City Cousin to the Forester (the Outback is longer & wider)Key Competitors
Thanks to Subaru for the opportunity to test drive the 2018 Subaru Forester 2.5i Touring in consideration for my honest feedback. As always, all content is my personal opinion based on my experience. Well, DUH, right?!
Leave a Reply
Want to join the discussion?Feel free to contribute!