Used Subaru Forester review: 2013-2018

Is Subaru Forester a good car?

The fundamentals of the Forester are all pretty sound and well understood.

The all-wheel-drive system gives the vehicle a safety edge on loose surfaces and makes the Forester ideal for trips to the snow or weekends to anywhere reached by a gravel road. That said, the Subaru is definitely not an off-roader.

The wagon body makes for great practicality while the ride height is enough to give a good view, but not as high as some SUVs that can be more difficult to enter and leave for some owners.

Safety is also well handled here, with Subaru’s `EyeSight’ technology adapted to the 2.5i-S and XT Premium variants. That gave the Forester an impressive arsenal of driver aids, but it’s a shame the same tech wasn’t added to lesser models. Beyond that, a knee airbag and full-length side-curtain airbags kept passive safety covered.

Subaru Forester reliability

Subarus are generally considered reliable, but this series did suffer its share of mechanical problems. This series of cars was only the second (and then, only by a couple of years) to use the new FB family of engines, and that came with consequences as Subaru worked hard to fix early problems on the run.

It goes without saying, too, that any car you are considering must have a complete and up-to-date service history.

Subaru Forester problems

While the FB series of Subaru engines as fitted here fixed the head-gasket problems that had plagued Subarus for years, the FB20 and FB25 engines had their own dramas. Chief among those was high oil consumption. Initially, the fix was to replace the piston rings, but later examples suggested the entire engine needed to be replaced as the bore surface of the crankcase had been incorrectly machined at the factory.

The camshaft-position sensors of these engines need to be set up very accurately to avoid a check-engine light illumination, and a rough or uneven idle or poor performance was often a symptom.

Some owners discovered that the CVT was leaking, but the fix for this was pretty straight forward and involved removing the leaking cover, cleaning it and resealing everything. But other CVT complaints have emerged over the years including a slow selection of gears and a surging or stumbling feeling at low speeds. Sometimes a reflash of the CVT at a Subaru dealership would address these problems, but in some cases the fix was only temporary.

Subaru’s engines also typically feature small, intricate oilways, so regular servicing is an absolute must to keep these clean and flowing properly.

Subaru Forester recall

The SJ model Forester hasn’t exactly been a great example of how to avoid recalls. In fact, there have been several, starting with very early examples that were recalled to check the wiring harness that could burn through and stop play. A second recall for the same problem was also applied to 2013 and 2014 cars.

Some early cars with the 2.0-litre engine were recalled to check and replace valve springs that could break, and cars from 2013 to 2015 were recalled to check a brake-light switch that could fail through contamination from the outside. Cars that had already had replacement ignition switches were also recalled for a second replacement after the original replacements were found to be faulty, allowing the car to switch itself off and, in the process, deactivate the airbags.

Diesel-engined Foresters from 2013 and 2014 were recalled to check the engine wiring loom that could burn through, while some diesels from 2018 were recalled to check the turbocharger bearing that could wear prematurely because of a too-small oilway.

The turbocharged XT model didn’t escape, either, and 2013 to 2014 XTs were recalled to check for an engine management problem that could disrupt the correct air-fuel mixture, while 2015 XTs had a recall to check for cracks in the plastic intake trunking.

You can find out more on these recalls by visiting: https://www.vehiclerecalls.gov.au/. You can also check with a Subaru dealership to see whether your car was affected and also whether it’s been fixed.

Subaru Forester years to avoid

The best Forester in terms of its build year is the latest one you can afford. The 2015 facelift brought with it an improved infotainment system, and better interior finishes, while the second upgrade in 2016 was notable for a fresh face and improved refinement levels inside the cabin as well as suspension and steering refinements.

With that in mind, the Forester to avoid is the turbo-diesel model which was panned on its release for a lack of low-down engine torque. But the base 2.0-litre petrol was also a bit underdone, and lacked appeal through being manual-only.

Subaru Forester how many kilometres

Subarus have a great reputation for racking up lots of kilometres without protest. And there’s certainly evidence of that here with several examples we found for sale with more than 300,000km on them and still apparently going strong.

The caveat with any high miler, of course, is that all-important service record being complete and up to date.

Subaru Forester best model

Within that somewhat convoluted model range, there are a couple of variants that stand out as the plum buys. Those would be the 2.5-litre versions thanks to the superior performance of the larger engine and the fact that it was available as a two-pedal car (with a CVT).

The other appetising variant would be the XT with its feistier turbocharged engine that recalled the original Forester GT that introduced proper performance to the SUV wagon world. Sadly, this time around, the performance Forster was only available with a CVT when a six-speed manual would have made it even spicier. At least you were treated to paddle shifters, and the XT variants were also fitted with Subaru’s Si Drive tech which allows the driver to tailor things like throttle and transmission response and aggression.

Subaru Forester resale value

Prices for well-used Foresters from this series start at around $6000. But for that, you’ll be buying a cheaper variant with lots and lots of kilometres on board. Figure on anything up to 300,000km on the odometer.

You’ll pay at least $11,000 for anything with less than 200,000km on board, and if you want something with less than 150,000km showing, you’ll need to be shopping in the mid-teens.

If you can spend more, you’ll find low-kilometre (say, sub-50,000km) 2.5-litre examples for around the $30,000 mark, and the XT with the turbocharged petrol engine doesn’t seem to be fetching much more, so is probably a decent buy, too.

Subaru Forester parts

Subaru has about 120 accredited service centres across Australia, the vast majority of which are also dealerships. But a good independent workshop should be able to tackle pretty much any job on what is, after all, a fairly conventional car. Even the CVT shouldn’t trouble a transmission specialist.

Parts are readily available from both traditional outlets as well as an army of online sellers. Just be careful buying from offshore online sites you don’t know.

Subaru Forester sales

In 2016 alone, Subaru Australia sold more than 12,000 Foresters, making it one of the brand’s best performers. That’s why an online search right now will reveal anything up to 500 SJ Foresters for sale second hand.

Verdict