Topic: 2016 Forester, CX-5 or Other ?

[SaskSpecV]

Just popping up to say wait a week or so for the 2017 Foresters to arrive (if you haven't already bought one).

Who likes steering responsive headlights, heated steering wheels, torque vectoring and a quieter drive?

Meh, that stuff is only on the high-end (meaning, not M/T!) trims...so no dice.  Though the quieter drive would be nice - I'm assuming due to thicker glass?  I see on the subaru website that the curb weights have gone up a smidge from the last few years, so maybe that's it?  Here's one upgrade Subaru probably didn't make - invest in some better quality speakers!

The new 6-spoke rims on the Touring model are very nice though, much sharper than the previous 5-spoke ones. 

Mike, don't see your review on autoguide - coming up soon?

[Mike]

Just popping up to say wait a week or so for the 2017 Foresters to arrive (if you haven't already bought one).

Who likes steering responsive headlights, heated steering wheels, torque vectoring and a quieter drive?

Meh, that stuff is only on the high-end (meaning, not M/T!) trims...so no dice.  Though the quieter drive would be nice - I'm assuming due to thicker glass?  I see on the subaru website that the curb weights have gone up a smidge from the last few years, so maybe that's it?  Here's one upgrade Subaru probably didn't make - invest in some better quality speakers!

The new 6-spoke rims on the Touring model are very nice though, much sharper than the previous 5-spoke ones. 

Mike, don't see your review on autoguide - coming up soon?

I work at Subaru now.

So for manual models, the quieter ride is more than thicker glass, it's sound deadening and engineering everywhere. Suspension has been reworked front and rear and the interior has been tweaked.

[Weels]

Hey Subaru Mike   
Am curious to check out the 2017 Forester.  I am turned off by CVT's at the moment, so would take a pretty thorough test drive to convince me to buy another CVT equipped vehicle...

[Mike]

Hey Subaru Mike   
Am curious to check out the 2017 Forester.  I am turned off by CVT's at the moment, so would take a pretty thorough test drive to convince me to buy another CVT equipped vehicle...

CVT has been revised this year.

Quieter and more natural feeling, even under light throttle applications.

[Weels]

^  I see. 
The best feature of our current Crosstrek though is that it's paid for.   
I'll drop your name at the dealer & see what kind of discount I'm offered...   

[SaskSpecV]

I work at Subaru now.

Awesome, now let's start with the litany of (unreasonable) requests and/or complaints!!  I expect these will be addressed ASAP! 

1.  Where's the frigging WRX hatch??
2.  Can you finally improve the customer experience at Western Subaru dealerships?
3.  Is it true the new Impreza won't have a stick option - if so, BOOOOO!
4.  Why won't Subaru put a more potent engine into Crosstrek? (or refer back to #1)
5.  205 HP in the 2017 BRZ...c'mon Subaru, you can do better!
6.  I want a short-shift kit for my 6MT Forester! (maybe I should direct that to Kartboy or others in the aftermarket...)
7.  STi - when is it getting an updated engine?
8.  Did I mention "Where the hell is the WRX hatch??"

Seriously though, I'm glad Subaru Canada still offers the manual in most of their lineup, especially the Legacy and Outback (not available in the USA).  Tell your bosses that Canadians appreciate that - and some of us have voted with our wallets! (And I'm sure more would if dealerships would actually stock some M/T vehicles).

About the sound deadening in the 2017 Forester - when I took the door panels off to switch out the (awful) factory speakers, there certainly was room for some Dynamat!  I don't mind the road / engine noise though...just gives me an excuse to crank up the aftermarket head unit. 

[Mike]

I work at Subaru now.

Awesome, now let's start with the litany of (unreasonable) requests and/or complaints!!  I expect these will be addressed ASAP! 

1.  Where's the frigging WRX hatch??
2.  Can you finally improve the customer experience at Western Subaru dealerships?
3.  Is it true the new Impreza won't have a stick option - if so, BOOOOO!
4.  Why won't Subaru put a more potent engine into Crosstrek? (or refer back to #1)
5.  205 HP in the 2017 BRZ...c'mon Subaru, you can do better!
6.  I want a short-shift kit for my 6MT Forester! (maybe I should direct that to Kartboy or others in the aftermarket...)
7.  STi - when is it getting an updated engine?
8.  Did I mention "Where the hell is the WRX hatch??"

Seriously though, I'm glad Subaru Canada still offers the manual in most of their lineup, especially the Legacy and Outback (not available in the USA).  Tell your bosses that Canadians appreciate that - and some of us have voted with our wallets! (And I'm sure more would if dealerships would actually stock some M/T vehicles).

About the sound deadening in the 2017 Forester - when I took the door panels off to switch out the (awful) factory speakers, there certainly was room for some Dynamat!  I don't mind the road / engine noise though...just gives me an excuse to crank up the aftermarket head unit. 

2. My department strives to improve the customer experience
3. untrue

[Ex-airbalancer]

I work at Subaru now.

Awesome, now let's start with the litany of (unreasonable) requests and/or complaints!!  I expect these will be addressed ASAP! 

1.  Where's the frigging WRX hatch??
2.  Can you finally improve the customer experience at Western Subaru dealerships?
3.  Is it true the new Impreza won't have a stick option - if so, BOOOOO!
4.  Why won't Subaru put a more potent engine into Crosstrek? (or refer back to #1)
5.  205 HP in the 2017 BRZ...c'mon Subaru, you can do better!
6.  I want a short-shift kit for my 6MT Forester! (maybe I should direct that to Kartboy or others in the aftermarket...)
7.  STi - when is it getting an updated engine?
8.  Did I mention "Where the hell is the WRX hatch??"

Seriously though, I'm glad Subaru Canada still offers the manual in most of their lineup, especially the Legacy and Outback (not available in the USA).  Tell your bosses that Canadians appreciate that - and some of us have voted with our wallets! (And I'm sure more would if dealerships would actually stock some M/T vehicles).

About the sound deadening in the 2017 Forester - when I took the door panels off to switch out the (awful) factory speakers, there certainly was room for some Dynamat!  I don't mind the road / engine noise though...just gives me an excuse to crank up the aftermarket head unit. 

2. My department strives to improve the customer experience
3. untrue

Regarding #2, are you supplying a hot partner to be a passenger 

[PlanB]

I work at Subaru now.

Awesome, now let's start with the litany of (unreasonable) requests and/or complaints!!  I expect these will be addressed ASAP! 

1.  Where's the frigging WRX hatch??
2
About the sound deadening in the 2017 Forester - when I took the door panels off to switch out the (awful) factory speakers, there certainly was room for some Dynamat!  I don't mind the road / engine noise though...just gives me an excuse to crank up the aftermarket head unit. 

If I were in the market for the WRX hatch (which I was pre-wife/kid at one point), I would be looking at the Golf R (I know, that's more STi territory, but I drove a Golf R a year ago and was blown away impressed). 

Anyway, back on topic,
Dealer called me the other day - they have 1 (more coming in a couple weeks he said) 2017 base model (black), one 2.5 Limited, and one Limited XT with that sweet congac brown leather interior - they all still had the shipping white protection wrap on them and didn't even have window stickers.  All have been through PDI and can be tested.  That was at the end of the day so I went there after hours just to look at it.  Visually, not much if any difference (different brake lights and slightly different grill I noticed) but like others have said, hopefully the main differences are in the engineering.  I'll be testing it end of this week or next and will report back if anyone's interested. 

[Mike]

I work at Subaru now.

Awesome, now let's start with the litany of (unreasonable) requests and/or complaints!!  I expect these will be addressed ASAP! 

1.  Where's the frigging WRX hatch??
2
About the sound deadening in the 2017 Forester - when I took the door panels off to switch out the (awful) factory speakers, there certainly was room for some Dynamat!  I don't mind the road / engine noise though...just gives me an excuse to crank up the aftermarket head unit. 

If I were in the market for the WRX hatch (which I was pre-wife/kid at one point), I would be looking at the Golf R (I know, that's more STi territory, but I drove a Golf R a year ago and was blown away impressed). 

Anyway, back on topic,
Dealer called me the other day - they have 1 (more coming in a couple weeks he said) 2017 base model (black), one 2.5 Limited, and one Limited XT with that sweet congac brown leather interior - they all still had the shipping white protection wrap on them and didn't even have window stickers.  All have been through PDI and can be tested.  That was at the end of the day so I went there after hours just to look at it.  Visually, not much if any difference (different brake lights and slightly different grill I noticed) but like others have said, hopefully the main differences are in the engineering.  I'll be testing it end of this week or next and will report back if anyone's interested. 

I love the Congac brown leather.

[Jaeger]

I work at Subaru now.

Awesome, now let's start with the litany of (unreasonable) requests and/or complaints!!  I expect these will be addressed ASAP! 

1.  Where's the frigging WRX hatch??
2
About the sound deadening in the 2017 Forester - when I took the door panels off to switch out the (awful) factory speakers, there certainly was room for some Dynamat!  I don't mind the road / engine noise though...just gives me an excuse to crank up the aftermarket head unit. 

If I were in the market for the WRX hatch (which I was pre-wife/kid at one point), I would be looking at the Golf R (I know, that's more STi territory, but I drove a Golf R a year ago and was blown away impressed). 

Anyway, back on topic,
Dealer called me the other day - they have 1 (more coming in a couple weeks he said) 2017 base model (black), one 2.5 Limited, and one Limited XT with that sweet congac brown leather interior - they all still had the shipping white protection wrap on them and didn't even have window stickers.  All have been through PDI and can be tested.  That was at the end of the day so I went there after hours just to look at it.  Visually, not much if any difference (different brake lights and slightly different grill I noticed) but like others have said, hopefully the main differences are in the engineering.  I'll be testing it end of this week or next and will report back if anyone's interested. 

I love the Congac brown leather.

Got a pic?

[PlanB]

Not my photo, but this is essentially it:

[quadzilla]

That looks great! Almost didn't think it was a Subaru.

[Jaeger]

That looks great! Almost didn't think it was a Subaru.

Ditto.  VERY nice.

[johngenx]

My short list would be the Forester XT Limited with tech or the Highlander XLE.  The Highlander is larger and at the $40K price would have less goodies, but the extra cargo/interior space is nice sometimes.  The Forester has more toys and the low center of gravity and Subaru AWD.  The Highlander I'd trust for 15+ years, the Forester, not sure yet.  It's better than many, but not sure if they're with Toyota yet.  Both have ridiculous resale.  Those two are my $40K CUV/SUV shopping list.

At lower price points, the Highlander falls off and I'd probably be considering the RAV, CX-5 and Forester - all solid choices.  I really like the Mazda - a lot.  It would vying for #1 spot handily.

[rrocket]

That looks great! Almost didn't think it was a Subaru.

Ditto.  VERY nice.

That's because you can't see the blown up engine (or turbo) in the photo.     

[johngenx]

That's because you can't see the blown up engine (or turbo) in the photo.     

I know you have a smiley face in your post, but there is something to that.  Subaru's weak point for a long time now is engines.  They seem to be able to make really durable vehicles that will probably grenade the engine in the long haul.

[valuator]

My short list would be the Forester XT Limited with tech or the Highlander XLE.  The Highlander is larger and at the $40K price would have less goodies, but the extra cargo/interior space is nice sometimes.  The Forester has more toys and the low center of gravity and Subaru AWD.  The Highlander I'd trust for 15+ years, the Forester, not sure yet.  It's better than many, but not sure if they're with Toyota yet.  Both have ridiculous resale.  Those two are my $40K CUV/SUV shopping list.

At lower price points, the Highlander falls off and I'd probably be considering the RAV, CX-5 and Forester - all solid choices.  I really like the Mazda - a lot.  It would vying for #1 spot handily.

We basically had the same shopping list.....but ended up with the Outback as my wife wanted Subaru AWD (no slip'n'grip) and no turbo 4....V6 only.  Of course, every time we park beside a 4Runner or see one in traffic, she comments about liking it better than the midsize CUV....so it may have pulled ahead of the Highlander if/when my car goes all FGC on me.

[makuribu]

That's because you can't see the blown up engine (or turbo) in the photo.     

I know you have a smiley face in your post, but there is something to that.  Subaru's weak point for a long time now is engines.  They seem to be able to make really durable vehicles that will probably grenade the engine in the long haul.

Long term I'd bank on a Subaru engine before I took a chance on a tiny turbo Eco-thing from Ford or GM.

[tazcubed]

That's because you can't see the blown up engine (or turbo) in the photo.     

I know you have a smiley face in your post, but there is something to that.  Subaru's weak point for a long time now is engines.  They seem to be able to make really durable vehicles that will probably grenade the engine in the long haul.

My wife's '12 Forester XT hasn't had a hint of a problem - anywhere (although I do agree the infotainment system is garbage - Pioneer can really make some crap). Great vehicle and I will be replacing it soon enough with a '17 XT with the tech package. I want to see how much better it is with the LED headlights, updated Eyesight and the torque-vectoring. 3rd Subaru in a row, and quite happy with them.