suberu forester x 2009

My girl has one, it's just the N/A version, 4spd automatic.

Never been offroad, it's quite small inside, very little storage space when carrying 4/5 people.

It's a nice car to drive, pretty basic inside. Averages about 9.5lt per/100

Struggles towing a partial laiden 6 x 4 box trailer over about 70km, especially up any kind of hill.

i just spent the long weekend towing a 4.2 metre boat that weighs around 800 kilos fully laden with gear and the trailer, we did a lot of launching straight of the sand and into the water at shallow inlet (no concrete ramp) and also pulling it back out. That was with an 4cyl 2004 Forester and it did it with ease.
Your not going to have any trouble doing light off road work with it just make sure your in a low gear when you do it and go slowly.

Have an 09 XS auto, tow a 4.1m tinnie with it fairly often (around 750kg's) does it no worries at all.

around 9-9.5L/100 without the boat 12-14L/100 with it.

Have take the boat Cairns--> Townsville, no problems at all Sitting on the limit.

Have done some dirt tracks around davies creek, and it performed OK, but offroading wasn't why we got it - thats what the patrol is for :) but for good dirt roads, and the occasional slippery or dirt boat ramp - it works really well.

They seem to be very capable, here is a pic I took in 2008 in the Simpson at the knolls, they where very standard, except for BFG AT tyres.

We have one at work and a manual as well. They are both gutless. More gutless than the previous model. Other than that they are really good. Just back from a drive of about 400 k in the manual. It was showing fuel consumption of 8.6 lphk today. They go great on country dirt roads and tracks. Handle well. Stop very well. Handle icy conditions better than most. Very reliable vehicles. Very good all round vehicle.

Have not towed with one but would think they would handle light towing OK. Just might be a little more sedate up hills than one would expect.

Flynnie

G'day Shanebo
Can add my $0.02AUD with some experience. Since the early 90s I've owned 2 Outbacks and an XT Forester - the current 'road' vehicle. The older 2ltr Foresters were a very tame beast. The newer 2.5ltr Foresters are an excellent all-rounder as others have said. Would not hesitate to recommend one for light towing. (BTW A 2ltr diesel version is available OS and has been well reviewed.)

Off-road? Well, off the bitumen, they are surprisingly competent if you don't ask too much of them. For one thing they are very tidy underneath and with care you get good value out of the ground clearance. I did Fraser Island in one of my Outbacks, which had a low range option. This has raised a few eyebrows but it did well. Had to take it easy on angles of attack and easy on the brakes when driving on rutted tracks - or you bump the nose. The Forester is better than an Outback for this sort of thing. I wouldn't want to beat one to death on a few hundred kms of h/d corrugations, but I could be proved faint hearted. :^)

All mine have been manuals but can't see why auto would be much different - might even be easier in sand. On forestry/gravel roads they are a dream to drive. Recently, I took my newly acquired Troopy over some dirt roads I've driven heaps of times in the Suby. To make a point about their competence, and only about that, the Troopy would have been travelling about 10-20kmh slower most of the time and we aren't talking boy racer stuff.

Cheers
Mark

My 07 XT Forester towed my Avan Cruiseliner better than my NT PajeroDiD.
The Forester towed level where as the Pajero is that low that often can't get the jockey wheel down.

Myles