Subaru Forester XT: Used Car Reminder
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Used Car Reminder on | 16 comments
Every so often, a person will come to me and ask for my advice on the best high-performance SUV. My response is always the same: why the hell would you want that?
But they usually can’t be dissuaded, until I tell them that my Range Rover gets 13 miles per gallon and it only has 300 horsepower, which means that a Mercedes ML63 AMG probably returns about the same fuel economy as a Boeing 777, while running on a similar grade of fuel.
This usually ends the discussion.
But there is at least one performance SUV that doesn’t suck down fuel like a NASCAR race: the Subaru Forester XT. Not the latest Forester XT, which is basically a hood-scooped lookalike to every other compact SUV. I’m talking about the original Forester XT, which was tremendously quick and highly attractive, even if you’re not a lesbian.
According to Subaru, the Forester XT put out 210 horsepower when it debuted in 2004. That number jumped to 230 in 2006. But Car & Driver claimed 0-to-60 in 5.3 seconds, which cast doubt on Subaru’s numbers (or, more likely, Car & Driver’s). Either way, the damn thing was fast.
It gets better. Not only did it have standard all-wheel drive, like every Subaru of the era, but the Forester XT was also available with a stick shift. And you could get it in that bright blue everyone loves. You had to paint the wheels gold yourself, though.
The only problem with the first-generation Forester XT is that it’s absolutely impossible to find one in some parts of the country. Not one exists in my hometown of Atlanta, for example, even though most high school students in Seattle are currently driving one.
Still, if you do find one, buy it: the Forester XT is the right performance SUV. And you don’t even have to own an oil refinery to keep it running.
16 Responses to “ “Subaru Forester XT: Used Car Reminder”
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If that is an SUV, I am a Jewish NBA All-Star…lesbian.
OK, fair point. Still a wonderful tall station wagon.
Agreed. Hot little wagons are one of my favorite categories and are pretty rare, especially ones that are affordable. Throw in all wheel drive, and this is a little gem. Most of them are either gutless or too expensive.
I think that when these were new Subaru marketed them to humans, not dogs as they do now.
LOL
Hah! So true…
This has to be the most accurate Subaru stereotype there is. I bought mine when I acquired my second dog and the backseat of a sedan thing became burdensome. Where I live Subaru’s are pretty uncommon, but they can sometimes comprise well over 50% of the cars at the local dog park.
What can I say, I needed an SUV, but the driving experience in most smaller ones I could afford was awful, so I fell into the Outback trap. I love it though. Its pretty hard to beat as camping/road trip car.
X5-M is faster.
And those original versions even came stock with Bilsteins, if memory serves.
What was the last model year for this? Thanks!
The last model year for the first-gen was ’08. The Forester was redesigned for ’09 and it got a little more attractive, but definitely more mainstream too.
I would have suggested a manual E53 X5 3.0i. Those X5′s were seriously fun and they get decent fuel economy as well. 0-60 won’t be under 6 seconds, but the driving experience is worth it.
Never drove a stick, but I always wanted to. I look at used ones every now and again, and I’m always annoyed to discover sellers ask the same money as automatics. It’s stupid.
I had a Forester 2.5 XT as my first car when I got my license in 2004. My parents said I had to drive an AWD SUV because they would use it as their winter vehicle. They refused to compromise in getting me a real wagon, it had to be an automatic, they weren’t shelling out dough for an ML 55 AMG, so naturally I chose the most powerful suv available to me. It was between this or a Ford Explorer. I mean, come on? I was a power obsessed teenager.
All compromises aside, I agree the XT was a good machine. The Subaru was quick. It was faster than the contemporary GTI 1.8T in a drag race (although the GTI was probably mis shifted in that race). The auto transmission sucked, but the motor was fantastic. Dropping the slush box down to Drive-2 or 3, the midrange pull was excellent upwards of 40-50mph between 3000-4000rpm. This is the only part of the rev range in which the engine really shined. Because of the turbocharged mid range pull, friends thought the XT was faster than my dad’s 540i (maybe it was?). And it was definitely a lot more low profile (I never got pulled over in this car vs. getting pulled ovr all the time in the BMW).
It was an excellent car to have when I was a young and “experimental” driver. The gripless yoko geolander tires limited cornering speeds to relatively safe levels for all the times i pushed it on pavement, and the tallness of the sidewalls limited damage for when i exceeded the grip levels and left the pavement “to go off roading”. I honed my sideways rally style driving techniques in the winter time through the snow, and during the summer months on many people’s lawns and fields.
After 1 year of ownership, the tires were bald, the differential whined loudly, and my mom decided the Forester was too small. So they got a Land Rover Discovery, and I learned a bit about real off roading.
Doug,
I am no journalist, and I was certainly never distinguished as a writer in any forum. However, I must judge, that your qualities as a writer and journalist are far superior.
My years have largely been spent obsessively reading and talking about, and driving or dreaming about driving cars. Your website is the best source for witty automotive writing since Sunday Times went subscriber only and us mere plebeians could no longer read Jeremy Clarkson’s Sunday Times column.
Keep up the good work.
I really appreciate the kind words, and the comparison! I will do my best to keep you entertained going forward, as well!
By the way: if you really are a 964 junkie, we have some things in common