If you’re anything like the typical American workaholic, your day can best be described as follows: work, run a few errands, hopefully play a little then onwards to the home front. It’s a part of life – the ordinary, everyday tasks that we all do without even blinking an eye. Well Subaru’s Forester is a vehicle designed for living, whether hail, sleet, snow or rain, the Forester’s Symmetrical All Wheel Drive (AWD) can seamlessly handle the road, freeing you up to handle everything else the day has to bring.
So let’s break down the day and how the Forester fits in. If you’re anything like me, the alarm going off in the morning is one of the worst sounds imaginable, but necessary evils are everywhere, and thus the day must begin. The Forester’s front cabin is comfortable for driver and passenger, and boasts a 10-way power driver’s seat to make the drive to the office a bit more comfy. If you’re an eco-friendly driver looking to save gas and a little bit of the environment by carpooling, the vehicle comfortably seats four, mostly because the middle seat in the rear doubles as the rear seat’s cup holders when flipped over, making for a pretty hard hump to ride for an extended period of time. And speaking of cup holders, the vehicle has plenty of them to accommodate that all important cup of joe that’s typically necessary to jump start the day.
Once the work day ends, picking up the kids, the laundry and/or the groceries is no problem due to the ample cargo space in the trunk area. The Forester is adept at traveling on terrain of all kinds, so if you want to skip rush hour traffic for roads less traveled to reach your various destinations, Subaru’s “Control Technology” is designed to keep all four wheels on the ground at all times, whether you’re driving on smooth pavement, gravel; or going through hills and curves to avoid packed highways. It handles pretty smoothly and is powered by 170-horsepower 4 cylinder, and also has 5-speed automatic transmission with SPORTSHIFT which enables the driver to control how the transmission shifts gears, giving you more control over your driving experience.
After the errands are completed, the Subaru’s optional Screen Navigation System, priced at $1,800 can help get you anywhere you want to go for a fun night out. For another few hundred bucks, a Sirius Satellite Radio package can be added, and there’s nothing like continuous music to help get the evening off to a good start. The Forester is surprisingly smooth, so if your idea of fun takes you through city streets that tend to be pothole and speed bump ridden, rest assured that the Subaru’s double-wishbone rear suspension soaks up most of the bang. Yet, don’t expect any nifty, technological experiences you see in Nissan, Toyota, Hyundai and Kia vehicles. Yes Kia!
And the vehicle is attractively styled for what it is; although there aren’t a lot of bells and whistles, it can hold its own amongst its competition. The 2010 Subaru Forester starts at $25,995 and the tested model was $29,148 including destination and delivery charges.
