Subaru Forester

Subaru Forester is a Japanese compact crossover car, produced since 1997 at the Subaru brand plant. The car is very popular in the USA, Australia and Russia as a large family SUV. Outwardly, the model resembles a station wagon. The versions for the Japanese domestic market differ significantly from the export versions intended primarily for North America.

Subaru Forester, 1st generation (SF), 1997–2002

The first generation Subaru Forester, which debuted in 1997, was based on the Impreza platform. As conceived by the creators, the car, which became one of the first representatives of the crossover class, was supposed to combine the best qualities of a passenger car and an SUV. Forester had an all-wheel drive transmission with a center differential and a demultiplier.

Under the hood of the car was a two-liter four-cylinder boxer engine. The atmospheric version of this power unit had a power of 122–137 hp, a turbocharged version of 168–174 hp on export vehicles and 250 hp. on vehicles for the Japanese market. Later, the lineup was replenished with a modification with a 2.5-liter naturally aspirated engine that developed 165 hp. Gearboxes – five-speed manual transmission or four-speed automatic transmission.

In 2000, Subaru Forester received minor changes in appearance. In total, up to 2002, 520 thousand cars were produced.

Subaru Forester, 2nd generation (SG), 2002–2008

The second generation of the model debuted in 2002. Subaru Forester received a completely new body, but the basic design remained the same: only four-wheel drive, boxer engines, manual or automatic transmissions. The two-liter engine developed 137–140 hp in the atmospheric version, and 220 hp in the turbocharged version. The 2.5-liter engine had a power of 173 hp, and its turbo version – 210-224 hp.

In 2000, a “charged” Subaru Forester STi appeared with a 265-horsepower 2.5 engine, a six-speed manual transmission and a sports suspension. Such crossovers were sold only in the Japanese market.

Restyling in 2005 completely changed the look of the Forester, and power units were also modernized at the same time. The two-liter naturally aspirated engine now developed 158 hp, and the power of the 2.5-liter turbo engine increased to 230 hp. In this form, cars of the second generation were produced until 2008, in total 675 thousand cars rolled off the assembly line.

Subaru Forester, 3rd generation (SH), 2008–2013

The 2008 sample model has become longer, taller, more spacious, but at the same time it has lost one of its characteristic features – frameless doors. There were few changes in technology, the only noticeable innovation was a two-liter boxer turbodiesel for the European market with a capacity of 147 hp, this was the first diesel engine in the history of the company.

The Subaru Forester was also offered with naturally aspirated 2.0 and 2.5 petrol engines, developing 150 and 172 hp, respectively, as well as with a 2.5-liter turbo engine with 230 hp. In 2011, the Forester received a new generation of gasoline engines of the same volume, and the model range was replenished with a car boosted to 263 hp with a version of the 2.5-liter turbo unit. All crossovers were equipped with a manual or automatic transmission and had all-wheel drive.

The production of the fourth generation Foresters ended in 2013, in total more than 850 thousand of these machines were produced.

Subaru Forester, 4th generation, 2012–2018

The fourth generation of the Subaru Forester crossover was produced in Japan from 2012 to 2018. Versions with petrol boxer engines 2.0 (150 hp) and 2.5 (171 hp) were offered, as well as with a two-liter turbo engine with 241 hp. The basic two-liter cars were equipped with a manual transmission, the rest of the options had a variator. The drive could only be complete.

Subaru Forester, 5th generation, 2018

The 5th generation Subaru Forester is a mid-size crossover that has been produced in Japan since 2018. In 2021, the company carried out a restyling of the model.

Cars are equipped with gasoline engines of 2.0 and 2.5 liters. All versions of the Subaru Forester model have all-wheel drive and a stepless variator.