Ive never had a new car, every car I've ever had has been an old beater. My 2015 honda civic with almost 300k miles was finally going downhill and after teat driving so many options and researching for a year, I finally pulled the trigger on this beauty. I got a phenomenal deal and couldn't be happier. Honestly it feels like a space ship 😂👹

Took my 2009 Forester on a trip to Serra da Canastra: around 1,000 km in total, including roughly 280 km of trails and dirt roads. I also slept in the car for part of the trip!
For those unfamiliar with the area, it’s in Minas Gerais, southeastern Brazil, with waterfalls, rolling hills, wide-open landscapes, and small rural towns connected by dirt roads. The region is also famous for its traditional Canastra cheese.
We explored around São João Batista do Glória, taking in the scenery and enjoying the trails. Having the Subaru double as transportation and a bedroom made the trip even better!

I'd never driven a Forester before, but they're smooth! Got her with 2 miles! I'm happy to have joined the family!

first Subaru for me

Made an early run to Walmart yesterday to grab a few things. I have a preference for parking next to the islands in the lot, and with it being early, I was kinda parked out alone from other cars. Came out, and the lot was still fairly sparse, but it seems my Forester Wilderness had found himself an Outback Wilderness to hang out with. I think it was intentional, because they definitely could have parked closer to the door if they had wanted. Couldn’t help but snap a pic of them hanging out together.

I did a thing over the weekend.

Dealership quoted me $1700 for bushing replacements, so I went ahead and put new control arms myself instead.

I went with Outback-style aluminum arms. I also weighed them because it's unsuspended weight, and the less of it, the better.

The aluminum arms weigh 3078 grams, the OEM steel ones 3980 grams. So there's about a 25% difference. I also thought about going with Rallitek LCAs, but since I don't do hardcore rock crawling and my lift is only 1.5”, I decided to go with Mevotech supreme ones. They seem to be using the same mold as the Rallitek v1 arms.

PNs of the arms I installed:

MEVOTECH CMS801244

MEVOTECH CMS801243

Some notes and hacks:

1. Ball joint can be pushed out of a pinch/friction socket by jamming something between the knuckle and the LCA. I didn't know this first, and my ball joints were quite rusted, so it took me a few hours (no kidding) to hammer one out. On the other side, I decided to change the tactic. I used a chisel on both sides to spread the pinch joint a little and tapped the joint with a hammer to loosen them. Then I decided to load the suspension with a hydraulic jack so there's a little more room between the LCA and the knuckle and jam the biggest hex socket I could fit in there. I then lowered the jack, and the top of the ball joint popped out a little. I did it a few more times, increasing the size of the sockets I jammed in. And the arm was off in about 15-20 minutes.
2. Pressing the ball joint into the LCA. If you align the ball joint with the socket well enough, you can press it in with the same hydraulic jack and a piece of wood (see photo 3).

First LCA took me about 3-4h all in, second one about 1-1.5h.

Going in for an alignment tomorrow!

Just took my brand new forester wilderness in after I noticed dripping from the rear view mirror. Took it into service department at the dealer and they stated I had a faulty seal on my sunroof which caused this to occur. Any other owners have similar issues? Any advice?

I have a freaking mouse in my engine. 😩 Discovered him last night. He's also deposited some leaves and acorns in there. Can I use my garden hose (low pressure) on the engine to clean some of that shit out? I am setting traps as well. 2017 if it matters or there's areas to avoid. I feel like I should prob not spray the battery but I know nothing. Any help very much appreciated!

Excited to share some of my new mods and changes to my 08 XT. I've bought some new front woofers and tweeters and a shallow 10" sub to replace the big 12" sub and box that took up most of my boot space. I've 3D printed some custom brackets to hold my new JBL 6.5" speakers; everything has been pre-wired to my 4-channel amp, which I'll later change for a digital JBL amp to reduce heat and electrical hiss. I also bought and color-matched the STI-style wing, which adds no downforce, but I love the look. I fixed some of my headlights with a shorter DRL and aimed my projectors. I figured I should finally focus on replacing my stock speakers, as I am currently designing a bracket to drop in my larger 10" subwoofer to replace the 6x9s. Tomorrow I'll be grabbing some new led brake lights, just to be an instant and brighter stop. I'm not expecting deeper bass and I'm not upset about that, should get a bit of a tighter hit with better quality sound.

Hi Folks - the headunit on my 2018 XT Touring recently started jumping from different UI screens whenever I have my phone plugged into it. From what I've read online, this is due to the headunit being overloaded with data packets from my iPhone 17 Pro.

Is there a software update that I can run on my own to fix this? I'm OK with the headunit being old and outdated but the constant screen switching is super distracting when I drive.

I've had to disconnect my phone from the headunit completely and it's annoying not being able to take calls or play music via Bluetooth.

I called the dealer, and they said they'd charge me $300?! to just look at it, wtf!

For the life of me I cannot sell this stuff on fb and would rather see it put to good use than taking up space in my attic. I got a new car, the mats are in great shape. This will go to someone who will use it, not a reseller. Porch pickup.

1) Husky X-Act Contour Floor Mats, Front Floor Liners Item #54731, fits 2019-2024 Forester
https://www.huskyliners.com/product-detail/54731/front-floor-liners

2) Husky X-Act Contour Floor Mats, 2nd seat Floor Liner Item #54741, fits 2019-2024 Forester
https://www.huskyliners.com/product-detail/54741/2nd-seat-floor-liner

3) OEM Subaru Rear Seatback Protector, Part Number J501SSJ310, Fits 2019-2024 Forester
https://parts.ewingsubaruofplano.com/p/73276984/J501SSJ310.html

5) OEM Subaru Cargo Tray, Part Number J501SSJ300, Fits 2019-2024 Forester
https://parts.ewingsubaruofplano.com/p/Subaru__/Cargo-Tray/73276983/J501SSJ300.html

I saw this. Video on YouTube demonstrating you could can just toggle the latch with any object to stop drawing battery power with the rear gate open https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcjkWe39pvA

I car camp a fair bit and this is way more convenient than the carabiner trick, but I’d never heard of it before.

Any downsides I should be aware of?

Hey guys, I’m looking for some advice before buying a used vehicle.

Yesterday, I checked out a 2014 Subaru Forester 2.5 with about 135,000 miles (220,000 km). It’s a one-owner vehicle that looks pretty clean and well-maintained. The CVT was replaced at around 116,000 miles, which is a plus.

However, there are a few things that have me second-guessing the purchase.

The coolant level was slightly below the minimum mark. According to the owner, they’ve never had to top it up. The engine started smoothly, and there was some steam coming from the exhaust on startup, which seemed normal given the cold weather. After the engine warmed up and we took it for a test drive, there was no visible smoke or excessive steam from the exhaust at idle.

I also noticed some oil residue around the oil filter housing, although I’m hoping it was just spillage from a previous oil change rather than an actual leak.

Regarding oil consumption, the owner said that between oil changes (every 5,000 miles), they sometimes have to add less than a quart of oil, while other times they don’t need to add any at all.

I know head gasket issues can be a concern with Subarus, so I’m wondering whether these observations are normal for a vehicle with this mileage or potential red flags.

Would you buy it, or would you walk away?

I’d appreciate any advice, especially from people who own or have worked on this generation of Forester. Thanks!

Curious if anyone else has had this issue. I have a 2021 Forester with 39k miles on it and last service was told the struts are shot. I looked a bit online about it and seems to be an issue with this manufacture year. So I called the corporate division about it and they said that because of the age they’re giving out and tough stuff. This seems unreasonable in my opinion as struts I thought should last longer than shocks, which I expected them to last at least 50-100k miles. The car has mostly been driven in an urban setting.

Haven't seen any information and was wondering if someone could help!

Hi folks! Car just died, in the market for a new one.

I think I'm settled on a Forester since RAV4 prices are bonkers right now. Budget is $16-18k, but it looks like most of what I'm finding in that range is 100k+ miles for the 2017-2020 years.

Any advice/thoughts/recommends?

Thank you!

Does this car not have seat/mirror memory? I don't see the buttons on the door, and don't see the 'Driver Monitoring System's it under Settings > Car .

Seems like a really basic thing to take away from new models.

Am I missing something?

I’ve been thinking about getting a new head unit and some small audio upgrades, but I’m torn on what kind of unit to go with. I want to be period-correct somewhat, but CarPlay is convenient and useful.

What do you guys think? Tacky or handy?

(The attached photos are the one I’m considering, and a CarPlay equipped unit I would choose if I were to get one, respectively.)

EDIT: it is a 2007 SG9 with the optional 6-disc changer. Pretty sweet the original owner opted for that. I listen to CDs a lot, hence my indecision.

Just over 1 month of ownership and just shy of 1k miles! I love this thing, I even took it up shitscreek without a paddle and made it out without a scratch! 😅 looking forward to seeing how it performs this winter!

Anyone have any feedback on tires similar to the Michelin CC2?

Yea. Lifted life doesn’t really mean anything compared to the behemoth SUV’s we got cruising on the roads nowadays. To be fair though, how many people really need more space than a good ol’ SG Fozzie?

Purchased my 2024 Forester Limited in May 2025 with 13,800 miles. I currently have 24,000 miles but the vehicle is at the 30 month mark next month and I want to keep in good standing with my warranty so I’m going to schedule service at a Subaru dealer in the San Diego area. I drive around 7000 miles annually between short trips and freeway. What are some things I should watch out for when I take her in for this service at the dealership?

Hi! For the last few days my car has a weird rattling sound whenever I push the gas pedal and right when I park my car, it rattles for few seconds before go back to normal. I try to crawl under the car and tap along the heat shield but nothing feels loosen. Have you guys ever experienced this. Thank you