No Frills, All Sense: 2025 Subaru Forester Sport Joins Our Long-Term Fleet

The estimated transaction price of a new vehicle in March 2025 sat at $47,462, according to Kelley Blue Book. Looking to buck the trend of ever-increasing window stickers, we recently welcomed a 2025 Subaru Forester Sport to our long-term fleet. In contrast to the elevated price of most new cars, our recently acquired Forester’s as-tested price stickers at an approachable $37,730.The 2025 model year marked the start of the Forester’s sixth generation. It has new designs for the headlights and taillights. All of the body panels are new and helppo give the Forester a more modern look—but don’t be fooled, it’s still instantly recognizable as a Forester. Our tester’s color combination helps it stand out, borrowing the blue-paint-and-bronze-wheel motif from the hallowed WRX. (Was that on purpose? Perhaps.)Changes under the hood are equally subtle. The familiar 2.5-liter flat-four sticks around, but Subaru reworked the Forester’s sole engine to improve its responsiveness. Horsepower is marginally lower, dropping from 182 to 180, but peak torque improved by two pound-feet, rising from 176 to 178. These tweaks might not seem like much, but it’s not just about power—it’s about where the muscle show up. Peak torque now arrives at 3700 rpm, considerably earlier than the outgoing Forester’s lofty 5400-rpm peak.We were optimistic that these tweaks to power delivery would result in a bit more around-town spunk, but our initial testing suggests we should temper our expectations. Our initial sprint to 60 mph required 8.4 seconds, making the Forester among the slowest we’ve tested in the segment. We’ve generally regarded the Forester as having a poised demeanor and accurate (if artificial) steering. The updated version comes with a variant of the WRX’s dual-pinion electronic power steering that breathed slightly more life into the Forester’s otherwise mundane steering, though the change appears to be mostly negligible.
All-wheel drive is standard (natch), and this Sport trim arrived on a set of splendid 19-inch bronze wheels wrapped in Bridgestone Turanza EL450 all-season tires measuring 235/50R-19. While they provide all the daily-driving grip one needs, they’re not exactly exciting; the Turanzas helped stick this 3630-pound ute around our 300-foot skidpad at a fine-for-what-it-is 0.82 g. Braking figures are par for the course. We managed to stop from 70 mph in 170 feet, which is just a couple feet more than the last Honda CR-V we tested.We kept our Forester Sport’s options list to the bare minimum—partly as an exercise in restraint and partly because the Sport trim already comes with a laundry list of standard features, including heated front seats, an 11.6-inch center touchscreen, inductive device charging, Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto. Our sole paid extra cost us $1700 and earned us a set of Harman/Kardon speakers, reverse automated braking, power liftgate. and additional drive modes.
As Michigan’s frigid winter continues to retreat, we’ll put the Forester through its paces with plenty of school pickups, grocery hauls, and long weekends to the Upper Peninsula. Our brains are swimming with ideas for transporting canoes and tackling Michigan’s various ORV trails. We’ll check back in at 10,000-mile intervals to update you on the things we come to enjoy and whatever maladies may attempt to change our minds.
Months in Fleet: 1 month Current Mileage: 2187 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 24 mpg
Fuel Tank Size: 16.6 gal Observed Fuel Range: 390 miles
Service: $0 Normal Wear: $0 Repair: $0
Damage and Destruction: $0SpecificationsSpecifications
2025 Subaru Forester Sport
Vehicle Type: front-engine, all-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door wagon
PRICE

Base/As Tested: $36,230
Options: Harman/Kardon stereo, power liftgate, and automated reverse braking, $1700
ENGINE

DOHC 16-valve flat-4, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection
Displacement: 152 in3, 2498 cm3
Power: 180 hp @ 5800 rpm
Torque: 178 lb-ft @ 3700 rpm
TRANSMISSION

continuously variable automatic
CHASSIS

Suspension, F/R: struts/multilink
Brakes, F/R: 12.4-in vented disc/11.8-in vented disc
Tires: Bridgestone Turanza EL450
235/50R-19 99V M+S
DIMENSIONS

Wheelbase: 105.1 in
Length: 183.3 in
Width: 72.0 in
Height: 68.1 in
Passenger Volume, F/R: 58/49 ft3
Cargo Volume, Behind F/R: 69/28 ft3
Curb Weight: 3630 lb
C/D TEST RESULTS: NEW

60 mph: 8.4 sec
1/4-Mile: 16.6 sec @ 86 mph
100 mph: 23.8 sec
Results above omit 1-ft rollout of 0.3 sec.
Rolling Start, 5–60 mph: 8.8 sec
Top Gear, 30–50 mph: 4.6 sec
Top Gear, 50–70 mph: 6.2 sec
Top Speed (mfr claim): 127 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 170 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft Skidpad: 0.82 g
C/D FUEL ECONOMY

Observed: 24 mpg
Unscheduled Oil Additions: 0 qt
EPA FUEL ECONOMY

Combined/City/Highway: 28/25/32 mpg
WARRANTY

3 years/36,000 miles bumper to bumper
5 years/60,000 miles powertrain
5 years/unlimited miles corrosion protection
3 years/36,000 miles roadside assistance
2 years/24,000 miles scheduled maintenance
C/D TESTING EXPLAINEDJack Fitzgerald’s love for cars stems from his as yet unshakable addiction to Formula 1.
After a brief stint as a detailer for a local dealership group in college, he knew he needed a more permanent way to drive all the new cars he couldn’t afford and decided to pursue a career in auto writing. By hounding his college professors at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he was able to travel Wisconsin seeking out stories in the auto world before landing his dream job at Car and Driver. His new goal is to delay the inevitable demise of his 2010 Volkswagen Golf.
Source: caranddriver.com