2025 Subaru Forester

2025 is the launch year of the sixth-generation Forester, whose FB25 2.5L naturally-aspirated boxer-four makes 180 hp @ 5,800 rpm in the volume Premium trim. That is near the bottom of the compact-SUV output range, where turbo rivals sit at 200-250 hp.

The naturally-aspirated boxer produces 178 lb-ft at a high 3,700 rpm, so useful thrust demands revs — well behind turbocharged compact SUVs that deliver 220-260 lb-ft from just above idle.

Instrumented tests of the redesigned 2025 Forester cluster in the low-to-mid 8-second range — adequate for traffic but among the slower results in the compact SUV class, and the extra mass of the sixth-gen body offsets its unchanged output.

The horizontally-opposed four is smooth at idle and light throttle, and the sixth-generation body adds sound insulation, but the engine coarsens audibly under load and there is no low-end torque to lean on when merging. Response is consistent rather than eager — no turbo lag to complain about, but no urgency either.

The Direct Lineartronic CVT behaves acceptably in normal driving, and Sport/Limited/Touring add an 8-speed manual control mode with paddles that masks the elastic feel. Base and Premium — the volume trims — get only a low-shift mode, and sustained acceleration produces the familiar CVT drone.

The best rating available for the 2025 model year is the Forester Wilderness at 3,000 lbs, which Subaru continued to sell on the previous-generation body alongside the redesign. The volume Premium and the rest of the sixth-generation lineup are rated at just 1,500 lbs — light-duty by compact-SUV standards.

Symmetrical full-time all-wheel drive is standard on every 2025 Forester — no FWD base model exists, which is the segment's strongest AWD position. Active Torque Vectoring is standard and X-MODE is fitted from Premium up, with a dual-function Snow/Dirt and Deep Snow/Mud version on Sport, Limited and Touring.

8.7 inches of clearance with a 19.0-degree approach and 24.6-degree departure angle, standard AWD, dual-function X-MODE and Hill Descent Control put the Forester clearly above pavement-biased rivals, and the 2025 lineup still includes a dedicated Wilderness at 9.2 inches. It stops short of true off-roaders — no low range and no locking differential.

2025 is the year the Forester gained a second powertrain: the 2.5L naturally-aspirated boxer plus the new series-parallel Strong Hybrid that reached dealers in late April 2025. Two mainstream choices, but no turbocharged XT, no plug-in hybrid and no battery-electric Forester.

The volume gas Premium AWD is EPA-rated at 29 MPG combined, a strong result for a vehicle with full-time symmetrical all-wheel drive and no FWD version to flatter the number. Sport and Touring drop to 28 on their 19-inch wheels; the carryover Wilderness sits at 26.

26 MPG city is competitive for a non-hybrid AWD compact SUV, though the naturally-aspirated boxer has no electric assist in stop-and-go traffic — the new Hybrid gains nine MPG there.

33 MPG highway is the Forester's best figure and close to the new Hybrid's 34, since a hybrid system gains least at steady cruise. The 19-inch wheels on Sport and Touring cost 1 MPG; the previous-generation Wilderness gives up five.

A 16.6-gallon tank at the EPA combined 29 MPG yields roughly 481 miles between fills — mid-pack for the segment, since the modest tank offsets the good economy. Highway-only driving stretches it past 540 miles.

EPA estimates $2,100 a year to fuel the gas Forester AWD at 15,000 miles on regular unleaded — reasonable for an all-wheel-drive SUV, with the new Hybrid saving about $350 annually.

Subaru specifies regular 87-octane unleaded as the minimum for the 2.5L boxer, so there is no premium-fuel penalty and no charging logistics to manage. The Hybrid runs on regular as well.

The redesigned sixth-generation (SL) Forester was tested by NHTSA for the 2025 model year and earned the top 5-star Overall Vehicle Score, with 5 stars in both frontal and side crash and 4 stars for rollover.

The 2025 Forester (other than Wilderness) is a 2025 IIHS TOP SAFETY PICK — not TSP+ — with Good ratings in small overlap front and the updated side test but only Acceptable in the updated moderate overlap test, which weighs rear-seat occupant protection. Subaru's December 2024 press release claimed TSP+ under the 2024 criteria; the stricter 2025 criteria require Good in updated moderate overlap for the plus, so the current standing is TSP.

The latest-generation EyeSight — pre-collision braking, full-speed adaptive cruise with lane centering, lane departure warning and prevention — is standard on all five trims, but Blind-Spot Detection with Rear Cross-Traffic Alert is absent on Base and a $1,200 option on the volume Premium trim, becoming standard only from Sport upward. Core coverage is excellent; the blind-spot piece is not standard on the trims most buyers take.

The Forester earns Good — the top rating — in both IIHS front crash prevention evaluations, vehicle-to-vehicle 2.0 and the updated pedestrian test that includes nighttime scenarios. The sixth-gen EyeSight uses wider-angle stereo cameras with greater range and faster processing, so detection at intersections and in low light improved over the previous system.

Blind-Spot Detection with Lane Change Assist and Rear Cross-Traffic Alert is unavailable on Base, optional on Premium, and standard from Sport up; coverage is alert-only with no active steering or braking intervention, and Reverse Automatic Braking is standard only on Touring (optional on Sport and Limited).

Lane departure warning, lane departure prevention and EyeSight lane centering are standard on every trim, and the wider-angle cameras of the new system track marked highway lanes more steadily than the fifth generation. Reviewers still describe the centering as assertive rather than seamless, with occasional wander between lines on gentle curves and faded markings.

Full-speed-range adaptive cruise with stop-and-go is standard on all trims and combines with lane centering into a competent highway assist; the redesigned system's faster processing smooths the throttle and brake transitions that dogged the previous EyeSight. It remains a notch behind Honda Sensing and Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 in polish, and there is no navigation-linked curve or speed-limit adaptation.

Subaru offers no hands-free highway driving system on the 2025 Forester at any trim — no equivalent to Ford BlueCruise, GM Super Cruise or Tesla Autopilot. EyeSight is a hands-on system throughout, and the driver monitoring camera enforces attention rather than enabling hands-off operation.

Steering-responsive LED headlights are standard from the Base trim up — no trim on the ladder ships a lesser lamp — and IIHS rates the headlight systems Good across the range, which is what carried the Forester over the headlight requirement for its award.

The sixth-generation Forester keeps the tall, upright greenhouse, slim A-pillars and deep side glass that make it one of the easiest modern SUVs to see out of, and the redesign raised the dashboard without closing down the forward view. The 360-degree Surround View Monitor is limited to Touring, but the natural sightlines need little camera compensation.

IIHS rates the Forester's LATCH ease of use Good+ — two rear positions with complete anchor hardware plus a third with partial hardware, and anchors that are easy to find and reach. Wide-opening rear doors and the boxy, upright cabin make installing and loading seats straightforward, though three-across remains tight in a compact SUV.

The all-new sixth-generation 2025 Forester is a two-row, five-passenger compact SUV across the entire lineup (Base, Premium, Sport, Limited, Touring) — no third row is offered at any price.

The volume Premium trim carries a standard panoramic power moonroof, which drops front headroom to about 39.9 in from the moonroof-less Base trim's 41.2 in — mid-pack for the compact SUV segment, though the Forester's upright glasshouse makes it feel airier than the number suggests.

Front legroom of 43.3 in is a genuine segment strength for the redesigned Forester, running well ahead of the CR-V (41.3 in) and RAV4 (41.0 in) and unchanged by trim.

Second-row headroom on the moonroof-equipped volume trims is 37.7 in — average for the compact SUV class; the Base trim without the panoramic glass gains nearly two inches at 39.6 in.

39.4 in of second-row legroom is the Forester's best passenger-space figure and is comfortably above compact-SUV norms; reviewers report a family of four traveling long distances without complaint.

No third row exists on any 2025 Forester trim — it is a two-row-only compact SUV. Subaru buyers needing seven or eight seats step up to the Ascent.

Cargo volume behind the second row is 27.5 cu ft on the volume Premium trim (the panoramic moonroof costs about two cubic feet) — well behind the class-leading CR-V (~39 cu ft) and Rogue (~36 cu ft), and the weakest part of the Forester's space story despite a low, wide, square load opening that makes the room more usable than the figure implies.

With the 60/40 second row folded the moonroof-equipped Premium offers 69.1 cu ft — below mid-pack for the segment on paper, though the tall roof, flat floor and low liftover height mean testers repeatedly describe it as larger in practice than the specification.

Competitive everyday storage without a headline innovation: deep center console with a tiered tray, large bottle-holding door bins, an open shelf beneath the center stack, USB-A/USB-C ports front and rear, and a wide flat cargo floor with underfloor storage. There is no giga-console, frunk or onboard power outlet to lift it into the standout band.

The sixth generation's redesigned front seats draw consistent praise for long-haul comfort — testers report several hundred miles without soreness — and the rear bench is broad and supportive for two adults. Cushions are still called out as somewhat flat and lacking lateral support, which keeps it below the segment's best.

The stiffer sixth-gen body structure and revised suspension improve compliance over the outgoing Forester, and most testers call the ride comfortable if not plush. Reviews are genuinely split, though — Edmunds describes it as busy, pitchy and unsophisticated, particularly on the Touring's 19-inch wheels — so it lands mid-band rather than at the top.

Added sound deadening and a quieter structure for 2025 make the cabin noticeably calmer than the fifth-generation Forester, and it is mostly hushed at a cruise. Highway wind noise and CVT drone under load still intrude enough to keep it short of the segment's quietest cabins.

Strong for a mainstream compact SUV: dual-zone automatic climate control is standard on every 2025 trim including the Base, heated front seats and heated mirrors arrive at Premium along with a panoramic moonroof and 10-way power driver's seat, a heated steering wheel comes with Limited, and Touring adds ventilated front seats plus heated rear outboard seats and driver-seat memory. It falls short of the top band only because ventilation and the heated wheel stay on the upper two trims.

First model year of the sixth-generation Forester. The entry Base trim lists at $29,995 plus a $1,420 destination charge, and it already includes Symmetrical AWD and the full EyeSight suite rather than treating them as options.

Premium is the Forester's long-standing volume trim and the first step that brings the 11.6-inch Multimedia Plus screen, panoramic moonroof, heated front seats and power driver's seat — $33,385 plus $1,420 destination. The 2025 redesign pushed Premium up roughly $2k over the outgoing generation.

Kelley Blue Book's 5-year cost-to-own model for the 2025 Forester splits out $2,686 of maintenance and $1,784 of repairs. CarEdge's separate estimate of about $544/yr in maintenance (~$2,720 over five years) corroborates the maintenance half. Below the compact-SUV midpoint despite the boxer engine and standard AWD.

KBB's per-trim residual projections work out to a consistent 48-52% of delivered MSRP across the 2025 lineup — Base $16,452 on $31,415, Premium $17,527 on $34,805, Touring $20,751 on $43,015. Solid for a mainstream compact SUV but not the 60%+ retention the Forester's used-market history suggests; historical-listing measures (iSeeCars ~67%, CarEdge ~65%) run higher because they reflect the inflated 2021-23 used market rather than a forward projection.

Subaru's new-vehicle limited warranty is the industry baseline 3 years / 36,000 miles, unchanged for 2025 and well behind the 5-year basic coverage from Hyundai, Kia and Mitsubishi.

Powertrain coverage sits at the segment floor of 5 years / 60,000 miles — half the 10-year/100,000-mile coverage the Korean brands offer on the same class of vehicle. The 2.5-liter boxer and Lineartronic CVT get nothing beyond that.

Subaru includes no scheduled maintenance at all on the 2025 Forester — no counterpart to ToyotaCare's 2 years/25,000 miles on a RAV4. What buyers do get is 3 years / 36,000 miles of 24-hour roadside assistance with towing to a Subaru retailer, and a 3-year STARLINK Safety Plus trial (SOS, automatic collision notification, remote services), plus a 6-month Security package trial. Real coverage, but roadside-and-telematics only.

$34,805 volume-trim price minus its estimated resale value after 5 years (51% retained, or about $17,751) leaves about $17,054 in depreciation. Add the projected $4,470 in 5-year maintenance and repairs, and owning this vehicle for 5 years costs about $21,524 in total.

The sources genuinely disagree, which caps this in the middle band: J.D. Power rates the 2025 Forester 83/100 for Quality & Reliability ("Great"), while Consumer Reports calls it only about average for the model year and RepairPal ranks the nameplate 21st of 26 compact SUVs. 2025 is the first year of the sixth generation, so predicted figures lean on a carry-over FB25/CVT powertrain rather than survey data on the new car itself.

Consumer Reports puts Subaru at the very top — No. 1 in the Overall Brand Report Card for a second consecutive year and No. 2 on the reliability-specific list behind Toyota — but J.D. Power's dependability study still has the brand on the wrong side of the industry average, so it is not a clean sweep. Scored high on the CR standing with a haircut for the VDS disagreement.

Three NHTSA campaigns against the 2025 Forester — a wheel lug-seat defect that can loosen a wheel, improperly torqued child-seat anchor bolts, and an incorrect GAWR certification label. None are powertrain, fire or repeated campaigns, and two are launch-year manufacturing-tolerance items typical of a redesign, but the wheel-attachment recall is safety-critical and this is more activity than a mature carry-over year would show. Early-ownership TSB/complaint chatter centers on a revised CVT pressure sensor and infotainment freezes rather than mechanical failures.

The volume 2.5-liter FB25 boxer four and Lineartronic CVT carry over into the sixth generation rather than being new for 2025, and that pairing has a solid high-mileage record across Subaru's lineup with the older oil-consumption reputation belonging to earlier engines. The CVT remains the long-term watch item — Subaru revised the pressure sensor for 2025 and early owners report hesitation and fluid seepage — and there is no non-CVT alternative in this model.

The sixth-generation redesign is the biggest cabin upgrade the Forester has had — a soft-touch dash top and materials reviewers describe as better than anything else in the Subaru lineup and finally competitive with segment leaders. It stops short of class-leading: the textile door and armrest treatments divide reviewers and hard plastics still dominate the lower cabin at this price.

2025 Foresters are still built in Japan (the move to Subaru's Lafayette, Indiana plant comes with the 2026 model year), and Japanese-built Subarus assemble tightly with no widespread rattle or misalignment reports for the model year. Held below the top band because this is a launch year — the wheel and child-anchor recalls are both assembly/tolerance escapes — and Subaru has not been an initial-quality leader recently, with the Forester absent from the 2025 IQS compact-SUV podium.

Subaru's roughly 640 US retailers is a smaller footprint than Toyota's or Honda's and is noticeably thinner across the South and rural Midwest, but the dealer service experience is the best in the mass market by J.D. Power's measure — highest-ranked mass market brand and top-rated on every customer measure. Service quality outweighs the density gap for this score.

Parts are abundant and the Forester's outdoor-accessory aftermarket is among the largest in the segment, but the measured running costs sit above the compact-SUV average rather than below it, with slightly more frequent and more severe unscheduled repairs than its peers. Boxer-specific jobs (spark plugs, cam carrier seals) carry more labor than an inline-four, and CVT service remains dealer-oriented.

The volume Premium trim and everything above it carries the portrait-oriented 11.6-inch STARLINK Multimedia Plus tablet screen; only the entry Base trim uses the older dual 7.0-inch display stack. 11.6 in is a competitive but no longer class-leading figure for a compact SUV.

The 11.6-inch STARLINK unit is the quickest screen Subaru fits and keeps physical volume/tuning knobs plus hard climate shortcut buttons flanking the display, but reviewers consistently call out lag, dated graphics and the migration of functions like heated-seat control into the touchscreen. Usable rather than good.

Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard on the volume Premium trim and every trim above it; only the entry Base trim is limited to wired projection. That covers the large majority of Foresters sold but falls short of standard-on-all-trims.

Voice control is a command-word system rather than a natural-language assistant, and built-in navigation is standard only on the top Touring trim (a $1,600 package option on Limited) — the volume Premium has no native maps at all, so owners fall back on phone projection.

The 576-watt, 11-speaker Harman Kardon system is a genuinely strong premium upgrade and is standard on Touring, but it cannot be ordered on the volume Premium trim — it starts at Sport as part of a $1,700 package. The base six-speaker setup is adequate and unremarkable.

The gas 2025 Forester keeps conventional analog speedometer and tachometer dials with a modest color multi-function display between them — partial digital at best, and no full-digital cluster is offered at any gas trim. The 12.3-inch all-digital cluster is exclusive to the Forester Hybrid, which is a separate powertrain class.

Subaru's STARLINK head unit supports firmware-over-the-air updates for multimedia software and navigation maps over Wi-Fi or the vehicle's DCM, but there is no whole-vehicle OTA programme that adds features or updates powertrain, chassis or driver-assist modules the way the segment's leaders do.

The MySubaru/STARLINK app covers the core remote set — lock/unlock, remote engine start with climate, vehicle locator, alerts and diagnostics — but remote start is gated behind the paid Security Plus subscription after the trial, there is no phone-as-key, and app polish trails the segment's best.

The volume Premium trim is well provisioned for a mainstream compact SUV: wireless phone charging standard, dual USB-A and USB-C ports up front and a USB-A plus USB-C pair for the second row. It misses the top band only for the lack of any household AC outlet and because the Base trim drops to a single USB-A.

Keyless Access with Push-Button Start (with PIN code access and door/rear-gate sensors) is standard from the volume Premium trim upward but absent on Base, the hands-free foot-activated power rear gate is standard only from Limited (a package option lower down), remote start is subscription-gated through the app, and no phone-as-key exists.

A rear-vision camera is standard across the line and EyeSight's wide-angle mono camera set is new for the sixth generation, but the 360-degree Surround View Monitor is exclusive to the top Touring trim, the 180-degree front-view monitor and rear sonar (with reverse automatic braking) are package options on Sport and Limited, and there is no automated parking of any kind. The volume Premium leaves the showroom with a rear camera and nothing else.

No head-up display is offered on the 2025 Forester at any trim or in any option package — Subaru does not fit a HUD to any vehicle in its US lineup, which is a repeated criticism of the sixth-generation car.

About as easy as compact-SUV family logistics gets: IIHS rates LATCH ease of use Good+ with two complete positions plus a third with partial hardware, the rear doors open unusually wide onto an upright boxy cabin, and 39.4 in of rear legroom leaves room for a rear-facing seat without pushing the front passenger forward. Held out of the top few points because the 27.5 cu ft behind the second row on moonroof trims is a genuine constraint for a stroller plus a week's gear, and three seats across is tight.

The credentials land on the trims families actually buy: NHTSA 5-star overall, IIHS TOP SAFETY PICK, and the latest-generation EyeSight — pre-collision braking, full-speed adaptive cruise with lane centering, lane departure prevention — standard on the $31,415 Base rather than bundled into an upper trim, alongside standard steering-responsive LED headlights and a rear seat reminder. The one real gap is Blind-Spot Detection with Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, which is unavailable on Base and a $1,200 option on the volume Premium.

Four adults travel well — 39.4 in of rear legroom, reclining rear seatbacks from Premium up, a fold-down center armrest with cupholders, rear console vents and rear USB-A/USB-C ports, dual-zone automatic climate standard on every trim, and testers report several hundred miles without soreness. Rear amenities thin out above that: heated rear seats are Touring-only, there are no rear sunshades or rear entertainment, and 27.5 cu ft with all seats occupied means a roof box for a full family load.

A low-stress commuter: the naturally-aspirated boxer and CVT have no turbo lag or shift hunting to manage at crawl speeds, the tall greenhouse gives near-best-in-class sightlines, and full-speed adaptive cruise with stop-and-go plus lane centering is standard on every trim rather than an upper-trim upgrade. It falls short of effortless because 180 hp and an 8.4-second 0-60 mean merges and gaps need planning, the CVT drones when you ask for them, and Edmunds found the ride busy over broken pavement.

29 MPG combined and 26 city on regular 87-octane is a good return for a vehicle with full-time symmetrical AWD and no front-drive version flattering the number, and the EPA puts annual fuel at $2,100. It is average-to-good rather than exceptional per mile: a hybrid RAV4 or CR-V undercuts it substantially, RepairPal measures Forester running costs above the segment average, and Subaru includes no complimentary scheduled maintenance.

Compact footprint and a 35.4 ft turning circle make it genuinely easy to thread and park, and the Forester's real advantage is that it barely needs camera help — slim pillars, deep side glass and a squared-off tail make the corners easy to place. Short of the top band only because the volume Premium leaves the lot with a rear camera and nothing else: the 360-degree Surround View Monitor is Touring-exclusive, rear sonar is a package option, and there is no automated parking.

Not meaningfully a work vehicle. The entire sixth-generation lineup is rated at 1,500 lbs of towing — enough for a small utility trailer or a pair of jet skis and nothing more — and the only 3,000-lb rating for the model year belongs to the Wilderness, which Subaru continued to build on the previous-generation body. There is no bed, no published payload headroom to speak of, and a 180-hp naturally-aspirated boxer with 178 lb-ft at 3,700 rpm labors with a trailer behind it.

Should hold up with care but is unproven under hard use. The FB25 boxer and Lineartronic CVT carry over rather than being new for 2025 and have a solid high-mileage record, Subaru sits second on Consumer Reports' most-reliable-brands list, and the Sport trim's StarTex upholstery wipes clean. Against that, the CVT is the recognized long-term watch item and is the wrong transmission to load repeatedly, this is a unibody crossover with no commercial or fleet presence, and 2025 is a launch year with two build-tolerance recalls already against it.

Basic provisions and an outdoor — not work — accessory ecosystem. Roof rails are standard on every trim with deep Subaru, Thule and Yakima crossbar support, the cargo floor has tie-down hooks, underfloor storage and a flat wide surface, and washable StarTex seating plus all-weather liners are orderable. But there is no onboard AC outlet anywhere in the lineup, the 176-lb dynamic roof rating is ordinary, and nothing resembling a commercial upfit catalog — ladder racks, shelving, partitions — exists for it.

A good tourer with a couple of endurance limits. Roughly 481 miles of range, front seats that testers cover several hundred miles in without complaint, a cabin the sixth-generation redesign made audibly quieter, and standard adaptive cruise with lane centering on every trim add up to a relaxed interstate car. Highway wind noise still intrudes, the flat seat cushions lack lateral support, and the 180-hp boxer needs a long run-up for passes on grade.

A genuine adventure enabler and the Forester's strongest use case. Symmetrical full-time AWD is standard on every trim with no front-drive base model to avoid, X-MODE with Hill Descent Control arrives at Premium (dual-function Snow/Dirt and Deep Snow/Mud from Sport up), ground clearance is 8.7 in with 19.0-degree approach and 24.6-degree departure angles, roof rails are standard across the line, and the outdoor accessory ecosystem around this nameplate is among the largest in the segment. It stops short of the very top because 1,500 lbs of towing rules out most trailered toys, there is no onboard AC power for camping, and there is no low range or locking differential.

Flexible in shape if not in raw volume. The 60/40 rear seat folds to a flat 69.1 cu ft (74.4 cu ft without the panoramic moonroof) through a low, wide, square opening with a low liftover, and tie-down hooks, underfloor storage, standard roof rails and an available hitch cover the bulky-gear cases — testers repeatedly say the hold works better than its number. What keeps it mid-band is that number: 27.5 cu ft behind the second row sits in the bottom third of the segment against a CR-V's ~39.

The sixth-generation Forester rides on a chassis Subaru claims is 10% stiffer, and standard Symmetrical AWD makes it sure-footed and well-planted at the test track — but the suspension was deliberately softened for 2025, so body roll increased in exchange for ride comfort, and 8.7 in. of ground clearance keeps the mass high. Secure and confidence-inspiring rather than agile; the Sport's firmer damper tune trims the roll slightly.

Subaru fitted a version of the WRX's dual-pinion electric rack at a quick 13.0:1 ratio and 2.6 turns lock-to-lock, which kills the old car's pothole kickback and shimmy — but reviewers uniformly report accuracy without feedback, and weighting that is too light on-center. The isolation is a deliberate trade for rough-road manners rather than an oversight.

105 ft from 60 mph is a genuinely short stop for a compact SUV — most of the class sits in the 115-125 ft range — and MotorWeek rated the pedal as strong and repeatable with no fade. Ventilated discs at both ends (12.4 in. front, 11.8 in. rear) are more hardware than most rivals fit, and Brake Assist, EBD and Auto Vehicle Hold are standard.

The naturally-aspirated boxer is free of turbo lag and smooth at idle and light throttle, and revised tuning moves peak torque lower, but 178 lb-ft at 3,700 rpm leaves the response flat and the Lineartronic CVT pins the revs high under acceleration without delivering matching thrust. Reviewers call the powertrain the vehicle's weakest link, and the volume Premium trim gets only a low-shift mode rather than the paddle-operated 8-speed manual mode.

Extra sound deadening and hydraulic engine mounts make the 2025 cabin measurably calmer than the outgoing car's, and cruising is quiet enough for normal conversation — but the CVT's habit of holding revs turns any hard throttle application into sustained boxer drone, and highway wind noise off the boxy body is still noticeable. Audible but inoffensive at cruise, coarse under load.

Subaru publishes a single 35.4 ft curb-to-curb figure for the 2025 lineup — tight for a compact SUV and helped by the quick 13.0:1 dual-pinion rack, making parking and U-turns easy despite the tall body.

Outward visibility is a class benchmark — large glass, a low beltline and thin pillars all round — paired with an upright, commanding seating position, a wide seat and tilt/telescoping range that suits both short and tall drivers, and physical volume and tuning knobs retained alongside the 11.6-in. screen. The only complaints are that very tall drivers still sit high at the seat's lowest setting and that the touchscreen can lag.

The Forester's appeal is competence, not entertainment: 180 hp, a CVT, numb steering and 8.2 s to 60 mph add up to a vehicle no enthusiast recommends for the drive itself. What character it has emerges off-pavement, where the AWD, ground clearance and forgiving suspension let it cover rough dirt roads quickly — a satisfying kind of capability, but not the take-the-long-way-home sort.

Every 2025 Forester includes Symmetrical AWD, the latest EyeSight suite with adaptive cruise and lane centering, steering-responsive LED headlights, dual-zone automatic climate and 17-inch alloys at $29,995 — AWD alone is a $1,400-1,500 option on a CR-V or RAV4. The catch is the Base trim's dual 7.0-inch screens: the 11.6-inch Multimedia Plus display with wireless CarPlay/Android Auto doesn't arrive until Premium, a $3,390 step up.

Fair rather than standout. The redesign moved Premium to $34,805 delivered, so the volume Forester now costs about what an AWD CR-V EX or RAV4 XLE does while making 180 hp from a carryover-displacement boxer — Edmunds rated the 2025 car just 5.6/10, largely on powertrain and interior-material grounds. Against that, standard AWD plus full ADAS across the range and Consumer Reports' 93/100 overall score mean the content is genuinely there for the money.

Nine configurations for 2025: gas Base, Premium, Sport, Limited and Touring spanning $31,415-$43,015 delivered, joined in spring 2025 by a four-trim Forester Hybrid line (Premium/Sport/Limited/Touring) from $36,595. Well-spaced steps, though there is no 2025 Wilderness — Subaru kept building the 2024 Wilderness alongside instead — and no drivetrain or engine choice within the gas line.

The redesign landed well: 175,070 US sales in calendar 2025, Subaru's second-best-selling carline behind Crosstrek, including a 22,570-unit March that was the Forester's best month ever. That places it around 10th in the compact-SUV pack — far behind RAV4/CR-V volume, but rising rather than fading.

Subaru's outdoor/safety/family identity and unusually sticky owner base lift the Forester above what its spec sheet alone would earn, and Consumer Reports named Subaru its best automotive brand for 2025. Not aspirational the way a premium badge is, but clearly better than neutral among mainstream marques.

Scored on buyer benefit, and Subaru is a thin-incentive brand: the 2025 Forester generally transacted near sticker in its launch year with modest lease support rather than cash on the hood. Some subvented financing did appear on the Hybrid (0% APR for 75 months, ~$269/mo lease on Premium Hybrid), and Subaru's ~$35,700-$37,100 brand average transaction price through 2025 shows no desperation pricing — but little discount for shoppers either.

2025 is the launch year of the sixth-generation Forester — new body, revised platform and structure, all-new interior with the 11.6-inch portrait display, and a new hybrid powertrain added within the same model year. There is no fresher a nameplate can be, and zero redesign risk for a buyer.

Award-rich but not a comparison-test winner. The 2025 Forester made Consumer Reports' Annual Ten Top Picks for a 12th straight year with a 93/100 overall and a 92 road-test score, and took IIHS TOP SAFETY PICK+ (excluding Wilderness). Enthusiast outlets are cooler: Car and Driver's verdict on the new generation was more modern but no more engaging, and Edmunds scored it 5.6/10, both citing the 180-hp boxer and CVT.