[Hostel56]

A Crosstrek is a really attractive package here in Canada. I’ve owned an Impreza. As nice as that car was at the time, it was more of a snowplow in the winter. Ground clearance was no better than a Mazda 3, but with a far more capable AWD system. So it didn’t make the most sense.

A Crosstrek covers many of the bases that an Impreza didn’t. Plus it gets great fuel economy because it has less chassis to drag around than an OB and better aero than a Forester. In my mind, cargo space is the big deciding factor.

Power to weight ratio is pretty consistent across the Subaru line (there’s not a radical difference if you compare naturally aspirated to naturally aspirated… or turbo to turbo). Exceptions apply most acutely when you throw a WRX into the comparison, but these are generally tamer now than they were back in the day.

I was looking at the crosstrek originally, but I soon realized I want more cargo and cabin space. The small, light weight, little car that could vibe I get from them is appealing.

 

[Hostel56]

The 2.4 turbo is the main reason why I got the Outback, otherwise I would have considered the Forester that's lighter weight for the same naturally aspirated 2.5 motor.

That's the main draw to the outback. It's a hard choice. Dang it subaru! Give the forester a turbo option!

 

[HKshooter]

Subaru decided to stop making the Outback in the US, supposedly because the Forester sells better. So they will make the Forester in the US, previously only made in Japan, and make the OB in Japan.
For the first few months since the Forester's 2025 introduction it's sales have been in a slump and it remains yet to be seen if they will recover. Do people not like the 2025? Or is there a delay of some sort in the process? I don't know.
I'll say I'm disappointed the OB is moving to Japan, though. We drive OBs and enjoyed knowing they were made here by family. The Forester, not interested. And being made in the US isn't going to be a factor that makes me buy one.

 

[Fujisawa]

I walked into the dealership expecting to buy a crosstrek or a forester. I left with an outback onyx. I test drove the outback, forester, and crosstrek.

The forester feels more like a regular old crossover SUV. It drives like one too. The outback is a bit more refined and feels more like a car that's just really long with a lot of space as opposed to being more like an SUV.

I had a 04 Jeep Wrangler X before that. After having it for almost 20 years when I bought the OB, I realized that the off road ability was a lot of fun but I barely used it and found myself driving places (like ski hills) on highways far more than going off road.

Outback has longer cargo space, if you are under 6 feet it's not bad to sleep in, and it holds stuff like snowboards extremely well.

Forester is more like a Jeep Cherokee in that it's louder, rides a little rougher, a big better off road, etc than the OB. But the OB is more like a luxury vehicle (it's not one, but it's closer to one) that is very good in bad conditions (think snow, ice, etc).

Personally I got over the off road toughness part after having a Wrangler for 20 years and dealing with bad rides on highways, bad fuel econ, etc. OB is comfy as can be on a highway, fits a ton of stuff, and the only times I've really had problems with traction in bad conditions where when I was intentionally trying to do things on the stock tires I shouldn't, like stopping in a moderate incline in slush/ice/snow and trying to start again.

Did you test drive either? Do you have any expectations? I do a lot of snowboarding, the fuel economy, ride quality, and AWD ability has made me very happy with the OB but a lot of that overlaps with the Forester. That said if you test drive you will feel a difference, Forester feels like a $30k vehicle and Outback feels like a $50k vehicle, at least my Onyx does.

i second all of this.

the cars are very similar mechanically, with the base 2.5 engine (the upgrade differs in each case)

what is different is the "focus" the cars have. The Outback excels at long distance travel in comfort, then immediately driving off the pavement at the end of the trip. The Forester is less refined and a bit more durable, better for dogs. These are fairly minor differences, but most people seem to know which kind of feel they prefer.

The Forester has a more upright seat and greenhouse; the Outback fits longer items and people who want to sit "in" the seat not "on top of" one.

Subaru has played with the price differential, but it's not really material. I feel like you're getting a lot for the money either way. The outback is about 60% Mercedes, 10% WRX and 30% John Deere.

 

[SubiJeffrey]

The outback is about 60% Mercedes, 10% WRX and 30% John Deere.

Quote of the day!

 

[SilverOnyx]

As much as I like Subarus and have had 4 of them, depending on my needs and what's available I'm not tied to them.

My next vehicle is likely to be a hybrid unless I get photovoltaic on my roof then it might be an EV. My driving has changed since I retired and it's just short trip city driving 3-4 times a week, I never off road.

If it weren't for the 2.4 turbo in the Outback I would probably still be driving my 2011 WRX.

 

[Maik]

My wife and I set out to buy a 2023 Forester based on reviews and on paper specs....went for a test drive and hated it. Noisy, poor ride, lack of comfort and outdated tech.
Decided to give an outback a shot, so we took out an outback... I was shocked...the Outback was everything I hoped the Forester would be. In my opinion, the two cars are miles apart....Forester felt very cheap, while the outback felt like a premium car. We ordered an outback touring xt and have been quite happy with the selection.

 

[ragnar]

Very likely wife and I will be making the same kind of choice 12 months from now. Will be replacing our '16 Forester when its SOA-issued extended 10-year CVT warranty expires. Not having any problems with it, but I don't have as high a comfort level as I'd like, since obviously there have been enough problems with the early-gen CVT that they voluntarily issued extended warranties at no cost for this model year.

Just for grins, I did a price comparison on the Subaru "Build" site, and I was surprised at the small price differential between similarly-equipped 2025 Forester vs. Outback.

Link to SOA "Build" site:
Build and Price Your Subaru Today | See Options & Colors

Silver's observations re: last vs first generation definitely apply.

Really wish the Forester was available with turbo. Although rationally, our current NA Forester does fine for our usual needs.

Hoping that the styling on the Gen 7 OB will be an improvement against current bug-eyed & cladded looks. I like the looks on my '20 OB well enough, but the yearly refreshes have gone downhill since. Hoping the Gen 7 comes out early enough to be available for consideration.

 

[Roundabout2021]

This thread is long lived and really accurate.

I will add one issue we found. With the Outback, it is easier to get things in and out of the roof box (and to put the roof box on and off the swinging and stowing crossbars of the OB's rack). We are older and not NBA prospects so any bit helps. OB and Forester have the same ground clearance, but the lift onto the roof medal goes to the OB. Plus when we test drove the Forester, my wife compared the passenger seat to a Toyota Tacoma..., I had wanted the OB so case closed in the mutual interest of all parties. I have not seen the new Forester live yet.

 

[Ty13r]

Definitely test drive them! I've had a few Foresters which I loved but the newest generation feels terrible to me since they increased the size. In my wife's car it would feel like a struggle merging on the highway - desperately in need of a turbo!

 

[Bassman]

While I have not had a recent model of the Forester (I had an '18), I went with the Outback in 2021 instead of another Forester, as I wanted a car which would tow a bit more than the Forester (2700 lbs. Vs 1500). Also, the Outback was quieter and had a better ride. Since it is now our only car, I am glad I made that switch.

 

[Rand]

Some opinions of mine might not directly translate to you:

How important is the turbo motor? 50% more hp and torque
That was the major decision maker for me.
Outback seating is more carlike.. but not exactly a vw golf.
I like wagons. Space in rear is absolutely massive/usable even compared to the fairly generous space in the forester.
(note this is comparison for this size of vehicle for example the forester has much more space than a cherokee)

I owned 2011,2015,2022 foresters, 2017 2019 cherokees, now a 2024 outback onyx XT.


The outback is so much better on highway trips than my 22 wilderness.. it might have been a fault of my forester but I had it aligned etc.. and it never liked going straight
a twitch and you were fighting to stay in the road lines on 90w by Cleveland... ie it felt like an intermittant 25mph sidewind.. even in gentle breeze.

Everytime I wasn't on a highway trip I did like the forester ALOT.

A 2024 loaner forester sport was quite nice. It drove considerably better than my 22 wilderness.

For me I was able to upgrade from the forester to the outback get 3500 off msrp, 1.99% financing, and a good trade in(GTP) value so it made sense to me.. I had 30 payments($500) left on the forester
went to 48 payments on the outback at $433 .

I like both. The forester did have better visibility but the outback isnt terrible.
The prices esp.. non-turbo outback are very similar.
Outback is about 8-9" longer (at least for the 2024's) bigger but not TOO big.
vs an Ascent(tight fit) or mazda cx-90 that are too big for my garage.

The big screen on the outback isnt THAT bad. Not ideal but not annoying like the Mazda rotary knob system.

I'd go drive both.. Seats are a little better on outback.

Gas mileage is almost the same forester wilderness(2.5) vs outback onyx xt (2.4T)
The turbo engine warms up at least 2x faster than the fb25.

Edit: if this post looks like I just wrote down some stuff and kept adding to it out of order... you would be right

 

[grimsurfer]

@Bassman mentioned towing capacity of the last Gen Subarus.

I guess that a Subaru upgraded the chassis of both the Forester and OB for their most current generations.

According to Subaru, 3000 lbs towing capacity for the Forester vs 3500 lbs for the Outback att. This is not a significant difference for people towing a small hobby trailer for gardening of a motorcycle, but it could make a difference.

Personally, I’d never tow payloads this high with a CVT. I probably got to 2000-2200 lbs on level ground a few times with my 2015, but that was a 6MT… and that felt like “enough” even though Ts and Ps were all normal.

 

[Mtn_Biker]

As most have said, drive both and see what your gut likes better. I've always been an Outback guy. I've owned 3 so 2 years ago when we were looking for a new vehicle for my wife, she test drove all kinds of cars. She drove the '23 Forester against a '22 OB (almost brand new with around 6K miles on it). We both liked the Forester better. Not an apples to apples comparison due to the model years but close enough for her to immediately go buy the Forester after the OB test drive.

That said, there is definitely a lot less cargo space in the Forester but since my 'beca is the one we take kayaking, biking, camping, etc., it's fine. We did take the Forester on a 5K mile road trip last summer and it was incredibly comfortable, great gas mileage, and well beyond anything we expected on the trip. We did go with the Forester Touring so makes sense.

I really dislike the look of the 5th gen OB. I don't know what they were thinking on that one. I LOVE the look of the '25 Forester and it would be very high on my list if I were looking for a new car but my 'beca has only 87K so I'll be driving her for quite a while.

 

[YeuEmMaiMai]

Subaru decided to stop making the Outback in the US, supposedly because the Forester sells better. So they will make the Forester in the US, previously only made in Japan, and make the OB in Japan.
For the first few months since the Forester's 2025 introduction it's sales have been in a slump and it remains yet to be seen if they will recover. Do people not like the 2025? Or is there a delay of some sort in the process? I don't know.
I'll say I'm disappointed the OB is moving to Japan, though. We drive OBs and enjoyed knowing they were made here by family. The Forester, not interested. And being made in the US isn't going to be a factor that makes me buy one.

I am looking forward to seeing if the Japanese built one is of better build quality. They are epecting to free up US Capacity for EV.. Hope as in Hybrid because NO WAY I am going to get a pure EV. it is not practical

 

[SilverOnyx]

Outback is about 8-9" longer (at least for the 2024's) bigger but not TOO big.
vs an Ascent(tight fit) or mazda cx-90 that are too big for my garage.

I considered the Ascent too, but it was too big for my carport, and given how some parking stalls are so small, that extra width of an Ascent would be a real pain in my area. When the stalls are small I see a lot of empty stalls because of encroachment making it almost impossible for anything but a very narrow vehicle to fit.

 

[brett s]

If the Forester had the 2.4 turbo drivetrain available I'd have probably gotten one instead of the Outback. There's a huge performance difference.

I've owned 5 turbocharged Subaru's over the last 20+ years so I admittedly prefer more power - 2 Foresters & 3 Outbacks

 

[Tucoman]

I had a 2018 Forester XT, I now have a 2022 Outback Wilderness.

As others have said, the Outback has a longer wheelbase, cushier and quieter ride and you can get one with a turbo. It’s also got a bit more space for you and your passengers.

The Forester is nice because it’s a bit smaller and a little bit easier to see around and park, but it’s not as refined as the Outback. Still it’s a good SUV and you can get one with ventilated seats now, which is cool.

I’d go OB just for the turbo and cushiness, but I think both are great options.

 

[Hostel56]

I test drove them both yesterday. I'm pretty sure I'm going with the outback. I will say, coming from a guy with a 20 year old honda 4 banger, the forester isn't near as slow as a lot of you tubers complain about. The OB just feels much nicer, and I like the longer storage more than the tall. And, again, coming from a 20 year old beat up honda, the ob is fast. I like it go vroom vroom.

 

[HKshooter]

I will say, coming from a guy with a 20 year old honda 4 banger, the forester isn't near as slow as a lot of you tubers complain about.

Drive an XT then get back to us with an opinion.