Used 2005 Subaru Forester Consumer Reviews
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Love this car, but...
kmcglynn, 11/24/2012
2005 Subaru Forester XS AWD 4dr Wagon (2.5L 4cyl 4A)
47 of 49 people found this review helpful
We love our 2005 Forester! It is a ton of fun to drive, and the leatherette interior with heated seats is very good for all of the bad weather we have here in the Pacific Northwest. This is one of the better quality SUVs for the money and the AWD is great!! However I do have one small issue with it. We barely hit 80k miles on our Forester and we already need to get the head gaskets replaced, which have set us back another $2,000. This has been the only problem with the car and it is running perfectly other than this issue, however we did some research and it is a HUGE problem with Subaru engines throughout the lineup. If you can get over that though, this car is definitely worth the money!!
2005 Subaru Forester
lucasr, 06/06/2012
2005 Subaru Forester X AWD 4dr Wagon (2.5L 4cyl 4A)
31 of 32 people found this review helpful
I recently purchased a 2005 Forester with 95k miles on it, and will be using it as my college vehicle. It had 2 previous owners and no accidents reported. It appeared to be mechanically sound. So far, it has been an excellent vehicle. The ride is smooth, and it handles nicely. Some complain about power on these vehicles - I have had no issues with power. I drive plenty both in town and in the country where I live. It is excellent in both settings. I have no issues with getting up to speed on the freeway. My gas mileage has been an acceptable 20-22 mpg, and I expect it to be a little better when I take it for my first long trip on the highway. So far, this vehicle has been a joy to own.
GREAT VEHICLE
4TIRES, 06/03/2005
2005 Subaru Forester X AWD 4dr Wagon (2.5L 4cyl 5M)
18 of 18 people found this review helpful
I've had it for 2 months now and did some camping (therefore loaded it a lot) drove in hilly roads and so far, nothing to complain about! Great purchase, great handling, good power/weight ratio. Good feature too, the hill holder that prevent the vehicle from going backward on an inclined road (excellent when you are fully loaded in a very steep road at a traffic light).
Simply The Best Small SUV
CC Rider, 08/13/2010
2005 Subaru Forester XT AWD 4dr Wagon w/Premium Package (2.5L 4cyl Turbo 4A)
28 of 30 people found this review helpful
We've had our Forester XT Turbo for 5 years now and it has over 130,000 miles. It sees hard daily use for both business and personal reasons. In comparing this with other small SUVs which we test drove, like the RAV4, CR-V, Liberty, Highlander and Pilot, there was simply no comparison. It easily out accelerated, braked and handled all the others. The interior has lots of neat little compartments to store everything from pens, pencils, cups, change, glasses, map books and more. The H4 engine performs very well, but tends to use more oil than most fours we've had. Problems at 100,000K have been a new radiator, cam timing belt and power steering pump. Gas mileage is mediocre at 20.
Eleven Years, then four more years
Bruce C. Ogilvie, 02/07/2018
updated 02/10/2020
2005 Subaru Forester XS AWD 4dr Wagon w/Moonroof (2.5L 4cyl 4A)
26 of 28 people found this review helpful
Bought this 2005 used in 2007, and then the rest of the story: original review - AWD that really works - and winter driving in Northern Michigan with Blizzack Snowtires = safe driving and security, what more is needed? Low maintenance costs over eleven years - bought the 60,000 mile warranty and never used it! Rebuilt engine at 100,000 miles - head gaskets, timing belt, new pumps and belts - plan to keep it for another 80,000 miles or more. New information: In December 2018, after being sideswiped by a speeding large SUV - the insurance company "totaled" the car, refused to repair the sheet metal damage. So we bought the 2005 Subaru, fixed it after the winter 'rush' at the collision center. In the interim, we bought a 2012 Subaru Forester to use. After repairs, the 2005 Subaru looked good as new and our next door neighbor offered us so much money for the car that we sold it to him. Now, two years later he still happily drives it, and we are still using the temporary 2012 Subaru. I am not sure who is better off ... he has turned down several offers to sell his 2005 ... no one has offered us anything for the 2012. I think he has the better car.
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