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4.5

2004 Subaru Forester

Starts at:
$21,020
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4dr 2.5 X Manual 4dr 2.5 X Manual 4dr 2.5 X Auto 4dr 2.5 X Auto 4dr 2.5 XS Manual 4dr 2.5 XS Manual 4dr 2.5 XS Auto 4dr 2.5 XS Auto 4dr 2.5 XS Manual w/Premium Pkg 4dr 2.5 XS Manual w/Premium Pkg 4dr 2.5 XS Auto w/Premium Pkg 4dr 2.5 XS Auto w/Premium Pkg 4dr 2.5 XT Manual 4dr 2.5 XT Manual 4dr 2.5 XS Auto w/Prem Pkg & Lthr 4dr 2.5 XS Auto w/Prem Pkg & Lthr 4dr 2.5 XT Auto 4dr 2.5 XT Auto 4dr 2.5 XT Auto w/Prem Pkg & Lthr 4dr 2.5 XT Auto w/Prem Pkg & Lthr Shop options
New 2004 Subaru Forester
Choose trim
Compare trims
4dr 2.5 X Manual 4dr 2.5 X Manual 4dr 2.5 X Auto 4dr 2.5 X Auto 4dr 2.5 XS Manual 4dr 2.5 XS Manual 4dr 2.5 XS Auto 4dr 2.5 XS Auto 4dr 2.5 XS Manual w/Premium Pkg 4dr 2.5 XS Manual w/Premium Pkg 4dr 2.5 XS Auto w/Premium Pkg 4dr 2.5 XS Auto w/Premium Pkg 4dr 2.5 XT Manual 4dr 2.5 XT Manual 4dr 2.5 XS Auto w/Prem Pkg & Lthr 4dr 2.5 XS Auto w/Prem Pkg & Lthr 4dr 2.5 XT Auto 4dr 2.5 XT Auto 4dr 2.5 XT Auto w/Prem Pkg & Lthr 4dr 2.5 XT Auto w/Prem Pkg & Lthr Shop options
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Key specifications

Highlights
Gas Flat 4-Cyl
Engine Type
21 City / 28 Hwy
MPG
165 hp
Horsepower
5
Seating Capacity
Engine
166 @ 4000
SAE Net Torque @ RPM
165 @ 5600
SAE Net Horsepower @ RPM
2.5L/150
Displacement
Gas Flat 4-Cyl
Engine Type
Suspension
w/Parallel Links
Suspension Type - Rear (Cont.)
w/Lower L-Arms
Suspension Type - Front (Cont.)
HD Raised
Suspension Type - Rear
HD Raised
Suspension Type - Front
Weight & Capacity
N/A
Aux Fuel Tank Capacity, Approx
16 gal
Fuel Tank Capacity, Approx
Not Available lbs
Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Tongue Wt.
Not Available lbs
Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Trailer Wt.
Electrical
90
Maximum Alternator Capacity (amps)
356
Cold Cranking Amps @ 0° F (Primary)
Brakes
Yes
Drum - Rear (Yes or )
Not Available in
Rear Brake Rotor Diam x Thickness
11.4 x 0.94 in
Front Brake Rotor Diam x Thickness
Not Available
Disc - Rear (Yes or )

Notable features

New turbocharged 2.5 XT
AWD
Active-type AWD in new 2.5 XT
Manual or automatic transmission
Side-impact airbags

Engine

166 @ 4000 SAE Net Torque @ RPM
165 @ 5600 SAE Net Horsepower @ RPM
2.5L/150 Displacement
Gas Flat 4-Cyl Engine Type

Suspension

w/Parallel Links Suspension Type - Rear (Cont.)
w/Lower L-Arms Suspension Type - Front (Cont.)
HD Raised Suspension Type - Rear
HD Raised Suspension Type - Front

Weight & Capacity

N/A Aux Fuel Tank Capacity, Approx
16 gal Fuel Tank Capacity, Approx
Not Available lbs Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Tongue Wt.
Not Available lbs Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Trailer Wt.
176 lbs Dead Weight Hitch - Max Tongue Wt.
2,400 lbs Dead Weight Hitch - Max Trailer Wt.
3,090 lbs Base Curb Weight

Electrical

90 Maximum Alternator Capacity (amps)
356 Cold Cranking Amps @ 0° F (Primary)

Brakes

Yes Drum - Rear (Yes or )
Not Available in Rear Brake Rotor Diam x Thickness
11.4 x 0.94 in Front Brake Rotor Diam x Thickness
Not Available Disc - Rear (Yes or )
Yes Disc - Front (Yes or )
N/A Brake ABS System (Second Line)
4-Wheel Brake ABS System
Power Brake Type

Photo & video gallery

2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester 2004 Subaru Forester

Factory warranties

New car program benefits

Basic
3 years / 36,000 miles
Corrosion
5 years
Powertrain
5 years / 60,000 miles
Roadside Assistance
3 years / 36,000 miles

Certified Pre-Owned program benefits

Age / mileage
5 years / 80,000 miles
Basic
Coverage available for purchase
Dealer certification
152-point inspection

The good & the bad

The good

Ride comfort
Handling
Quietness
Easy to drive
Resale value

The bad

Moderate front-seat space
Limited rear-seat room
Undramatic performance

Consumer reviews

4.5 / 5
Based on 49 reviews
Write a review
Comfort 3.9
Interior 4.0
Performance 4.2
Value 4.6
Exterior 3.9
Reliability 4.5

Most recent

Head gasket needed replaced at 135,000 miles.

Head gasket needed replaced at 135,000 miles. A/C compressor went bad at 140k. Seats uncomfortable. Lower control arm snapped when driving. Very dangerous. Recall was useless. Subaru would not reimburse. Very disappointed. Reliable? My experience NO.
  • Purchased a New car
  • Used for Transporting family
  • Does not recommend this car
Comfort 2.0
Interior 2.0
Performance 3.0
Value 2.0
Exterior 2.0
Reliability 1.0
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Insanely reliable.

Insanely reliable. Nothing needed to be replaced in the time I’ve had it, and its 20 years old! Currently at 146k miles. Hope to see my specific Forester reach up to the >250k miles mark like many others!
  • Purchased a Used car
  • Used for Having fun
  • Does recommend this car
Comfort 4.0
Interior 5.0
Performance 3.0
Value 5.0
Exterior 4.0
Reliability 5.0
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2004 Subaru Forester review: Our expert's take

By

Looks Aren’t Everything
2004 Subaru Forester 2.5 XT

Many of us were happy in 1997 when Subaru of America introduced its Forester wagon. It seemed the perfect antidote to lust for large sport-utility vehicles — an agreeably modest offering in the midst of motorized bacchanalia.

The Forester represented good wheels. It was large enough to carry a family of five but small enough to escape the stigma of being an SUV.

It came with standard all-wheel drive, a more benign and arguably more useful form of four-wheel drive for urban and suburban motorists.

All-wheel drive automatically transfers power from slipping to gripping wheels. It is engineered to keep you on-road in rain and snow. Traditional four-wheel drive uses locking differentials to simultaneously send drive power to all four wheels. It’s designed to take you over rocks and through streams and bush — and keep you on the go.

Forester owners are mostly urban and suburban. Over the past six years, they’ve had few complaints about the Forester’s reliability or overall quality. But many have demanded more horsepower.

Thus, we have this week’s test vehicle, the 2004 Forester 2.5 XT. It is ugly, as is the case with most Subarus. But it performs beautifully. It will knock your socks off — and strip you of everything else you’re wearing, too!

Subaru has installed a turbocharged, 2.5-liter, 210-horsepower engine in the Forester 2.5 XT. That’s up from 165 horsepower in the normally aspirated four-cylinder model — “normally aspirated” meaning an engine that uses no extra device, such as a turbocharger or supercharger, to take air into its combustion chambers.

You can feel the difference.

There is a certain whoosh to the 2.5 XT. Initially it is both surprising and disconcerting, especially if you’ve become accustomed to the gentle acceleration of the regular Forester. Drop the 2.5 XT’s standard four-speed automatic transmission into “drive.” Hit the accelerator and, whoosh, you’re off to Zoomsville. That’s rather odd, considering the Forester’s basic, homely personality.

Despite its extra power and improved handling, the 2.5 XT pretty much remains the Forester it has been all along. It is filled with the requisite storage bins and cup holders. There is something inherently parental in its personality. The body remains an ode to all things square and rectangular, with the exception of the redesigned rear hatch, which embraces trapezoidal and triangular geometric themes.

The one indication that the 2.5 XT is different from its other Forester siblings sits atop the hood. It is a functional air scoop, put there to further assist the engine’s breathing. It seems totally out of place on and out of character for the Forester — like something a teenager would stick on his first car with little regard for taste or what looks good.

There isn’t much in the 2 .5 XT’s interior to counter that ugliness, not even in the tested version with the “Premium Package,” which includes leather seats. Subaru has yet to divorce itself from its utilitarian passion for interiors beige, black and gray. It needs to discover color and take some chances using it.

Here’s hoping that Subaru’s executives might one day give to their designers and stylists the same freedom they’ve now given to their engineers, who are turning out hot-to-trot models such as the Forester 2.5 XT wagon and the very successful Impreza WRX.

After all, most of us don’t live for power and speed alone. We sometimes stop to admire the roses, the colors of the rainbow and the deep amber glory of the setting sun.

Nuts & Bolts

Complaints: A general lack of imaginative styling that continues to affect Subarus, even as they become impressively potent performers on the road.

Praise: You’ve got to drive the Forester 2.5 XT to believe it But I’ll wager that once you’ve driven it, you’ll become a true believer. This little wagon can move.

Head-turning quotient: Ugly. Scrap the hood scoop and find another way to help deliver more air to the engine. Nobody stopped to look at this one.

Ride, acceleration and handling: The Forester 2.5 XT is one of the best road performers in the small-wagon class. It gets top marks in all three categories. (I no longer will use the term “crossover vehicle” in describing models such as the 2.5 XT. The term is a marketing ruse, an attempt to peddle what essentially are station wagons as something else.)

Body style/layout: The Forester 2.5 XT is a front-engine, all-wheel-drive, compact, four-door wagon with a rear hatch.

Capacities: It sits five people. Luggage capacity with rear seats up is 32 cubic feet. Cargo capacity doubles that with rear seats down. Fuel capacity is 15.9 gallons. Premium unleaded gasoline is recommended for best performance, but regular unleaded also works fine.

Engine transmission: The Forester 2.5 XT’s horizontally opposed (boxer) 2.5-liter, 16-valve, double-overhead cam, four-cylinder engine develops 210 horsepower at 5,600 revolutions per minute and 235 foot-pounds of torque at 3,600 rpm. It is linked to a standard four-speed automatic transmission. A five-speed manual is available.

Mileage: I averaged 26 miles per gallon in mostly highway driving.

Technical highlight: The 2004 Forester comes with a safety brake pedal, designed to bend forward in a severe collision. Subaru engineers say that the feature reduces the risk of injuries to feet and other lower extremities in crashes.

Price: Base price for the tested Premium Forester 2.5 XT is $27,520. Dealer’s invoice price, including the $550 destination charge, is $25,612. Your total price, including the $500 transportation fee, is $28,070.

Purse-strings note: Ugly or not, it’s a buy. Compare with Audi A4, Volkswagen Jetta wagon, VW Passat wagon, Ford Escape/Mazda tribute, Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4.

Read more

Safety review

Based on the 2004 Subaru Forester base trim
NHTSA crash test and rollover ratings, scored out of 5.
Frontal driver
5/5
Frontal passenger
5/5
Side driver
5/5
Side rear passenger
5/5

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