Used 2011 Subaru Forester for Sale

This car has been outstanding overall. Large enough and safe enough for my family of four. Great in all seasons, excellent in the snow.

The Forester is not a flashy vehicle. It isn't a Mercedes, or a BMW, or a Land Rover. It isn't a Lexus or Honda or Toyota or really any of the well-known brands. The company that makes it has a really industrial sounding name that you would associate with a steel foundry and not, probably, a car line. Fuji Heavy Industries isn't going to impress anyone. But they make a heck of a car. Their cars are equipped with an unusual engine, called a "boxer." Think of it as a V-4 where you keep opening the V until the engine is flat, with the pistons facing each other. This makes the engine sit low in the car, giving it tremendous holding power on turns. With it's standard 4-wheel drive -- for which it is renowned -- it goes in snow. With its high ground clearance, it goes through puddles. But for me, the best part is that it becomes obvious that the engineers understand what is helpful. Open the hood, and you see that some things in the engine compartment are yellow. Those are the things you can maintain. The oil fill, brake fluid reservoir cover, coolant and even washer fluid covers are all clearly marked. What's really amazing is, of all things, the oil filter. It's right up front, and on top of the engine. If you've ever watched a mechanic try to get to the oil filter on a conventional engine, you know it involves getting an arm up from under the engine and finding the filter, at which point dirty oil spills out. On the Forester (and other Subarus) you can change the filter without getting dirty by just unscrewing it, letting the oil go into the cup surrounding the filter, and then screwing in a new one. Another feature I liked was that the place where the windshield wipers stay is heated, so that they don't stick and it helps them to clear your window.

I was drawn to the Subaru Forester because of its reviews. In person I noticed the Forester had a lot of room and options for the price. When I purchased my Forester I was living in northern Rhode Island so I needed a car that could deal with the harsh winter weather. At the time Subaru offered the New England package for the Forester. This included heated cloth seats, a heated section under the windshield wipers and heated mirrors. All of these features with the symmetrical all wheel drive made this car a solid choice. I was working for a waste water plant so I needed to be able to get to work, during super storm Nemo that dropped tons of snow on New England I was able to get to work and back home multiple times without much issue. I was one of the only people on the road and the Subaru just kept going.