2014 Subaru Forester: Subaru Cracks The SUV Mainstream

When making any type of change to a vehicle that counts for close to a quarter of your total sales in Canada - a country where your market share is among the strongest - it's only natural to proceed very, very carefully.  The 2014 Subaru Forester, which has seen its Canadian sales increase roughly tenfold since its introduction at the end of the 90s, represents a dedicated effort toward improving a platform without succumbing to any of the potentially distracting trends sweeping through the SUV segment.  After having driven the end result on the sodden roads of Vancouver Island last week, I can confidently state that the new edition of the small people mover stays true to its roots while enhancing several key aspects of its character in a bid to build an even more competent Forester for one of the most loyal groups of buyers in the business.

Bigger, But Not By Much

Subaru considers the 2013 Subaru Forester to be a compact vehicle, which might sound a little odd considering that the brand introduced another compact family hauler - the Crosstrek XV - only a few short months ago.  The latter is considered a 'crossover,' while the Forester was consistently referred to by executives during the course of the test drive event as the brand's 'true SUV.'

What exactly does that mean?  For starters, in translates into more passenger space at each position, with the new Forester offering better legroom front and rear as well as enhanced should room.  The vehicle's door openings have been enlarged to make it easier when dealing with child seats, and its door sills have been lowered in order to reduce the amount of effort required to enter the automobile.  A flatter load floor (with the second row folded), a power liftgate for hands-free cargo access, and a somewhat larger amount of total storage space are now also in the cards for the five-seat SUV.

All of this has been accomplished despite only a token inflation of the Subaru Forester's external dimensions.  A slightly longer wheelbase and overall measure keep the vehicle well within the expected limits of the segment, and a tad wider track is also present and accounted for.

Updated Looks, Familiar Interior Trappings

Although it maintains its familiar upright shape - especially the reams of glass front and rear that offer excellent visibility to the driver - the 2014 Subaru Forester has seen its exterior lines smoothed out in comparison to the 2013 model.  A bolder, more focused grille is enhanced by sharper headlights and an outgoing front bumper treatment, which mesh well with the vehicle's slab sides.  The sporty XT model also comes with its own special front fascia and deletes the previous year's hood scoop, preferring instead to suck in under-hood air via a duct at the top of its grille.  The overall effect is attractive for all models and doesn't draw much attention to the Forester's larger proportions.

Inside the Forester, it's status quo from Subaru.  The materials used throughout the vehicle's cabin are inoffensive enough, but they do lean heavily towards the 'budget' side of the equation, which is a familiar offence from the Japanese brand.  The design of the Forester's dash is pleasantly simple, although I am not a fan of the egregiously basic stereo systems that dominate the center stack of every model of the SUV regardless of which trim level is ordered.  Interior sound control is excellent, as engine and wind noise are kept to a bare minimum even at higher speeds.

One major passenger compartment highlight is the absolutely enormous glass sunroof that can be had with the Forester, a panoramic design that actually opens its full length in order to let in a substantial amount of sunshine and summer breeze.  The Subaru is also available with the Eyesight safety system, which makes use of a pair of stereoscopic cameras mounted at the top of the windshield in order to provide automatic cruise control and accident avoidance capability.

Drivetrains Better Across The Board

Unchanged for 2014 is the Subaru Forester's base 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine.  This horizontally-opposed unit produces 170 horsepower and 174 lb-ft of torque, which is adequate at motivating the SUV from point A to point B.  A major update, however, can be found on the list of available transmissions for this particular unit.  Gone are the vehicle's trusty five-speed manual and archaic four-speed automatic and in their place are a new six-speed row-it-yourself box and a fresh continuously-variable automatic.

In all honestly, I found that the CVT was a better match for the base model's personality, as the six-speed manual had me changing gears on a regular basis (using its imprecise knob-and-stalk) simply to keep up with traffic.  The CVT was considerably smoother and more adept at managing the four-cylinder's power regardless of the driving situation I found myself in.  As a further bonus, the CVT offers a dramatic boost in fuel economy compared to the year before, with a rating of 8.3 l/100 km city and 6.2 l/100 km on the highway.  This represents a combined boost of 1.4 l/100 km, and places the Forester's ahead of all other all-wheel drive SUVs on sale in Canada in terms of efficiency.

Not to be left out of the party is the new engine available under the hood of the turbocharged Forester XT.  This 2.0-liter unit's frugal fuel sipping ways actually see it consuming less gasoline than 2013's base engine (8.9 l/100 km city and 7.2 l/100 km highway), thanks in large part to the introduction of a high performance edition of Subaru's CVT transmission.  More kilometre's per tank are accompanied by a concomitant increase in horsepower, with the XT jumping to 250 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque.  That rating is dependent on the use of 93 octane gas, however, which will add a bit of an extra cost to the fuel bill face by speed-hungry SUV owners.

Dynamically, The Best Forester Ever

Subaru's standard all-wheel drive system is more than just a company trademark - it's also a significant component of how well the 2014 Forester handles itself in a variety of different driving conditions.  The rain-soaked roads between Nanaimo and Ucluelet provided no real challenge to either the base or XT editions of the SUV, with the Forester sticking to the pavement even when dealing with elevation changes and tight switchbacks.  In particular, the XT model's upgraded suspension, paired with the overall improvement in structural rigidity given to all versions of the Forester, made it fun to push hard through the corners.  It's not a sports car, but it's certainly more responsive than many of its peers when the go-pedal is mashed to the floor, summoning up 100 km/h from a standing start in just a tick over six seconds.  All of this is accomplished without compromising ride quality, as the XT and non-XT models soaked up potholes and gravel roads with ease.

The vehicle's continuously-variable transmission offers a few additional surprises not previously available with the Forester.  A new 'X-Mode' gives drivers increased ability to handle steep grades as well as significantly slippery surfaces by way of adding crawl control and better torque distribution to the Forester's all-wheel drive system.  The feature - which further feeds into the Forester's branding as a 'true SUV' - can be turned on and off at speeds of less than 20 km/h.  Two new settings associated with the XT's CVT, Sport and Sport Sharp, add six and eight virtual gear ratios, respectively, which can be accessed via steering wheel-mounted paddles.  Even when left in automatic mode, Sport Sharp transforms the Forester XT's throttle response from good to great, making the Sport setting superfluous and significantly contributing to the urge to pull off rally-style shenanigans.

A Legitimate Mainstream Option

The 2014 Subaru Forester is perhaps the most concerted effort yet from the automaker to break into the compact SUV mainstream.  I say this with admiration, and not scorn, as Subaru has manage to preserve what most owners loved about the Forester while paying attention to several areas that needed improvement.  With additional passenger comfort, a more modern range of drivetrain options, and the kind of fuel economy that simply can't be ignored, the Subaru Forester has pushed its way into the conversation for any family seeking an affordable daily driver that can handle a very wide range of lifestyles and transportation needs - and that's not even including the extra adrenaline offered by the turbocharged XT.  By staying true to the design principles that made Subaru one of the few companies to emerge unscathed from the recent recession, the Forester's design team have put together another SUV winner that should find a broader audience than ever before.