[vash]

my wife has a 2005 subaru forester. (we are lesbians)..anyways, we bought the turbo version. absolutely great in the mountians. the thing rockets up hills, any elevation. no issues. gas mileage, not so great. we get about 22 mpg average. on a road trip (pig hunt near tejon) i got 25. plenty of storage space, leather heated seats. where to put the dead animal? i think a thule roof basket would work perfectly. i was just about to order one, when i opted to buy a toyota tacoma instead. second choice would have been a tiny, hyperlight utility trailer behind the forester. i love the forester! i have taken it hunting (unsuccesfully, i might add) on lots of occasions, and it has never let me down. i had to wash the motor down, after a particularly dusty backroads trip. quick air filter change, and the wife never knew about my near road rally expedition!

if we did it again, we would probably stay away from the turbo. premium gas, lower mileage...maybe not needed 80% of the time. as i understand it, the NA versions get killer mileage.

we had annoying road noise. a recent tire change took care of most of the noise.