Approximately one year ago, I’d finally had enough of my 2016 Subaru Forester, which was purchased new and never lived up to my expectations for it. I wrote a post titled “I Regret Buying a New Subaru.” That turned out to be one of our most popular stories of 2024. Why? It turns out many other Subaru owners felt the same way.
The peculiar thing about this post was that, overall, the car wasn’t a heap. It had never left me stranded on the side of the road. It wasn’t a lemon. I just went through a series of minor annoyances that, when added up, left me feeling like I didn’t get the value I expected. If the car was any type of citrus it was maybe a pomelo, which isn’t a bad fruit unless what you thought you were getting was a clementine.
Given how much I complained about the Forester is it possible I’m just too picky? Perhaps my expectations, as a car reviewer, are just too high. Maybe I am, as some people complained, just a big whiny baby.
It’s been a little more than seven months since I replaced the Forester with a new 2024 Honda CR-V Hybrid and, so far, I have not been disappointed. The original plan was to keep the Subaru until 2027, which means I’m now saddled with a car payment I hadn’t budgeted for and, yet, I think I made the correct call.
A (Brief) Reminder Of All My Subaru Forester Issues
Because my posts about the Subaru were some of the most popular items on the site last year, I’m going to assume most of you read about it so I’ll keep my rehash of this brief. Above is the first photo I ever took of the car, which was a 2016 Subaru Forester Premium with the Cold Weather Package and the base 2.5-liter flat-four.
Having driven a nicer press car version of this for a week I thought I had a good sense of what I was getting, which was a traditionally reliable Japanese economy car with a good AWD system. It would be safe enough for my family, which now included an infant, and whatever it lacked in style I knew would be compensated for with peace of mind.
That’s not what happened.
Quite quickly I realized that the droning continuously variable transmission (CVT) was worse than I remembered. CVT transmissions, in theory, offer better packaging, a lower cost, increased fuel economy, and increased reliability. Over time it became clear that cost aside, I was trading a nominal improvement in fuel economy for a driving experience I couldn’t stand.
Again, I’m a car journalist, I know all about CVTs, but this was the first time I’d had one for months and it seemed to get worse as the miles went on. It was so bad I asked a mechanic who works on Subarus at an independent dealer if I should be worried, and he explained that they’re all just like that.
The Forester was also not particularly economical. Over its lifespan, charitably, it averaged 24 MPG. I do a lot of city driving and this motor/transmission combination is ill-suited to being a school bus.
More importantly, the running costs were way too high for something I’d hoped would be more akin to the Honda Civic we’d previously had. Where to start? It munched tires, requiring a new pair roughly every 25,000 miles. I do live in an urban area with some potholes, but no other car I know of around here required the frequent alignments the Forester needed (I also drove my BMW on these roads for three years without issue).
The battery failed early, and when Subaru finally issued a recall for it (one of many recalls for the vehicle) they wouldn’t reimburse me for one that I bought myself. Headlight bulbs only lasted months before burning out, which is not normal for any car. Subarus love to snap wheel studs, as I discovered. Worst of all, I had to replace both lower control arms and rear wheel bearings within the first few years of ownership, which is thousands of dollars I didn’t plan on spending.
Overall, the Subaru was too much hassle and too much cost. It was good in the snow for the rare times I drove it in wintry conditions. The seats were comfortable. If I didn’t have to budget an extra $2k ever year for upkeep I’d have probably kept it. Honestly, the best thing I can say is that it held its value well, and, after paying $25k for it new, I got around $11k for it used.
How The New CR-V Hybrid Is Stacking Up
I was thinking of titling this post “It’s been six months and I still like my Honda CR-V Hybrid” but someone pointed out to me that no one seems as interested when I’m happy with a car. Unfortunately, from a website traffic perspective, I’ve been mostly impressed.
Right off the bat, the mileage of the CR-V Hybrid exceeded my expectations. Until it got cold, I was averaging about 39 mpg combined. That’s come down a lot since winter and, when we hit a year or 10,000 miles, I’ll update on the total. Right now I’m around 36 MPG combined, which is way better than the Subaru’s 24 MPG. I assume I’ll end up around the expected 37-38 MPG when it warms up outside.
It drives significantly better than my Subaru in most situations. The CR-V’s suspension is set up to be a little more forgiving of bumps, which is what I prefer, even if the steering is a little less direct than what I experienced on the Forester. With the EV motor doing most of the work around town, the Honda’s throttle response is much better. There’s basically no transmission, so any issues with the CVT are gone.
There have been two recalls for the Honda already, which isn’t ideal, but one was quickly and easily addressed by the dealer, who also changed the oil for free. One of the big perks of a new CR-V Hybrid was two years of paid routine maintenance. I don’t expect to have to pay for anything other than gasoline for two years.
There’s still a lot of time for things to go wrong, so don’t take any of this as definitive. I’ll check back in this summer for a full update on how everything has gone. As the honeymoon period wanes I continue to be impressed with the Honda and I’m beginning to suspect that my being a big whiny baby has little to do with my issues with the Forester.
I also drove a brand new Subaru last week without a CVT transmission and, surprise surprise, I liked it. More on that soon.
Top graphic images: Subaru, Matt Hardigee; inset, We’re The Millers/Warner Bros.
Your decision is correct. Most Foresters are crap.
I’m loving the comments. Shows the difference in opinions on what is reliable. Most subie fans consider what Matt went through not as bad as he is making it out to be, while the rest think that a subie that nickel and dimes you is horrible.
Me, my standard was set by my 2003 F150 5.4 triton. 200k miles on the original spark plugs, piss poor maintenance, and it just kept running, despite being the notorious 5.4. Never had to replace anything besides shocks at 150k and tires every 50k.
My 2014 Mazda Cx9 needs a second alternator at 130k. Had a water pump at 80k. Getting rid of the damn worthless piece of crap. Damn FoMoCo engine. Swore off ford. Mazda stuff on the car was great. The Yaris is a mazda with a mazda engine. It’s flawless. I’ll stick with mazda
I mostly see complaints about Impreza-based cars in the comments – that tracks with our general experience. My ’15 Impreza sedan had just enough little things go wrong (and a big thing – the CVT blew up about 2000 miles before the warranty was up. Free transmission, though!!) that I didn’t mind letting it go with about 120,000 miles on it.
Our ’14 Legacy, on the other hand, has been an absolute tank for every one of its 158,000 miles. I think we’ve fixed two things (exhaust and – of course – one wheel bearing), both well after 100,000 miles. Every other penny spent has simply been for scheduled maintenance, brakes, and tires. It has always felt like 150% of the car that the Impreza was.
I feel like Subaru has hit-or-miss build quality. I’ve known people who drove them for a long time and loved them. I’ve also known people who couldn’t wait to unload them, even with low mileage.
Sounds like it’s time for a bad decision then. How about a Hornet? That should make for endless content! And if it somehow doesn’t, that will be news in itself. 🙂
I have to confess, I only lasted 10 months with my 2024 Crosstrek before I got rid of it for a Mazda3. The buggy infotainment was bad enough, I could deal with the poor gas mileage since I don’t drive very far. But here’s what did it for me. On cold start, the engine is LOUD. No wonder with it idling at close to 3000RPM on cold start. The CVT is so slow to do anything. I felt like that car just couldn’t get out of its own way. I never drove it in big city traffic for that reason — always took my GTI when I would take the ferry over to Vancouver. I just couldn’t deal anymore.
The local Mazda dealer made me a good offer on the Crosstrek, and I just love my new Mazda3. Comfortable, better gas mileage, much more responsive, great tech, and it’s cheaper!
I think the answer really is that there are Subaru people and non-Subaru people. I fall into the latter category.
Subaru has a great AWD system. If you need (or think you need) that, a Subie can be a good choice. But there are a bunch of compromises you’ll be making (except maybe with the hybrid, I have no first-hand experiences there).
After owning one that was relatively well-behaved for a winter beater which we kept for 3 years (thanks Covid), I probably wouldn’t get another, especially now that they’re all CVTs. But there are definitely things they do better than most other vehicles in their class and I could see why someone might be willing to accept their pitfalls.
AWD is first-class, no torque steer, they feel incredibly stable on the road, and our MY (at least) had well above-average visibility.
Oil leaks, mpg, noise, and head gaskets were not exactly strong points however.
I’ve been around cars and car people all of my 44 years in this earthly vessel. Not once have I heard someone say they regretted selling their Subaru.
Well, now you have. I regret selling my 2004 STi every single day. What a supremely joyous car to drive.
Would I miss a standard, cvt Forester? Probably not.
First one! I’ll count it!
And Yet, the 2025 Forester was picked as Consumer Report’s top pick for best compact SUV. The CVT in Subaru’s is astronomically better than other brands such as Nissan or Mitsubishi. The issues people have found with the CVT were mostly the 2012/2013 CVT’s (Early Renditions). Subaru’s use a Linked Chain design which is Miles better than a Non-Metal Belt driven CVT like other manufacturers.
Here’s the reality, the 4EAT/5EAT Automatic transmissions from previous Subaru’s were more prone to issues, and had a higher failure rate than the CVT’s offered today. The Car is AWD – True AWD. Regardless of the vehicle, thats more wear and tear than something that is RWD or FWD biased. It comes with the Territory. If you are mechanically-minded, this is obvious to you.
You buy a Subaru for its Mechanical AWD. Power can be sent individually to each wheel front or rear via 50/50 torque split. This also means that in limp mode, all 4 wheels still get power. Unlike a FWD or RWD Biased AWD system that only engages when the computer detects slip.
Slip engaged AWD? That is not true AWD.
People Buy Subaru’s for winter weather peace of mind. They’re inexpensive, retain their value, and are undeniably safe. Always Sold at MSRP and are Never Allowed to be Marked-Up via Subaru’s International Sales Policy.
Due to its Safety and Capability, its one of the Cheapest Car’s to Insure -Forbes has a whole article. Don’t have a lot of money but need a safe car while living in a Snow Ridden Area? Subaru is your top choice. Don’t Bag on People for not having a whole bunch of money to spend.
To Sum it up, the confidence you get attempting Blizzard Snow weather remains unmatched due to the patented mechanical AWD system. It becomes super obvious when you watch a Mercedes or BMW (Hell even a Lamborghini Sterrato on the the way to Lake Tahoe – You can Google that one, its hilarious) spin out, or is unable to make it up a sharp turn up a frozen/snow ridden incline.
If you don’t have Weather worries for your commute, then why are you looking at a Subaru to begin with? Obviously that AWD system is going to yield Lower MPG’s. A FWD or RWD biased AWD system (Like Honda’s or Toyota’s) will always yield better mileage because you’re not having AWD all the time during your drive. Again – 2WD until the computer detects slip, which is why these AWD systems fail to compare to a True Mechanical AWD system – Various Youtube Videos have proven this many times over.
Subaru’s focus has and always will be Safety and Driver Confidence in Dangerous Weather Conditions. They literally do not try to be anything else besides this. They do not try to be anything their not, like a Stellantis trying to say a Dodge Hornet Costs 50,000 Dollars. Subaru Jam packs a lot of features into each of their trims, and when you want the same features in another Brand of car, you will notice that price Spike. This formula has worked for Subaru sales year after year, whether people like it or not.
good Subaru bot
But in reality, you don’t have to go very far back in Forester history to see common problems with windshield cracks (wait, windshields?!?), the entertainment system, parasitic draws causing battery issues, oil leaks, noisy wheel bearings, or CVT failures. This is all well within the last 10 years and that’s just one model.
I can literally produce similar lists of just about any other car.
Some of the things I listed affected multiple models.
The parasitic draw affected the Forester, Impreza, Legacy, Outback, and WRX. That’s basically the entire lineup of what sold at the time except for the Crosstrek.
Just because Subaru has the eye of CR currently doesn’t mean it didn’t make cars with a ton of flaws.
I invite you to look into the failure rates of the 4EAT and 5EAT transmissions, In Comparison to right now.
“Think you need AWD” seems to sum it up.
as an alternative, I suggest literally anything with winter tires.
I had a 2008 Impreza from 2012-2017. I really liked it at the time but it was a very flawed car. It was incredible in snow, still the best winter vehicle I have owned. The car oddly drew a lot of praise from others.
But it had mediocre mpg, the truck was incredibly small, the interior was built like a lego set (which was great when I put in a full sound system, removing and replacing the entire interior was effortless). The transmission was archaic (but better than a CVT) and the suspension was both boring and uncomfortable until I swapped all the WRX components in.
The car was extremely reliable for me, up until it ate it’s headgaskets at 86k miles.
I’ve had zero desire to buy another Subaru since then. I like the BRZ but it has all the Subaru flaws that I hate looking back at my Impreza. We’ve had several WRX’s in the family but, myself and my family members have had zero interest in them since the VA generation came out.
As you might expect, Subaru has made some improvements to the software programming of the CVT since your 2016 Forester was built. I’ve owned a 2023 Crosstrek Limited with the 182hp FB25D engine and TR580 CVT and I love the thing. It’s so smooth, both in terms of how the transmission functions and the ride quality. No droning from the CVT. It’s just a really well-built car. Very solid feeling everywhere.
All told, it has been an excellent car with zero issues after 25 months of ownership and I would 100% buy another one.
“Well built”+”solid” and “Subaru” (especially the crosstrek) are not two concepts I would imagine anyone overlapping, especially an owner, but here we are. What are you comparing it to?
Doesn’t need to be compared. Consumer Reports already does the comparisons, and always gives the brand high marks, because they are well deserved.
CR gathers owners’ feedback, which tends to have a lot of bias as they spent several tens of thousands of dollars on a purchase. They – like JD Power – don’t put appropriate weight on various issues. So their surveys are skewed, the results are therefore skewed, so there’s not necessarily that much to be leaned from them as a factual source. It’s a collection of many anecdotes, which aren’t generally the most accurate measurement.
When is the last time you spent time in a Subaru built within the past 5 years?
Nearly every day, why?
I really enjoy my 2023 Crosstrek Sport as well. Not a terribly exciting car in any way, but I like it as a daily driver. I’ve enjoyed all of the Subarus I’ve owned over the years, and found them all to be quite reliable.
I sold my 2004 STi with over 175k miles on it. Original engine, and it ran flawlessly at the time of sale.
I sold my 2004 WRX wagon with 201k miles on it. It STILL has the original trans and engine in it, with over 250k miles now. I keep up with the guy that bought it from me.
Ben above in the comments made a good point though. Subarus seem to have hit or miss quality. While many like me have had largely positive experiences, others have had TONS of issues that have turned them off to the brand. YMMV I suppose.
With reference to the top image: I don’t have any tattoos (mostly because my ex pushed so hard for me to get one) but the one I’ve decided to get if I had to is a simple “+1 regrets”.
I live in an area where every third car is a Subaru. And I feel bad for every single person with one.
Had one years ago, such a pos. Great in the snow and icy. Horrible everywhere else.
2022 Outback owner here with a counterpoint. Good car all around, great on gravel, and amazing in ice and snow. The fit and finish show some unfortunate value engineering, but I have no idea what people are complaining about. And we have 2 OBWs and an Impreza between two households.
People are complaining because either they owned one 20+ years ago, or drove one before the Subaru Global Platform came about. It’s the same thing with Nissan, people just love to jump on the “CVT junk, Nissan junk, head gasket leaks, Subaru trash, durr” bandwagon to shit on things they’ve never touched. I think Nissan and Subaru pretty much have the CVT thing under control…and it’s not like any other transmission is immune to problems.
Our ’21 OB has been the most reliable car we’ve owned so far, with zero recalls and zero trips to the dealer after 44k+ miles. It’s been on several road trips and continues to impress us with how quiet, comfortable, and capable it is. And goddamn is the CVT nice in a daily.
As for fit & finish, ours is quite good, certainly comparable to other vehicles…just like the Sentra we rented two years ago.
I 1000% agree with all of what you said. My ’23 Crosstrek Limited is awesome. Extremely well built car that has given me zero issues over the past two years. I love it. It’s screwed together great, very solid feeling, and in the Crosstrek the 182hp FB25D engine and TR580 CVT is a nice combo for daily use.
When I compare my son’s Gen3 OBW to mine, I can see where Subaru pinched pennies: the mats feel cheap and flimsy, some touchpoints and switchgear feel less solid, I’ve had it at the dealer twice to fix NVH stuff. But that’s nitpicking, we’ve done multi-thousand mile road trips, light off-roading, camping, hauling building supplies, and daily commuting. Gets the jobs done reliably and comfortably.
Subies are like elephants – interesting to watch but wouldn’t like own one am not that brave’ anyhow may the crv light up the shadows in your way – meanwhile “wherever you will go” is a good good song to make u forget stars on the subie logo…..thanks from kenya ???????? with love.
Long gone are the days when Subaru meant rough and tumble durable rally racers. They haven’t been building quality vehicles for years (decades?) now. Much like how people still associate BMW with the ultimate driving machine or quality German engineering (loll).
You made a good choice, glad you love the new car.
Great color too!
I get it. I miss the idea of our Forester but I don’t miss the actual car. I agree that it just needed more attention and care than what a non-luxury non-German vehicle should require.
We have had our Crosstrek for almost three and a half years now. At about 28,000 miles now we have had no problems whatsoever.
I wouldn’t have bought it, but my wife loved it. Our primary first impression was that it felt like a lifted small wagon instead of a wannabe big SUV. The CVT is fine, I have driven ones I don’t like, including a terrible Sentra rental a few years back. It actually seems to do a good job of using the available power accelerating the car at a reasonable rate.
Worry about the CVT, will keep an eye on the wheel bearings, but no big deal, anyway, so far only fluids. Tires will need to go before next winter, so about 30,000 miles, not terrible.
Only gripe is the motor, it sort of shakes the whole car and sounds like an old John Deere two cylinder tractor when starting up, very agricultural.
24mpg? I wish I could average 24mpg (I’m at 22.4 for the past year in my CX-5). Although, way too many short trips and not enough highway are probably to blame.
Man buys Subaru. Surprised it sucks. Buys Honda. It doesn’t suck. Not trying to be glib here, well I guess I actually am, but the only part of this that’s unusual is your initial surprise at the Subaru sucking. The rest of it is just, yep. You nailed the facts here about those two brands. I do appreciate your willingness to speak truth to the Subaru mafia, though. They do not take such criticism lightly.
The only “truth” you have is regurgitating smug things from your head.
Glad to see I caught one
Lol, whatever…your post sounds like the automotive equivalent of Fox News. We have one but it was the best car that suited our needs, and it’s been fine so far. I’m not a huge fanboi, but I push back when I see bullshit. People have outdated notions – car reliability changes over time and generations, it’s not a black-and-white area.
I feel like Subarus are like BMWs. You either get them and love them, or don’t get them and hate them. And if you love them, you put up with their occasional bullshit. I am firmly in the hate Subarus camp. Though like BMW, I think they were much, much better and more interesting in the past. My first car was an ’82 Subaru sedan – in ’86. Other than a complete lack of rust resistance it was quirky fun. There is very little fun to be had in a CVT-equipped Forester. And now that basically everything is available in AWD, why bother with them at all, if you feel that is a necessity (I sure don’t)?
I’m not a Honda fan either – if I were to buy a boring appliance (I’m not), it would have a Toyota badge on it. But for sure if you are going to drive a boring automatic appliance, it should be a hybrid at this point. No reason not to unless you don’t drive enough for it to matter (why my mother now has a Soul and not a Prius).
Or you find yourself in my shoes. I owned a Subaru. And that’s the first reason why I hate them. Then a bunch of my family owned / owns them. Reason two. Then I moved to Vermont, which, oh my god, is the Subaru motherland. It’s like living in hell for any normal car appreciating or obsessed person. Every Subaru driver, which is like every third person here, has to tell you how great they are:
I mean sure they leak oil and I had to pay 3k to replace the cat at 120k miles, but really, it’s good in the snow. Just fill up the gas every time you need to get oil, and they’re trouble free!
Not to mention all the clapped out old imprezas that have been “tuned” by putting on a huge exhaust can and running them rich. Friday night is just a chorus of nineteen year olds revving rusting exhausts and backfiring, err, I mean using their “anti-lag.”
But I am a big really fan and appreciate a nice WRX. If I had extra money to spend on an impractical car (for me) I’d buy one and I’m sure I’d love every minute of driving it. And then I’d sell it at 40k miles.
Hondas. Eh. We have one. It’s paid for and never lets us down. I don’t hate it and that’s what you get from a Honda.
My first car was a hand-me-down Subaru. An ’82. In my extended family there were *11* of them of that generation eventually, with my folks having bought the first, a ’80 hatchback. Nobody in the family ever bought another one. Not one of them lasted more than 8 years due to rust, and that was that.
My BMWs are paid for and never let me down, and I love them both dearly. No reason to drive meh cars, IMHO.
We just sold our 2014 Forester to Carmax last weekend after leasing a 2024 Prologue. Similar issues to Matt’s, but we got a suprisingly(I think) decent amount, which I chalk up to it only have 74k miles on it. So it had a bunch of the issues, yes it was 10 years old, but again, only 74k miles on it. Rear wheel bearings, front control arms, so many headlight bulbs, a couple of 12v batteries, the entire 3rd brake light led panel?!?! Like Matt it never left us stranded or broke down, no major engine or transmission issues, just got annoying. We weren’t really sad to see it go.
To put that in perspective,my dad and I got almost 100k fairly trouble free miles out of our 1986 Chevrolet Celebrity he bought new. A mid-80s American middle sized middle of the road car, and maybe I’m seeing through rose covered glasses, but it also was the first car of a teenage driver so..it was not…treated gently.
Also my 2017 Bolt is still chugging along with 106K miles, so….c’mon Subaru, how the heck am I having better luck with Chevys??? CHEVYS!
The Chevy Bolt is one of the most reliable cars I ever had. Other than the battery recall that was handled pretty well by GM, the car keeps going with not a single issue. The newest electric GMs are so complex with weird issues.
My father is still averaging about 55-60 mpg (with just under 60,000 miles I think?) with his 2020 Ford Fusion. Still on the original tires. He drives just over an hour to his office once or twice a week and then an occasional appointment, but otherwise works from home. My mom is able to all her local driving almost entirely on the battery despite it dropping from 30 to 18 miles during the colder part of the year.
Can someone please explain to this automotive dunce cap on two half-working stumpy legs what the [FEEP] is wrong with automotive CVTs?
Personally, my belief is that whatever electromechanical obscenity they’ve bolted onto a transmission that is specifically designed to not shift, so that it feels like it shifts, is complex enough to mire any semblance of reliability forever in the breakdown lane (or as Scotty famously put it, “the more you overblow the plumbing, the easier it is to clog up the drain…”!), but given the sheer scale at breadth and depth of my knowledge and experience on the technical side of automotive design — a distance best measured in units typically used for subatomic particle physics — that honestly borders on an overly opinionated WAG.
But, still, I mean… it’s two pulleys and a belt. Look at any Chinese/etc scooter or moped. Look at any similarly-powered ATV. Look at any snowmobile. It’s two pulleys and a belt.
How on earth do you make two pulleys and a belt into something that continually grenades itself like a hopped-up early-2000s Outback inexplicably stuck in 1940s London?
I’m not an engineer or a designer, but I am a differential/stick trans/transfer case mechanic, and the problems with automotive CVT’s are pretty straightforward – It’s a very old and very proven technology that scales poorly in the real world.
Honda used CVT’s in their smallest-engine Civics going back to the 90’s, and I THINK the Subaru Justy used one even earlier than that. ATV’s use them. Bridgeport milling machines use them. They work fine.
But the there are two critical things about CVTs and they’re at odds with one another. On one hand, you need enough friction and surface contact area between the belt and the tapered cones so that so the unit does not slip. On the other, as you increase power levels and vehicle weight, you need a belt strong enough to take the load, and as you strengthen the belt, it becomes more rigid and conforms to the cones less and less, increasing the chance of slippage.
OEM”S have used a variety of belt designs, and they’re better than they used to be, but you’re running up against physics when you try to use CVT”s in larger and more powerful vehicles. Toyota pioneered the use of a semi-CVT that has a low “takeoff” gear, which allows a less acute angle on the cones, helping reliability, but ultimately, CVT’s durability is generally fine in the smallest of US cars, and turns to shit as manufacturers use them in larger/more powerful applications.
That’s something I’ve never heard, and it’s absolutely fascinating. Thank you!
I’d be interested in hearing more about the thing you mentioned Toyota coming up with — I’ve never heard tell of it, either. Also, your opinion on those newfangled ‘metal belts’? I have to admit, while I’ve heard the adccopy hype, I really wonder if the real-world product stands true to that. Somehow I doubt it…
Also, a thought. One of the most inefficient automotive transmissions in all history was the GM DynaFlow of the late 1950s and early 1960s. (The RCR episode on the 62 Buick LeSabre is a true comedy gem, and discusses the DynaFlow at length… although with moderate concessions to accuracy…) Basically, it’s a giant torque converter and not much else — but the converter has multiple rotors, and the central one has variable pitch vanes that affect the stall speed of the converter’s moving parts. The 60s design had two equivalent gear ratios — 3.5:1 and 1.8:1 IIRC, but please don’t quote me on that! — that the converter could flip between.
I kind of wonder if they were on to something and just chose really, really stupid gear ratios — maybe a variable-pitch torque converter could work as a CVT. Buuut I’m probably looking at something that’s an obvious roast turkey and seeing tons of potential that isn’t there and never was to begin with.
The Toyota mostly-CVT is called the K120 “Direct Shift” transmission and they’ve used it since 2018, according to our friends at Wikipedia, and I’ve not heard of any reliability issues with it.
I think all standard automotive CVT’s, and certainly the ones I’ve looked at, have metal belts, and there’s a ton of variations on how they’re designed, it appears that the science is still evolving. The one’s I’ve seen look like combo belt/chain setups with a zillion multiple elements, in an effort to remain pliable yet still grip the cones.
I’m somewhat familiar with the Dynaflow, it’s always been a bit of a joke in the powertrain field because of horrible efficiency and general lethargic demeanor. The “switch pitch” GM converters that Buick and I think Olds used in the sixties were a neat design and I knew transmission guys who would modify Chevy auto transmissions to use the design for hot rodders in the ’80’s.The Dynaflow was a relic of the era where smooooothness was paramount in luxury cars and “enough” power was perfectly acceptable; the loss in acceleration wasn’t deemed critical in the target demographic.
However, the trend for the last 40 years or so(man, where did the years go?) have been to run tighter and tighter converters and continuously upping the number of gears, with First being lower and lower to give you strong off-the-line performance without needing a ton of torque multiplication, because fluid couplings are, by their very nature, relatively inefficient. That’s why one of the very first things OEM’s did in the 70’s is design lockup converters.
Maybe, but it seems that the CR-V is a way better car, and you were wrong to have bought, or even considered buying, the Forester. So, suck it up and learn the lesson.
That you continue to whine about it is the bigger problem, especially for the readers.
Also, slow news day?
I need 5 bullet points on ideas for a post.
We need it by 11:59 EST.
No response will be considered as …….
There are obviously wheel bearing issues with Subarus that haven’t been addressed by the the manufacturer.I have owned 4 Subarus in the past 12 years and replaced the rear wheel bearings on all of them at least once.Two were new cars and two were used .The worst was the crosstrek which didn’t make it to the 36000 mile warranty before the dealer changed both rears. At around 75000 miles I changed them again myself .I agree with the 24 mpg on the forester, Outback was about the same ,crosstrek slightly better. No more Subarus for us, We moved to Volvo and are much happier.
I’m here to defend the Forester for, what, the 4th or 5th time now? I’ve lost count.
Ours has been fine, overall my wife loves the car. I’m pretty lukewarm on it, but there isn’t a compact crossover I care about. The interior is airy, outward visibility is outstanding, it’s quick enough for what it is and the transmission while being a CVT, isnt anywhere near the worst one I’ve driven. The 2018 we have, I wouldnt consider to be great looking, but it’s certainly better than most of it’s competition IMO.
Our plan is to keep it forever.
just keep feeding it rear wheel bearings, and you will be fine.
I replaced mine on the wrx a few months ago. Most of the issues i had with the car were self inflicted
Im hoping we dont run into that issue, but it wouldnt shock me. We havent replaced any wheel bearing or really any work other than fluids and brakes so far. That being said this is a low mileage around town car that only has 47k or so on it, which is pretty darn low for a 6.5 year old car.