2025 Subaru Forester Sport Yearlong Arrival: Once I Go Subaru, Do I Go Back?
Will Subaru’s new Forester be good enough to make me a lifelong convert?
The world is full of unexplainable mysteries. UFOs. Bigfoot. The Loch Ness Monster. But the most mysterious of all? How MotorTrend’s new yearlong review 2025 Subaru Forester Sport is the first Subie I’ve ever called my own.
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The math just doesn’t add up. I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, right on the doorstep of Olympic National Park. Typically decked out head to toe in clothes I bought from REI, I’m a professional photographer who attended a liberal arts college. I love nature, road trips, and hiking, and I spend a considerable amount of my waking hours spoiling my two dogs, Leica and Gitzo. By all calculations, I should have only ever owned Subarus.
While I’ve come close to Subaru ownership on several occasions, I somehow always bucked the natural order of things and went in a different direction with my car purchases. It’s in this spirit of restoring the natural order of things that I’ll spend the next year behind the wheel of our new 2025 Forester Sport—walking, or more specifically driving, the path obviously meant for me.
What’s New About This Forester?
Visit any town in the Northwest, Northeast, or Rockies, and it’s clear people are drawn to the simple utility and capability of the Subaru Forester. Not wanting to tamper with a winning formula, Subaru played it safe with the updated-for-2025 sixth-generation Forester, choosing to refine rather than revolutionize.
You don’t need to be a Subaru fan to notice the design changes. The all-new look helps the 2025 Forester appear more conservative and grown-up. While I liked the fifth-generation Forester’s design, it always looked like everything was tucked up toward the center of the vehicle. This pinched aesthetic made it look constricted and top-heavy. In contrast, the 2025 Forester has a more relaxed and planted stance, with boxy flares and a flattened greenhouse that doesn’t sweep up as sharply behind the C-pillar.
Step inside the updated interior, and the improvements continue. Most 2025 Forester trim levels now include a large 11.6-inch screen dominating the center of the dash. The new Forester is also supposed to be quieter than its predecessor, thanks to improved sound deadening and a 10 percent stiffer structure achieved through additional welds and liberal use of structural adhesives. We’ll see how those claims hold up in the real world.
What’s (Unfortunately) Not New
What’s that proverb? "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." It’s only fitting that "Subaru" is derived from a Japanese word meaning "unite," which sounds like a synonym for "together" to me. It’s no wonder the company doesn’t make many quick cars these days. I know the Forester isn’t meant to be a WRX. I even told myself early on that I wouldn’t spend the next 12 months harping on the lethargic 2.5-liter flat-four. But making 180 horsepower and 178 lb-ft of torque, the Forester’s powerplant is going to leave a lot to be desired.
While none of the Forester's direct competitors can be described as quick, its syrupy power delivery requires some adjustment. To leave my neighborhood I have to make an unprotected left turn onto a busy five-lane boulevard. Timing is critical, and I’ve had to recalibrate my approach to accommodate the Forester’s lack of low-end torque off the line. On the bright side, the Forester remains competitive in fuel economy, with an EPA-rated 25/32/28 mpg. Fuel economy certainly matters, but my love of road trips means total range ranks higher on my list of priorities. A 16.6-gallon tank gives the Forester an estimated range of 465 miles between fill-ups—a number I’ll strive to hit on our future adventures.
Our Forester’s Spec
When deciding which Forester trim to test for the coming year, the choice was easy. Sitting dead center in the 2025 Forester lineup and starting at $35,915, the Sport trim caught our eye. Not only does it include the 11.6-inch screen, but this wallet-friendly example is also the best-looking version currently available. Although Sapphire Blue Pearl would have been a more traditional Subaru color, we preferred the clean look of Crystal White Pearl paired with the 19-inch bronze wheels, the latter a Forester Sport exclusive.
Subaru offers one optional package for the Forester Sport: Option Package 24. For $1,700, it adds reverse automatic braking, a hands-free power rear liftgate, and, most important, the Harman Kardon premium audio system. We also tacked on some extras: all-weather floormats, mud flaps, an auto-dimming mirror, a cargo sidewall protector, and every dog-related accessory Subaru offers, including a collapsible pet kennel, second-row sunshades (which I suppose are human-friendly, too), a rear seat-back protector, a pet ramp, and a rear seat cover. The grand total? $41,295.
What’s Next
Looking at the canine-centric equipment list (and my bank account), it’s clear a significant part of the year will be spent chauffeuring my spoiled mutts in Subaru-branded comfort. I’ll eventually do a deep dive into the dog accessories, all of which I already appreciate in the short time I’ve had our Forester.
I have a lifetime of Subaruing to make up for. When my fuzzy overlords grant me a day off, I’ll rack up miles on road trips, photo shoots, and a few fun activities I’m planning. Will I finally recognize the error of my ways and become a lifelong Subaru owner? As Jonny Lieberman (speaking of fuzzy!) says, “There’s only one way to find out!”
Like many of my coworkers, my love for cars was cemented at a young age, thanks in part to Hot Wheels, car magazines, and every car poster I could afford when the book fair set up shop in my elementary school library. While most kids went straight for Where’s Waldo? and Goosebumps, I was torn between the poster of the Lamborghini Countach and the ’32 Ford hot rod with airbrushed flames on the cowling. In high school, I worked at Bergstrom's Antique Autos, a historic garage in Port Townsend, Washington. Surrounded by nearly a century of automotive history, I immersed myself in cleaning, sorting, and selling car parts and memorabilia. I also spent countless hours flipping through vintage car magazines and can comfortably say that I've looked through every Motor Trend, Car & Driver, Hot Rod, and Sports Car Graphic up until the early 1980s. Around the same time, I picked up photography—naturally, with cars as my main subject. Despite my high school photography teacher's advice to branch out, I stuck to my passion and attended every car show I could find. This led me to the Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, California, where I earned a bachelor’s degree with a focus on automotive photography. I began my career at Motor Trend as a photography intern. After freelancing for a few years, I joined the Motor Trend team full-time in late 2010. My passion for cars and photography continues to fuel my work, and I hope it shines through in every shot.
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