4Runner vs. Forester

[Tuco S.]

My wife has a 2014 Forester with the 2.5L and CVT. When she drives it, she averages 23 mpg vs. 27 mpg when I drive it. She has a heavy foot.

I'm averaging 19.1 over the first four tanks in my 4Runner, and it is incredibly consistent - 19.0 to 19.1 every tank, measured on fuelly.com.

 

[Jernik]

If the Forester had that sweet WRX hood scoop I might consider it. As it is, I'd just stay with a 4R OR or Pro. Gotta have priorities! :laugh:

 

[RL Lemke]

I'm going to try the lifted Forester for a couple years. Surprisingly, there is a lot more leg room in the Forester, head room too.

Let's see what happens with the 4Runner over the next couple years.

 

[Blue 4ever Runner]

We bought a 2019 Forester Premium in Dec '18 for the wife and in Feb. '19 a SR5 4Runner for me. The Forester now has a bit over 3,000 miles on it. A couple of trips to my Son in Maryland and one to North Carolina. The 4Runner has just under 2,000 miles on it with only one shorter trip to upstate NY. Here's how I see them both:
They are both pretty comfortable in every day driving and the Forester is very nice to drive long distance. Over 5 hours at a time to NC and it was pleasant all the way. We had bad rain all the way home from MD the last time and even at 65 MPH it was stable and I felt in full control at all times.
a real nice road trip vehicle. We averaged almost 29MPG on the NC trip with cruise set to 80 most of the way in Virginia and NC where the limit is 70. I was not trying for best mileage, more for getting there. Around town the wife is getting about 23MPG.
The 4 Runner got 24.8 MPG on the one trip upstate. Cruise set at 70 most of the way. I'm averaging just over 19 in every day driving, highway mixed with local streets. It too was a nice vehicle to drive but it was only a 2 hour trip so I can't say how good it would be on a longer trip. I'll find that out this summer when we go to PA for a camping trip. The Runner has more space for stuff so we'll be taking it.
They are similar in some ways but overall are different vehicles. If off roading was in the picture I'd definitely go with the 4Runner. Better ground clearance, more power a regular automatic tranny (non-CVT) and low range makes a lot of difference there.

We have used the Forester for the long trips because of better mileage but it's not a huge difference. I'm happy with both vehicles and really like the advanced cruise control in the Forester. Set it and it maintains distance from the car in front of you automatically. Nice. I've never had a vehicle with a CVT so it will be interesting to see how it is long term. Driving it is no problem as it has "fake" shift points so feels a lot like a regular auto. I love the more trucky feeling of the 4Runner and the ride really is on par with the Forester.
This post is long enough so I'll leave it off here!

 

[RL Lemke]

After the lift, the little Forester will have over 10" of ground clearance. Adding the factory aluminum skid plates, there will be sufficient protection.

In two years I will be living in Las Vegas. It is then, and the unlimited off-road exploration available, that I will again decide whether to get a new 4Runner.

No doubt, the 4Runner is a far better off-road vehicle. A real 4X4. But then, the Wrangler is even better.

99% of my driving now is paved roads. Driving out west three times a year too. The Forester will be better for that kind of driving.

If Toyota is really going to build the Tacoma and Tundra on a shared platform, will the 4Runner be far behind? Or, will Toyota keep a platform for a different Prado, GX and 4Runner? I will keep a close eye on this.

 

[RL Lemke]

I had a Subaru before I ordered the V8 4Runner. Took it off-road all over the Sierras and Ozarks. Surprisingly capable.

 

[Tuco S.]

I'll say this about our 2.5L Forester. It has no balls whatsoever at highway speed in terms of passing power, but the acceleration from a stop will surprise you. Lots of low end torque available with that engine, and thanks to the CVT it has the equivalent of very short gears for crawling. It isn't 4Lo, but for crawling the CVT blows away the old slushbox.

 

[CO-Cygnus]

We have a Forester XT in the household. It's a lot of fun to drive on the road and decent off road. The 4R obviously handles real off roading easier, but the Forester is easy enough to get up to Corona Pass, or other mild situations. So we end up driving the XT, or my daily driver, most of the time for road trips unless offroading is part of the plan.

That said - The new forester dropped the XT model, so that got scratched off list for a replacement vehicle. The NA boxer is absolutely gutless - No merging power, no passing power.

 

[tcbaklash]

I have a friend who goes off road with his ‘15 Forester and he says that the CVT will get you stuck if you don’t know what you’re doing. Otherwise he has no complaints and goes out every month.

 

[3bears]

maybe not quite the same as years are different. Most of the guys I worked with if not in our work trucks, had subu's to commute
our work trucks were big 4wd and I lived at the park, so my corolla did fine after work if/when I left ( snow 4-5 months a year, average of 4 feet of standing snow on the ground)

so then I decided I wanted a awd/4wd of my own for winter after work for groceries, etc ( btw, nearest gas and mimimart was 25 miles away)

I had ridden in a friends 4runner and liked the bigger size. Did not join the forums ( 4runner or subu) but did lots of research.

Time to get a rig, and went to a dealer that had several used foresters, as that is what I had decided on , mostly based on mpg

after test driving two, the dealer asked and I said ….well a little small for camping....he asked....what about a 4runner....we just took in a real nice trade.

took it for a drive.....well...joined this forum, kind of tells the story
for me the size, ground clearance and towing capacity are worth the gas hit.

If it was a daily driver, might think otherwise

I recently retired and moved to the big city of Fairbanks. ( well a few miles out in the hills) I would say the most popular small rig there is subaru

 

[brokenrunner]

pretty tough choice as they are both good vehicles

 

[nb rob]

my ex wife had 2 forresters and an impreza. The forresters were the most incredible vehicles in the snow that I had ever driven. The symmetrical AWD is more than hype.

But as mentioned by CO-Cygnus, the NA boxer engine is totally gutless.

My 5th gen is gutless, but it'll scoot if you stomp on it. Passing someone on a big hill on the highway was a total shitshow with the boxer forrester. Also a TON of interior rattles on the 3 brand new subarus that I've driven. My 4runner has some noises after 4 years of big trips and serious terrain, but the subarus were noisy right off the lot.

 

[Blue 4ever Runner]

my ex wife had 2 forresters and an impreza. The forresters were the most incredible vehicles in the snow that I had ever driven. The symmetrical AWD is more than hype.

But as mentioned by CO-Cygnus, the NA boxer engine is totally gutless.

My 5th gen is gutless, but it'll scoot if you stomp on it. Passing someone on a big hill on the highway was a total shitshow with the boxer forrester. Also a TON of interior rattles on the 3 brand new subarus that I've driven. My 4runner has some noises after 4 years of big trips and serious terrain, but the subarus were noisy right off the lot.

Really? My '19 Forrester is no speed demon but I have no problems at all with acceleration/passing. We just took a trip from LI New York to Cary NC with no complaints about power at all. I'm coming out of a '07 Chrysler 300 with a V6 and a '05 Grand Cherokee with a 4.7 V8. The Jeep was faster but not the 300. You can't expect a NA 4cyl to be a V8. Now there's just a little over 3,000 miles on it but it's a very quiet vehicle, no rattles or squeaks at all.
The Jeep was replaced with the '194Runner. Jeep was more powerful no question, similar weight, but the torque of the V8 was great. I find the Runner is OK but you do have to stomp it to get 'er going. Mileage is much better though, averaging 19 with the Runner VS 14 with the Jeep

 

[MAST4R]

Also a TON of interior rattles on the 3 brand new subarus that I've driven. My 4runner has some noises after 4 years of big trips and serious terrain, but the subarus were noisy right off the lot.

Yeah, that's a common complaint for Impreza platform Subarus. Not so for the Legacy platform ones.

I did WAY more than pretty much anyone in an Outback (and above average offroading in the 4Runner as well) and the OB never developed rattles.

The 4R has had an annoying rattle offroad ever after out first seven outings (1 year since then) and I have been unable to pinpoint it. I replaced the engine side splash guards which can get noisy with rubber ones but this did not eliminate the rattle/noise in question. Spraying the hood locking mechanism with WD40 helps but then the noise restarts again after a few miles on dirt.

It is not the end of the world by any means, traveling in silence while offroad is an oxymoron anyway, but still.

Anyway, 4Runners and Foresters are among the most useful vehicles one can buy.

 

[RL Lemke]

The bottom line for me is that I'm trying the Forester for two years. If I don't like it, I'll give it to my wife and get the next generation 4Runner.

What I like about the Global Platform 2019 Forester is the extra leg room and head room, over my 4Runner. Room I have needed.

Here is the comparison in exterior dimensions:

Here is the new car on the wood road on one of my projects.

Is the direct injection little 2.5 as powerful as the 4.7 V8? No way, but then neither is the V6 in the new 4Runners, without a supercharger.

Is the $29,000 2019 Forester Sport a good value? Yes it is.
With the optional factory aluminum skid plate for the engine/transmission and rear differential, the Forester is protected on the easy backroads I explore.

I will keep an eye out for the next generation 4Runner. Looking forward to see what Toyota is planning.

 

[RL Lemke]

Had the Toyota dealership print out the wholesale, loan and retail value for my 4Runner. :thumb3:

Pleased to see their values show what I had hoped for.

15 years and 350,000 miles later and my retail value is 1/3 of what I paid as original owner.

V8 4Runners really hold their value.

 

[Tuco S.]

The only thing I don't like about my wife's Forester is the seat bottom is very short. I mean I'm fairly short at 5'8" with short legs, but those seats feel like they were designed for someone no taller than 4'-10".