Wow. I had no idea I was buying such a quality vehicle.

I bought the first model of the Subaru Forester (the 1998 model) in September 1997. I'd researched it on the Internet. I test drove the Forester two or three times, and I test drove several other SUVs. I bought the Forester.

It has been hands down the best vehicle I have ever owned. I have about 47,000 miles now (very low mileage for its age). When I first drove the Forester home, the engine was like butter....so smooth I thought it had died at a stop light. It is almost that smooth, still.

The later models have more gadgets & options. The '98 doesn't have power outside view mirrors (it has power car door windows, of course).

For maintenance and repairs so far, I have had the tires replaced, the brakes, both of which are normal wear and tear. The only "repair" has been wheel bearings replaced in 2004 (they call it repacking, I think?). Other than that...nothing with the engine or chassis has gone wrong. Excellent.

I should mention the several things that do bother me about the car: (1) the inside seems small compared with other smallish SUVs; this could be because the doors are thicker for safety reasons. (2) the interior seating in the back is very hard; I don't care about this, but others may. (3) one of the plastic a/c vents on the dash broke fairly early on; they seem to be made flimsy; it still works, but a couple of the horizontal vent strips must be manually opened or closed with your finger. (4) the a/c vents on the dash in the center don't COMPLETELY close - they're made that way; the side ones on the dash will, but not the ones in the center. (5) the cig. lighter quit working fairly early on; I think it's the element, and not the cig lighter itself. The most important of these items to me is that the center a/c vents are made not to be completely closed. Sometimes just diverting the air is not enough.

Some exceptional points to mention are (1) the engine....still runs almost like butter 7 1/2 years later. (2) great a/c (it gets over 100 degrees where I live in the summer...and the Forester can handle just fine! And it does it w/o losing engine power, like other cars I've owned have). (3) it's just cute on the outside, ya know? (4) Low center of gravity, so it doesn't have the turnover problems. (5) Rates high in safety tests. (6) Adequate mileage (19 to 20 mpg in CITY); not as much as I'd like, but not as bad as many others. (7) Easy to use cargo area (but the cargo area is not extremely large, which is fine with me). It's waist high, so easy on the back. (8) It's about 175" long, so it fits in small garages. (9) Cargo door opens up, not out, so it uses less space to open.

And the fog lights are great to have, and look cool, too.

UPDATE TO INCLUDE DRIVING AND HANDLING: This SUV is classified as a wagon, which means ins. costs are less, and which means it handles more like a car than an SUV. It has a fairly small turn radius, has great acceleration (since it has 165 hp), and takes corners sharply. It has a car chassis, unlike the truck chassis that other SUVs have. The closest vehicle for comparison, IMO, would be the Honda CRV; in 1998, the Honda CRV had only about 140 hp and handled more like a minivan or truck than a car (I test drove it). 140 hp was not enough to run the a/c at full power and not lose engine power. Braking - I don't see the fuss about AWD, which is what the Forester is. I don't see any difference between AWD and non-AWD vehicles. I'm sure it's there and is used when needed, but..???? (You don't turn on AWD; the car uses it when needed.) It's small and will fit into compact car spaces, IF the spaces are not TOO small. But it is not as small as the Toyota RAV and other mini-SUVs. How you would expect a box-like car to handle is how this vehicle handles. You CAN, however, hear the road noise through the bottom of the vehicle at higher speeds. This is common with SUVs, I think, but it still sorta bugs me.

This is a great car! My first Subaru. I had no idea they were of this quality. I pat myself on the back for researching and then buying this vehicle. I was going to get a new vehicle when my old one fell apart, but I might die of old age waiting for that to happen (we'll see). I would gladly buy another Subaru, and another Forester. I would prefer, however, that Subaru come out with a hybrid or increase the mileage. For my next vehicle I want to greatly increase mileage, and I don't know if I'll go for another 20 mpg City vehicle...I think I'll want more than that. But for a 1998 model, 20 mpg City is better than almost any other SUV, I think.