Subaru Forester

The updated Subaru Forester has recently been named as ‘Junior Crossover of the Year’ by the specialist off-roading magazine, Total 4×4. The Forester is now available with a choice of revised petrol and diesel Boxer engines, faced stiff competition from the likes of a Toyota Urban Cruiser, Suzuki SX4 and Skoda Octavia Scout. 

However, thanks to its Symmetrical All-Wheel-Drive configuration, car-like driving dynamics and exceptional practicality, the Total 4X4 magazine judges singled-out the Japanese crossover for the highest praise, saying: “Typically of Subaru, the Forester does very good things without making a fuss of it. The combination it offers of quality, value, practical usability and driving talent makes it very hard indeed to beat.

The 2.0-litre Boxer diesel Forester range, which returns an impressive 47.9 combined mpg, starts at £23,070 (on-the-road) for the entry-level 2.0D X, rising to £25,070 for the 2.0D XC, and £29,070 for the range-topping 2.0D XS NavPlus. If you prefer petrol power you have a choice of two models – the Forester 2.0X and 2.0XS, costing £21,370 and £25,370 respectively in manual guise.  Automatic versions are available at a £1,000 premium and Subaru contract hire prices are on the site now.

Warranty Direct’s unique reliability index takes into account how often vehicles break down, their average repair cost and time spent in the garage, to calculate the overall reliability of any vehicle. The lower the Reliability Index number, the more reliable and cheaper it will be to repair your car.

If you are thinking of buying or leasing a new 4×4 or SUV, the top-10 models are dominated by Japanese and Korean cars. The Warranty Direct study looked at over 16,000 three-to eight-year old 4x4s and SUVs. It is important to choose the right manufacturer and model as Warranty Direct revealed that this vehicle category is also the most expensive type of vehicle to run.

While some of the models below have been replaced by newer vehicles, it does give you an idea of which manufacturer offers you the best reliability and running costs, especially if you lease and opt for a non-maintained contract. Honda scores particularly well in the study with a Reliability Index score of 6.

Further details of the Reliability Index can be found at www.reliabilityindex.co.uk

Top Ten rated 4×4/SUVs 

Toyota FT-86 II

Toyota has always had a passion for producing exciting sports cars, starting with the legendary 2000 GT in the 1960s and they have now unveiled a stunning new Toyota sports model, called the FT-86 II Concept. This new model has been jointly developed with Subaru and is set to make its world debut at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show this week.

Toyota FT-86 II concept sports car

The rear-wheel drive sports concept has a low bonnet, high wings and rear-set cabin and gives the clearest indication of how the new Toyota sports model, due for launch in 2012, might look.

The car has a free-revving boxer petrol engine with a lightweight six-speed transmission and has the lowest centre of gravity possible to achieve the best possible power to weight ratio.

Top Safety Pick

A new study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in America has found that Subaru vehicles are among the safest on the road. 

The insurance backed organisation conducted a series of stringent frontal, side, rear and rollover crash tests on a wide variety of vehicles and found that Subaru was the only manufacturer to receive enough points to be awarded its “Top Safety Pick” award for every car model it entered. Subaru outperformed other contenders from the likes of Audi, Honda, Ford, Volkswagen and Volvo.

Subaru’s five IIHS Top Safety Pick awards came in four different categories as follows;

- The new Legacy and Outback were recognised in the Midsize car group.

- The Imprezza was picked for the Small car category.

- The Forester was awarded the small SUV section.

- Finally the Tribeca was awarded the Midsize SUV class.

Subaru car leasing prices on all the range are available off the site now.

Outback - top SUV

Subaru has won an award for the top SUV with their all-new Outlook. This new model was named as Sport Utility of the Year by a leading American motoring magazine called Motor Trend. The US market is the largest for SUVs so this is a positive endorsement for the new car.

Eleven road testers were involved in the judging and the Subaru saw off other contenders like, the Lexus RX450h, Volvo XC60 and The Audi Q5. The Outback won by a vote of 10 to one.

New 2010 New Outback line-up

* Lineartronic gearbox fitted as standard

Subaru car leasing prices will be available shortly.

Outback

Subaru has launched a new fourth generation Outback and raises the bar yet again, providing refinement both on and off the road. The new car gets increased cabin space and a longer wheelbase, to provide more room inside for both passengers and their luggage. 

You get a choice of both petrol and diesel engines and the range is available now with Subaru car leasing prices loading shortly.

2010 New Outback

* Lineartronic gearbox fitted as standard

New Legacy Tourer

Subaru has launched a new Legacy Tourer model and has freshened up the styling to offer a longer, wider and taller model. As you would expect with Subaru the car also comes with the all-weather traction Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive for extra safety.

The car offer great load capacity, boasting a generous 526 litres and if you fold the seats flat, this increases to 1,677 litres. The car has a choice of two engines, a 2.0-litre diesel or 2.5-litre petrol and has also been awarded a 5-star Euro NCAP crash safety rating.

2010 New Legacy Tourer

New silencer

Prodrive, the British motoring specialist, has developed a new exhaust silencer which should help keep speedway racing alive. Noise complaints from speedway tracks have threatened this sport in recent years so this is welcome news.

Prodrive thinks the basis of this new silencer design (Prodrive 115) could be transferred to many other sports like grass track racing and motocross. Prodrive is also known for its work with rally cars, including the Subaru Impreza WRC, Honda and Ford Touring Cars.

Subaru Boxer Diesel

Subaru‘s widely acclaimed 2.0-litre Boxer diesel has now been teamed with the Imprezza 5-door hatchback to offer exceptional practicality. The 150PS diesel engine which has already been seen in the Legacy, Outback and Forester is now available in this new model.

This new addition to the range achieves 47.9mpg on the combined fuel cycle and has a CO2 rating of 155g/km. The low centre of gravity and Subaru’s Vehicle Dynamics Control offers exceptional handling and the car reaches 0-62 in 9.0 seconds and onto a top speed of 127mph.

The car has a good specification as well, offering 17-inch alloy wheels, HID headlamps with pop-up washers, electrically-folding door mirrors, front foglamps, 6CD player with MP3 facility, cruise control, windscreen wiper de-icer, climate control, front and side airbags plus heated sports seats.

The two model Imprezza diesel range, 2.0D RC and RX, now compliments the 1.5 and 2.0-litre petrol models, the 2.5 WRX turbo, plus range topping WRX STI Type UK and 330S. Subaru car leasing prices are available now with these new models coming onto the site shortly.

International Motors LImited, the official importers of Subaru, Isuzu and Daihatsu cars and pick ups, will merge all three franchises under one management structure.

Paul Tunnicliffe, previouly Managing Director of the Diaihatsu franchise, will now take responsibility for all three.

Mr Tunnicliffe said ” In this uncertain business climate, it is vitally important for the sake of our manufacturers,dealers and staff that we take every opportunity to review our spending levels and reduce costs.”