Subaru Forester XT or Mazda CX-7

[chocoboy1977]

installers are reliable naman especially speedlab and orange, the problem is the car itself it would lose it's reliability because the 2.0x engine isn't designed to be turbo'd.

ah ic, thanks for the tons of advice dude

[foresterx]

you're welcome, glad i could help!

anyway when you test drive the 2.0x, xt and cx-7 let us know what you think.

[chocoboy1977]

I was able to test drive my cousin's Subaru 2.5xt last night in their village and the cx-7 yesterday afternoon along edsa (ortigas). Here's my review of both...

The cx-7's interior accessories is far more Hi-tech compared to the XT. AC controls are easier to manipulate, Simple plus and minus knobs. Display is well placed (top center of the dashboard) easier to view in a glance. I just wished the rear camera was standard than optional. Radio is prettier though wasn't able to compare sound quality as much as I would want with limited time. Cx-7's leather seats are more cushioned compared to the XT. Though, the XT's are not bad at all. Back seats got to hand it to the XT as it is able to recline further thus making it more comfortable for passengers. Sound proofing wise, I think CX-7 is a notch hihger.

Here is where the CX-7 gets left behind. I'm sorry to say but the CX-7's ride is just terrible (in my opinion). I'm not sure if the wheels are just over inflated but the ride (driver and rear passenger) is simply put as MATAGTAG. My brother riding at the back kept on saying naalog ang tiyan ko. And take note, this is along edsa (from ortigas intersection until santaloan U-Turn underpass) with almost zero traffic.. We also drove along the wide street going to white plains/corinthian hills intersection and aslo along corinthian hills drive. This is really a big minus on the CX-7 for me. The XT's ride is way much softer and comfortable but this is just within village streets. I'll add more on the forester's ride after my test dive next saturday. But it will be the 2.0x model that I will be testing since Subaru doesn't have a 2.5XT test drive unit.

With regards to power, I think we all know the CX-7 and the XT are really not matched. 230ps / 320 torque vs 163ps / 205 torque says it all. It should be more of CX-7 vs 2.0x (even price wise) to make sense. I'll also add more on this (CX-7 vs 2.0x) after the test drive on saturday.

Leg room and trunk space, the forester is just bigger or should I say was utilized more. I'm not saying the CX-7's leg room is campy or anything. In fact, the legroom is adequate enough for the average sized filipino. Again, the forester's leg room just has more space compared to the CX-7. Trunk space is almost the same but the CX-7's rear wheel protrudes thus making the effective trunk space smaller.

Ease of driving, The forester also wins for me at the moment. With regards to driver's view, the Forester has a wider view (front and back) due to the thicker A-pillars and D- Pillars of the CX-7. The massive sun roof of the Forester is also a big plus. Manuverability of both are equal in my opinion even with the CX-7 being bigger on all dimensions. I will aslo add more on this after the Forester test drive.

This is my experience and thoughts with regards to the CX-7 vs Forester. So far, I am leaning towards the Forester but things could change after the Forester test drive as I will be buying the 2.0x if ever due to budget constraints.

[pup2]

Guys, parang hindi naman siya ganun ka into speed. Baka naman OK na siya sa 2.0X with bolt-on mods ...

[chocoboy1977]

I was able to test drive the 2.0x last saturday. Just to continue my review between the two...

Forester's ride is way better compared to the CX-7's. Power wise, 2.0x is more than enough for city driving. Not much difference in torque compared to CX-7 based on my test drive along edsa w/ a bit of traffic. Along corinthian hills drive, I floored the gas pedal and the forester was as responsive as the CX-7 (maybe a touch slower at the end of the first gear). But again, more than enough for overtaking bus n jeeps in the city. Handling, CX-7 is outmatched. Steering was as light as I could ask for. I can comfortably say, the Forester's handling is the best I've ever experienced. Overall, it's the Forester for me. I decided to just wait for the 2011 Forester w/c is dued to come out early next yr according to a SA I talked to (not sure how accurate this info is).

[chocoboy1977]

interested in the steel silver the most. an alternative would be the dark grey

[imperialv]

I was able to test drive the 2.0x last saturday. Just to continue my review between the two...

Forester's ride is way better compared to the CX-7's. Power wise, 2.0x is more than enough for city driving. Not much difference in torque compared to CX-7 based on my test drive along edsa w/ a bit of traffic. Along corinthian hills drive, I floored the gas pedal and the forester was as responsive as the CX-7 (maybe a touch slower at the end of the first gear). But again, more than enough for overtaking bus n jeeps in the city. Handling, CX-7 is outmatched. Steering was as light as I could ask for. I can comfortably say, the Forester's handling is the best I've ever experienced. Overall, it's the Forester for me. I decided to just wait for the 2011 Forester w/c is dued to come out early next yr according to a SA I talked to (not sure how accurate this info is).

Definitely the 2011 Forester will come out next year.. The only question is if there will be a difference in the 2010 model and 2011.. Joke naman yan SA na yan..

[foresterx]

no difference mga bro's, only the USDM market ang mag karon ng difference.

[imperialv]

no difference mga bro's, only the USDM market ang mag karon ng difference.

I think this was discussed several times.. AFAIK, no difference from 2010 to 2011.. except for the year model... BTW, 2009 to 2010 difference, ang latter may folding side mirrors.. tama ba etong info??

[niky]

interested in the steel silver the most. an alternative would be the dark grey

I'm partial to white, myself, but I think the dark grey is a great color. Goes well with aftermarket mags...

[chocoboy1977]

no motorized folding side mirrors on the 2010 2.0x models. only on the XT models

[foresterx]

I think this was discussed several times.. AFAIK, no difference from 2010 to 2011.. except for the year model... BTW, 2009 to 2010 difference, ang latter may folding side mirrors.. tama ba etong info??

2009 ata may folding side mirrors, 2010 and 2011 doesn't have it though.

*chocoboy: yung power ba ng cx-7 and 2.0x very minimal ang difference and the ride ba eh layo ba ng difference? plano ko kasi mag palit, the reason i bought the 2.0x kasi i was waiting for the 2011 xt to change it's transmission pero since wala parin baka by the end of the year di na subaru ang kunin ko. if the cx-7 is really not that good mag captiva na ko, the features are great will test drive it as soon as i get back there in the philppines.

[foresterx]

blasphemy ! hehehe. Foresterx you are one of the biggest proponents of the Forester here .... and for you to switch to a Captiva? You'll have to change your handle....


Anyway, you have all the dream cars in your USA garage.

:bwahaha: my original plan is to upgrade to an XT, but since subaru didn't change anything for the XT i decided to look at the captiva and get a 2nd car that will satisfy my needs for performance. still can't decide what the 2nd car will be since it will be hard to satisfy my needs for performance, lalo na coming from a c63 and x5m then going back to regular performance car is hard, even the STi and evo feels slow now after driving the c63. anyway 50/50 pa naman ako don sa decision ko to replace the forester, it's kind of hard to convince the wife to replace it especially she loves it more than i do.

[renzo_d10]

Forget the captiva. :hysterical:

Basta subaru pa rin ako kahit anong mangyari ....

Halika ForesterX, ayusin natin yang forester mo ...

1. Replace the grille with the original ones
2. Rota SVN rims
3. Quad projectors
4. Bring it to speedlab and bahala na sila magtune diyan. :hysterical:

As long as your pocket is deeeeeeeeeep enough, speedlab will meet the satisfaction that you want to have. :bwahaha:

[foresterx]

hehe bahala na, i got till the end of the year to decide naman what i'll do.

[chocoboy1977]

my original plan is to upgrade to an XT, but since subaru didn't change anything for the XT i decided to look at the captiva and get a 2nd car that will satisfy my needs for performance. still can't decide what the 2nd car will be since it will be hard to satisfy my needs for performance, lalo na coming from a c63 and x5m then going back to regular performance car is hard, even the STi and evo feels slow now after driving the c63. anyway 50/50 pa naman ako don sa decision ko to replace the forester, it's kind of hard to convince the wife to replace it especially she loves it more than i do.

C63 and X5m... hmmm buti napapansin mo pa ang forester

What yr ba yung forester 2.0X mo? Nandito sa pinas yung forester?

Back to the topic...

Ride of the CX-7 is really bad for me. Literal na matagtag even at the front seats. Sa forester, I would consider pa nga na parang nakasakay ako sa land cruiser Bouncy sya pag may lubak or humps pero di matagtag. Swabe yung mga lubak.

Ang nagustuhan ko naman sa CX-7 yung loob. Definitely mas hi end yung interior. Mas maganda rin yung radio. Yung seats nya parang shoot na shoot katawan mo. And mas mataas yung feeling mo. Parang nasa spaceship ka.

Kaya here's what I planned to do... Get the 2.0x and upgrade the radio head unit. Maybe get a kenwood DNX or other Unit with GPS and the works... kahit gastusan mo pa ng 80k to 100k match lang sa price or lower pa compared to the CX-7. Now you get both worlds.

[renzo_d10]

What yr ba yung forester 2.0X mo? Nandito sa pinas yung forester?

Andito yang forester ni foresterx. I saw it in personal. Mga 2009 yung sakanya. Tama ba ? hehehe.


Hoyeaahh .....









c/o speedlab.

Turbocharged foresters ftw.

[imperialv]

Andito yang forester ni foresterx. I saw it in personal. Mga 2009 yung sakanya. Tama ba ? hehehe.


Hoyeaahh .....









c/o speedlab.

Turbocharged foresters ftw.

kay cedric ata eto.. SCP member..

2010 fxt has a switch for the folding side mirrors.. mayroon ang fxt ko..

foresterx.. huwag mo ng palitan si fx.. mas reliable naman ata yan sa captiva.. or may rumour ata na maglalabas ng diesel forester ang MI.

[foresterx]

Andito yang forester ni foresterx. I saw it in personal. Mga 2009 yung sakanya. Tama ba ? hehehe.


Hoyeaahh .....


c/o speedlab.

Turbocharged foresters ftw.

yup 09 yung akin, at wish ko lang ganyan ang forester ko. kaso 2.0 lang ang akin ang won't be as fast as the xt no matter what mods i put in it.

I like those headlights for my plain jane FXT!!!!! How much are those????

38k ata if i remember correctly and 3 days gagawin.

kay cedric ata eto.. SCP member..

2010 fxt has a switch for the folding side mirrors.. mayroon ang fxt ko..

foresterx.. huwag mo ng palitan si fx.. mas reliable naman ata yan sa captiva.. or may rumour ata na maglalabas ng diesel forester ang MI.

haha di pa naman sure, and i'll still keep a subie in my garage no matter what. so kung palitan ko forester ko, i'm leaning on a subie para don sa second car, ayaw ko lang muna sabihin kung ano at baka maudlot pa.

*chocoboy: will test drive the cx-7 also to see for myself.

[chocoboy1977]

let me know how you find the CX-7 baka na tiempo lang na matigas gulong sa test drive unit ko.