Identity Crisis - my new wheels (sort of)

Steve Sanford

Steve Sanford

Well-known member
All~


You may have heard me rave about my '03 Honda Element over the years. It has been the best vehicle I've owned - and is still my everyday car. However, with over 300K on the clock, I've been contemplating a new vehicle for a while now.



View attachment Rack 01 - Element with Canvasback 3L.jpg



It finally dawned on me that I did not need to replace the Element. Instead, I just acquired another vehicle as a "supplement". (Kinda like duckboats - you really cannot have just one....)



So, at the end of May, I got myself a 2018 Subaru Forester. The proximate reason was that my grandson and his parents (daughter Emily and son-in-law Folke) will be visiting from Germany in about a month. We needed a vehicle that could seat 5 people.


View attachment sm AGAIN Jackiemobile 03 AGAIN.JPG



Foresters (and other Subarus) are one of the most common vehicles in my neck of the woods (eastern NYS right near the Green Mountain State). They are well-regarded both on and off the road. And, my mechanic gave me the thumbs up. I've only driven it a few times - but I really like it. Great visibility - and peace of mind on my last trip to Long Island. The 33 mpg was about 10 mpg better than my Element, too. Only problem is the lackluster logo.


So, I got in touch with the good folks at https://doityourselflettering.com/



I drew this Whistler back in the early 80's.


View attachment sm Logo and Black 01.JPG



I also blacked out the chrome "wings" on the grille with Krylon Semi-flat.



View attachment sm Logo and Black FULL.jpg



I tarted up the emblem on the rear hatch, too. Next job is modifying the roof rack - so it will actually carry lumber or a canoe.


Full tale is at: https://stevenjaysanford.com/identity-crisis-my-subaru-forester/



All the best,


SJS

 
Nicely done. I drove a series of Foresters from about 1996-2011. I replaced the Forester with a Nissan truck when I was working in places where I I thought I needed low range 4WD.

I still miss the Forester. Best snow vehicle I ever had. Enough ground clearance to deal with Maine logging roads. Super safety features. I fell asleep at the wheel, caused a head on collision with a big truck, and am convinced the only reason I didn't die was the air bags and other safety features. I've still never been in any place with my truck I don't think I could have gotten to with the Forester. The truck just gives me a chance to get back out if I get myself stuck.

I miss the Forester every time it snows and the rear end of my truck is sliding all over the road.

As for the emblem, I am one of the few hunters left in Maine who deliberately hunts whistlers. I go out of of my way to chase them, have a dedicatedset of whister decoys and a handful of whistler spots I usually have to hunt alone since my friends would rather chase late season black ducks.

I want one!
 
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Good morning, Jeff~


Glad to hear of your experience with your Forester - and that you survived a serious collision! My Element, too, has been superb off the road and on slippery roads with its AWD and ground clearance.



I have not yet worked out the design for my roof rack "adaptor", but it will be a bit longer, have padded crossbars near its ends, and have a cleat on each corner. I need to build it before the Tuckerton Show in late September.



I was interested to read on-line that the factory racks on the 2019 models will be taller and have "attachment points".....


All the best,


SJS

 
Congratulations on the Subaru, the Forresters are great vehicles. I?m more of a pick-up truck guy but we?ve done lots of traveling in my wife?s Forrester.
 
Steve,
I hope you don't have the same problem my son has with his 2017. He has been having a problem with oil consumption. He has been adding 1 to 2 quarts of oil between oil changes (5,000). Subaru has done 2 oil consumption test on it and they said it is not excessive (over 10.2 ounces of oil in 1200 miles is excessive). I think any newer car that uses oil between changes is bad. None of our other cars and trucks(Toyota and Honda) burn oil just this one. Even the service manager thinks it's a problem but has to do what Subaru America tells them and until it fails the test is nothing. I think it might be a problem only with the standards and not so much with automatics.
Pete
 
We love my wife's '15 Forester...seats sit higher up for me than the Outback. With 2 back surgeries I need to be comfortable on long rides.
We live in northern Michigan and handles well in the snow as stated earlier. Love the visibility and crash tests are very good.
Rear passengers love the leg room as well. We love the gas mileage too after filling up her V-8 Lexus SUV for years.

I put a 2" receiver hitch on it for her bike rack. Now she thinking teardrop camper so when fall hunting season arrives she has 3 months to "leave" me hunting my heart out! Hmmm.
 
Steve,
Nice looking Subie.

Watch the oil level. There are three class action law suits against Subaru because of oil consumption issues relating to Foresters in recent years. Not sure Subaru has ever owned up to what was causing the problem. Hopefully you don't have that issue.

I hate to cause a frown on your forehead over what is a great vehicle; just keep it in mind.

I just got back from Boone, NC. You would swear it is the Subaru capital of the world.

All the best to you and your new vehicle.

Larry
 
Steve
"
good luck with it. i just retired my 2004 forester to my camp " Doodle bug". 195k miles ,head gasket 2nd time,evap system gone. I have an 06 outback that has 200k and I am constantly replacing systems but the 3.0 engine runs great just has the same head gasket issue as every boxer type engine subaru makes.

great cars for the first 100k but after that expect the headgasket/timing belt water pump replacement. It is sold as a kit for a reason.
 
Larry Eckart said:
Watch the oil level. There are three class action law suits against Subaru because of oil consumption issues
Click to expand...

this is what scared me away from a Subaru when i was in the market for a new car about 1.5 years back. That and the gas tank door is on the "wrong" side, which is a pet peeve of mine.
 
Steve, I've never heard anyone say that you were ever "out of your element"! Just goes to show you that anything is possible!
All kidding aside, good luck with the subaru. I hope the element will give you another 100,000 miles of service--that will be a long time without it being driven to L I.
 
Good morning, Sandy et al~


Thanks for the kind wishes - and warnings about the oil consumption. I checked the level yesterday: right on the money at all of 1200 miles.


More important, I polished the "bow emblem" with Armor All - to get all the dried bugs off the Whistler.


All the best,


SJS





 
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