Used Subaru Forester 4x4 1997 - 2002 review

Used Foresters are now widely available and make sound buys, as they're generally a little cheaper than the equivalent Land Rover Freelander or Honda CR-V.

The 31mpg fuel economy of the basic car also looks good when the CR-V returns only 29.1mpg. And, don't think the Turbo will cost the earth to fuel - it returns an impressive 28.5mpg on the combined cycle. Such good fuel economy figures are important, as there was never a diesel version of the Forester.

The Turbo's big downfall is its group 17 insurance rating, but at least the group 11 and 12 ratings of the other models look a lot more reasonable, if still a little higher than their rivals'.

Servicing costs are also on the high side next to the CR-V's and Toyota RAV4's, but the real headache could be unscheduled maintenance. Warranty Direct says that average repair bills on Subarus are among the highest of all makes.