Actually Subaru is a lot clearer about what the 2009 Subaru Forester isn't. Apparently it's not a Honda CR-V, Mitsubishi Outlander, Saturn Vue or Toyota RAV4. And that's a good thing.
There is no confusion on Subaru's part, however, about who buys the Forester, why they buy it and how they use it.
In developing the 2009 model, Subaru conducted consumer clinics as early as 2004 to determine what Forester owners thought. Even more telling, according to Tom Caracciollo, Subaru of America's director of product planning, was what was learned after the clinics. By observing participants as they drove away, Caracciollo and his team learned about the ways people actually equipped the Forester and used it, even simply peering inside to see what kind of items were lying around.
This product-development voyeurism was extended further by searching for Forester owners who posted pictures of their adventures on Flickr.com, a photo sharing site. There were the inevitable dog lovers, cross-country skiers and hikers, but the most prolific poster was a guy who posed his Forester in front of the entrance sign to the many national parks he visited. And then there was the couple who stuffed a calf in the back of their Forester to deliver the animal to a relative's farm.
From all this, Subaru was happy to discover that owners loved and trusted their Foresters, but it also took to heart the areas that needed improvement. For example, Subaru eliminated a major source of wind noise by making the crossbars for the rarely used roof rack an optional item. At the same time, load capacity of the crossbars has been increased to 175 pounds, so if you do use them, you can carry more.
In addition, cupholders have been incorporated into the door panels to stow the ubiquitous oversized water bottles that were observed to be a necessary part of the Forester active lifestyle. Interior colors in easily soiled light beige and ivory have been replaced by a more user-friendly shade of gray. And a retractable "snack tray" holds food and beverages for rear-seat passengers.
Patrick C Paternie, "First Drive: 2009 Subaru Forester XT," Edmonds.com, 26 Mar 2008, www.edmunds.com/apps/vdpcontainers/do/vdp/articleId=125348/pageNumber=1
