Subaru Forester

It's been three months since I bought my Subaru Forester, and I thought I'd give ya'll a little update on how it's doing: AWESOME. It is a seriously amazing vehicle. I am totally satisfied with it, and here's why.

• It's a nice size. My old car was a 1994 Chevy S10 Blazer, a smallish, boxy, four-door. SUVs these days are absolutely monstrous it seems (seriously, folks with a Toyota Highlander...what is going on?), so I was really pleased to find a similarly sized vehicle in the Forester. It's large enough that I can easily put bags of shavings or hay bales in the back (true story), but not so large that I feel like I'm driving a boat. 
• All-wheel drive. The Blazer was four-wheel drive, but I didn't find myself using it much. Still, my equestrian adventures sometimes require that I drive through off-road or muddy conditions, so I am really thankful for the Subie's AWD. It was pretty deluxe to drive over icy, snowy roads during last month's blizzard, and I never have to worry about getting stuck in the puddles at the barn. 
• Comfort. For its time, the Blazer was pretty swank. It had faux-leather seats, cruise control, A/C, power locks & windows, remote keyless entry, and a bangin' stereo system. (That last part was thanks to an ex-boyfriend.) When I was shopping for cars, I was appalled to find that these features aren't standard on some vehicles! This is 2011, Ford! Air conditioning needs to be standard!! All of the Blazer's amenities (save for faux-leather seats) are included in the base trim line of my Forester. No extra charge. While I would have liked to add and sunroof and heated seats, I can live without them. Especially at the price I got the Subie for.
• The company. Subaru is a neat company. Their Indiana plant was the first auto assembly plant to achieve zero-landfill status, which means nothing from the manufacturing process goes into a landfill. They regularly have "Share the Love" events, where $250 of the purchase of your vehicle is donated to charity/charities of your choice (you're welcome, ASPCA and Ocean Conservancy). Their owners' magazine is full of cool articles about owners' events, Subaru initiatives, and travel. They sent me some awesome owners' badges for my car after I bought it. And their obsession with rally is kind of awesome. (Johnny owns an Impreza WRX, one of their little rally cars. It goes zooom!)

If you're going to be in the market for a new car soon, take a look at Subaru! They have SUVs, sedans, coupes, and whatever the Outback is currently classified as (wagon? sport wagon? crossover?). Subies are so much fun to drive and you'll feel like part of the cool kids' club when other Subie drivers wave at you.