2015 Subaru Forester XT?

[Drew99GT]

I'm seriously looking at this vehicle; specific car has 80K, it's salvaged and repaired from hail damage (Colorado!!!!).

Ive done some reading and starting in 2014, they have a better CVT??? Anyone know anything about that?

My main concern is reliability and serviceability. Did some research on changing the CVT fluid, and that seems more than I want to do myself! Requires OBDII software to read fluid temps etc.

Does this vehicle have a center differential that needs fluid changing, or is that part of the CVT? Front and rear diifs take 75w-90 from what I've read.

Thoughts in general from any owners?

Thanks a bunch!!!

 

[maxdustington]

Originally Posted by Drew99GT
My main concern is reliability and serviceability. Did some research on changing the CVT fluid, and that seems more than I want to do myself! Requires OBDII software to read fluid temps etc.
Measured cold drain and fill. There is no trans that I know off that can not have it's fluid changed with that method. Setting it a temp is for pro mechanics who don't work on cold cars. I think it is also there to dissuade DIY service of lifetime fluids.

Is Colorada know for hail or something?

 

[Virtus_Probi]

The CVT design was updated sometime during the production of the 2015 MY, probably worth grabbing the VIN off the car and seeing if it has the CVT with a filter added.
I have the original high torque CVT design and it needed major servicing at 80kmiles, although that may have been because the dealer that did the 60k service used the wrong fluid (green for normal CVTs instead of orange for high torque).
After my tranny started throwing codes and I took it to the dealer (luckily covered under a tranny warranty that Subaru extended to 100kmiles), I bugged them about making sure they used the proper CVT fluid.
When I got the car back, I called again to make sure fluid was right and they told me that the fluid that went in was just as green as what had come out...I told them that was odd because the high torque fluid is orange.
15-20 minutes later, the mechanic called me back and asked me to bring the car back in right away.

 

[JTK]

I owned a 2016 Forester 2.5i, CVT base model. I never did service the CVT fluid on it given I only owned it 3yrs and 45K miles. I am one who has done cold drain/fills on various "sealed" ATs, CVTs included, with zero issues. The problem with some of them is, fluid will run from the fill/level check port before you're able to get the same volume back in as you took out. If this is the case, refill with what you can, then run the engine to get the remaining fluid back in. Or you can go ghetto and jack up one side such that the fill port is higher up than the rest of the trans.

These Subaru CVTs have been updated maybe 4x since they first came out in the 2010 model year Subaru Legacy. What ever version it's got, I wouldn't let it scare you away from the vehicle. The front differential is integrates with the CVT, but it does hold gear oil and has it's own drain, fill/level check plugs. 75w80 gear oil typically for those. Rear diffs are a breeze to change gear oil on.

 

[Virtus_Probi]

Originally Posted by JTK
I owned a 2016 Forester 2.5i, CVT base model. I never did service the CVT fluid on it given I only owned it 3yrs and 45K miles. I am one who has done cold drain/fills on various "sealed" ATs, CVTs included, with zero issues. The problem with some of them is, fluid will run from the fill/level check port before you're able to get the same volume back in as you took out. If this is the case, refill with what you can, then run the engine to get the remaining fluid back in. Or you can go ghetto and jack up one side such that the fill port is higher up than the rest of the trans.

These Subaru CVTs have been updated maybe 4x since they first came out in the 2010 model year Subaru Legacy. What ever version it's got, I wouldn't let it scare you away from the vehicle. The front differential is integrates with the CVT, but it does hold gear oil and has it's own drain, fill/level check plugs. 75w80 gear oil typically for those. Rear diffs are a breeze to change gear oil on.


The Subaru high torque CVT for the FXT and the WRX is a different design from the CVT used with the 2.5l NA engine...somebody on here posted a great video explaining a generic high torque CVT, maybe I can find it later on today.

EDIT - found it...
https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/foru...ll/high-torque-cvt-engineering-explained

 

[JTK]

Originally Posted by Virtus_Probi
Originally Posted by JTK
I owned a 2016 Forester 2.5i, CVT base model. I never did service the CVT fluid on it given I only owned it 3yrs and 45K miles. I am one who has done cold drain/fills on various "sealed" ATs, CVTs included, with zero issues. The problem with some of them is, fluid will run from the fill/level check port before you're able to get the same volume back in as you took out. If this is the case, refill with what you can, then run the engine to get the remaining fluid back in. Or you can go ghetto and jack up one side such that the fill port is higher up than the rest of the trans.

These Subaru CVTs have been updated maybe 4x since they first came out in the 2010 model year Subaru Legacy. What ever version it's got, I wouldn't let it scare you away from the vehicle. The front differential is integrates with the CVT, but it does hold gear oil and has it's own drain, fill/level check plugs. 75w80 gear oil typically for those. Rear diffs are a breeze to change gear oil on.


The Subaru high torque CVT for the FXT and the WRX is a different design from the CVT used with the 2.5l NA engine...somebody on here posted a great video explaining a generic high torque CVT, maybe I can find it later on today.

EDIT - found it...
https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/foru...ll/high-torque-cvt-engineering-explained


As far as I know, the Subaru high torque CVT still uses a chain like the rest of the Subaru line. I know it uses orange fluid as opposed to the standard green.

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted by maxdustington
Originally Posted by Drew99GT
My main concern is reliability and serviceability. Did some research on changing the CVT fluid, and that seems more than I want to do myself! Requires OBDII software to read fluid temps etc.
Measured cold drain and fill. There is no trans that I know off that can not have it's fluid changed with that method. Setting it a temp is for pro mechanics who don't work on cold cars. I think it is also there to dissuade DIY service of lifetime fluids.

Is Colorada know for hail or something?

Colorado Springs is called "hail capitol of the US."
If you do not have garage, you will not have car for long.

 

[SatinSilver]

Originally Posted by edyvw
Colorado Springs is called "hail capitol of the US."
If you do not have garage, you will not have car for long.


There's a pretty good homicide show based on that city. Seems like there have been a lot of them over years for that size city.

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted by SatinSilver
Originally Posted by edyvw
Colorado Springs is called "hail capitol of the US."
If you do not have garage, you will not have car for long.


There's a pretty good homicide show based on that city. Seems like there have been a lot of them over years for that size city.

Nah, actually Colorado Springs does not have high homicide rate. The economy here is ridiculous, as well as income compared to average in the country, so there is crime, but not any worse than average.
But, big problem is domestic violence due to PTSD in military, and this region has huge military community. That is big issue.

 

[PimTac]

Originally Posted by edyvw
Originally Posted by SatinSilver
Originally Posted by edyvw
Colorado Springs is called "hail capitol of the US."
If you do not have garage, you will not have car for long.


There's a pretty good homicide show based on that city. Seems like there have been a lot of them over years for that size city.

Nah, actually Colorado Springs does not have high homicide rate. The economy here is ridiculous, as well as income compared to average in the country, so there is crime, but not any worse than average.
But, big problem is domestic violence due to PTSD in military, and this region has huge military community. That is big issue.





www.neighborhoodscout.com has statistics for pretty much everywhere. Colorado Springs has a crime rating of 11. 100 is crime free. Don't feel bad though. Seattle's rating is 3. Tacoma is 2.

We don't get killer hail so that's a plus.

 

[Virtus_Probi]

Originally Posted by JTK
Originally Posted by Virtus_Probi

The Subaru high torque CVT for the FXT and the WRX is a different design from the CVT used with the 2.5l NA engine...somebody on here posted a great video explaining a generic high torque CVT, maybe I can find it later on today.
EDIT - found it...
https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/foru...ll/high-torque-cvt-engineering-explained

As far as I know, the Subaru high torque CVT still uses a chain like the rest of the Subaru line. I know it uses orange fluid as opposed to the standard green.

After poking around a bit, I think that you are correct and I was wrong to suggest that the Subie high torque CVT was not chain based. I also found a PDF discussing these CVTs in some detail only to find that it was completely wrong, should have been a tipoff that it was saying the FXT/WRX units were more compact than the standard units.
I am having a hard time now finding info about the design change to the high torque CVT during the 2015 MY...I know that I found a site before that discussed the VIN numbers when the change was made.
I hope it's still out there!

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted by PimTac
Originally Posted by edyvw
Originally Posted by SatinSilver
Originally Posted by edyvw
Colorado Springs is called "hail capitol of the US."
If you do not have garage, you will not have car for long.


There's a pretty good homicide show based on that city. Seems like there have been a lot of them over years for that size city.

Nah, actually Colorado Springs does not have high homicide rate. The economy here is ridiculous, as well as income compared to average in the country, so there is crime, but not any worse than average.
But, big problem is domestic violence due to PTSD in military, and this region has huge military community. That is big issue.





www.neighborhoodscout.com has statistics for pretty much everywhere. Colorado Springs has a crime rating of 11. 100 is crime free. Don't feel bad though. Seattle's rating is 3. Tacoma is 2.

We don't get killer hail so that's a plus.

Well, yesterday I witnessed police chase, where guy in Mitsubishi lancer thought he can win head on collision against Dodge Charger.
When I got Toyota, and check out body, first thing that popped to my mind was that hail here would just fly through whatever Toyota decided to use as protection against outside elements, as I have reservations calling this a "structure."

 

[KCJeep]

We have (had) 6 Foresters purchased new at work. Two have already been traded prematurely because they have been so problematic. The others are on the chopping block or we have kept one because we got an extended warranty by accident. They drive nice, the awd system is very good and they have had zero engine and transmission issues. They have been so riddled with electrical, suspension and hardware issues however we will never buy another. They are 16 and 17 models, as I said all purchased new and even now none with more than 35k miles at most.

 

[Al]

https://www.rubbernews.com/article/...st-in-consumer-reports-2019-car-rankings

"WASHINGTON—Subaru took first place in Consumer Reports' annual ranking of car brands, edging out Genesis, the magazine's 2018 top choice."

"Two Subaru models also were among CR's top 10 individual picks for 2019. The new Subaru Impact was named Best Mid-sized SUV, and the Subaru Forester was the Best Compact SUV for the sixth straight year."

Probably not as bad as some on there think.

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted by Al
https://www.rubbernews.com/article/...st-in-consumer-reports-2019-car-rankings

"WASHINGTON—Subaru took first place in Consumer Reports' annual ranking of car brands, edging out Genesis, the magazine's 2018 top choice."

"Two Subaru models also were among CR's top 10 individual picks for 2019. The new Subaru Impact was named Best Mid-sized SUV, and the Subaru Forester was the Best Compact SUV for the sixth straight year."

Probably not as bad as some on there think.




I bet people at Ferrari are sounding alarm!