5 things I HATE about my lifted forester

In this video I talk about 5 things I hate/dislike about my lifted Subaru Forester!

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[Michael-]

I modified my auto SG9 XT with a 1 inch body lift, aluminum engine and diff bash plates, and cotton canvas seat covers. I replaced the 18 inch OEM magnesium alloy rims with 16 inch steel rims from the normally aspirated Forester models. This allowed me to fit high profile all terrain tires. The car will never be a substitute for a proper four wheel drive vehicle but will handle 90% of the roads that a Land-cruiser can handle and that’s good enough for me. I love the combination of power and versatility- it’s always fun to drive!

[subieliftoz]

There's still lots of offroad performance parts available off the shelf, just not as much as for 4wds. One day we'll get a locker! Currently available are bullbars, rear bars, sump & trans guards, clutch LSDs (almost as good as a locker), good low range (1.447), offroad specific gearbox builds, DCCD or 20kg centre diff (manual) or locking centre (auto), snorkels (plastic or stainless steel), proper engine tunes (not a chip like 4wds do. Tune is 100x better!) plus more.

I love my Subies! I've done tracks that "real" 4wds couldn't, plus done it with greater comfort & safety!! :)

[markmeyer]

I love my Subaru off-roading in tights areas. I have a 1 ton diesel for the extreme stuff. As of just hitting the back country and hitting some lakes. I believe my Subaru is way more fun. #1 it fits all my gear. #2 it has the rack to store more stuff. #3 and the best reason it’s super cheap to go anywhere. If I take my diesel on a long haul, it’s $500 US dollars compared to around $170. Not to mention my I can get a full set of tires on the Subaru to one tire on my Diesel. Yes the Truck can go more off road places and haul a heavier load. That’s what it’s designed to do.

[Daniel_BDB]

Getting a spacer for the sub frame and cross members and lowering it is pretty easy. Just need the right spacers and hardware, 2 jack stands and a jack to lower and lift the rear cross member

[abbotdog]

I have a 2018 Forester and can’t find any good stiffer suspension setups. The only current option is to lower the car with stiffer springs and then add a lift kit to put the car back to stock height or a little taller than stock. Factory setup is way under spring for off-road.

[ROIDS]

Bru thank you for both of these videos. I live here in the US and I’m gonna pull the trigger on a second gen forester. Appreciate your perspective

[bruceyyyyy]

A friend has a lifted 2008 Outback and was having axle issues as well.

We ended up going with an aftermarket set from Suretrack that have a different than factory design. TrakMotive SB-8047HD CV Axle

It uses two joints on the outer CV so one is dedicated to turning and one is dedicated to extending.

Not sure if you can get them in Australia but it fixed his issues. Hope it helps.

[TheTattooedRonin]

Good video bro. I love the look of the old Subarus. I have a 2010 now might get a 2019 forester forester

[ghammy]

Not to insult you, but Subarus aren't meant to be crazy rock crawlers. Most builds are just by weekend warriors who want to get to the trail head or fishing site. . As overlanders go it's all you need for a lot of things. Sure you will never be able to get 35s on it but will a 4runner ever be able to get 20mpg? These are compromises you need to consider before you do this. I am not saying you are totally wrong but what you're saying is like comparing a work truck to a work van. Also you could lock the center dif with a switch super easily and you could just weld the rear. I doubt you would break anything in the rear because you would hardly have wver power going to it

[TheBrrp]

I have an 03 forester here in Colorado and in the snow and mountains its perfect. most people struggle around me even in new tacomas and i have to say for this place with all the snow we get its beyond perfect. im just gonna keep dumping money into this bad boy for as long as i can. best car ive ever had just for how well it drives in deep snow. Any slick icy hills Ive found if you just rip it and keep the gas down it gets up pretty much anything with the right tires.

[kinderlindon]

Thanks for your honest feedback. I love my 06 Forester and in the future will be modifying it

[travisknott]

Thanks for the insight on the axles. I'm about the lift an 01 myself mainly to make my massive new tires fit a lil better XD I'm only gonna run 50mm blocks with trail arm spacers myself. awesome content!

[rocket]

Note that in South Australia, strut spacers (on top of coilovers) are not legal. The Forester is deemed a 4WD (it has MC on the compliance plate to verify this) so you can increase tyre diameter by up to 50mm vs tyre placard size, but that affects how much lift is legal as it cant be more than 50mm all up between tyre radius increase and suspension lift vs standard. Adjustable coilovers also need to engineering approval to be legal. Non legal mods dont just expose you to being defected by police, but can negate insurance coverage of your vehicle and 3rd party property damage

[andyb.]

This was helpful in considering lift height! Thank you.

[EDXR]

many of those dislikes you listed are not strictly a subaru only problem many of the dedicated or more traditional offroad vehicles can bust CVs once lifted also, the restrictions in Australia about what lift you can have also hampers the 4x4s, aftermarket is a pain agreed as for lockers there is two people I know of with Foresters that have lockers. but it is something that if your like me and not good at cracking open diffs and gear boxes it would cost a fortune to pay a guy to do it.

[vihreelinja]

Subaru low range is mostly meant for pulling boats of the ramp and stuff like that.
As it is not a ofroad vehicle as is. But damn it's so good offroading i wish they would sell reduction sets :D

[omyota]

Ahhh as an American, #1 has me dying inside a little bit. Would love to have a low range at all.

[laughingjackaso]

as an owner of an MY11 forester, with pretensions to lift etc., this is a great vid for consideration. as for the Subaru off-roading scene being young, the Subaru 4WD Club has been around since i was a young kid in the late 70's, it was a lot of fun - tho, i am assuming that the club is still running?
:)

[motor-head]

If you want to get the best off road capability you will have to go with a Wrangler. They are body on frame with solid axles. Aftermarket modifications are limitless and you can set them up to be anything from an overland trail rig to a full blown rock crawler. TJ's manufactured '97-'06 are a good choice. Just get the 4.0 litre with a Dana 44 rear axle and 3.73 gear ratio and you will have the platform you need to build anything you want. Independent suspensions like on your Subaru and Toyota's and everything else for that matter are just inferior for off road applications. A solid axle front and rear has far better flex and will follow the terrain. They are stronger, easier to lift, can be modified with different gear ratios, lockers or limited slip options, stronger just superior in every way.

[snyper]

Thank God for you mate. Finally someone has said their Subaru will never be a proper 4x4 but why do we still like them? Thank God for you. Move to the USA no ones care about the mods you make and highway safety, you may be sued but not until you make the 5:00 news. We are also making a wall and we will be able to 4x4 on it. I am going to put a 1.5" lift from LP Aventure on my Crosstrek this year even though I should just bank the money for a Tacoma.