Rear-seat passengers get good head and leg room. The Forester has great cargo capacity for its size, and lowering the 60/40 split rear seat doubles that capacity from 32 to 64 cubic feet.

The Forester works for a wide range of people, and when you consider all the airbag and seatbelt tricks, it keeps them all safe. It earned the highest possible ratings for crashworthiness in 40-mph frontal and 30-mph side impact crash tests by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the only small SUV to earn that rating in both tests.

The interior materials are nice, though the top of the dash looks like plastic. Three big HVAC knobs make it easy to adjust the temperature. The audio controls are on the fussy side, however, and the stereo sounds tinny.

Standard features include remote keyless entry, good storage space in the console, a separate storage compartment for the front passenger seat, dual visor vanity mirrors with lids, dual sunglasses storage compartments, illuminated window switches, rear window de-icer, remote release fuel door, two 12-volt outlets located in the front cabin and the cargo area, tie-downs for gear and groceries, power windows and locks, and finally a full-size spare tire.