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First road trip in my 2017 Forester....240 miles.....37.9 mpg (us gallon).....Way better than my 2007 forester, which had same engine...The only real difference is the CVT...
I know that a lot of CVTs from other manufacturers get plenty of hate, but Subaru really does seem to have hit a sweet spot in terms of both performance and fuel economy.
Hate to spoil your happiness, there is no way your car will produce 38mpg in any meaningful test. Even hybrid version will not, least to say a conventional engine one and with all time all wheel drive.
I have a 6-cylinder Outback with CVT. Subaru played games with the latest generation Outback to improve fuel economy. They raked the windshield. On the 4-cylinder, the louvers on the front grille close at highway speeds to improve aerodynamics. The hood is aluminum. They claim 33 mph highway on the 4-cylinder. I get a paper & pencil 26.75 mph in the 6-cylinder at 74 mph in warmer weather on long trips. EPA is 27 highway and I'm sure I'd see that at 65 mph if I ever felt the need to go 65 mph.
My 6-cylinder puts out 256 hp so the new design CVT that can handle the horsepower isn't fully proven. Lots of 4th generation Outbacks with the 4-cylinder engine have seen 150,000 to 200,000 miles without seeing transmission failures.
The only thing I don't like about the CVT in my car is that Subaru put fake simulated shift points on it when you put your foot to the floor. I want it to just put the engine at maximum torque and leave it there. The integration with the adaptive cruise control on hill descents also isn't right. It applies the brakes instead of engine braking. I have to manually put it "in gear" on hill descents. You'd think a car that is a big seller in mountain country would have gotten this right. I winter at a ski resort so I'm doing daily hill descents where there is rabid enforcement of the 35 mph speed limit. I wish I could just set the adaptive cruise control for 35 and have the car do the right thing. I'd chew through brake pads every 90 days if I let the car apply the brakes.
I had a VW GTI with the 6 speed dual clutch "DSG" automated manual transmission. Other than my last two body-on-frame SUVs where manual transmissions are gone forever, that was my first-ever non-manual transmission. It was fine. The CVT in the Outback is fine and the car has enough off road magic buttons that you can rock crawl with it instead of using it as a grocery getter like I do. The ski area parking lot and my driveway during mud month are as close to off road as I ever get. If I want to use my left foot, I can buy a summer-only garage queen that is more engaging to drive.
I'd believe 37 mpg in a Forester at 45 to 50 mph with no stop lights in warm-humid conditions using the cruise control at a somewhat higher altitude. The aerodynamics are wrong to see anything like that at 65 mph. Too much ground clearance. Too high a roof line. I've had some very long drives on rural secondary roads where I got an extra 4 or 5 mpg.
Hate to spoil your happiness, there is no way your car will produce 38mpg in any meaningful test. Even hybrid version will not, least to say a conventional engine one and with all time all wheel drive.
I don't care if it increases mpg or not...it's like driving a go-cart!
Until the reliability of cvt transmissions greatly improves, i'll pass.
Btw when you check your mpg , do it the old school way and use your math skills. Those little mpg calculators are not accurate...basically a backwards vacume gauge.
Hate to spoil your happiness, there is no way your car will produce 38mpg in any meaningful test. Even hybrid version will not, least to say a conventional engine one and with all time all wheel drive.
The 2.5 model is rated at 26 city / 32 highway, so for the OP to get 37 is not unreasonable.
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