2023 Subaru Forester Interior and Cargo

The base model of the Forester again misses out on a feature as all other variants get a leather-wrapped steering wheel. Cloth upholstery is standard on the base and Premium, while the other end of the spectrum sees the Limited model get leather upholstery in black or gray while the Touring gets black or Saddle Brown. The Sport model gets fabric in a two-tone gray with orange contrast stitching while the base and Premium variants get gray or black cloth, with a choice between these colors based on the exterior paint. The Wilderness gets textured gray StarTex water-repellant material on the seats, copper contrast stitching, and Subaru Wilderness branding embossed on the front headrests.

One of the most important aspects of a vehicle like this is how good it is at carrying stuff. Fortunately, the Forester doesn't disappoint with up to 28.9 cubic feet of cargo volume in the back. That drops slightly to 26.9 cubes with the sunroof fitted, but you still have enough volume to carry luggage for all occupants with ease and still have extra space for supplies if you're the adventurous type. If you need more space, the rear seats can be folded in a 60/40 split to open up 74.2 cubic feet or 69.1 cubic feet with the sunroof.

In the front, you get large door pockets with bottle holders, a large center armrest storage bin, a good-sized glovebox, a pair of cupholders in each row, and center console storage for your phone, wallet, or keys.

Despite what this review may have led you to believe up until this point, the base Forester is actually pretty nicely specced. You get keyless entry, automatic steering-responsive LED headlights, a rearview camera, single-zone automatic climate control, a six-way manually-adjustable driver's seat, a torque-vectoring system, Subaru's SI-Drive drive-mode selector, auto start/stop, and the Subaru EyeSight safety suite. This includes adaptive cruise control, sway warning, lane-departure warning, automatic emergency braking, and lane-keep assist. Further up, higher trims unlock features like a 10-way power-adjustable driver's seat, heated front seats, reclining rear seatbacks, push-button start, a 6.3-inch color driver-info display, dual-zone automatic climate control, a power tailgate, a panoramic sunroof, blind-spot monitoring with lane-change assist and rear cross-traffic alert, one-touch folding rear seats, reverse automatic braking, and a driver focus monitor. Also available are things like a heated steering wheel, heated rear seats, and a power-adjustable passenger seat.

As standard, the Forester comes with a 6.5-inch touchscreen infotainment display, a four-speaker sound system, two front USB ports, Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, Bluetooth, HD Radio, and SiriusXM satellite radio. Further up the trims, you get an eight-inch touchscreen display, a 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot, and a six-speaker sound system, but the Touring model boasts a nine-speaker Harman Kardon audio setup. The system works well and is easy to understand, but the bigger screen is all but necessary for displaying clearer images as the 6.5-inch display can be tricky to navigate on the go.