C&D Comparison: RAV4 vs Forester vs 2014 CX-5 GT AWD

We were looking at all 3 models in the article plus the CR-V. We came to the same conclusion with the CX-5 and now have one sitting in the garage! This article helped give us confidence we were making the correct choice.
 
Thank-you! Awesome review. and from Car and Driver no less.

The CX-5 crushed the competition in the "Fun to drive" category (and who wants a car that's not fun to drive?).

But us owner's already know that, the numbers that really jumped out at me was the CX-5 can hold 15 cases of beer in the trunk compared to only 13 and 14 in the competition. Clearly the better choice for summer fun!
 
nixit71 said:
And the new red looks pretty good too...
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It is nice, but not as bright a red in real life. For some reasons photos make it brighter, it actually becomes quite maroon in darker conditions.

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I absolutely love this quote: "Shifts from the automatic are as crisp as winter air, and the CX-5’s throttle responds like a small-town cop who’s just heard there’s a cat stuck in a tree."

Great article. Thanks for sharing!
 
I was hanging out on the SubaruForester forum and they brought that to my attention. I went out and bought the magazine and ended up buying a CX5. I agree with their assessment. The fun to drive thing is something you need to experience to really appreciate. I looked at a RAV several times and test drove one. It drives OK but the interior is a real mess. Cheap materials that were showing wear in the demo car. The Forester interior left me cold as well. Seats like a sofa! One feature my wife and I really appreciate is the cargo cover on the CX5. It stays attached to the hatch when you open it. It's also easy to remove and store when you need it out of the car. Seeing both the Subaru and Toyota salesmen attempt to remove the covers and store them in the under floor storage area was a real laugh. Totally not practical. We've had ours for almost a month and are very happy with it.
 
I read that earlier, nicely done by Mazda with CX-5, and very impressive how quick the new 2.5L was while still maintaining top notch fuel economy.

No thanks, I won't buy the ugly Forrester with the droning flat4/CVT setup.
 
jdbrian said:
I was hanging out on the SubaruForester forum and they brought that to my attention. I went out and bought the magazine and ended up buying a CX5.
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It funny that Consumer Reports ranks the Forester so high, yet on their website they have a page called "From the Logbook", where the staff puts down their impressions. And it's full of negatives, like "engine power is just adequate; steering feels soggy; crosswinds blow it around; CVT is too loud when you floor it; ride is choppy; front seat is stiff; pairing a phone is cumbersome..."

Add to that the negatives from the official review: ride is jittery; pronounced noise; loud engine noise during acceleration; mediocre fit and finish; seats are nothing special; antiquated NAV and antiquated bluetooth...

With all that, it still gets an 88, which ranks as Excellent (the next best is the Escape 2.0T with a 79, the CX-5 gets a 76 which both rank as Very Good). So CR puts a lot of value on great visibility with its low beltline and large windows, presumably due to the safety factor, but with all these negatives I would not say the Forester is an Excellent vehicle.
 
I wonder what the log book has in it for the CX5.

The summary has some negatives that probably affect their overall rating "Ride, noise, acceleration, low dash vents."
 
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HandA said:
I wonder what the log book has in it for the CX5
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Did not find a published logbook on their website for the CX-5...

Now I'm not saying that the Forester is not a nice SUV, it's just that car mags out there are consistently placing the CX-5 above it (even MotorTrend complains about the jittery ride of the Forester and the awful stereo (they'd rip it out and put an Audiovox cassette radio instead!)).
 
I think the car magazines put a higher value on handling, whereas that might not gain it as many points with CR
 
HandA said:
I think the car magazines put a higher value on handling, whereas that might not gain it as many points with CR
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Yes, I place little weight on CR road tests. I do find CR reliability data and charts to be useful and probably the best available data of this kind.
 
I read C/D religiously and had seen the article before.

Motor Trend also did a comparo and the CX-5 won, but I can't find it on their site for some reason (I had seen it there before).
 
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