2009 Subaru Forester Named Motor Trend's SUV of the Year

Motor Trend has awarded the 2009 Subaru Forester with its Sport/Utility of the Year award.

There were 13 finalists, which included the Honda Pilot, Chevrolet Traverse, Ford Flex, Infiniti Ex, Honda Pilot, Dodge Journey, Infiniti FX, Nissan Murano, Toyota Sequoia, Lexus LX570, Kia Borrego, BMW X6 and the Volkswagen Tiguan.

The Subaru Forester 2.5XT posted the best fuel-economy rating of any all-wheel-drive SUV in the tests, which definitely helped it receive the award. In addition to the best fuel-economy out of the contenders, the editors called out the Forester's humble powertrain:

St. Antoine said, "I'm amazed at how well the powertrain works with only a four-speed. The turbo four is torquey enough not to feel like it needs more ratios, and at cruising speed it's not revving overly hard."

In addition to its powertrain that is borrowed from the Impreza, the Forester also stood out due to its best-in-class interior and cargo volume.

Must be the sign of the times that this year's award SUV of the year winner is only powered by a 4-cylinder engine and shares most of its mechanicals with a compact sedan.

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