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2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000
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Subaru Forester Limited
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Of the 16 vehicles represented in this category, only Mitsubishi iO - the 'baby Pajero' - and Suzuki Grand Vitara can match the true off-road operation of our winner, Subaru Forester Limited. The recently released clones, Mazda Tribute and Ford Escape, will take you a fair distance into the rough but lack true 4WD ability and do not feature low-range selection in their transmissions. At the lower end of the scale in terms of 4WD ability, Subaru Outback, Honda CRV, and Renault Scenic RX4 are all destined not to venture boldly away from gravel roads or firm bush tracks. Of the top three finishers in this category, one is a newcomer: Hyundai SanteFe. This vehicle, which comes in third, top-scores on warranty and space and practicality, while rating above-average in running and repair costs, standard features and safety - the latter deemed of critical importance to buyers, and others of high importance. Subaru Outback finishes second, convincingly ahead of the Hyundai. Outback captures top scores in five of the 19 criteria for this segment. These include comfort, build and finish quality, ride quality, handling and steering, and smoothness and quietness. However, Outback scores miserably on pricing and not much better in terms of running and repair costs. 4WD ability is also below average. The eventual winner, Subaru Forester, claims the crown for the second year in succession, with a winning margin similar to last year's result when it snuck home ahead of its Outback stablemate. While Forester does not achieve maximum points in any area, it comes home with a swag of above-average scores in 15 of the 19 criteria for this segment. Forester may have just made it home by a whisker in this vehicle segment ahead of Outback, however both Subarus clearly show the way to competitors in this category. View score table - Best Recreational Vehicles Under $45,000 * To view the score table you'll need to have Adobe Acrobat installed on your computer. You may already have it, but if not, it can be downloaded for free from www.adobe.com
Previous Results
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