Compare the2022 Subaru ForesterVS 2022 Land Rover Discovery Sport

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Subaru Forester have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Land Rover Discovery Sport doesn’t offer pretensioners for the rear seat belts.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Subaru Forester are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Land Rover Discovery Sport doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Forester are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Forester has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Forester (except Base/Premium) offers optional Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

Both the Forester and the Discovery Sport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Forester its highest rating: “Top Pick Plus” for 2021, a rating granted to only 73 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Discovery Sport has not been tested, yet.

Subaru’s powertrain warranty covers the Forester 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Land Rover covers the Discovery Sport. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Discovery Sport ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 3 times as many Subaru dealers as there are Land Rover dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Forester’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Forester’s reliability 59 points higher than the Discovery Sport.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are better in initial quality than Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru 24th in initial quality. With 18 more problems per 100 vehicles, Land Rover is ranked 26th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru 17th in reliability. With 119 more problems per 100 vehicles, Land Rover is ranked 33rd.

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the Forester lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability without compromising ground clearance. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

On the EPA test cycle the Forester gets better mileage than the Discovery Sport:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Subaru Forester uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Discovery Sport requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Forester has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer a CVT.

For better maneuverability, the Forester’s turning circle is 3.4 feet tighter than the Discovery Sport’s (35.4 feet vs. 38.8 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Forester has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Discovery Sport (8.7 vs. 8.3 inches), allowing the Forester to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Forester Wilderness’ minimum ground clearance is .9 inch higher than on the Discovery Sport (9.2 vs. 8.3 inches).

The Subaru Forester may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 600 to 650 pounds less than the Land Rover Discovery Sport.

The Forester is 10 inches narrower than the Discovery Sport, making the Forester easier to handle and maneuver in traffic.

The front grille of the Forester uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Forester has 1.7 inches more front headroom, 4.2 inches more front legroom, .9 inches more front shoulder room, .9 inches more rear headroom, 1.3 inches more rear legroom and 1.3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Discovery Sport.

The Forester has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Discovery Sport with its rear seat up (28.9 vs. 5.5 cubic feet). The Forester has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Discovery Sport with its rear seat folded (74.2 vs. 55.6 cubic feet).

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Forester. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The engine in the Forester is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Discovery Sport. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

The Forester Touring’s standard easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring’s exterior PIN entry system. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its InControl can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Forester has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer cornering lights.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Forester has standard extendable sun visors. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Consumer Reports® chose the Subaru Forester as its “Top Pick,” the highest scoring vehicle in its category, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Subaru Forester outsold the Land Rover Discovery Sport by almost 25 to one during the 2021 model year.