Compare the2023 Subaru ForesterVS 2023 Jeep Wrangler

Safety
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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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 Jeep Wrangler doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Subaru Forester has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Wrangler doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Forester has standard head airbag curtains for front and rear seats which act as a forgiving barrier between the driver and outboard passenger's upper bodies and the window and pillars. Combined with high-strength steel door beams and lower side airbags this system increases head protection in broadside collisions. The Wrangler doesn't offer side airbag protection for the head and are only available for the front seats.

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 Wrangler 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 use rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. The Wrangler doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Forester’s lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. The Wrangler doesn’t offer a lane departure warning system.

The Forester offers optional parking sensors to help warn the driver about vehicles, pedestrians or other obstacles behind or in front of their vehicle. The Wrangler doesn’t offer a front parking aid.

The Forester Touring’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Wrangler doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the Forester uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The Wrangler uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the Forester and the Wrangler have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Subaru Forester is safer than the Jeep Wrangler:

	Forester	Wrangler
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	186	187
Neck Injury Risk	23%	31%
Neck Compression	22 lbs.	72 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	248/368 lbs.	926/731 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	31%	31.1%
Leg Forces (l/r)	105/93 lbs.	380/742 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Subaru Forester is safer than the Wrangler 4-door:

	Forester	Wrangler
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	MARGINAL
Restraints	GOOD	GOOD
Head Neck Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Peak Head Forces	0 G’s	0 G’s
Steering Column Movement Rearward	0 cm	2 cm
Chest Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Hip & Thigh Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Hip & Thigh Injury Risk R/L	0%/0%	0%/0%
Lower Leg Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Subaru Forester is safer than the Wrangler 4-door:

	Forester	Wrangler
Overall Evaluation	ACCEPTABLE	MARGINAL
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD
	Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Peak Forces	81 G’s	134 G’s
Neck Tension	45 lbs.	312 lbs.
Torso	GOOD	GOOD
Torso Max Deflection	1.26 in	1.3 in
Torso Deflection Rate	8 MPH	10 MPH
Pelvis	GOOD	GOOD
Pelvis Force	625 lbs.	825 lbs.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Forester, with its four-star roll-over rating, is 9.8% to 11% less likely to roll over than the Wrangler, which received a three-star rating.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Forester the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 53 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Wrangler is not a “Top Safety Pick.”

Reliability

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the Forester has an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of the 6.4 V8 in the Wrangler.

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 51 points higher than the Wrangler.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are better in initial quality than Jeep vehicles. With 8 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Subaru higher than Jeep.

Engine

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

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Forester gets better mileage than the Wrangler 4-door running its gasoline engine:

			MPG
Forester
AWD	Auto	2.5 DOHC flat-4	26 city/33 hwy
		Wilderness 2.5 DOHC flat-4	25 city/28 hwy
Wrangler 4-door
AWD	Manual	3.6 DOHC V6	17 city/23 hwy
AWD	Auto	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/24 hwy
		3.6 V6 Hybrid	19 city/24 hwy
		6.4 OHV V8	13 city/17 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl. Hybrid	20 city/20 hwy
		3.0 turbo V6 Diesel	22 city/29 hwy
		Rubicon 3.0 turbo V6 Diesel	21 city/26 hwy

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Subaru Forester uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Wrangler Rubicon 392 requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Subaru Forester higher (7 out of 10) than the Jeep Wrangler (1 to 7). This means the Forester produces up to 47 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Wrangler every 15,000 miles.

Transmission

The Subaru Forester comes standard with an automatic transmission, for driver comfort, especially in the city. Automatic costs extra on the Wrangler.

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 Wrangler doesn’t offer a CVT.

Brakes and Stopping

The Forester stops much shorter than the Wrangler:

	Forester	Wrangler
70 to 0 MPH	167 feet	211 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	117 feet	150 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	138 feet	163 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The Forester’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Wrangler Sport’s standard 75 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

The Subaru Forester’s independent front suspension is much lighter than the Jeep Wrangler’s solid front axle, which allows the Forester’s wheels to react more quickly and accurately to the road’s surface, improving both ride and handling.

For superior ride and handling, the Subaru Forester has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Jeep Wrangler has a solid rear axle, with a non-independent rear suspension.

For much better steering response and tighter handling the Forester has rack and pinion steering, like Formula racecars, instead of the recirculating-ball type steering of the Wrangler.

The Forester Touring handles at .83 G’s, while the Wrangler Sahara 4-door pulls only .64 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Forester Limited executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 2.6 seconds quicker than the Wrangler Rubicon 4-door (27.3 seconds @ .63 average G’s vs. 29.9 seconds @ .56 average G’s).

Chassis

The Subaru Forester may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 450 to 1600 pounds less than the Jeep Wrangler.

The Forester is 5.7 inches shorter than the Wrangler 4-door 4x4, making the Forester easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Forester is 6 inches shorter in height than the Wrangler, making the Forester much easier to wash and garage and drive (lower center of gravity).

Unibody construction lowers the Forester’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The Wrangler uses body-on-frame design instead.

For excellent aerodynamics, the Forester has standard flush composite headlights. The Wrangler has recessed headlights that spoil its aerodynamic shape and create extra drag.

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 Wrangler doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Passenger Space

The Forester has 7.9 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Wrangler (111.6 vs. 103.7).

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring’s rear seats recline. The Wrangler’s rear seats don’t recline.

The front step up height for the Forester is 9.5 inches lower than the Wrangler 4-door (15.5” vs. 25”). The Forester’s rear step up height is 8.6 inches lower than the Wrangler 4-door’s (17.25” vs. 25.8”).

Cargo Capacity

The Forester has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Wrangler 4-door with its rear seat folded (74.2 vs. 72.4 cubic feet).

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Forester easier. The Forester’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 28.4 inches, while the Wrangler’s liftover is 29.7 inches.

The Forester’s cargo area is larger than the Wrangler’s in almost every dimension:

	Forester	Wrangler
Length to seat (2nd/1st)	35.7”/73.1”	37”/65.8”
Max Width	51.5”	42”
Min Width	43.3”	39.5”
Height	34.8”	30”

A control in the cargo area automatically lowers the Forester Wilderness/Limited/Touring’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Wrangler doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The Forester’s standard folding rear seats are split to accommodate bulky cargo. The Wrangler 2-door’s standard single piece folding rear seat is not as flexible; long cargo and a passenger can’t share the rear seat.

The Forester’s liftgate lifts up in one piece, completely out of the way of loading and unloading, while sheltering the cargo loading area. The Wrangler’s swing out door blocks loading from the driver’s side.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier, especially for short adults, the Forester (except Base) offers an optional power liftgate, which opens and closes automatically by pressing a button. The Wrangler doesn’t offer a power cargo door.

Ergonomics

When five different drivers share the Forester Touring, the memory system makes it convenient for each of them. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position, outside mirror angle and climate settings. The Wrangler doesn’t offer a memory system.

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 Wrangler doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Forester’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Wrangler has a lever-type parking brake that has to be strenuously raised to engage properly. It has to be lifted up more and a button depressed to release it.

The Forester’s standard power windows allow the driver or passenger to lower and raise the windows without leaning over or being distracted. Power windows cost extra on the Wrangler.

The Forester’s standard driver’s power window opens or closes with one touch of the window control, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths. The Wrangler’s optional driver’s power window switch has to be held the entire time to close it fully. The Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring’s front power windows both open or close with one touch of the switches.

The Forester’s standard power window controls are mounted on the armrest for easy access. The Wrangler’s optional power window controls are down in the center of the dashboard, away from the windows and mixed with controls for unrelated features.

The Forester’s standard power locks allow the driver or passenger to lock or unlock all the doors at a touch without leaning over, or reaching to the back seat. Power locks cost extra on the Wrangler.

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 Wrangler doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its extra cost SiriusXM Guardian can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

The Forester has a standard locking fuel door with a remote release located convenient to the driver. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank. The Wrangler doesn’t offer a locking fuel/charge port door.

The Forester’s LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the Wrangler’s standard halogen headlights. LED lights also light instantly and last over twenty times longer than halogen.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Forester’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Wrangler’s headlights are rated “Marginal” to “Poor.”

The Forester has a standard automatic headlight on/off feature. When the ignition is on, the headlights automatically turn on at dusk and off after dawn. When the ignition turns off, the headlights turn off after a delay timed to allow you to securely get to your front door. The Wrangler has an automatic headlight on/off feature standard only on the Sport S/Sahara/Rubicon.

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 Wrangler doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The Forester has standard power remote mirrors. The Wrangler only comes with remote mirrors at extra cost. Without them the driver will have to roll down the windows and reach across the car to adjust the mirrors.

When the Forester Touring is put in reverse, the passenger rearview mirror tilts from its original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirror into its original position. The Wrangler’s mirror doesn’t automatically adjust for backing.

The Forester’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Wrangler offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Both the Forester and the Wrangler offer available heated front seats. The Forester Touring also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Wrangler.

The Forester’s standard automatic temperature control maintains the temperature you set, automatically controlling fan speed, vents and temperature to maintain a consistent, comfortable environment. The Wrangler Sport doesn’t offer automatic air conditioning.

Both the Forester and the Wrangler offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the Forester has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Wrangler doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Forester owner. The Car Book by Jack Gillis rates the Forester with a number “1” insurance rate while the Wrangler is rated higher at a number “3” rate.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Forester is less expensive to operate than the Wrangler because typical repairs cost less on the Forester than the Wrangler, including $57 less for front brake pads, $119 less for a fuel pump and $125 less for a timing belt/chain.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® chose the Subaru Forester as its “Top Pick,” the highest scoring vehicle in its category, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Jeep Wrangler isn't recommended.