Compare the2024 Cadillac XT4VS 2024 Subaru Forester

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Economic Advantages

Safety

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The Cadillac XT4 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Forester doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport offers an optional Surround Vision to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Forester only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

The XT4 has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the Forester’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the XT4 has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Rear Cross Traffic Braking automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. Subaru charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Forester and its not available on the Base and the Forester’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert does not include automatic braking.

Compared to metal, the XT4’s plastic fuel tank can withstand harder, more intrusive impacts without leaking; this decreases the possibility of fire. The Subaru Forester has a metal gas tank.

Both the XT4 and the Forester have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and available all wheel drive.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Cadillac XT4 is safer than the Subaru Forester:

	XT4	Forester
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Stress	218 lbs.	326 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	181/231 lbs.	248/368 lbs.

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

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Cadillac XT4 is safer than the Subaru Forester:

	XT4	Forester
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	328 lbs.	389 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	169	246
Spine Acceleration	51 G’s	56 G’s
Hip Force	598 lbs.	670 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	16 inches
Spine Acceleration	35 G’s	40 G’s
Hip Force	522 lbs.	673 lbs.

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

Warranty

The XT4 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck. The Forester’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

Cadillac’s powertrain warranty covers the XT4 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Subaru covers the Forester. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Forester ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The XT4’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Forester’s (6 vs. 5 years).

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Cadillac vehicles are better in initial quality than Subaru vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac above average in initial quality. With 15 more problems per 100 vehicles, Subaru is rated lower.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Cadillac vehicles are more reliable than Subaru vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac above average in long-term dependability. With 24 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Subaru is rated below average.

Engine

The XT4’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 53 more horsepower (235 vs. 182) and 82 lbs.-ft. more torque (258 vs. 176) than the Forester’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Cadillac XT4 is faster than the Subaru Forester:

	XT4	Forester
Zero to 60 MPH	7.3 sec	9.6 sec
Quarter Mile	15.6 sec	17.3 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	91.7 MPH	82.3 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the XT4’s fuel efficiency. The Forester doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

The XT4 has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Forester doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the XT4’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Forester:

	XT4	Forester Base	Forester
Front Rotors	12.6 inches	11.6 inches	12.4 inches
Rear Rotors	12.4 inches	11.2 inches	11.2 inches

The XT4’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Forester are solid, not vented.

The XT4 stops much shorter than the Forester:

	XT4	Forester
70 to 0 MPH	165 feet	181 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	109 feet	129 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the XT4 has larger standard tires than the Forester (235/60R18 vs. 225/60R17). The XT4’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Forester (245/45R20 vs. 225/60R17).

The XT4’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Forester Sport/Limited/Touring’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the XT4 has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Forester. The XT4’s optional 20-inch wheels are larger than the 18-inch wheels on the Forester Sport/Limited/Touring.

The XT4 has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Forester doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

The XT4 offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Forester’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the XT4’s wheelbase is 4.3 inches longer than on the Forester (109.4 inches vs. 105.1 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the XT4 is 1.7 inches wider in the front and 1.4 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Forester.

The XT4 Sport AWD handles at .89 G’s, while the Forester Wilderness pulls only .77 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The XT4 Sport AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.8 seconds quicker than the Forester Touring (26.3 seconds @ .66 average G’s vs. 28.1 seconds @ .6 average G’s).

Chassis

The XT4 uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Forester doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The XT4 has .8 inches more front legroom, .4 inches more front hip room and .1 inches more rear legroom than the Forester.

Cargo Capacity

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport’s liftgate can be opened and closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Forester doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Towing

The XT4’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Forester’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Subaru Forester is only 3000 pounds. The XT4 offers up to a 3500 lbs. towing capacity.

Servicing Ease

The XT4 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Forester uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Cadillac service is better than Subaru. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac second in service department satisfaction. With a 28% lower rating, Subaru is ranked 16th.

Ergonomics

The XT4’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Forester does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, tachometer and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Forester doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The power windows standard on both the XT4 and the Forester have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the XT4 is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Forester prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The XT4’s front and rear power windows all open fully with one touch of the switches and its front windows also automatically close, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Forester’s standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically. The Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring’s rear windows don’t open automatically.

On a hot day the XT4’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Forester can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The XT4’s standard Keyless Access allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Keyless Access and Start is only offered on the Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring, and doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door.

The XT4’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Forester’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted. The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport’s standard wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield.

The XT4’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Subaru only offers heated mirrors on the Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring.

Optional air-conditioned seats in the XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Forester doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Forester.

The XT4 has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the Forester Wilderness/Limited/Touring.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Cadillac XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport offers an optional wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the front center console. The Forester doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

The XT4 Premium Luxury/Sport’s optional Automatic Park Assist can parallel park by itself, starting and stopping automatically, with the driver only responsible for switching from reverse to drive. The Forester doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Model Availability

The XT4 is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Forester doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the XT4 is less expensive to operate than the Forester because typical repairs cost less on the XT4 than the Forester, including $194 less for a starter, $109 less for fuel injection, $89 less for a fuel pump and $172 less for front struts.

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