Subaru Forester vs Toyota RAV4 vs Honda CR-V
Subaru Forester vs Toyota RAV4 vs Honda CR-V, which is the best SUV to buy.
The RAV4 Forester and CR-V are three of the most popular crossover SUVs on the market, and even I frequently recommend them as being some of the safest, most reliable and value packed SUVs that you can buy.
With that being said, though, there are some very important differences between them and there’s one that definitely stands out above the rest, so let’s get right into this comparison.
Engine and Transmission
Starting with the engines now, both the RAV4 and the CRV offer a choice between a regular gas engine or a hybrid engine.
The Forester has been completely redesigned for 2025, and although at the moment you can only get it with a regular gas engine, a hybrid engine option is coming later in 2025 as well, although they perform very similar and have similar fuel economy.
All three of these SUVs do have very different engine and transmission setups.
The Forester has a 2.5 liter four cylinder boxer engine that’s non turbo and has a CVT transmission. It produces around 180 horsepower.
The CRV has a turbo charged 1.5 liter four cylinder engine, again with a CVT and this engine produces 190 horsepower.
And as for the RAV4, that has a non turbo 2.5 liter four cylinder engine with a conventional eight speed automatic transmission, and in this case, the engine produces just over 200 horsepower.
Fuel Economy
In terms of fuel economy, all three of them are very close.
All three are able to average roughly between eight to 10 liters per 100 kilometers, which is not bad for a small SUV.
Now, if I had to put one of these in last place for its engine transmission performance, it would have to be the Subaru Forester.
Even though it’s four cylinder boxer engine has similar power on paper in the real world, it really doesn’t feel that powerful and in fact, it actually feels quite sluggish when you put your foot down and not only does it feel underpowered, but it’s also a rather noisy and crude feeling engine when you put your foot down, which is pretty typical of Subaru boxer engines.
The Forester also has the most jerky roughest feeling engine start stop system of the three, which you can deactivate by pushing a button on the screen, but even so, it’s still pretty annoying.
As for the RAV 4 and CRV, they both have their pros and cons.
Interestingly, even though the CRV has these smallest engine of the three a 1.5 liter turbo, four cylinder, it seems to feel the most powerful and have the smoothest and quietest engine set up.
On the other hand though, even though the RAV fours engine is Not quite as quiet and smooth as the CRV engine, there are going to be those who prefer having a simple naturally aspirated force cylinder engine with a conventional transmission as opposed to A CVT, which in the long run is the safer setup in terms of reliability, repair and servicing costs.
So that’s where the RAV4 really shines. Regardless though, if you’re shopping for one of these SUVs, I don’t think it’s the conventional engines that you should even be looking at.
Hybrid Engines: The Future of Efficiency
The hybrid engines are the ones that offer the most benefits and are the most appealing choices when it comes to hybrids.
Both Toyota and Honda are really the experts in that area.
The two companies have a combined over 30 years of experience with making hybrids, and they really have the technology figured out compared to the regular gas engines.
The hybrid engines in both the CRV and RAV4 are smoother, they’re quieter.
They both produce more power with just over 200 horsepower, and of course they have much better fuel economy, roughly 30 to 40% better than the regular gas engines.
Both of them are able to achieve around 40 miles per gallon or six liters per 100 kilometers, which is really impressive for an SUV.
And because Honda and Toyota have so much experience making hybrids and they have such well proven hybrid systems, the reliability is phenomenal as well.
Now what about the Forester? Well, as mentioned there will be a hybrid engine coming later in 2025, which Subaru apparently is developing with Toyota.
Now, this is not the first SUV that we’re seeing like this for 2025.
The Mazda CX 50 also offers a hybrid engine from Toyota.
In fact, it’s the exact same hybrid engine setup straight from the RAV4, but that’s not what Subaru is going to be doing rather than just simply taking the hybrid setup from the RAV4.
What Subaru is going to do is they’re going to continue to use the Subaru four cylinder boxer engine and Subaru all wheel drive system and just combine it with the Toyota hybrid system, the hybrid battery and hybrid electric motors, which sounds pretty interesting just as Mazda has done with the CX 50.
I do think it’s clever of Subaru to have worked with Toyota and use their hybrid system because they really are the experts when it comes to hybrids.
My only concern is that because Subaru is choosing to use their boxer engine and all-wheel drive system, which are not exactly known for having the best fuel economy,
the Forester Hybrid might not be quite as fuel efficient as the RAV4 hybrid or CRV hybrid, but we’ll have to wait for all the full details to be released before making a final verdict.
Driving Experience: Smoothness, Power, and Handling
Now, How do these three SUVs drive and perform on the road? Well, realistically, they all feel quite similar.
For the most part, all three of these are fairly quiet, smooth driving, good performing SUVs.
I will say that the CR V does stand out a little bit for its superior ride and handling balance.
It just seems to have the best balance between feeling both comfortable to drive and having very good handling, and it just feels like the most polished SUV of the three.
The RAV4 on the other hand seems to be the weakest in that area, although there’s nothing really wrong with the way it drives in terms of its smoothness, its quietness and refinement. It is a slight step back in the screw.
Where the Forester really shines though is with its all-wheel drive capability.
Now, all three of these SUVs do have very good all-wheel drive systems, but it’s the Subaru symmetrical all-wheel drive that really stands out the most.
If you want an SUV that’s not only smooth and quiet to drive, but also has very good all-wheel drive for handling a bit of off-roading, handling poor weather conditions, that sort of thing.
It’s the forester that really is the top choice.
Interior Features: Tech, Comfort
Now, how do these three SUVs compare when it comes to their interiors? Well, unfortunately, this is an area where the forester clearly comes at the back of the pack, and that’s really because of its control setup and infotainment system.
With the updates that Subaru has made to the Forester for 2025, we now have the same portrait style touchscreen, which is used in both the Subaru Crosstrek and the Subaru Outback.
And unfortunately it’s just not a very good touchscreen. It has very poor dated looking graphics.
It’s not that responsive. It can be laggy at times, and the menu structure is just not that great, especially when it comes to the climate controls, which are buried at the very bottom of the touchscreen, making them a little bit frustrating to use.
And although you can get a very good camera system including an available 360 camera because of the orientation of the screen, the cameras just don’t look very good.
Now, although I certainly would not consider the touchscreen to be a deal breaker, you probably will eventually get used to it.
There’s no question that both the RAV4 and the CR-V just have much better control setups compared to the R four.
They’re just more straightforward to use, they have better looking graphics, they’re more responsive, and the user interface just performs a lot better.
And unlike the RAV4, both the CRV and RAV4 maintain traditional buttons and knobs for your climate controls, which is a huge bonus with both SUVs.
Now, aside from the control setup, all three of these SUVs do have well put together interiors with decent fit and finish.
Storage and Boot Space
They have excellent storage space and there’s plenty Of room for your passengers and all your stuff.
The CV does stand out a little bit for feeling the most spacious overall, but for the most part, if you want a spacious practical family, SUV, all three of them are going to get the job done perfectly fine.
And not only do you get nice spacious cargo areas in all three, but all three come with a spare tire underneath the floor with the exception being the hybrid version of the cr-v.
Safety Features and Ratings: Which SUV Keeps You Safer?
And in terms of safety, all three of them are also fantastic in that area as well.
They all come with plenty of great standard active safety features, Toyota Safety Sense, Honda Sensing, and Subaru Eyesight, and they all have fantastic safety ratings from both Nitsa and the IIHS, which is great to see.
Pricing and Value
And that brings us to the pricing, Now in the US all three of these SUVs have pricing that ranges from around 31,000 up to around 42-43000 depending on the trim level that you go with.
In Canada, the pricing ranges from around 36 to 48,000 for both the Forester and the RAV4, and the pricing for the CRV is slightly higher ranging between 38 to 52,000.
And as for the hybrid engine option, Honda and Toyota have done it a little bit differently.
In the case of Honda, the lower trims come with the regular gas engine, whereas the higher trims only come with the hybrid engine.
Whereas in the case of Toyota, you can get the hybrid engine on every single trim from the least expensive LE all the way up to the top of the line limited, where the hybrid engine will cost around 2000 to 2,500 extra.
And I should also add at this point that not only are all three of these SUVs very similar in price, but they also have very similar value and they all have excellent reputations when it comes to their reliability.
Verdict: Which SUV Should You Buy?
If I had to pick one to be the standout in that area, it would have to be the RAV4, which generally does have the safest reputation.
But that being said, if you want a well-made long lasting SUV, that’s not going to cost you a lot of money in repairs.
All three of these are very safe choices, and because of that reputation, all three of these SUVs have phenomenal resale value.
So in terms of the value for money, you cannot go wrong with any one of them, but at the end of the day, which of the three is the best choice and the one to go for?
Well, if I had to put one in last place, it would have to be the Subaru Forester, although it is a very good SUV, in many ways that infotainment touchscreen does hold it back quite a bit and make it quite frustrating to use.
It also has the noisiest roughest engine of the three, especially with that engine start stop as mentioned.
And at the moment, it’s the only one that does not come as a hybrid, which is a significant downside for those who want to save money on fuel.
Now, as for the C RV and the RAV4 between those two, it really is a tossup, especially if you focus on the hybrid versions, which are truly fantastic SUVs and absolute no-brainers to go with.
Although the RAV4 is not quite as smooth and quiet and quite a substantial feeling and polished feeling as the CRV, it is the better value in terms of pricing.
You can get one for a much lower price.
The issue is that availability for the RAV4 is not that great, and in many areas you do still need to order one and wait quite a long time to get your hands on the one, which is a downside.
The CRV hybrid, on the other hand, really does feel like a truly well-rounded SUV.
It just does everything incredibly well. It drives phenomenal, it has fantastic performance and fuel economy.
The reliability of the hybrid is absolutely excellent.
It’s the biggest, most spacious SUV in this group, and although it is the most expensive one to buy in terms of pricing, its still offers fantastic value for the money and with its much better availability, it’s even possible to get one right away and get a pretty decent deal on one depending on where you live.
So for me, it really comes down to value, price, and availability.
If you can get your hands on a RAF four hybrid for a much lower price, it’s a fantastic buy. But if you can’t, the CRV hybrid is an excellent alternative.