Quote Originally Posted by VeganBikeChick View Post
How do you like your Forester? I just bought one, manual trans too, and it's coming at the end of the month. I feel like a kid before Christmas, all ants in my pants and can't wait for it to get here. It's like the end of the month is never coming!
We got it Saturday so we love it! They are really quiet and ride really smooth, lots of bells and whistles for the price (we got the Premium but not turbo). Taking it on a long road trip starting today. I am not crazy about the quality of the radio sound and the steering wheel controls aren't as easy to use as my Dodge Caliber but those are minor. We LOVE that it has practically zero blind spots.

Quote Originally Posted by Catrin View Post
The manual transmission shifts very nicely, it is actually smoother than my Lancer was! They have done something that I've not seen before though. Reverse is at the upper left, and there is a ring on the shifter that I have to engage to be able to get in, or out, of reverse. It is very easy and not awkward at all. Apparently other companies are moving to this as well for several reasons.
My 2001 VW Beetle I leased through college was kind of like that. You pushed down and up on the shift to engage reverse and also upper left of first gear instead of below fifth gear like every other manual I had driven. I remember on the test drive I had my parents with me so the salesman just let us go, we had to get out and ask how to put it in reverse.