Subaru Forester X Luxury Edition adds more gear

Priced from $32,990 before on-road costs for the five-speed manual variant, the Forester X Luxury Edition includes 16-inch alloy wheels, front fog lights, front wiper de-icer, heated door mirrors, leather upholstery and heated front seats. The standard Forester X manual without those features is priced from $30,990.

The Subaru Forester X Luxury Edition is powered by the standard car’s 126kW/235Nm 2.5-litre four-cylinder ‘boxer’ engine, which returns combined cycle fuel consumption of 9.3 litres per 100km paired with either the manual transmission or the optional $2000 four-speed automatic.

While it was the second highest selling SUV in Australia last year behind the locally made Ford Territory, the ageing Subaru Forester has slipped backwards in 2012.

The Forester ranked eighth out of all SUVs for sales in May (1109 units delivered) and currently sits sixth overall behind the Toyota Prado, Nissan X-Trail, Territory, and the Toyota RAV4 and Kluger.

An all-new Subaru Forester is scheduled to go on sale in 2013.

Read our breakout story: SUV: May sales overview.