Compare the2026 BMW X3VS 2025 Subaru Forester

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics

Safety

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The X3’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Forester doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

The BMW X3 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags help 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 X3 has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Forester doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

The X3 has a standard PostCrash iBrake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Forester doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

The X3 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 X3 has standard Cross Traffic Warning with braking function and automatically engage the brakes. 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 X3’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 X3 and the Forester have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and available around view monitors.

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 BMW X3 is safer than the Subaru Forester:

	X3	Forester
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	214 lbs.	349 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	108	208
Spine Acceleration	48 G’s	58 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	14 inches
HIC	162	167
Hip Force	472 lbs.	589 lbs.

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

Warranty

The X3 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Forester’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The X3’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Forester’s (12 vs. 5 years).

BMW pays for scheduled maintenance on the X3 for 3 years and 36,000 miles. BMW will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Subaru doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Forester.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that BMW vehicles are more reliable than Subaru vehicles. J.D. Power ranks BMW above average in long-term dependability. With 13 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Subaru is rated below average.

Engine

The X3 has more powerful engines than the Forester:

	Horsepower	Torque
X3 30 xDrive 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid	255 HP	295 lbs.-ft.
X3 M50 xDrive 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid	393 HP	428 lbs.-ft.
Forester 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder	180 HP	178 lbs.-ft.
Forester Wilderness 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder	182 HP	176 lbs.-ft.
Forester 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid	194 HP

As tested in Motor Trend the X3 30 xDrive 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid is faster than the Subaru Forester 4 cyl.:

	X3	Forester
Zero to 60 MPH	6 sec	8.8 sec
Quarter Mile	14.5 sec	16.7 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	94.5 MPH	86.3 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the X3 gets better mileage than the Forester:

			MPG
X3
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl. Hybrid	27 city/33 hwy
		3.0 turbo 6-cyl. Hybrid	25 city/30 hwy
Forester
	AWD	2.5 DOHC flat-4	26 city/33 hwy
		Sport/Touring 2.5 DOHC flat-4	25 city/32 hwy
		2.5 DOHC flat-4	25 city/28 hwy

Transmission

The X3 M50’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The Forester doesn’t offer launch control.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the X3’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Forester:

	X3 30 xDrive	X3 M50 xDrive	Forester Wilderness	Forester Hybrid
Front Rotors	13 inches	13.7 inches	12.4 inches	12.6 inches
Rear Rotors	13 inches	13.5 inches	11.2 inches	11.8 inches

The X3 stops much shorter than the Forester:

	X3	Forester
70 to 0 MPH	155 feet	176 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	108 feet	131 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	137 feet	138 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the X3 has larger standard tires than the Forester (245/50R19 vs. 225/60R17). The X3’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Forester (F:255/40R21 & R:285/35R21 vs. 235/50R19).

The X3’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Forester’s standard 60 series tires. The X3’s optional 255/40R21 front and 285/35R21 rear tires have a lower 40 series front and 35 series rear profile than the Forester Sport/Touring’s 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the X3 has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Forester. The X3’s optional 21-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels on the Forester Sport/Touring.

Suspension and Handling

The X3 offers an optional 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.

The X3 has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Forester doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the X3’s wheelbase is 7.9 inches longer than on the Forester (112.8 inches vs. 104.9 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the X3 is 2.1 inches wider in the front and 2.9 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Forester.

The X3’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (50.5% to 49.5%) than the Forester’s (57% to 43%). This gives the X3 more stable handling and braking.

The X3 30 xDrive handles at .91 G’s, while the Forester Sport pulls only .82 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The X3 M50 xDrive executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 2.3 seconds quicker than the Forester Sport (25.3 seconds @ .76 average G’s vs. 27.6 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

Passenger Space

The X3 has 5.2 inches more front hip room, .2 inches more front shoulder room and 4.4 inches more rear hip room than the Forester.

Cargo Capacity

The X3 has a much larger cargo volume than the Forester with its rear seat up (31.5 vs. 29.6 cubic feet).

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the X3. The Forester doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

Towing

The X3’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Forester’s (4001 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Subaru Forester is only 3000 pounds. The X3 offers up to a 4850 lbs. towing capacity.

Servicing Ease

The X3 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.

Ergonomics

The X3 offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, warning, navigation instruction and driver assistance information 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 X3 and the Forester have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the X3 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 X3’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, 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.

If the windows are left open on the X3 the driver can close all of them at the outside door handle or from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows from a distance using the keyless remote or with the driver’s door power window switch. The driver of the Forester can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The X3’s standard Comfort 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/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 X3’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Forester’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the X3 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Forester doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

The X3’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/Limited/Touring.

Both the BMW X3 and Subaru Forester offer exterior mirrors that can be folded to provide convenience. The X3 features standard power folding mirrors, which allow for easy, one-touch folding or unfolding at the driver’s discretion. This provides added convenience when maneuvering or parking, as well as when walking past the parked vehicle. In comparison, the Forester’s foldable mirrors are manual, requiring the driver to get out and physically fold them once parked and unfold them before getting in.

The BMW X3 has a standard Homelink wireless remote control system for garage door operation and device management, conveniently located on the rear view mirror. Homelink® eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries. Subaru charges extra for Homelink® on the Forester.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the BMW X3 has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring offers wireless charging.

The X3’s Parking Assistant can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling the transmission and speed with the brake pedal. With its available fully controlled system, the driver just activates it and it parks autonomously, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Optional Remote Control Parking will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Forester doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

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