@Mawinder, you and vitz!! whats with all the talk about the VX been seeing here. Thanks for the feedback though.

I guess the new models must be ugly, very many thumbs down so far.

My own opinion on this is that Subaru have always done very superior vehicles and hence the worldwide appreciation. I agree that there is no uglier subaru than the Tribeca. Now the new models seem to be engaging the same designer - could it be their new owner trying to dilute the Subaru make to grow their other make further?

I find that for a subaru, good suspension is key to ensuring your areas of concern are sorted. buy original subaru or stick to Monroe who sell bilstein air suspension. They will check all the issues you raise. On maintenance, I'd be surprised if you cannot get any parts locally. Buy the original air filter which might be a bit costly (maybe 4.5K) as the locally assembled ones can cause the engine to run a bit too rich or a tard lean. When you hear too much fuel is being swallowed (like @mawinder), the culprit will mainly be the air filter or spark plugs.

I'd go with the 2012 forester but that's just me.