Nature Painting

A portrait of the artist as a young Subaru owner. In this commercial, a surprise gift awakens a man's passion to capture the beauty he sees from the driver's seat of his Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive Outback.

Subaru's Dog Photo Contest is back!

Now through June 5th, submit a photo of your dog with a Subaru for a chance to win! 

Check out Subaru's official (and now verified) Facebook page for details!

Bringing in the Marines

Subaru Forester is Best Small SUV, 'Consumer Reports' Says

Subaru's extensive redesign of its Forester makes it the top small SUV, according to Consumer Reports.

The magazine says the "2014 Subaru Forester earned the top spot against a very competitive small SUV class – easily outpointing other recent redesigns including the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V and Mazda CX-5."

It's the second award for Forester lately. The car also was the only small SUV to pass a particularly challenging front-offset crash test performed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Consumer Reports says that the new Forester's not stylish, but that's good: "Subaru continues to put function in front of form....Forester resists the contemporary trend toward making SUVs look more like sports coupes, instead focusing on the fundamentals with a space-efficient design, large windows, and big square doors. The result is the easiest access and the best view out of almost any vehicle. It also has one of the roomiest rear seats in the class, with copious amounts of head and leg room."

Jake Fisher, head of the magazine's auto test center, says, "The Forester is hard to beat."

In its tests, Consumer Reports registered 26 mpg overall and 35 mpg on the highway, and noted: "While the CVT is an annoyance in many other vehicles, it's largely unobtrusive in the Forester. Ratio changes are quick and responsive and engine noise is only noticeable during hard acceleration." CVT is a reference to continuously variable-ratio automatic transmission, a design used more and more because it generally delivers better mpg.

The model bought and tested by the publication was a Forester 2.5i Premium, $26,814. That is "a good value that included heated front seats, a big sunroof, a backup camera, and a power driver's seat," Consumer Reports says.

Even though it is a new design, and those usually have more problems than normal, CR says it forecasts "above-average reliability" and so gives the 2014 Forester a "recommended' rating. 

Source: USA Today

Tomorrow is Armed Forces

For those of you who have served for our country, we salute you!

 

 

Subaru Sneak Peek!

For those of you waiting patiently for a Hybrid Subaru model, here's a sneak peek of the Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid due out this fall at the National Subaru Dealer Convention in Las Vegas!

 

We just received this 5-star review on Yahoo!

Duck Sauce 
St. Cloud, Minnesota 
May 14, 2013

"Service department was easy to work with when we got a hitch put on and our salesman was present and gave us a loaner car to use, so they did well by us and overall we are impressed with the dealership."

Read more of our reviews here to see why our service center can't be beat!

Sartell Apple Duathlon

St. Cloud Subaru is sponsoring this year's Apple Duathlon!

The Apple Duathlon is a multisport race held in Sartell MN toward the end of May. The event draws world class competitors with a total of approximatley 500 athletes.

The event is in its 31st year and has been a favorite race across the nation for many years past.

This year, 2013, the Apple Duathlon has been selected as a World Qualifier for the 2013 ITU Duathlon World Championships in Ottawa, Canada, slated for Aug. 10-11, 2013!

Learn more about the event at http://www.appleduathlon.com/

That New Subaru Smell

May Vehicle Incentives

Visit St Cloud Subaru through June 3 to take advantage of amazing deals on 2013 and 2014 Subaru models!

Get as low as 0% financing on select Subaru models, as well as leasing specials!

Visit our website to check out all of our May deals!

Two more excellent reviews on Yahoo Local!

Cute4Fashion 
St. Cloud, Minnesota 
May 06, 2013

"Our sales rep was incredibly patient through several test drives and a few hours of decision making. He worked with us to find the closest pricing and Outback to match our requests. We wound up with better pricing than any other dealer in The Twin Cities Metro. The other salespeople were friendly and courteous."

SLEECH 
St. Cloud, Minnesota 
May 01, 2013

"Anyone looking for a great place to buy a car will be very pleased with St. Cloud Subaru. We are now very proud owners of two Subaru s! Our family travels 2.5 hours just to do business with St. Cloud Subaru because we know we will receive the best care there is!! Thanks again St. Cloud Subaru!!!"

Read more of our customer feedback on cars.com!

10 Excellent Apps to Improve Your Commute

 1. Waze

 

Community-based traffic and navigation app Waze has more than 30 million users, all of whom help generate up-to-date information on traffic and road alerts. With Waze installed, you can keep on top of road conditions in real time, utilize voice-guided navigation and even join or create groups to share your commute information with others.

Price: Free

2. Pocket

 

Pocket lets you save stories you want to read on the web for later. The app syncs to your phone, tablet or computer so you can view it whenever you want -- even without an Internet connection, which is especially useful if you ride the subway.

Price: Free

3. Songza



What eases a stressful commute better than your favorite music? Through its "music concierge" system, Songza lets you choose from a bevy of playlists based on different factors, such as your mood or the time of day, and it's all free of charge.

Price: Free

4. Inrix Traffic


 
Inrix Traffic provides maps showing live traffic, predicted traffic, comparing current conditions to normal conditions and an incidents tab. The app uses its Smart Driver Network, which collects information from road sensors and partnerships with traffic providers, among other sources.

Price: Free

5. Smartpark


 
How often do you forget where you park your car? Smartpark ensures you never have to remember again by documenting location and altitude (good for parking garages), and then it guides you back to your car with a compass.

Price: Free

6. GasBuddy


 
Gas is expensive and prices can vary a lot, so you need all the help you can get to find the cheapest options. GasBuddy simplifies the process by finding the cheapest gas stations near you, and you can also earn points and awards. Who knew finding gas could be fun?

Price: Free

7. Hopstop




For urban dwellers and eco-minded folks, public transportation is the way to go. You don't necessarily need GPS, but it does help to plan your route ahead of time. Hopstop lets you pick the best route to your destination via subway, rail, bus, taxi, bicycle or even walking. It accounts for service changes and other obstacles, so you can be sure you can get where you need to go, when you need to get there. Hopstop is available in hundreds of cities in the United States, Canada and Europe.

Price: Free

8. Car Minder

 
 
Like Smartpark, Car Minder lets you find where you left your car, but it has even more useful tools built into the app. You can track your car's miles, see when you next need an oil change, log mileage and fuel economy and email your records to others.

Price: Free

9. iNextBus Realtime Bus Tracker


 
If you ride -- and inevitably wait impatiently for -- the bus, the iNextBus app comes in handy. You can see where every bus is in your city, as well as track its movement in real time. Not only that, you can evaluate the best routes to take and save the information for later.

Price: Free

10. Textecution

 

Textecution is the only paid app on this list, but it can be worth it if it saves your life or someone else's. To help curb texting and driving, Textecution is advanced enough to tell how fast you're driving and prevents you from using certain functions if you're above 15 miles per hour. It's designed for teenagers, but it helps you fight the temptation to text -- at any age.

Price: $29.99

Commuting can be an extremely stressful and frustrating experience. No matter how many times you travel to the same destination, there are often unexpected obstacles. Road delays, train traffic — even a crying baby in an overcrowded subway car can disrupt your trip.

But it's nothing a few handy apps can't handle, right? A recent study shows that commuters who use connected apps tend to have a better time getting from point A to point B. Don't you deserve the same?

Source: Mashable

Subaru in Portlandia: Soft Opening

The most award-winning small SUV in America is now all-new and ready to test-drive.

Check out our website for deals on this and other Subaru models!

Thanks to Carlen for leaving this great feedback about the Subaru BRZ!

Carlen B. 
St. Cloud, Minnesota 
Apr 28, 2013
Quality: Excellent Appeal: Excellent Service: Excellent
"feedback on the BRZ. Is is as good or better than advertised. The 800 miles home took (Didnt take the shortest route) took 2 tanks of gas. Over that distance I averaged 33.5 mpg. That's way better than advertised. I drove between 70 and 80 mph, with brief sputs higher when I hooked up with a black STI that happened by as he gave me a thumbs up. The car has over 900 miles on it now and IM starign to sneak the Rs over 4000 briefly. The car has a nice growl that begins around 3500 and higher. Even around town while sporting about, it is averaging 30 mpg. The car handles like its on rails. Great fun. Road noise is alittle more than our Outback but not objectionable. I have to say that I think SUbaru/Toyota has hit the nail on the head with this car. All the writing the pundits have publised talk about how well the car is balanced. I have to agree. Its not just how well it handles, but also the design selctions which include, horsepower to weight, mileage, tires, exhaust note ect.. It is entertaining how much attention the car gets. At stoplights, gas stations and on the highway people have pull up to check it out. Neddless to say, Im enjoying the purchase. Id buy it again tomorrow if I lost this one."

Read more of our positive reviews on Google+ Local!