In the Subaru Forester‘s favour, it’s four-wheel-drive system will take you a lot further into the wilds than most of its rivals.

We can certainly see the Subaru’s appeal for someone who likes to caravan at remote farm campsites. However, for most tow car drivers the Subaru is too expensive to recommend.

It’s also a rather slow tow car, taking 16.1 seconds to go from 30-60mph. Partly because the 2.0-litre petrol is short of pulling power, and partly because of the way the Lineartronic gearbox uses high revs then adjusts the gearing to build speed, hard acceleration is accompanied by far too much engine noise.

At high speeds stability is fine, and the Al-Ko ATC system showed little sign of movement when slowing from speed.

However, the car leaned heavily in the low-speed slalom, and was at sea on the third and fastest attempt at the lane-change test.

The brakes are also somewhat disappointing, with a 30-0mph stopping distance of 11.7 metres on dry Tarmac.

As a solo drive, the Lineartronic gearbox continues to irritate, especially if you want to get a move on. Soft suspension takes the sting out of sharp bumps but the car feels unsettled too often.

At least it’s reasonably practical. We found room for most of our holiday luggage, and the reversing camera is helpful when hitching up.

Although XE Premium models are well equipped, the Forester is pricey next to most rivals. An official combined figure of 43.5mpg suggests fuel bills will be steep.