The pandemic has been brutal for us all. Of course, the level of brutality varies quite a bit, but even for the rich and famous, being locked in your home with just your family can get tough. I’m not shedding any tears for the super-rich in their massive homes during this time, just saying relativity matters. In an interview with Jimmy Fallon, actor, writer, and comedian Tina Fey said she bought a car for the first time during the quarantine. Rolls Royce? Bently? Mercedes? Nope. She, with all her millions of dollars, bought a 2021 Subaru Forester. 

The car of the rich and famous

Yeah, I don’t think anyone has ever thought that about the Subaru Forester as a fancy-person car. I’m not hating. I’m just saying, that is not the car you tend to see in the garage of an Upper West Side penthouse. Well, Tina Fey clearly doesn’t care about that at all. In fact, she told Fallon that her husband urged her to buy something fun since this was the first car she has ever bought. Instead, she opted for what she calls “something that looks like a medical sneaker.” I’m an automotive journalist, and I couldn’t have said it better, Tina. 

As Car and Driver points out, Tina Fey unwittingly made the most middle-aged mom car choice possible. I don’t mean that as a dig. Fey literally said she wanted something ugly and safe – that’s the mom route. Her daughter, like most daughters, was acutely aware of the image of the Fey family’s new ride and made it known by naming the Forester “Karen.” Not to be one to let a good joke pass her by, Fey even went so far as to pose next to Karen dressed in an outdated suburban mom getup. 

Is the 2021 Forester safe? 

Subaru makes a few vehicles that all circle around similar shapes and sizes. The Forester, Outback, and Crosstrek all swirl around one another. While they all share characteristics, the Forester is the one that most clearly lands on the SUV side of the line. Car and Driver calls the cabin of the Forester “the definition of sensible.” It seems like Fey is hitting the mom-car nail right on the head. 

The 2021 Forester earned a perfect five stars from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and a Top Safety Pick from the IIHS. To further solidify its safety to Fey, all Foresters have Subaru’s EyeSight suite of camera-based driver-assistance features. The safety suite has standard automated emergency braking, standard lane-departure warning with lane-keeping assist, and standard adaptive cruise control. I imagine this list of features hitting Tina Fey like locking diffs, 350 hp, and 2-inch lift hits me. 

What engine does the 2021 Forester have?

Fey didn’t tell Fallon which trim level she bought, but it’s probably fair to assume she got the fully-loaded trim. Whichever one she went with, they all have the same 2.5-liter flat-four-cylinder engine making 182 hp. They all come paired with a CVT transmission keeping things smooth and easy. To further hit the practical mom goals, the Forester got 32 mpg on Car and Driver’s 200-mile test. 

The 2021 Subaru Forester has really cool interior 

This is not the interior that matches someone who lives in a $10 million apartment on the Upper West Side. It doesn’t even have a chandelier or crystal of any kind. It is simple, direct, and cool. 

The Car and Driver tester had camel-brown leather, which may not cost a million bucks, but it looks like it does. Not only are the seats covered in this killer leather, but the door panels and the dash have it too. 

The back seats are plenty roomy, and the cargo area is massive. Car and driver fit 11 full-size suitcases back there, and with the seats down, they jammed 23 bags back there. 

If you were worth $75 million would you buy a Suby?

I like the Forester just fine, but at first, I thought this was a comedian doing something cheeky, but I see the shot. NYC is not the place for a fancy car. It would be best if you had something with higher clearance, smooth ride, and AWD because the streets of Manhattan are akin to Moab’s trails with their potholes. Lastly, if you want to blend in and keep your family safe, especially in a pandemic when someone like Tina Fey is working less and spending more time in the car, I get it. I hope you enjoy your Forester, Tina.