How does the Forester compare cost wise to repair with the Rav 4?

Are you comparing two 2005 cars? If so then that is hard to say but they are probably have similar repair costs. The Subaru may have issues with head gaskets which is a known issue. Have the car checked out before you buy it.

I wouldn't buy either; the OB is a far better vehicle. ANY eleven year old vehicle can be a wallet-sucker, however; sample specifics FAR outweigh any comparative generalities, so ignore them. Good luck.

the biggest savings with a RAV4 is having a timing chain that does not need to be replaced every 100K miles. The downside is a heater core that will cost you $2000 to replace if and when it eats through, which is common. Otherwise, the Toyota is noisy and handles sluggishly, but otherwise repair costs were about the same, including head gasket problems as the EPA keeps pushing engine operating temperatures higher.