I have a hard time believing a forrester is going to handle that weight better than an ED with 950 pounds of payload. Not doubting that those were the numbers your buddy saw on both trucks, but lets be honest, what would you rather drive with 1000 pounds of cargo inside? I'll pick the ram every time.
Ever look at the payload numbers on a minivan? I worked in a shop where our primary delivery/pickup vehicle was a Dodge minivan. It was honestly every bit as stable while loaded as our pickup (a 2wd Ram 1500, regular cab long box).
The brand new Pacifica has a payload of 1700 lbs. Which is quite a bit higher than some 1500's.
Its tow rating is an abysmal 3600 lbs.
The Forester is worse, at 1500 to 3000 lbs. I hope the guy was pulling a pop-up or using a tent.
For giggles I looked up payload on a couple vehicles my parents used to have, a 1990 GMC 1500 suburban, and a 1500 pickup of the same year.
The pickup's payload: 1899 lbs.
The suburban's payload: 3727 lbs.
My point here is that, while yes, we all make fun of minivans, some of them can actually CARRY more weight than us (which makes sense - they are designed to carry 7-8 adults). They just can't pull that much weight.