Subarus are known for being plenty capable in the great outdoors, and we all know that the brand tends to move a lot of metal in states that have a high percentage of people who like to play outside. If you travel to New England, Colorado, the Pacific Northwest, even parts of California, you’ll see that Subarus are the vehicle of choice.
That said, most auto-industry observers know that some car buyers select models that are highly capable off-road but never venture beyond Trader Joe’s.
Enter the 2026 Subaru Forester Wilderness. You may never, ever feel the pull to take it past the daycare drop-off line, but should you want/need to tackle a difficult trailhead or clamber over a few rocks, well, this rig is more than capable.
(Full disclosure: Subaru flew me to Portland, Oregon and fed and housed me in and around the city for two nights. I didn’t take the proffered water bottle but I did briefly make use of the hotel spa, courtesy of Subie. I also did take home a notebook and pen. And munched on some in-room snacks.)
Subaru was so hype to show us what the Forester can do that the brand had us drive out of Portland, Oregon — a city that looks like Subie heaven — and across the yawning Columbia River towards Mount Adams in Washington State. We then found ourselves on rocky trails with steep drop-offs, traversing terrain that usually makes one think of driving a Jeep. Or, at the very least, the Ford Bronco Sport Badlands, which has similar off-road capability and which Subaru lists as a prime competitor for the Forester Wilderness.
Once we were in the foreboding boonies — the amount of spent shotgun shells on the ground competed with what was either fog or wildfire haze to creepify the atmosphere — the Wilderness never seemed as phased as I was. I got nervous trying to get between a large rock and the edge of the trail, and I am sure my passenger was even more concerned, but the car was easy to place and we moved on, safe and sound. A front-facing camera was helpful when it came to the trickier maneuvers.
Only an ominous ka-rang sound gave me pause. But there was no damage that I could see — skid plates are your friend.
Backing up a bit, here are the specs when it comes to the Wilderness. Underhood is a 2.5-liter horizontally-opposed (aka “boxer”) four-cylinder that makes 180 horsepower and 178 lb-ft of torque. The transmission is a continuously-variable automatic with an 8-speed “manual” mode (read: paddle shifters). If you have to ask if this thing is all-wheel drive, you obviously don’t know Subaru.
There’s a lot of new stuff to go over, so get caffeinated and follow along.
Let’s back up a year — the 2025 Forester redesign starts with an updated method for inner-frame construction that uses three times as much structural adhesive as before. Sound deadening is added and the suspension is retuned in order to provide more refinement.
Meanwhile, the all-wheel drive system had a faster-responding center differential and a new steering-angle sensor is used to adjust torque distribution based on steering angle.
The seats are redesigned and there’s a new dual-pinion steering rack.
For 2026, the full Forester lineup gets a new center console design and tweaks to the rear seatbelt that intend to increase comfort and safety.
Wilderness models gain 500 pounds of towing capacity, from 3,000 to 3,500; ground clearance goes up 0.1 inch to 9.3 inches; and the all-terrain tires go from 225mm in width to 235.
Wilderness models also get special accents, a different rear bumper, a unique front bumper and grille, dual front tow points, and redesigned side-rocker protection.
Serious off-roading requires tow points. Even the best of us get stuck.
Fuel economy, by the way, is listed at 24/28/26 city/highway/combined.
The approach/departure/breakover angles are, Subaru says, improved. They read like this: approach is up to 23.5 degrees over 19, departure is up to 25.5 from 24.6, and breakover is 21 — up from 19.6
The final-drive ratio shortens from 3.7 to 4.11, and the all-terrain tires ride on redesigned 17-inch aluminum wheels. There is a full-size spare in there, in case things go south in the backwoods — or on the freeway.
There is added underbody protection — read: skid plates — and the X-Mode drive-mode system has Wilderness-specific functionality.
Subaru has upsized the rear differential and given it a temp sensor, and there’s a transmission cooler. The roof rails can handle up to 800 pounds, and the fog lamps are LEDs.
All-weather floor and cargo mats are standard, and the upholstery is water resistant. Oh, and animal free.
None off-road standard features include the now-familiar Subaru EyeSight advanced driver-aid system that includes emergency lane-keep assist, emergency steering assist, and emergency stop assist. There’s also blind-spot detection, rear cross-traffic alert, and reverse automatic braking.
Other standard features include a panoramic moonroof, automatic dual-zone climate control, infotainment with an 11.6-infotainment screen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, 10-way power driver’s seat, and Intelligent and Sport Sharp drive modes.
An All-Weather Package is also standard — it includes heated front seats, heated side mirrors, and windshield-wiper de-icer. Oddly, a heated steering wheel isn’t available.
A $2,200 option package includes Harman Kardon audio, navigation, digital gauges, and a rear power liftgate.
This Subie will be built in Lafayette, Indiana.
The Wilderness is meant to, um, go to the wilderness, but most folks will do most of their driving on road. The same car that’s capable in the sticks is a mixed bag on the streets. The most glaring flaw is the boxer’s lack of gumption — passing is an adventure. The CVT’s “manual” mode isn’t great at engine braking when working your way down the mountain, either.
Handling, especially in Sport Sharp mode, is better than one might expect from an off-road-focused crossover wagon, but the all-terrain tires limit the fun a bit and there is some body roll, though it’s muted.
At least the ride is calm on smooth roads. The rutted trails bounced us a bit but it was never truly jarring — the suspension was working as designed.
Road noise was well-muted on-road, though the roughest stuff got a bit rumbly when climbing the mountains. That said, conversation didn’t really required raised voices. The seats were also comfortable for a long day of motoring.
Another note — the large infotainment screen is still easy to read, but there can be a tad too much menu-diving for certain functions.
Interior materials are a mix of “nice for the price” and a bit downmarket. Some cheap(ish) plastics bring down the level.
Subaru show assembled media a slide that compared the Forester Wilderness to its key competitors — the Hyundai Tucson XRT, Toyota RAV4 Woodland, Nissan Rogue Rock Creek, Honda CR-V TrailSport, and the aforementioned Bronco Sport Badlands. The Wilderness matched up best with the Bronco — the other vehicles were painted (correctly) as closer to being appearance packages than serious off-roaders.
At $38,385 before D and D, the Forester Wilderness is a tad cheaper than the Bronco Sport — but the last Bronco Sport Badlands I drove felt even more capable off road. On the other hand, the Subaru offers a cabin that’s generally nicer, even if imperfect. Ford doesn’t match on material quality or infotainment-screen size.
For those who camp, hike, kayak, mountain bike, rock climb, et cetera — the 2026 Subaru Forester Wilderness will get you to the campsite or trailhead, even if the actual trail seems to scream “Jeep.” It has limits — actual rock-crawling or mud-bogging are out of the question — but those limits are further out than you’d expect.
For those who just want utility and practicality in a tall wagon, the Forester Wilderness will be just fine, as long as you’re a patient passer and don’t expect sports-car handling responses. The fuel-economy numbers are a tad disappointing, too. Still, the Forester Wilderness does a lot right.
Subaru knows its audience and knows how to build cars for those folks. The 2026 Subaru Forester Wilderness is just the latest example of that.
Just be sure to tell the cashier at Trader Joe’s about that time you climbed the base of a mountain in your Wilderness. When greeted by rolling eyes, you’ll have pics to prove it happened.
[Images © 2025 Tim Healey/TTAC.com]
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