2026 Subaru Forester Wilderness Is Wildly Capable Off-Road And More Refined On-Road

Subaru owners statistically take their vehicles off-roading more frequently than owners of other cars, with almost double the amount of Forester owners saying they use their vehicle off-road compared owners of other small SUVs, and an even larger proportion of owners of Subaru's more rugged Wilderness models take their cars off-road. In fact, 45.9% of Subaru Forester Wilderness owners told Subaru they use their vehicle off-road, whereas only 9.3% of small SUV owners say they take their cars off-road according to the Ipsos New Vehicle Customer Survey. That's probably why Subaru has Wilderness versions of nearly all of its cars, first launching Outback and Forester Wilderness models in 2021 and following those up with the Crosstrek Wilderness in 2023.

Following the sixth-generation Forester's launch last year, Subaru has now released the 2026 Forester Wilderness, which underwent the same total redesign. Subaru's experience and customer feedback has paid off, as the new Forester Wilderness is astonishingly capable off-road while remaining remarkably quiet and composed on-road.

Full disclosure: The folks at Subaru flew me up to the Pacific Northwest to drive both the 2026 Crosstrek Hybrid and the 2026 Forester Wilderness. They put me up in a swanky spa hotel and a glampground in the Washington forest, and fed me exceptional cuisine for a few days. None of these niceties impact my reviews, though they were very much appreciated.

Subaru says this generation Forester was developed with a Wilderness model in mind from the start, unlike the previous-gen Forester, which gained the Wilderness trim in 2022. The benefits of that intentional design process include a stiffer structure for improved towing and off-road performance while retaining good on-road manners, as well as more prominent Wilderness styling changes. Its looks are certainly distinctive, and though Subarus have never been known for their good looks and beauty is in the eye of the beholder, I think the snout of the new Forester Wilderness looks like Snoopy if he got a botched facelift, especially when it's painted white.

Compared to the outgoing Forester Wilderness, the 2026 car has 0.1-inch more ground clearance at 9.3 inches, wider 235/60 R17 Yokohama Geolandar All-Terrain tires, a faster-reacting all-wheel-drive system that reduces wheelspin, a larger rear differential with a temperature sensor, and a transmission cooler. Unfortunately, all of these improvements come at a higher price — the 2026 Forester Wilderness is $3,420 more expensive than last year, with a base price of $39,835 including $1,450 destination. It's a more refined vehicle than the outgoing model, but that price jump is hard to justify if you ask me.

All 2026 Foresters receive a redesigned center console with larger cupholders that will fit your emotional support water bottle, a more compact shifter, a longer center armrest, and an additional liter of space underneath that longer armrest. The rear seatbelt mounts and routing of all 2026 Foresters have also been improved to better protect rear passengers and score better in the IIHS updated front overlap crash test

The new Forester Wilderness thoroughly impressed me as soon as I merged onto the freeway and jumped on the throttle. Not because it's quick, because it's definitely not quick or powerful, but because of how well Subaru managed to block out engine noise. The 2.5-liter boxer four-cylinder engine produces the same 180 horsepower and 178 pound-feet of torque as the standard Forester, but its CVT now has a shorter final drive ratio, and the SI-Drive modes now include a Sport Sharp mode that helps to access more of the engine's power at lower speeds. Forester Wilderness buyers can expect to get around 24 mpg in the city, 28 mpg on the highway, and 26 mpg combined, which are one mpg lower in the city, four mpg lower on the highway, and two mpg lower combined ratings compared to the standard Forester, but it's still respectable given its off-road abilities. More on that later.

Over the course of my day with the 2026 Forester Wilderness, we did plenty of highway driving, some city driving, and lots of off-roading. While Subaru doesn't give a 0-60-mph estimate for the Forester Wilderness, it's probably slower than the standard Sport model, which Car and Driver clocked at 8.3 seconds in its testing. It's not dangerously slow, but I had to press the accelerator pedal a lot farther than I expected to keep pace when climbing hills at freeway speeds. If you use the steering wheel-mounted button to switch into Sport Sharp mode, it makes the accelerator too touchy, and I found it difficult to find the right amount of throttle needed to drive smoothly. Even when the revs are high, though, the engine's CVT-induced drone is barely audible inside the cabin, but there is a bit of wind noise and road noise from the rugged tires. The optional 11-speaker Harmon Kardon stereo has plenty of power to drown out the little road noise that permeates the otherwise serene cabin.

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It comes standard with Subaru's EyeSight suite of active safety features and convenience features like emergency lane keep assist, emergency steering assist, blind spot detection, rear cross-traffic alert, reverse automated braking, and full-speed adaptive cruise control. The adaptive cruise system does a great job of keeping you a safe distance from the vehicle ahead of you, but I found the same issue here that I've found on other Subaru models where the lane centering can sometimes play Pong with you as it steers closer to the right lane line then back toward the left and so on.

I'll start with the really rocky stuff. Subaru let us take our press cars on some respectably intense trails that I normally wouldn't have even attempted in a car without lockers, but the Forester Wilderness persevered. As an all-wheel-drive car with a fully independent suspension, it's not something that rewards precision off-road; it requires a lot of throttle and a willingness to let X-Mode to do its job or reverse and power over some obstacles, but you know what? It ultimately conquered the gnarly trails.

Frustratingly, X-Mode is now only activated via the 11.6-inch multimedia system at below 15 mph, and it deactivates when you go over 25 mph, though it reengages when your speeds drop below 25 mph again. I found Deep Snow and Mud mode to be the most effective on the loose terrain I traversed, even allowing me to climb a steep grade with massive dips that caused diagonal wheels to be in the air. Combined with the all-terrain tires and massive (for a crossover) 9.3 inches of ground clearance, I feel confident saying the 2026 Forester Wilderness should have enough capability to tackle any off-road situation that the casual off-roader may encounter this side of rock crawling or mud bogging.

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All Forester Wilderness models come standard with a front view camera that automatically activates in X-Mode, hill descent control, and a rear differential temperature sensor. Both the front and rear cameras are disappointingly low resolution, so they do fine in consistently illuminated situations, but in the constantly shifting light and shade on a tree-lined off-road trail, it became hard to make out details. At least it has them, though. It also has added underbody protection, including a metal "under-engine cover" (Subaru made a point not to call it a skidplate) that can be complemented with heavier duty dealer-installed protections. If you find yourself at the limits of the Forester Wilderness' abilities, those anodized copper covers on the front and rear bumper hide the tow-point mounts so they'll be easy to locate, and it's available with a full-sized spare all-terrain tire.

On the negative side, as when on paved roads I found the Sport Sharp throttle mode to give plenty of power at low speeds, but it made the throttle pedal so touchy that maintaining consistent throttle control is quite difficult as traction comes and goes. The standard Intelligent throttle mode feels too lazy for off-road duties, requiring drastic throttle application that makes precision and consistency difficult. There's no happy medium in the throttle modes, so be prepared for some jerky driving.

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Subaru has endowed the Forester Wilderness with the heaviest towing capacity in its class, too, at a huge-for-a-crossover 3,500 pounds (500 pounds greater than the old Forester Wilderness), and its roof rack can handle an 800-pound static load, which should be plenty for two people and a rooftop tent. If you're into that kind of stuff.

The Forester Wilderness interior is not very different from the standard Forester, which means it's supremely comfortable and spacious even for someone my size at 6-foot-8. It's also free of any animal products in Wilderness trim, so naturally the seats are covered in Subaru's easy-to-clean Star Tex. Wilderness models have an opening panoramic glass sunroof that still allows great head room for front or rear passengers.

Unfortunately, the 2026 Forester Wilderness is saddled with Subaru's laggy and outdated 11.6-inch touchscreen infotainment system. Particularly in a car that's built for rocky and uneven terrain, an unreasonable amount of settings and controls are hidden in the touchscreen, which is impossible to accurately use while off-road.

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The optional digital gauge cluster, on the other hand, is easily configurable and its map mirroring view comes in handy so you don't have to even look at that yucky infotainment screen to see your next move. Hopefully the Forester gains the new Outback's totally redesigned infotainment with a facelift in a couple years.

While many brands have off-road flavored trims of their compact crossovers, few are as purpose-built as the Subaru Forester Wilderness. The Toyota RAV4 Woodland, Honda CR-V Trailsport Hybrid, Hyundai Tucson XRT, and Nissan Rogue Rock Creek are not as rough and ready as the Forester Wilderness, though they are all cheaper.

The only compact crossover that comes close is the significantly more expensive Ford Bronco Sport Badlands. The Subaru has superior ground clearance and a superior breakover angle, but the Bronco Sport has far better approach and departure angles. I have to pose the question, though: would you rather be off-grid and away from cell reception in a new Subaru or a new Ford? How are those 100-plus recalls doing, Ford?

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The 2026 Subaru Forester Wilderness is a versatile machine that will happily handle on-and-off-road adventures. It's a rare instance where a car blends reasonable efficiency, a roomy interior, a stellar safety and reliability reputation with a capable off-road trail thrasher. Logic and excitement are not mutually exclusive with the 2026 Subaru Forester Wilderness, just remember accessing the excitement requires some spelunking, since it's not particularly exciting on the pavement. It needs a new infotainment system and more power, but otherwise it's a heck of a car.