[zachavm]

FYI, I'm not turbo whining. I've got a Forester Wilderness on order and am absolutely PUMPED about it. This will almost certainly be the fastest car I've ever owned. I've just spent WAY to much time online researching it. Ya get a little nit picky (crazy) after all that.

 

[Magnetite]

I'm waiting on my Forester Wilderness originally was scheduled for December now they have said January. Magnetite Gray

I have recently seen a good video and the driver review said the new rear axle and gearing is noticeable over the standard Forester I'm looking forward to it.

Also read that the X mode will automatically engage the lowest gear/ ratio in the cvt. 4:11
Good to know.

Waiting to see the vehicle before I decide on upgrade to the larger tires from stock.
The Yokohama geolanders will be absolutely fine.

What's your take on the Wilderness package

 

[564975]

I like the looks and the it sounds like it will be quite an improvement...but I will wait until members give it the rundown before buying. Keep us up to date.

 

[Magnetite]

I like the looks and the it sounds like it will be quite an improvement...but I will wait until members give it the rundown before buying. Keep us up to date.

Having driven the Outback Wilderness two different times. I found the turbo engine to seem to create some motorboating type sensation where the vehicle wanted to wander slightly. Not terribly but noticeably. After driving an Outback and a Forester with their standard boxer engine it seemed to be more in line with power and steering.

I do not like at all the giant 9 inch by 11 inch touch screen in their new Outback. It's terrible to have everything behind another screen. not for me at all. Much prefer the Forester with its dash layout knobs and air-conditioning everything's accessible just reach out and grab it LOL

Having seen the Wilderness out back it was nice to touch feel and see the color of the Interior. Very well-appointed and comfortable. I look forward to the more upright seat of the Forester than the more slightly reclined seat in the outback.

Having now read and seen some several more Drive reviews on the Forester Wilderness it really sounds like the upgraded rear end and gearing adjustments are going to be exactly what the vehicle needs in more adverse conditions.

 

[Seabee624]

What I would like to know, has the wheel bearings and cv axles been upgraded. My wifes 2014 both front wheel bearings had to be replaced and one rear bearing. Both cv axles had to be replaced. All this before reaching 90000 miles. Street use on, no modifications.

 

[Magnetite]

What I would like to know, has the wheel bearings and cv axles been upgraded. My wifes 2014 both front wheel bearings had to be replaced and one rear bearing. Both cv axles had to be replaced. All this before reaching 90000 miles. Street use on, no modifications.

Have you done any research of your own on that yet? A quick Google search says CV generally last 80,000 to
100,000.

My Tacoma had to have one wheel bearing replacement at 140,000.

 

[Magnetite]

What I would like to know, has the wheel bearings and cv axles been upgraded. My wifes 2014 both front wheel bearings had to be replaced and one rear bearing. Both cv axles had to be replaced. All this before reaching 90000 miles. Street use on, no modifications.

Just went and checked my receipt and I had both my CV joints replaced at a 110,000 on my Tacoma both front needed it badly and probably should have done it sooner.
( but i have great upgraded shocks that may have slightly minimized noticing how worn out the were)
Those wear out because they are highly used parts on vehicles. They take a lot of brunt of abuse of driving

 

[8675309]

How is it the 2022 Wilderness has a 3,000 tow capacity when it has the
same engine etc as the 2017 Forester. What does it have that the 2017 doesn't.

 

[Magnetite]

How is it the 2022 Wilderness has a 3,000 tow capacity when it has the
same engine etc as the 2017 Forester. What does it have that the 2017 doesn't.

While it is still cvt the Forester Wilderness has the same bigger rear end as in the ascent and that is also in the outback wilderness. With the new 'assigned gear ratios' there are 8 speed in the Forester Wilderness
(not like 7-speed still in the regular Forester. )
Which includes lower gearing ratio. Which equates to more torque in low speed conditions. Like going up a steep grade or pulling weight from a stop.

You can look up more information by looking at gear ratios highway speed vs off-roading or Towing speed ratios. It's like multiplying power on a bicycle when you change the gear. It doesn't matter that Rider is the same Rider pedaling it's the gear ratios that make a difference with the power provided.

For this reason the Forester Wilderness will get slightly less miles per gallon

 

[gsdude]

Here's a question about measuring the ground clearance between the Wilderness and other trims. At what location on the underside of the body do they measure the distance to ground? Certainly can't be the Differential because that should be identical with most Foresters trim levels because the tire diameters are almost equal. For example, the OEM wheels and tires on my Sport are 225/55/18 whereas the Wilderness are 225/60/17. Just curious.

 

[Magnetite]

Here's a question about measuring the ground clearance between the Wilderness and other trims. At what location on the underside of the body do they measure the distance to ground? Certainly can't be the Differential because that should be identical with most Foresters trim levels because the tire diameters are almost equal. For example, the OEM wheels and tires on my Sport are 225/55/18 whereas the Wilderness are 225/60/17. Just curious.

? Not certain i'm understanding your question in relation to the tires? 🤔

Wilderness is .5" higher do to longer coils in the suspension.

Maybe this is helpful?
I actually just saw a 2022 Crosstrek on a lot and checked its tire size and it is 225 60 17 which is the same size that is coming on the Forester wilderness 27.7 inch tire

The Forester is fairly level/flat underneath it so I imagine the lowest point is where they would measure it from under its belly...but not certain???

 

[gsdude]

? Not certain i'm understanding your question in relation to the tires? 🤔

Sorry for the confusion.
My main question is where (on the vehicle) are the measurements taken to determine the ground clearance specifications on the Foresters.

 

[FozzieBalou]

Ground clearance is measures at the lowest part of the vehicle. Often this can / will be the rear axle and/or differential or some body/frame structural part.

Oddly, the Forester Wilderness does not have the same ground clearance (or at least not the same stated ground clearance) as the Outback Wilderness, even though both start with the same gc (8.7 inches) and have the same lift applied.

 

[FozzieBalou]

Check out this thread -

2014 Forester ground clearance

Yesterday I drove my 2004 Forester on a dirt track in the Sonoran Desert National Monument. It was Route 8012, and I hesitate to call it a "road" because it was interrupted by innumerable dry washes. The AWD was definitely needed to get through the sand, and the ground clearance was tested by...

www.subaruforester.org

 

[FozzieBalou]

Then I found this image - it's from a Crosstrek related forum/site -

From this picture - looks like a suspension component - the control arm?

 

[gsdude]

From this picture - looks like a suspension component - the control arm?

It certainly does. Hmm.

 

[Magnetite]

Ground clearance is measures at the lowest part of the vehicle. Often this can / will be the rear axle and/or differential or some body/frame structural part.

Oddly, the Forester Wilderness does not have the same ground clearance (or at least not the same stated ground clearance) as the Outback Wilderness, even though both start with the same gc (8.7 inches) and have the same lift applied.

I heard in a review video the height difference not being equivalent to the Outback Wilderness was due to the plant where they were being produced and guidelines manufacturing guidelines. In that plant I guess has some regulations it sound like couldnt be as high.

 

[zachavm]

@8675309
@Magnetite
@gsdude
@FozzieBalou

Towing:

The Wilderness towing is primarily improved by the addition of the CVT oil cooler and engine oil cooler. I'm sure the lower gearing helps, but the cooler is the most important part.

Gearing:

The thought that the Forester Wilderness using the Ascent's transmission and differential is a misconception. It does not. They never officially said what it uses, but I'm pretty sure it uses the transmission from the Outback 2.5i (still TR 580, just different range) and the differential from the Outback XT. I figured this out by comparing the numbers of the Forester wilderness with the Outback as shown in the following chart. I highlighted the matches..

	Forester	Forester Wilderness	Outback 2.5i	Outback XT	Outback Wilderness
Transmission	TR580	TR580	TR580	TR690	TR690
Transmission Min Ratio	3.601	4.066	4.066	3.229	3.490
Transmission Max Ratio	0.556	0.559	0.559	0.468	0.506
Final Drive Ratio	3.700	4.111	3.900	4.111	4.444

Also the 7 gear vs 8 gear really doesn't mean anything. Those are just pre-programmed ratios to the CVT. What maters is the overall range. When you combine the starting transmission ratio and the final drive ratio, the Wilderness has an overall starting ratio 25% lower than the standard forester.

Ground Clearance:

Though the Forester Wilderness only has 0.5" more ground clearance, the height was increased 0.8" just like the Outback. After searching around for a long time I asked Driving Sports TV on twitter to ask subaru what was going on when they drove it. Turns out it was caused by a limitation of the production line and the body was lifted independently of the drive train. So it is a 0.8" lift, but it didn't get that much additional clearance. Here's a link to the twitter convo. You need to click on it to see all of the conversation.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1450483597937233923

 

[FozzieBalou]

Meh - I doubt that the point of manufacture has anything to do with it. I mean, it COULD be but, that sounds a bit .. fishy. Where a car is manufactured should not have any impact on measurements.

The measurements "should" meet up with the International Organization Standard ( ISO 3833-1977 ) . The ISO started life in the 40s and about 160 countries participate. Japan and the USA participate.

 

[zachavm]

@FozzieBalou Possibly. All I'm doing is passing along what Driving Sports told me after asking Subaru. However, you never know who is actually answering the question for Subaru. Is is just marketing people or are there engineers there too? Who knows. Seems pretty specific to be wrong though.