Forester Wilderness Edition (merged thread)
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So one other note. I did find mention of an Auto Show and a countdown in the page source. No date is specified for the countdown that I can find and it obviously isn't active yet. However, the new WRX will be at the NY Auto show on August 19th so it may be a safe bet the Forester wilderness will be there too.
Also, I tried navigating to the mentioned URL and it didn't work.
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Also, I tried navigating to the mentioned URL and it didn't work.
Here is the picture from the twitter post. Not much additional from it. You can tell it is the same wheels as the outback, but we expected that due to the 22 Forester using those in the spy shots. I'm hoping they up the tire size to match the outback (225/65r17 instead of 225/60r17), but I can't read the side of the tire or tell from this image.
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Don't think I'd get a new Subaru at this point since they don't have a full electric yet, but this is a cool option. Once they have an electric Wilderness that would be pretty cool, just imagine sleeping in it with air conditioning/filtering in some dusty desert.
That is definitely a Forester, not a Crosstrek.
Should be the same wheel/tire combo as the Outback Wilderness - just for the simple cost and ordering benefits. It would be great if they did the reveal at the NYAS in a few weeks, but it's doubtful, as they'd not want to steal a bit of thunder from the WRX reveal. It could be that they may wait for the official reveal at the Las Vegas/Motor Trend Auto Show (Sept 10-12) but do a soft-reveal online.
Personally? From what I know and have seen, it's probably not a "ohmygodihavetohavethis" vehicle. But it is surely worth a look-see and a test drive at my local shop once they get them...
Should be the same wheel/tire combo as the Outback Wilderness - just for the simple cost and ordering benefits. It would be great if they did the reveal at the NYAS in a few weeks, but it's doubtful, as they'd not want to steal a bit of thunder from the WRX reveal. It could be that they may wait for the official reveal at the Las Vegas/Motor Trend Auto Show (Sept 10-12) but do a soft-reveal online.
Personally? From what I know and have seen, it's probably not a "ohmygodihavetohavethis" vehicle. But it is surely worth a look-see and a test drive at my local shop once they get them...
Chances are the powertrain will be the existing 2.5 n/a four and not a turbo with a mildly revised CVT (to match the lower gearing for the Outback).
But we'll know in a few days/weeks/month.
But we'll know in a few days/weeks/month.
Almost makes me wish id have waited..but...i guess maybe in 10 years form now 
I'm curious what others think on this topic. With my limited knowledge I THINK a wilderness with the current engine would be pretty gimped compared to the Outback. Even with revised gearing as the torque is pretty low on the FB25. However, I don't really know.
It would just seem weird to me for them to have a Forester Wilderness that isn't much more than an appearance package when compared to the Outback Wilderness. Do you or anyone else have any thoughts?
I dont know..im assuming they will be very similar other than one being on the putback body and one being a forester body..the underpinnings(engine,transmission,etc,etc) should be more or less the same wont they??? I think it will be more of a toss up of which body style you like the outback or the Forester....I just A/B a Forester and a Outback...i thought i may like the Putback more till I got back in the forester and realized ..both being equal...I like the Forester more becasue of seating position and I think it just gives you better visibility around you.... the outback was more "car like" though as far as driving...id assume the Wilderness version would be mnore of the same...
If it is like the Outback Wilderness (With the turbo) I will definitely buy one- while I like the extra room in the Outback it is slower then the Forester with the same engine. Not terrible but when you load up camping stuff, canoes etc it shows
What you need to do is not think of the Outback Wilderness as a model on top of a basic Outback. Instead it really is more of a model on top of an Outback XT.
I go back to a question asked about the origin of the 2.4 liter Turbo 4.
If the answer to this question is yes to #2 - then it is not likely that the 2.4 Turbo will find a home under the hood of the Forester. Simply because the logistics of making the motor here and shipping it back to Japan is not viable. I do not think that the 2.4 Turbo is available outside of the US/North American markets. I don't think the Ascent or the Outback XTs are available outside of US and Canada...
If the answer to this question is yes to #1 - then it IS at least possible that the 2.4 Turbo could find a home under the hood of the Forester Wilderness. Of course, this then raises the other question about why it hasn't found a home under the hood of a Forester Sport XT or similar model.
As the current Forester is not really "gimped" in off-road situations (face it, it's never going to be a Jeep Wrangler competitor at Moab) and it has proven as a solid option for many "soft-roaders" (just like the n/a Outback and the Crosstrek, no matter which motor), there's not a lot of incentive for Subaru to put the turbo under the hood of the Forester. They've had 3 years of the SK generation to put the 2.4 under the hood - the same 3 years it's been in the Ascent; even if you just go for the first appearance of the XT Outback, it's been 2 years that could have found the engine in a Forester. Given how many threads and posts on here, as well as lamentations by car reviews and magazines and online blogs and so many other places, Subaru could have/should have/would have done this already. If anything, we may see it under the hood of the next generation (SL?) of the Forester which would be after 2023 model year.
As I said before - we'll just have to wait until more information s officially released by Subaru because everything else is just rumor, opinion, supposition and innuendo.
I go back to a question asked about the origin of the 2.4 liter Turbo 4.
Is the 2.4 Turbo motor imported as a single unit manufactured by Subaru in Japan?
OR
Is the 2.4 Turbo built in the US based upon US/North American sourced parts of parts sourced from Japan?
OR
Is the 2.4 Turbo built in the US based upon US/North American sourced parts of parts sourced from Japan?
If the answer to this question is yes to #2 - then it is not likely that the 2.4 Turbo will find a home under the hood of the Forester. Simply because the logistics of making the motor here and shipping it back to Japan is not viable. I do not think that the 2.4 Turbo is available outside of the US/North American markets. I don't think the Ascent or the Outback XTs are available outside of US and Canada...
If the answer to this question is yes to #1 - then it IS at least possible that the 2.4 Turbo could find a home under the hood of the Forester Wilderness. Of course, this then raises the other question about why it hasn't found a home under the hood of a Forester Sport XT or similar model.
As the current Forester is not really "gimped" in off-road situations (face it, it's never going to be a Jeep Wrangler competitor at Moab) and it has proven as a solid option for many "soft-roaders" (just like the n/a Outback and the Crosstrek, no matter which motor), there's not a lot of incentive for Subaru to put the turbo under the hood of the Forester. They've had 3 years of the SK generation to put the 2.4 under the hood - the same 3 years it's been in the Ascent; even if you just go for the first appearance of the XT Outback, it's been 2 years that could have found the engine in a Forester. Given how many threads and posts on here, as well as lamentations by car reviews and magazines and online blogs and so many other places, Subaru could have/should have/would have done this already. If anything, we may see it under the hood of the next generation (SL?) of the Forester which would be after 2023 model year.
As I said before - we'll just have to wait until more information s officially released by Subaru because everything else is just rumor, opinion, supposition and innuendo.
The Forester Sport is just an appearance package...
The Outback Wilderness IS more than just an appearance package. Turbo motor notwithstanding, there are other functional changes to the Wilderness (over an Outback or Outback XT) with a lift, different front and rear bumper/fascia units, certain mechanical changes (again beyond the turbo) and more. It's much more than just an appearance package.
Logic would allow us to "guess" that the Forester Wilderness will have those same types of mechanical changes beyond just wheels and cladding. We will probably see a reprogrammed CVT and driveline, the additional lift, the new front/rear fasciae and more.
Beyond the calls by a few hundred voices for a Turbo, it's an unlikely update for the SK generation Forester - no matter what trim you want to purchase. As said, they've had 3 years to find a way to stuff the 2.4 turbo under the hood - and they have not done that.
Logic would allow us to "guess" that the Forester Wilderness will have those same types of mechanical changes beyond just wheels and cladding. We will probably see a reprogrammed CVT and driveline, the additional lift, the new front/rear fasciae and more.
Beyond the calls by a few hundred voices for a Turbo, it's an unlikely update for the SK generation Forester - no matter what trim you want to purchase. As said, they've had 3 years to find a way to stuff the 2.4 turbo under the hood - and they have not done that.
Well the excitement of the wilderness edition got me to call my dealer. I know the owner very well and I asked him about the wilderness edition. Unfortunately there is really no information available about it. He said the dealers are updated on the same time frame as the public so they are basically kept in the dark also until it is unveiled. 😕
Perhaps that’s true now, but I remember learning about the new features on the latest generation Forester in June of 2018 (facial recognition, etal…) from my dealership, which convinced me to wait for the next (now current) generation before purchasing my Forester…
But, with all the COVID related issues going on today, who knows what it’s like now…
But, with all the COVID related issues going on today, who knows what it’s like now…
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