Does the 2023 Subaru Forester Wilderness Dominate or Disappoint in the TFL Slip Test & Off-Road? 

... I have this exact same vehicle , off road it does everything my Taco did in more comfort - I bought it due to the review [Sarah n'tuned] did . I'm 70 , not brand loyal , this is my first Subie and not sorry I traded my 2 yr old Wrangler for it ... nice job Tommy ...

That's a car geek at his finest. The amount of details he knows about his car.

Absolutely love this test and kudos to this owner for bringing his car to you for review. That is such an awesome gesture for those of us who love these videos. Thank you so much You are fantastic! Thank you Tommy for explaining all of this and working with this owner as you did. I am very disappointed that Subaru is still holding a grudge against you guys, but I admit, I've had a Forester for a few years and absolutely love the product. I've been contemplating trading on an Ascent, but I don't know if that car would be as fun to drive as the Forester. Curious to see what the 2024 Forester will bring.

Here in Colorado, Subaru’s might be considered the official state car. I owned a 2006 Outback with that Boxer 2.5 engine. It was a rocket ship. At the time, we were spending most of our winters at 9,000 feet in Winter Park. With snow tires that Subie was like a super comfy snow mobile. When I put it up for sale, it sold in an hour for full price. You really can’t go wrong with Subaru.

I love this test. Having the owners' input adds so much more real-world feedback and information.

Thanks to that Subaru owner for letting you test his car! My wife has a ‘21 Forester “Base”; we put 4 studded snow tires on it for the NWPA winters & it’s a tank in the snow.

Cool test. Forester is very nice. Dan is a smart guy, nailed all the potential issues for Chicago driving.

My wife has a 2022 Forester Wilderness. In this same color. We’ve had it in sugar sand here in Florida and it handled it well. We’ve also driven to WV with it and taken it on some simple trails. I’d love to see a full off-road review. Subaru needs to play ball.

I bought my Wilderness in March. One thing I'm surprised the owner from Chicago didn't mention is that the Wilderness comes with all terrain tires that are snow rated. This was one of many reasons I got one for winter life in Northern NY. Also, the car IMO handles really well considering the taller tires and ground clearance. I agree with all the points this owner made, acceleration is surprisingly good, at least if you live near sea level.

I absolutely Love my Forester Touring with the dual Xmode. We live in a very mountainous area of WA state, 5 miles from town further up the mountains. We get 5-7 feet of snow in the winter and live on a private road that we have to plow and maintain ourselves. Our Forester is my vehicle and our Outback is my wife’s.

Great video. Real people with their real rides. Much better than manufacturer provided vehicles. Subaru has to be smiling after watching this.

Great demo of the X drive and real owner input. Thanks for showing this off.

The thing I really like about subaru is I can almost guarantee that they take all of that crash data and analysis from their rally racing heritage and apply it to their production vehicles. If it’s good enough for rally, it’s good enough for getting to the grocery store or to a camping trip. Pretty much all vehicles are safe in 2023, but subaru does it just that much better! “They Lived…”

I agree on everything you said 100%. I have a wrx and when I found out that after the tfl incident Subaru came and took the 2 loaner vehicles from them without their knowledge I was appalled, embarrassed and infuriated beyond comprehension. Furthermore, the fact that Subaru accessed one of the crew members’ PERSONAL garages to take back the vehicle is absolutely unforgivable in my opinion despite it being on loan. Their actions were exceedingly unprofessional and the extent to which they mishandled the situation is disappointing and immature.

I own a 2023 Subaru Forester Wilderness after having owned a 2021 Subaru Forester Touring. I took the Touring cross-country and off road, including on steep quarry roads, and it was excellent. The Wilderness has not yet been so thoroughly challenged, but it has manifestly more torque and I can't imagine it's not an offroad hero.

I like that owner and his car. I live in suburban Chicago too, so perhaps I'll see him someday. OK, yeah not likely, lol. The suburbs of Chicago are vast. Anyway, he's obviously well aware he's doing a lot of short trip driving, but over time it can be really detrimental. There can be oil dilution issues and more. I can definitely relate to his comments about potholes and RR grade crossings, especially the later. The Chicagoland metro area has lots and lots of them, many which are rough.

Also just outside Chicago and got the Forester Wilderness. For the first time I was actually looking forward to winter driving to play in the snow. Sadly, it hardly snowed at all this winter, but on the few nights we did get over 4 inches, I was having a BLAST! As far as everyday driving goes I am really enjoying it. With all of the road construction that seems to be always going on here I don't even blink when half the road is missing in this car. I did have to disable the auto lane centering as it gets confused in construction areas where the stripes in the road mean pretty much nothing. It kept trying to stay in the stripes kinda fighting with me to follow reality. I've had it for about 9 months and I like it more every day. It's my first Subaru and I'm guessing it won't be my last. My only gripe is the Start/Stop "feature" that you have to turn off every time you start the car, but soon that will be mandatory on all cars. I know there is a way around it for about 100 bucks. Leave it to the government to screw up perfectly good cars. Really I'm not all that excited about saving .03 gallons of gas per year to beat the crap out of my starter and battery every day.

Hey Jessica from Subaru - please let TFL back in with the other automotive journalists to review your products! Tommy - fantastic job with the review. That was really generous for a fellow TFL viewer to bring their personal rig in for you to test. Especially since Subaru is still unfairly keeping TFL out of the loop since the accidental “scratching of the paint” incident years ago. (SMH)

this owner really did his homework on this car. Good subie content.

So I have 2 Subarus currently. My wife drives a 2022 forester touring and we love it. I also have a 2013 Subaru legacy that I bought used in 2015. The 2022 forester is amazing and I have very few complaints with it. My 2013 has had some issues along the way but Subaru has gone above and beyond to take care of the vehicle. In 2019 I noticed my legacy was using about 2 quarts of oil in 3,000 miles. I took it in for an oil proficiency test and it was found to be burning oil. Subaru changed the engine under warrant at 87,000 miles. The new engine runs great and no problems with the vehicle until 2 months ago when I went to get it inspected. Dealership said that a 900 dollar emergency break cable was no serviceable and wouldn’t pass inspection. The legacy has 144,000 miles on it and no warranty. Subaru said they will change the emergency break under warranty to my supersize. I had to ask why because it seemed to good to be true. The dealership said it probably should have been a recall but they are just covering it as a extended warranty. Subaru has given me 2 loaners while they wait on parts. So far I have not had my legacy for 2 1/2 months so for approximately 1 month was in a 2022 accent. Nice suv but terrible on gas which is whatever cause the thing has some good pickup and go. My main thing I dislike about this vehicle is the front driver and passenger side doors. I drive with my left hand on the wheel for the most part. The top of the driver door is so narrow you can’t put your elbow on the top of the door. Yes this sounds silly but I drove the vehicle on a 4 hour trip and it got real annoying at hour 2. By hour 3 my left arm was tired from not having an arm rest. I know people will say I’m dumb for not switch to my right arm or adjusting my left arm. I just personally think it is an uncomfortable position to drive. My new loaner vehicle is a 2022 Outback wilderness addition. Awesome vehicle so far. The suspension is much softer then my wife’s touring forester. It is less fuel officiant but not buy much. I have two things I don’t like about it lol. The first one just annoys me. If you sit in the wilderness there is a tag (like the one on the back of a new shirt) that says wilderness on both driver and passenger doors (not removable). Yes I know that I’m dump for having a problem with this but it looks terrible and really makes my ocd go crazy lol. The biggest complaint I have is the front and backup camera are terrible quality compared the the back up camera on my wife’s forester. Idk why but it’s just really bad quality. All in all I love my Subarus but yes there have been some hick-ups along the way, but subaru always covers there mistakes unlike other company’s.

Thanks for this review. Love having the opinion of the vehicle owner, the controlled tests, and the real-life off-road driving. Additionally, the commentary is very helpful. This video is one of the reasons I've purchased the 2024 Wilderness Forester (in Geyser Blue, however)

I'm on my 2nd Forester, a 22 Wilderness and am really impressed with it. It's smooth, comfortable, and responsive enough. My complaints are mostly the cup holders and front cubby. The removable divider gets pulled out too easily with cups and bottles, and square water bottles don't fit so well. The storage cubby in front of the shifter is still small, I wish it was either deeper or wider, to better fit devices. For the refresh, I would have liked to have seen the larger screen, but knowing I would have given up physical HVAC controls, I'll live with what we have until the next generation infotainment comes out. I briefely had a CRV Hybrid, and also a 22 Legacy XT; The CRV was disappointing for hybrid fuel economy, and their electronics were glitchy. I've already dealt with a couple lemon laws and wasn't starting another. The Legacys 11.6 infotainment is why I'm okay with the Foresters current version, love the turbo but missed the ride height. Oddly enough, I'm getting better economy out of the FW than I was the Legacy; that's not to say the Legacy got bad economy... I managed 34 average from MD to southern NC, but struggeled to get 26 out of it on my normal drives, the FW I'm getting 27-29 average. I'm sure had I adjusted my routes on the Legacy, I could have managed better, things did get better as I learned its ideal power/efficency band.

Almost every Subaru gets a recommended buy from Consumer Reports. Always rate extremely well.

The Wilderness model's dual X mode adds more traction control for really tough, slippery, snowy, muddy, rocky, etc. terrain. But, in some other tests, I wasn't completely convinced that it was always better than the standard X mode, so I bought a Premium model. The Premium also gets 5 MPG more on highway than the Wilderness, 3 MPG more for combined driving than the Wilderness, but only 1 more MPG for city driving over the Wilderness. Like your dad, I have zero complained about my Forester Premium.

Purchased a FW in Santa Fe in Dec 2023. A smooth and quiet ride versus the sport. Drove the Southside entrance of Chaco Canyon and was impressed.

I love that the vehicle owner knew so much about his Forester. 👌🏻 I also have a 2023 Forester, but mine is the Sport trim. I like the car even more than I thought I would. I also work for Subaru, but have owned more Silverados than any other product. 😂

Dan hit every reason that I personally bought a 2024 Forester Wilderness in Indianapolis! I have zero complaints once I got used to my first CVT.

Yeah our X mode on the 18 XT was a significant functionality. Living close to the mountains it was helpful more than once. We lifted ours with ADF and have a bit better ground clearance :)

after much reading and watching reviews I negotiated over the phone and online and locked a decent interest rate before the went up in late december which held on until end of January. Once a shipment came in I went in, barely tested my 2023 Forrester Wilderness in the dealership cul de sac and negotiated a $2000 discount off the $37430 price. I had originally priced a premium at around $32500, however after losing that while negotiating over the phone I read more about the wilderness and the increased height to 9.2 inch ground clearance from 8.7, double towing capacity to 3k lbs from 1,500 on the regular. and the tiny extra torque making the 0 to 60 a 8.02 and the washable seats; I decided to just go for the Wilderness. So far I have o barely reached the 1,000 miles. I'll say it's as quick as my 2004 bmw 325i. Handles well, and much smoother and comfortable than both my BMW and muy 2007 Tundra. In traffic it does well but I honestly don't think the mileage is much greater than the bmw and just slightly better than the tundra. What I dislike about smaller cars is they tend to have smaller gas tanks. I don't understand that if a car is better on gas mileage that you should reduce the gas tank. All in all, it's not an eye catcher but when you're inside and the road feels smooth, you know you can tackle off road if you need to, you're commute home is much more fun and relaxing. It's still new to me but so far I have no regrets. I'm picky and hate paying these new high prices, but I'm content with my purchase. It's roomy, quieter than what reviewers i saw stated and quick and fast enough, as opposed to what youtube reviews stated. It reminds me of the build quality hand had back in the late 80s. Also, the fact that I was able to get full coverage at $600/year due to subaru being the safest rated vehicle.

Love TFL reviews and testing! Subaru needs to loan them vehicles. I have the same Subaru Forester as in this video except mine is a 2022 Wilderness. I just really like this Forester Wilderness. It is just all around great! One thing if Tommy reads these reviews -how did you like the headroom in that Forester? Also, at 9.2 clearance, it was so easy to get in and out of it. One more thing, check out the room in the backseat - this has to be one of the most comfortable and most leg room. Love the reviews when Tommy and his Dad get in the front and back seats as it gives you a good idea of the room! Again Love TFL - they are just Awesome reviews and the pioneers of the wheel slip test! Also, so far, I love Subaru Forester Wilderness! Thanks to the owner! I would driven mine out there if I knew ya needed it for a review.

My wife started with a Jeep and it wasn't too long she got tired of how noisy, clunky, and overall how poorly the car was built and designed. She wanted something fun, safe, capable, and pleasing both inside and out. It wasn't long until she found herself inside an Outback Wilderness Edt. I will say first hand that car is such a treat to drive, to own, and have fun with offroad. We loved the outback so much within a week we back to the dealership and purchased another Outback, this time an XT Touring with all the extras. There's nothing like a Subaru!

I gotta say, I'm impressed by that car and I think Tommy gave it a fair review. I hope he don't get in to much trouble with his Dad over that. But truly I think the car performed well and Tommy was fair with it. And I also like how he took care of it, respected and engaged the owner. And he even asked relevant questions. Now I feel like I need to find something to complain about.

I really appreciated this real world owner review and experience of the forester wilderness, thank you! I have a 2024 FW and I love the car. No regrets or second thoughts on getting it

I've been waiting to see you guys review this one!

I bought the 2022 Wilderness. Been very pleased with it, haven’t done any off-roading or inclement weather conditions. But knowing it can, if needed - is a great peace of mind. If they can add a hybrid that would be nice, my gas mileage isn’t that great - I get about 19 to 20 mpg mix. But I’m glad this was a real world test and I’m happy to have the wilderness trim!

Not sure what the beef subaru has is. But you make a great point at the start of this video. Subaru makes some of the best value vehicles on the market and they do not receive as much as love as they should (at least here in the SE of USA). I am trying to convince a coworker to buy a Subaru forester/outback instead of a highlander as he is a new father but we work at Toyota so it is kind of difficult to convince him 😅 No. 1 I love about my 2020 forester is the suspension. It is so nice and I feel like I practically float over our rough roads. Rav4 ain’t got nothing on that

"We have no working relationship with Subaru because they didn't like the outcome of a past review." This is the problem with most reviews/reviewers: honesty is hard to come by. Reviewers, I'm sure, feel that if they are critical, the test fleet manager will cut them off from free loaner test vehicles - so we get most reviewers acting like (disgustingly-) enthusiastic salespeople, never voicing any real criticism. Consumer Reports - *buying* their own test vehicles - often discusses negatives about a vehicle that no one else touches. I hope TFL can afford to continue to have integrity.

X-Mode does a lot for sure. When wheeling on deep, soft sand, with Low PSI (16-ish psi), good tires and single X mode our Ascent does quite well. I'm waiting for a Wilderness Ascent.

Perfect 10! I think this is one of the best softroaders on the market. hopefully we can see some more vids with the SUV!

Even my 1st-gen Crosstrek offers impressive traction. It can drift very neutrally on snow and dirt too. The Crosstrek Wilderness sounds interesting with 3500lb towing capacity, and likely still better MPG hwy than the heavier Forester. A 4500-5500lb winch and a rear diff-locker are pretty affordable too.

I am currently cross shopping the new Outback and Forester. Here in SW Florida we dont need 4wd/AWD but we tend to flood a few times a year now and I want more ride height.. both of these have great ride height.. i just have to get down to a dealer and test them out. Love the Green and the Blue color so it will be one of those choices.

We bought one of these a few weeks ago and also love it. I can mirror the same ownership experience as this owner. Ride and handling are very good. Despite many reviewers panning the engine and transmission at times (CVT and no turbo option), I find the power around town great and the CVT works very well here. It was also well priced and the dealer had it in stock so we were able to get it in a few days.

You nailed it. I have the same one. Factoring in features,safety, ride and capability it’s the best value out there. Not to mention good reliability

I’m also in Chicago and I have a 2023 Crosstrek Sport with the 2.5L I can totally relate to everything the owner said about his Wilderness. I might upgrade to the Crosstrek Wilderness next year or 2. Cheers!!! 🤙🏼🤙🏼🤙🏼

Thanks for this one. I'm feeling a bit better about my upcoming reception of my 1st subaru

Love these tests. Great example of real world abilities. One thing Id like to see done better though. When on the rollers. The remaining wheel that is in contact with the surface should be level with the rollers. Leaving it hang of course will create spin. But the point is to see how it transfers around. On icy street surfaces. You wont have 3 up one down. All would be level but with ice under, that wheel could have more traction IF it was level and not hanging... That's the only complaint or change Id like to see.

I love my 23 Outback Wilderness, no complaints about it.

The one wheel peel on the three roller tests is truly impressive. Getting that much torque to one tire with just the traction control system...

I have a forester touring with the same dual x mode, I agree you can really instantly tell the difference when you switch them on. Not as noticeable as dropping from 4 hi to 4 low in my f150 or anything like that, but you can definitely tell it shifts down and increases the torque vectoring. It really is pretty impressive for what it is.

I'd love to see what video was problematic enough for Subie to not wanna work w you. Your vids seems straight forward and fair. I'm a 22 Outback Onyx owner, love it, only complaints, infotainment system is slow and the hvac buttons are very small and the mpg does come @3-4 miles less then stated in city, hwy right on. Otherwise super comfy, safe, fun to drive (turbo) family car. I'm in Ca so not much weather to deal w but the autobraking, rear backing alerts, lane keep, basically ALL the eyesight saftey systems are great! Oh and I'm 6'5" 300lb and both forester and slightly wider outback comfy for the big man :)

I think you are on to something having a real world owners perspective in addition to yours. Makes for a more interesting and engaging review. Well done.

Thanks for the video actually bought the exact same car with the exact same color for 2024. This is my introduction video. Thank you. lol .

Fantastic review!!

Thanks for the owners perspective! Great review.

Love my Subaru always a great reliable car. The go to when the guys wanna go camping or road trips

Just bought a 23 Outback Limited XT. We’re planning to move to the Denver area sometime in the next year. When it happens,I’ll bring the Outback to y’all to play with 😄

I have a 2022 Subaru wilderness and live in Bozeman Montana. I drive all around southwest Montana and bring this car on rough terrain, it does great. Deep snow, mud is good and does well on ice. Driving down to yellowstone is great, only thing is the car feels weird on the highway above 80 mph especially in wind. The car is light and wants to fly away lol but just driving in rough terrain it’s great. SW Montana certified

I own a 2022 Touring. with 22,000 miles on it. I drive mostly 4 hr hi-way trips twice per month. What I like best is the comfort. 2nd I like the space. Once I fold down the rear seats I can comfortably get all of our camping gear in it for 2 people camping for 3 days. The Mazda CX5 really sucked for space because of that sharp rake in the back. 3rd I love the visibility of the large windows all around. It really feels like you're out into nature instead of stuffed in some sporty looking wannabe Forester. 4th Subaru's unique all wheel drive system was not new to me, I owned a Tribeca for 15 years. Once you drive wet curves in any Subaru, everything else feels like crap , with exception of an Audi for $15,000 more. But some of Subbies great handling is do to those low slung boxer engines. The downers: While I am impressed with how much power they get out of the 2.5 non turbo, it seems to scream a bit to do it, like upward of 3,000rpm. The other issue is if I drive it closer to 80mph very much, it gets 27.6 mpg. If I drive just a tad over 70 mph =29 mpg. In both cases the car is loaded with camping gear and stuff tied on to the roof racks. While I very much enjoy the hight of the Forester, its skinny wheel base in proportion is a little scary when driving through heavy side winds. Except that's coming from owning the heavier, wider stance of my Tribeca at 22 mpg. The factory tires that come with it are mediocre at best. Except that goes for all vehicles in its class. I was expecting a bit more $tire out of their top Touring model. While all the Subbies come with excellent rubber rear cargo mats, it is insulting to have to pay extra for the rear bumper mat. I mean, it's a freaking Subaru, you are going to be dragging massive items in and out all the time and your yellow lab will be using that bumper to heave himself into car.

We’re thinking about buying one in the near future.. Thank you for the info.

Great video. The forester or outback wilderness is in my near future. Just trying to decide.

Have the same vehicle and functionally it’s amazing. Only slight gripes are the seat isn’t very forgiving for long road trips if you aren’t one to stop frequently, after a couple hours I find my back needs a break. The cup holders are also small and not in the easiest of locations but neither of those are dealbreaker issues, still love it.

Great video, so Subaru AWD vs Honda IVTM-4 which is better?

My brother just got an Outback Wilderness 2024 and can't stop talking about it. Big upgrade from his 2011 Mazda CX-7.

The obvious difference between x-mode on/off is when off, the slipping wheel continues to slip, and when on, the slipping wheel is intermittently braked. I bet in double X mode, that intermittent braking is increased and constantly brakes. This is relatable to Toyota's A-trac. With AWD systems, the mechanical aspect of transferring power is directly related to how much slip is occurring at any given wheel. When the computer realizes the slipping wheel is still slipping, it brakes that wheel so the power spinning that sipping wheel can be redirected to the wheels which are not slipping. For example, if two are slipping, and two have traction, all four wheels are still powered, but half of that power is wasted on the slipping wheels; brake those slipping wheels and that power moves to the gripping wheels.

The only thing I would add is a wider wheel and tire package but overall very nice and a good value as well.

You guys gotta test my RX500h. That Subie did really well though!

You've gotten really good at this

Great video, thanks to the owner for providing his Forester. Any of you fine viewers have experience with a 2018 Forester with a 6 speed manual? There is one for sale in my area..

So my wife has this same Subaru. I was driving it and went to back up only to have it automatically slam on the brakes just like it did in this video. I guess the sensors saw some tall grass. I also have had it slam on the brakes because it saw a large tractor moving slow coming towards us. Pretty annoying in an off road grocery getter, but I guess it’s all there for a reason. I have just learned to turn off all of the safety sensors every time I drive it. It is pretty amazing in the snow and will drive circles around my 3/4 ton truck.

I distinctly ordered the Antartic Blue Super Sports Wagon with the C.B. and optional rally fun pack.

had a cvt replacement at about 45 000 miles on a 2017 Outback 3.6. Thankfully mine was under extended warranty and Subaru did the 6 to 6.5k USD job for free; I was lucky only a week or so was left. My friend decided to check up on his 2.4 Outback at a transmission specialist and he was told it is not uncommon. Also worthwhile keeping in mind I got my brand new CVT shipped within 48 hours, indicating plenty of stock

Thank For bringing your Subaru the TFL for testing

Had an 08 Fozzy that I drove for a number of years. I actually got it from the same dealership that this 2023 is from "Evanston Subaru."

I am a lifelong subaru fan. My first subaru was a 1976. In 1976 there was not a lot of comfort items built in, but it was reliable. I have always found them a good value, as long as you take care of them. I just bought a 2023 wilderness cause it was "Pretty". But from my experience here shows quality has only gotten better.

Tommy, in X mode 1, the computer assumes that traction is limited and will try to find the tire with the most grip and apply enough torque to it without breaking traction (while distributing to other wheels in case traction shifts). In x mode 2, the computer assumes that no tires have traction, so it sends power to all 4 wheels and allows for some slip, the idea being instead of maximizing grip at one wheel, it needs to utilize the little bit of grip that all 4 wheels provide. Long story short, I wonder if X mode 1 would have been better on the slip test where 1 wheel has all the traction.

It's as if TFL knew I was looking into a Forester lol. Hopefully the rumored re-design for 2024 will bring even more refinement (and a little more power).

I'm glad it's not just mine that the automatic braking goes off for no reason offroading. I wish there was a fast way to turn it off while backing up

Great Video. Just wondering if you can re-test the Dodge Hornet

We need a roller slip test between the 2023 Outlander PHEV and the 2023 RAV4 Prime.

That's a nice car. But then again, I have one just like it in my garage.

I never ever thought I would say this, let alone let myself think it, this Subaru Forester just impressed me. Tommy's test on the skid pad proved that Subaru does indeed have a system that 'works'. Thanks to Dan ( did I get the owner's name correct?) and Tommy for a job well done here. P.S. Wake up Subaru, I think you are losing out on some truthful advertising here. A Car maker that doesn't like being told and shown that they have faults ( as well as good points ) , does not get my dollars.

Fantastic cars! Loyal subie owner here.

Glad you guys would rather give and honest review than keep Subaru happy

I have a 2024 Forester Wilderness. I love the car, and though I have not yet owned it through a winter here in the northeast, I notice one aspect simply because it is taller and narrowed than an Outback: it is prone to wind gusts. I wish that some reviewers would demonstrate comparisons of this vs. other small SUVs. I drove home on one rainy day over the Mario Cuomo Bridge and found it hard to keep the car driving a straight line because of wind sheer.

My 1st gen grosstrek has really impressed me with its capabilities over the years, currently have 28" tires and 2 inches of lift. Likely, I will be buying a forester wilderness when the time comes to buy another vehicle.

I bought this model. Been off-road multiple times and haven't had any issues. It just works. Although I haven't even gotten 26mpg ever!

I have just purchased a 2023 Subaru Forester Wilderness. It runs well, handles well, rides nicely, and is comfortable and quiet. It has already shown itself to be capable of climbing the small, modest hill that leads to my woodlot in the back yard. I think Subaru has hit a home run with this car

Just bought one. Everyone bashing the non-turbo or CVT thing haven’t actually driven one of these. They are exceptional for reasons I’ll list if asked.

Love the wilderness model.Forester or Outback. Love the look of the Forester better but the Outback has the power with the turbo.

What is this "upgraded CVT" you mention? What is different about this CVT from the other Forester trim levels? Are you referring to the CVT Oil Cooler AND the short ratio transfer and rear differential gearing?

Love the new wilderness models!

A direct comparison of the Rav4 Woodland trim would be great to see against the Wilderness since it has the the Wildpeaks and a TRD tuned suspension. I was between the two and ultimately got the Woodland. I do think the Dual X mode slightly beats out the Toyota AWD, but the massive difference in MPGs was too much to swallow.

I'm in the UK and have a Subaru Forester manual diesel and do quite a lot of off roading with my work. I've looked at the new ones but they're petrol and I need to be closer to 50mpg (They're also £40k+ in the UK!). My only wish would be a locking diff. Ideally both but definitely rear. Once you get any slip as seen in this video you've lost momentum and that can mean a tow strap is needed. Still love the car.

X mode clearly works and makes a difference. I wonder why the system programing isn't set up to transfer torque that effectively all of the time.

Subaru needs to start giving you guys cars again.

Can’t decide between this and ford bronco sport badlands. Advise please

Great video

I would like to see this course done with a 4Runner TRD OR but with KDSS suspension. Especially if it could be compared with a non KDSS one.

Very nice! Need a leader board for the TFL Slip Test.

Got outback wilderness 2023.. Great suv