2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness First Test: No Real Surprises, Except MPG

subaru forester Full Overview

Wilderness. The name alone stokes the soul to life. Subaru’s new adventure-oriented Wilderness package takes the already well-equipped, all-wheel-drive Subaru lineup even farther off the beaten path. Initially introduced for the 2022 Outback, the Wilderness trim has been extended to the 2022 Forester.

It would be easy to dismiss the 2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness as little more than a feel-good idea portrayed through fancy badges, embroidered headrests, and logoed all-weather floormats. Yes, it has all those dazzling stylistic cues and more—straight down to brushed aluminum pedals and anodized copper-finish stitching and accents. But the Wilderness is also replete with a number of purposeful off-road enhancements.

Black cladding protects the most vulnerable body parts from rocks and scratches, and Wilderness-specific front and rear bumpers improve approach, departure, and breakover angles. It has more ground clearance than the base Forester, and it comes with an upgraded suspension and all-terrain tires. It’s also the only Forester to offer a full-size spare, a big deal in off-road situations where flats are always a possibility. The roof rails can carry a much greater load and beg for a rooftop tent. Also unique to the Wilderness: a front-view monitor with a 180-degree viewing angle to help with on-trail visibility; cool, hexagonal-style LED foglights; an enhanced dual-function Subaru X-Mode terrain assist feature; and special, durable upholstery.

So the 2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness has its share of off-road bona fides, but how does it perform in the urban jungle? To find out, let’s pluck the Wilderness out of the forest and plunge it onto the pavement to test how it handles the curvy roads that lead to wilderness.

Under-Powered, All-Terrains

The Forester Wilderness, powered by a version of Subaru’s 2.5-liter flat-four, puts down 182 hp and 176 lb-ft of torque. No surprises here, as this is the only powerplant for the Forester—and not a real exciting one at that. It’s backed by Subaru’s Lineartronic continuously variable transmission with an eight-speed manual mode. The CVT has a lowered final drive (4.11:1 vs. 3.70:1), an increased gear ratio spread, and stronger variator pulley, all of which improve low-end torque off-road. Interestingly, other Forester trims have a seven-speed mode, making the Wilderness the only variant to come with the eight-speed setup.

As part of its specialness, the 2022 Forester Wilderness is the only Forester that rolls on 225/60R17 Yokohama Geolandar all-terrain tires. Its upgraded suspension gives it 9.2 inches of ground clearance, which is half an inch more than other Foresters. Lastly, at about 3,600 pounds (specifically 3,610 pounds for our test vehicle), it’s the heaviest Forester, though not by much.

With these factors in mind, how does the Forester Wilderness perform compared to other Foresters? Will its off-road stature negatively affect its on-road performance? And how does the Wilderness hold up against its competition, namely the Toyota RAV4 TRD Off-Road?

Peppy Enough from Stoplight to Stoplight

The Forester Wilderness stably accelerated with good traction from 0 to 60 mph in 8.1 seconds, just a skosh quicker than a previously tested Forester Limited trim’s 8.3 seconds. The Forester Wilderness was also quicker than the Toyota RAV4 TRD Off-Road (equipped with a 203-hp, 184-lb-ft of torque 2.5-liter I-4), which clicked a time of 8.5 seconds.

Basically, any perceived chunkiness emanating from the Wilderness’ off-pavement attire shouldn’t equate to sluggishness off the line or a “dragged-down” feeling from stoplight to stoplight, where a majority of driving takes place.

Good Enough in the Twisties

The Subaru Forester was predictably no STI on MotorTrend’s figure-eight course, but “overall, it was not embarrassing in the least and put down a respectable performance,” said road test editor Chris Walton, who didn’t expect its poise and polish. On the figure eight—which evaluates acceleration, handling, braking and the transitions in between these elements—the Forester put down a time of 28.4 seconds at 0.57 g (average).

Walton continued: “The brake pedal is easy to modulate and find the ABS threshold [60 mph to 0 took 133 feet]. There isn’t a lot of grip on the skidpad, but it was easy to find and maintain the limit there, as well. The steering feel is a little bit spring-loaded—not its best attribute. I had to resort to manual shifting in order to get a snappy exit, and it made a difference.”

By comparison, the Forester Touring was more than a full second quicker at 27.3 seconds at 0.63 g (average); the Toyota RAV4 TRD Off-Road ran the course in 28.0 seconds at 0.59 g (average). While both were a touch quicker, the differences were by no means deal-breakers in real-world situations.

Basically, the all-terrain tires on the Wilderness weren’t a huge demerit around the figure eight, proving they can hold their own in the twisties leading to off-pavement adventure. The Subaru Wilderness package is not so off-road-focused that it can’t handle the pavement with composure. Rather, the gripe would probably be the other way around, that what you get with the Wilderness may not be advantageous enough over the average already dirt-worthy Subaru.

Can’t Ignore Its Poor Fuel Economy

The main 2022 Subaru Forester is EPA rated at 26/33 mpg city/highway. Not the Wilderness, though, which comes in at a much lower 25/28 mpg city/highway. That’s a huge 5-mpg hit on the highway (and a forgivable 1 mpg in the city). Worse yet, our time behind the wheel averaged 22.0 mpg, and we weren’t exactly flogging on it or off-roading.

Whatever the reasons for the hit—the all-terrain tires, the CVT tuning, that final-drive ratio—it’s a pretty poor showing from the same four-cylinder engine. On the bright side, we did see 28.0 mpg on our final 20-mile freeway trip, reassuring us that at least (poor) advertised Wilderness economy can be achieved. Stay in the wilderness, not on the highway. At least towing is rated at 3,000 pounds, which doubles other Foresters.

Unique Upholstery, Strange Screen

If you’re coming out of a full-size truck or SUV, the Forester Wilderness drives small and nimble (because it is), and it doesn’t take much time to get comfortable. However, despite its small size, the inside feels rather spacious and un-cramped. The rear doors opened nice and wide, allowing us to jam two large car seats in the back with relative ease. The LATCH system (which stands for lower anchors and tethers for children, who knew!) locations were spot-on and easily accessible. Best of all, we weren’t miserable journeying with our family of four. One child may have called the Geyser Blue Forester Wilderness a Polaris, but in her world, that meant it was one heck of a ride. Come to think of it, innocently comparing it to a side-by-side could be considered the ultimate compliment for a rather softcore off-road vehicle.

Although the Wilderness is the only Forester to get the StarTex water-repellent upholstery, it’s been in a few other Subarus for a few years. It feels soft and inviting, and it’s deceivingly upscale for an off-road trim. One bystander was convinced it was leather, which is a forgivable mistake considering it mimics its texture. It’s actually a chemically produced polyurethane synthetic plastic. It’s physically lighter than leather and repels water while remaining breathable. The real test would come naturally with time (and children), but Subaru says it holds up against the elements.

Visibility is great when it comes to changing lanes and being aware of surroundings. However, we found the 180-degree front-view monitor to be rather distorted, defeating its purpose of front-end clarity. It was hard to discern where the front end was in relation to objects. This could be because it displays on the small screen on top of the bigger 8.0-inch screen, so it feels far away, hard to focus on, and somewhat awkward. Like, that small screen (that one no one talks about) could go away, and we’d all be OK.

Worthy of the Wilderness Name?

All in all, the 2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness was a blast behind the wheel. We’d throw on a rooftop tent immediately and hit the wilderness, calling this our reasonable (and at about $34,000, reasonably priced) on- and off-road vehicle. We’d then consider a little more lift and some beefier tires—and probably go too far on the overland theme. We can think of worse things.

Looks good! More details?

Keyword: 2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness First Test: No Real Surprises, Except MPG