2026 Subaru Forester price and specs: Base price up almost $5000 for new-gen SUV

The new-generation Subaru Forester will be pricier than its predecessor, but fitted with more standard kit and a much more impressive hybrid powertrain.

Pre-orders have now opened, ahead of first customer deliveries in early July.

Subaru Australia expects strong demand for both petrol and hybrid powertrains, though it says wait times will be kept to a “reasonable minimum”.

The new mid-size SUV comes in seven distinct variants, comprising four non-hybrid petrol grades – powered by the same 2.5-litre naturally aspirated four-cylinder boxer engine as the existing model – and three hybrid variants using Subaru’s new “strong hybrid” powertrain.

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Boasting greater power and battery capacity and reduced fuel consumption than the old Forester Hybrid, it offers a claimed range of more than 1000km between refills.

The base price has climbed by $4800, however, the new entry-level grade – renamed simply AWD – gains features such as heated front seats, a larger 11.6-inch infotainment touchscreen with wireless smartphone mirroring, larger alloy wheels, and Subaru’s driver monitoring system.

A 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster is reserved for the top two hybrid grades, marking the first time a digital cluster has been available in a Forester in Australia.

New safety equipment across the range include an emergency driving stop system, a wide-angle monocular camera, and two additional airbags.

Pricing

The outgoing Forester was priced from $38,690 before on-road costs for the base 2.5i and $50,140 before on-roads for the flagship Hybrid S.

Drivetrains and Efficiency

There’s a new e-Boxer ‘Strong Hybrid’ powertrain available, while the carryover petrol engine has received some enhancements.

To give you an idea of the upgrade the Forester Hybrid has received, the outgoing model utilises an electric motor producing just 12kW of power and 66Nm of torque to supplement its smaller 2.0-litre boxer four, which produces 100kW and 196Nm on its own.

It also upgrades from a 48-litre fuel tank to a 63L one, while combined cycle fuel consumption has been reduced by 0.5L/100km compared with the outgoing hybrid.

That means the Forester Hybrid is still thirstier than, for example, the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid which consumes 4.8L/100km.

The hybrid features Subaru’s TH2B hybrid transaxle, with a planetary gearseat and a secondary electric motor/generator to handle engine starts and battery recharging.

A transaxle damper replaces the traditional torque converter, and unlike the CVT in the petrol Forester there are no pulleys or chains – power delivery is instead managed by the electric motor and planetary gear set.

The petrol Forester has the same power output as its predecessor, though torque is up by 8Nm and the CVT has a broader gear ratio range with lower first and reverse gears to aid hill climbing.

Subaru also claims it has reduced noise, vibration and harshness and improved the engine’s reliability and responsiveness.

The Forester rides on MacPherson strut front and double-wishbone rear suspension.

Dimensions

The new Forester is 15mm longer and 11mm wider than its predecessor.

All petrol models have a spare wheel with hybrids having a tyre repair kit, however, a towbar-mounted spare wheel carrier (pictured) is optional, as is a full-size spare wheel.

Servicing and Warranty

Subaru Australia backs its lineup with a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, along with an eight-year, 160,000km warranty for the hybrid’s battery.

Servicing is required every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever comes first.

Capped-price servicing information isn’t yet available.

Safety

The updated Subaru Forester is yet to receive an ANCAP safety rating, but it was awarded five stars by sister organisation Euro NCAP.

Standard safety equipment includes:

• 9 airbags, including:
  • Far-side (NEW)
  • Front passenger seat cushion (NEW)
• Wide-angle monocular camera (NEW)
• Front side radar
• Autonomous emergency braking (forward and reverse)
• Autonomous emergency steering
• Adaptive cruise control
• Blind-spot monitoring
• Driver monitoring system
• Emergency lane-keep assist
• Lane-keep assist
• Emergency driving stop system (NEW)
• Traffic sign recognition
• Rear cross-traffic alert
• Surround-view camera
• Rear parking sensors
• Tyre pressure monitoring

Standard Equipment

Specification differs slightly between petrol and hybrid models.

2025 Subaru Forester AWD equipment highlights:

• 18-inch alloy wheels
• Automatic, steering-responsive LED headlights
• Power-folding exterior mirrors
• LED front fog lights
• Front cornering lights
• Ladder-style roof rails
• ‘X-Mode’ with one drive mode
• Subaru Intelligent Drive (SI-Drive) with two modes
• Hill descent control
• Proximity entry with push-button start
• 11.6-inch portrait-oriented touchscreen infotainment system
• Wireless Apple CarPlay
• Wireless Android Auto
• Wireless phone charger
• USB-A and USB-C outlets
• 4.2-inch instrument cluster screen
• 6-speaker sound system
• Heated front seats
• Cloth upholstery
• Dual-zone climate control with rear vents
• Leather-wrapped steering wheel
• One-touch power-folding rear seats
• 60:40 split/fold rear seats
• Auto-dimming rear-view mirror

Forester AWD Premium adds:

• Power tailgate with kick sensor
• 8-way power driver’s seat with lumbar
• 8-way power passenger seat
• Satellite navigation
• Auto-dipping passenger-side mirror
• Power-folding exterior mirrors with memory

Forester AWD Sport adds:

• Dark metallic 18-inch alloy wheels
• Power sunroof
• ‘X-Mode’ with two drive modes
• Black front grille with green insert
• Green badging
• Water-repellent synthetic leather upholstery
• Leather-wrapped steering wheel
• Green interior stitching

Forester AWD Touring adds:

• Gloss black front grille, front and rear bumper accents, side mirrors
• Low-profile roof rails
• Leather and suede upholstery in black or brown
• Ventilated front seats
• 10-speaker Harman Kardon sound system with subwoofer

Forester AWD Hybrid adds (over base Forester):

• Paddle shifters for regenerative braking

Forester AWD Sport Hybrid adds (over Forester Sport):

• Bronze 19-inch alloy wheels
• “Enhanced suspension for improved comfort on bumpy roads”
• Bronze exterior accents
• Low-profile roof rails
• 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster
• 10-speaker Harman Kardon sound system with subwoofer

Forester AWD Touring Hybrid adds (over Forester Touring):

• Dark grey machined gloss finish 19-inch alloy wheels

Colours

No exterior finishes come at an additional cost.

The full colour palette comprises:

• Crystal White pearl
• Ice Silver metallic (excludes AWD Hybrid Sport)
• Magnetite Grey metallic
• Crystal Black silica
• Crimson Red pearl (excludes AWD Sport)
• Brilliant Bronze metallic (excludes AWD Sport and AWD Hybrid Sport)
• Daybreak Blue pearl (excludes AWD Sport and AWD Hybrid Sport)
• Sapphire Blue pearl (excludes AWD Sport)
• Cashmere Gold Opal (excludes AWD Sport)
• Autumn Green metallic
• River Rock pearl

Interior colours differ across the range.

AWD, AWD Premium and AWD Hybrid variants come with a choice of either black or grey/platinum cloth upholstery.

AWD Sport and AWD Hybrid Sport grades exclusively offer water-repellant grey/black upholstery.

AWD Touring and AWD Hybrid Touring grades, which feature leather and Ultrasuede upholstery, offer a choice of either black or brown/black colourways.

MORE: Everything Subaru Forester