The new Subaru Forester equipped with the tough-looking Wilderness pack was revealed in a video online, sending fans of the brand into a frenzy.
The video was posted by Subaru on its official YouTube channel and, while the focus of the clip was the 2026 Crosstrek Hybrid, fans spotted an unreleased version of the Forester in the background wearing a refreshed Wilderness pack.
Whether the leak was an accident or not isn’t known. Either way, Subaru has now edited the video and the Forester has been blurred into the background, but not before the very quick-off-the-mark and unforgiving internet community could save screen shots of the original and post them to social media platforms.
Wilderness is a package added to various models of Subarus in the United States. There are already Wilderness versions of the Forester, along with the Crosstrek and Outback.
The Wilderness package adds unique wheels with all-terrain tyres, raised suspension, higher-output engines, tow hooks and cosmetic touches like tough-looking front and rear bumpers, and side cladding.
In the Outback's case, a different final drive ratio makes it better at low-speed manoeuvring off-road.
The image CarsGuide has obtained is low on detail but it’s clear from the ride height, wheels and cladding that the Forester in question very likely has the new Wilderness package.

Currently, the US Subaru website shows Wilderness versions of the Crossrek and Outlander, but not for the Forester which arrived in its six-generation form in 2024.
Subaru Australia has said it has plans to bring Wilderness editions to Australia, however, but the arrival date has not yet been confirmed.
There’s speculation that the Forester shown in the video is also the much anticipated hybrid variant. Subaru has sourced the hybrid system from Toyota and with the vehicle’s arrival expected towards the middle of 2025, the Forester spotted in the video could well be it.
A hybrid powertrain would help the new-gen Forester take on its toughest rivals. The Toyota RAV4, Mitsubishi Outlander and Nissan X-Trail already offer petrol-electric drive and the Mazda CX-5 is expected to add the fuel-saving tech imminently. Subaru's unique Wilderness trim could give it extra appeal, though.

The new generation Forester will arrive in Australia this year with the brand’s previous Managing Director Blair Read — succeeded by Scott Lawrence — telling CarsGuide that he was excited by the hybrid version joining it, too.
"We're very excited about that — I've always said with next-gen Forester it's our number-one selling model in Australia, so we need to put our best foot forward - we believe that strong hybrid technology will be a big shot in the arm. Alongside some other things which we'll keep under wraps until the launch," Read said.
"Our plan at this stage is to launch with both petrol and hybrid - there will be a short period, a gap in deliveries, as we change over to the new model."