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Revealed at the Los Angeles Auto Show last week, the 2025 Subaru Forester met nearly all of our expectations, with the exception of a hybrid powertrain. Fortunately, there is a more efficient Forester on the way, but it won't arrive until the 2026 model year––that's an entire year after the standard model arrives.


Nevertheless, the addition of a Forester hybrid long overdue. Nearly every competitor, whether from Honda, Hyundai, or Kia, already offers an electrified powertrain somewhere in its lineup.



While this is the first time that American customers will have access to a hybrid Forester, previous generations have already been offering hybrid variants in other markets. Those in the United States have, however, already seen a Subaru hybrid before in the form of the second-generation Crosstrek, which offered a plug-in hybrid powertrain borrowed from the Toyota Prius Prime.


And much like the previous Crosstrek plug-in, the Forester hybrid will be brought to you in part by Toyota. Subaru of America COO Jeff Walters told Automotive News that the SUV's existing boxer engine will be paired with an electric motor and battery pack from Toyota.


Subaru and Toyota have a long history of partnering up, so doing it for a hybrid is a no-brainer. Like we mentioned before, Toyota's proven skills in the hybrid sector have already been applied to the previous-gen Crosstrek, and vehicles such as the BRZ sports car and the fully-electric Solterra have identical twins under Toyota's own umbrella as well. Consdering that Toyota has a variety of different hybrid powertrains scattered about its expansive lineup, it remains to be seen which components will make their way into the electrified Forester.



While we won't have to wait too long for Subaru to reveal the full specs, an official launch is still a long way off. With the redesigned gas-powered Forester set to arrive in the spring of 2024, the hybrid variant is expected to arrive a whole year later, which means it'll come within the earlier half of 2025.


Would you consider a Forester hybrid over Toyota's RAV4 hybrid?

Image Credits: Subaru
Future Cars
Nov 24, 2023
 •

Subaru Forester Will Add Anticipated Hybrid Variant For The 2026 Model Year

We're told that the hybrid Forester will borrow bits from Toyota.

Revealed at the Los Angeles Auto Show last week, the 2025 Subaru Forester met nearly all of our expectations, with the exception of a hybrid powertrain. Fortunately, there is a more efficient Forester on the way, but it won't arrive until the 2026 model year––that's an entire year after the standard model arrives.


Nevertheless, the addition of a Forester hybrid long overdue. Nearly every competitor, whether from Honda, Hyundai, or Kia, already offers an electrified powertrain somewhere in its lineup.



While this is the first time that American customers will have access to a hybrid Forester, previous generations have already been offering hybrid variants in other markets. Those in the United States have, however, already seen a Subaru hybrid before in the form of the second-generation Crosstrek, which offered a plug-in hybrid powertrain borrowed from the Toyota Prius Prime.


And much like the previous Crosstrek plug-in, the Forester hybrid will be brought to you in part by Toyota. Subaru of America COO Jeff Walters told Automotive News that the SUV's existing boxer engine will be paired with an electric motor and battery pack from Toyota.


Subaru and Toyota have a long history of partnering up, so doing it for a hybrid is a no-brainer. Like we mentioned before, Toyota's proven skills in the hybrid sector have already been applied to the previous-gen Crosstrek, and vehicles such as the BRZ sports car and the fully-electric Solterra have identical twins under Toyota's own umbrella as well. Consdering that Toyota has a variety of different hybrid powertrains scattered about its expansive lineup, it remains to be seen which components will make their way into the electrified Forester.



While we won't have to wait too long for Subaru to reveal the full specs, an official launch is still a long way off. With the redesigned gas-powered Forester set to arrive in the spring of 2024, the hybrid variant is expected to arrive a whole year later, which means it'll come within the earlier half of 2025.


Would you consider a Forester hybrid over Toyota's RAV4 hybrid?

Image Credits: Subaru

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Subaru Forester Will Add Anticipated Hybrid Variant For The 2026 Model Year

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