2025 Subaru Forester Hybrid: Stronger, Smarter, and Still Very Subaru

There’s a moment, early in my week with the 2025 Subaru Forester Hybrid, when it all starts to make sense. I’m pulling onto a curved on-ramp, the kind where you expect a Subaru’s naturally aspirated flat-four and CVT to grumble their way toward highway speed. Except this time… it doesn’t. The electric motors fill the gap, the Forester glides instead of strains, and for the first time in a long time, I’m driving a Subaru that feels genuinely smooth.

This is Subaru’s first hybrid Forester in the U.S., and it arrives with a lot of expectations. Subaru buyers are fiercely loyal. They want capability. They want durability. They want something that feels ready for a muddy campsite or a snowy driveway at three in the morning. But they also want better fuel economy and a drivetrain that doesn’t feel a decade behind.

So Subaru did the smart thing: they teamed up with Toyota.
And the end result? A Forester that’s familiar in all the best ways, changed in all the right ways, and still very much a Subaru.

If you want to see it in action,
our full video review is up now on
TXGarage’s YouTube channel.

Looks That Stick

Subaru didn’t reinvent the Forester with this redesign, but they gave it just enough edge to look fresh. It’s a cleaner design overall — slimmer headlights, a more structured grille, and a front fascia that finally looks like it belongs in the 2020s. No giant fake vents, no over-styled creases running nowhere. It’s still upright and boxy, but more confident about it.

My test vehicle came in Crimson Red Pearl, a color that catches light in a way cameras sometimes miss. In person, it brings a touch of warmth and shape to the Forester’s otherwise pragmatic lines. And honestly, that’s the story here: modern without shouting, subtle without being boring.

Wheel designs are trim-specific. The Sport Hybrid’s bronze wheels are a fun touch if you want something a little different, while the Touring Hybrid wears a machine-finished design that fits the more upscale vibe.

The proportions remain classic Forester — tall glass, big greenhouse, and a roofline that respects your head, not the wind tunnel. And that visibility pays off in real use. A lot of crossovers have traded visibility for sleekness. Subaru didn’t make that trade.

Inside the Cabin

Climb into the 2025 Forester Hybrid, and the cabin feels like a familiar hiking pack that’s been cleaned up and re-stitched with better materials. Subaru has been refining this interior over time, and this model finally feels cohesive.

The seating position is tall and confident, the sightlines are wide open, and the controls fall naturally to hand. I’m 6’1″, and I had no trouble getting comfortable, though I do wish the seats offered a bit more thigh support. Subaru’s seat cushions tend to run short, and this one is no exception. If you do a lot of highway miles, you might prefer the seating in a Honda CR-V Hybrid.

The big news inside is the 11.6-inch vertical touchscreen, which comes standard on every hybrid trim. Subaru’s infotainment has never been class-leading, and while this system still has a bit of lag here and there, the layout is simple, the graphics are improved, and the vertical orientation keeps things easy to view on the move. Climate controls live in a fixed area on the bottom of the screen, and you still get a real volume knob.

The 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster on Touring trims looks sharp and communicates what you need without trying to be futuristic.

Materials throughout feel rugged but not cheap, and nothing about the interior gets in the way of daily use. Rear-seat space is excellent — one of the Forester’s strongest traits — and you can easily fit three kids across or two adults without compromise.

A Smarter Powertrain

Under the hood, the 2025 Subaru Forester Hybrid uses Subaru’s familiar 2.5-liter boxer engine, but this one runs the Atkinson cycle and works in tandem with Toyota-sourced hybrid components. Two motor-generators and a lithium-ion battery bring the total system output to 194 horsepower, a meaningful bump over the gas-only model.

Power delivery is smoother, quieter, and more confident than any naturally aspirated Subaru four-cylinder in recent memory. Subaru’s long-standing issue with sluggish midrange acceleration is noticeably improved here. The hybrid system fills in the torque gap, and in normal driving, the engine noise stays down where it belongs.

The hybrid battery sits under the rear cargo floor without taking up any usable space, and you still get a full 581-mile range estimate, which is impressive in this class.

Subaru calls the transmission an E-CVT, which is essentially a CVT tuned to blend engine and motor power. It behaves much better than the older Subaru CVTs and avoids most of the droning and surging people associate with them.

And the best part?
You keep Subaru’s full symmetrical all-wheel drive. Not a slip-and-react system. Not a rear-motor EV setup. This is the real thing, and it’s one of the hybrid Forester’s biggest advantages over the competition.

On the Road

On the road, the Forester Hybrid feels like a Subaru that finally grew up. The ride is soft and well-mannered, with a level of refinement you don’t always get in this price bracket. Cabin noise is noticeably reduced thanks to increased structural rigidity and more sound-deadening material.

Handling isn’t sporty, and it doesn’t need to be. The WRX-derived dual-pinion steering rack gives the Forester a directness that helps it feel controlled, even when the steering is tuned light for everyday driving. The hybrid system masks a lot of the flat-four lumpiness at lower speeds, and cruising at 65-75 mph feels calm and composed.

The driving experience lives in a sweet spot: quiet, comfortable, and predictable. It’s not exciting, but it’s satisfying. And for a family vehicle with adventure leanings, that’s exactly what it should be.

Room for Life

Subaru knows their buyers — dogs, kids, coolers, camping gear, Costco trips, road trips. The Forester Hybrid handles all of it.

Even with the hybrid battery aboard, cargo space remains unchanged:
Plenty of room with the seats up, and over 69 cubic feet with the seats folded. The load floor is low, the opening is wide, and the whole space is shaped for real objects, not theoretical cargo cubes.

Back-seat passengers get generous headroom and legroom, and the tall windows mean everyone gets a view. Visibility all around is excellent — a trait Subarus are known for and one many competitors have abandoned in the name of aerodynamic style.

Price and the Competitive Set

Hybrid pricing starts in the mid-$30,000s and stretches just past $43,000 for the Touring Hybrid. That puts the 2025 Subaru Forester Hybrid right up against the Honda CR-V Hybrid, Toyota RAV4 Hybrid, and even the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid.

Each plays to a different strength:

• CR-V Hybrid: best seating comfort, strongest daily-driver polish.
  
• RAV4 Hybrid: best efficiency reputation, simple and robust interior.
  
• Tucson Hybrid: best tech value, boldest design.
  
• Forester Hybrid: best AWD, best visibility, genuinely useful cargo space.
  

The Forester Hybrid isn’t the class leader in tech or interior comfort, but it’s competitive where it counts: capability, usability, and long-distance efficiency.

Final Thoughts

The 2025 Subaru Forester Hybrid is a meaningful step forward for Subaru. It’s smoother, smarter, and more refined than any Forester before it. Teaming up with Toyota on the hybrid system was the right move, and Subaru managed to blend new tech with their core strengths — visibility, usability, and all-weather confidence.

Is it the Subaru I’d buy if I were buying a Subaru? I’m not sure. And is this the crossover I’d choose if I wanted a fuel-efficient, good-looking, inexpensive family hauler? Probably not. But for the right shopper — especially someone who values real AWD and everyday practicality — the Forester Hybrid is an excellent addition to the lineup.

And if you want to see how it looks and moves on the road, check out our full video review over on the TXGarage YouTube channel.Final takeaway:The Forester Hybrid proves that simple can still be satisfying — especially when Subaru gets the fundamentals right.