2024 Subaru Outback Wilderness is ‘definitely coming’ to Aus

It’s definitely coming” Blair Read, managing director of Subaru Australia, responded when Wheels asked about the off-road focused Subaru Outback Wilderness. With right-hand drive Subaru Outback turbo supply now available from Japan (it was previously USA only) it’s a matter of when, not if, the Wilderness trim level is introduced locally as “timeframes are still in flux”.

“There's a huge, huge desire for Wilderness in both [Outback and Forester] and the only reason to caution on the timeframe is that there are some factors at play. I'm not too fussed on which one goes first, we just want to get them both here.”

One of the factors Blair is referring to is update timings. We'd expect the introduction of the Wilderness trim to be ushered in with the Outback's facelift – that's due in Australia early next year, ahead of the sixth-gen Forester.

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Pre facelift Wilderness pictured

“We have a couple of different options”, said Read, “and there are some things that we've had to prioritise when it comes to available production. Like, for this year with the demand we've had for Outback and turbo Outback, adding another variant didn't make sense when we had an eight-month waitlist on that car."

Read confirmed that the newly-introduced Outback turbo accounts for 35-40 per cent of the 7025 high-riding wagons sold this year, and adding pressure to an already stretched supply chain is not ideal.

With the sixth-generation Subaru Forester due for launch next year, though, it’s likely that the Outback Wilderness is likely to beat the medium SUV to market.

What makes the Outback Wilderness special?

Lifted by 28mm thanks to different, taller springs and heavy-duty dampers, the Outback Wilderness boasts an improved 20º approach angle and 241mm ground clearance. Matte black cladding, underbody protection.

A set of 17-inch matte black alloy wheels wrapped in 65-series Yokohama Geloander all-terrain tyres complete the exterior changes. Inside there are plenty of active-lifestyle-friendly waterproof materials and contrast piping on the interior fabrics.

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The same 2.4-litre turbo-petrol flat-four sits at the Outback's heart producing 194kW/374Nm, though its CVT automatic has a different 4.44:1 final drive ratio for enhanced low-speed off-road ability. Symmetrical all-wheel drive is standard, naturally.

Pricing for the Wilderness is likely to exceed the $55,990 (before on-road costs) of the top-spec XT Touring when it reaches Australia.

With Australia now boasting the best Subaru market share of any country, the door is open for further niche special editions from Subaru so don’t expect the Outback Wilderness to be the last.