Audi A4 Allroad Wagon

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ubaru Outback people aren’t like typical SUV owners. Thy buy Outbacks to use for off-road adventures. Overlanding (off-road camping) is a trend that Outbacks drivers love hauling lots of gear to fairly remote destinations for extended stays. To help them make those trips easier, a growing number of Outback owners have been modifying these wagons with lifted suspensions and more aggressive tires. Well, Subaru decided it should offer a more off-road capable package - right from the factory. Meet the new 2022 Subaru Outback Wilderness.

The Outback has improved off-road suspension performance. Subaru raised the suspension by 0.8-inch front and rear by replacing the springs and dampers with taller units. The new setup slightly increased the suspension stroke, too. The taller stance is enhanced with more aggressive Yokohama Geolandar A/T 225/65 R17 tires. However, because the Wilderness uses 17-inch wheels instead of 18-inch wheels, those raised white letter sidewalls of the new Yokohamas are taller, helping to provide better compliance and traction for off-pavement fun. Those small modifications provide the Wilderness with an impressive 9.5-inches of ground clearance.

Like the more expensive Outback XT models, the Wilderness comes standard with a strong 260-horsepower turbocharged flat-4 engine with 277 lb-ft of torque. And that mates to the company’s continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) with 8 “speed” manual-shift capability. Subaru improved the vehicle’s gearing by altering those ratios to deliver improved low-speed control. The final drive ratio has been improved from 4.11:1 to 4.44:1. The new gearing helps the Wilderness climb a 40 percent grade on a gravel surface. The Outback’s programming has dual function X-Mode system but with the same snow/dirt and deep snow/mud settings. X-Mode, when engaged, will bias more of the all-wheel-drive system’s torque to the rear axle. It also changes throttle mapping and automatically engages hill descent control. TheX-Mode makes the traction control respond more quickly. The Wilderness has fresh calibrations, and Subaru has removed the speed limiter on X-Mode’s most aggressive settings.

The Wilderness has a more rugged style on the outside thanks to hex-style foglamps, blacked-out trim, fender flares, a black stripe down the hood (Subaru says to reduce glare), and a new grille. The most important parts of the design enhancements are the new bumper end caps explicitly sculpted to improve off-road clearance. The new suspension by itself raises the breakover angle from 19.4 to 21.2 degrees. Those are numbers that let the Outback explore a little further than before but not enough clearance to follow a Jeep Wrangler (or a 4Runner, for that matter) on a rugged 4WD trail without potentially rubbing some plastic. The Wilderness comes with a hefty skidplate up front, so there is some protection.

Those copper accents you see around the car indicate “use points,” according to Subaru. That means recovery tow points on the bumpers and attachment points on the roof rack. And speaking of that roof rack, it’s an all-new design fixed ladder-type design with a static load carrying capability of 700 lbs. Why is static load significant? Subaru owners love to camp, and those trendy rooftop tents are heavy. This new load rating ensures you can park for the night and sleep up in a rooftop tent without overloading the rack. The Wilderness carries the copper theme inside, highlighting the steering wheel and shifter with a specific copper-colored trim. The interior is ruggedized with heavy-duty floor mats, aluminum pedals, and all seating surfaces are Subaru’s breathable, cleanable and water-repellent StarTex material. The Wilderness comes standard. Options are few and include a sunroof and a hands-free power tailgate and moonroof. Subaru is known for its safety performance. The team we spoke with said they expect this model to have the same safety rating as other Outback models, namely the highest Top Safety Pick + award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the top 5-star rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)