The next-generation hybrid system to be used in the Subaru Forester and Crosstrek will likely offer a step up in horsepower when it reaches the U.S. in these models.

Subaru confirmed the Forester Hybrid at the 2023 Los Angeles auto show. Due to arrive at U.S. dealerships late next year as a 2026 model, it’s already been spotted testing.

This will be the first time Subaru has offered a hybrid version of the Forester in the U.S., but it previously sold a Crosstrek Hybrid here, with a plug-in hybrid powertrain based on components sourced from Toyota. The plug-in hybrid Crosstrek was discontinued after the 2023 model year. A report earlier this year indicated a new Crosstrek Hybrid was also U.S.-bound, with the same powertrain as the Forester Hybrid. 

A new Crosstrek Hybrid has already launched in Japan with a powertrain dubbed “Strong Hybrid” by Subaru. It was again developed in partnership with Toyota, which supplied an electric motor and 1.1-kwh battery pack to couple with Subaru’s 2.5-liter flat-4 engine and all-wheel-drive system. It’s increasingly likely that this next hybrid won’t have a charge port.

2025 Subaru Crosstrek

Subaru has said it expects 20% lower fuel consumption from this system, which extracts 158 hp from the gasoline engine and 88 hp from the electric motor. The current U.S.-market Crosstrek comes standard with a 2.0-liter flat-4 making 152 hp, with an optional 2.5-liter flat-4 pushing output to 182 hp. The Forester is sold only with the larger engine, but Subaru lists output as 180 hp.

The partnership between Subaru and Toyota also extends to all-electric models. The Subaru Solterra and Toyota bZ4X SUVs are the only EVs currently sold by their respective brands in the U.S. A second jointly developed electric SUV will reportedly launch in 2026, one of four EVs Subaru has said it will introduce by the end of 2028. The automaker also hopes for 50% EV sales by 2030.