The Subaru Forester has been named the 2025-2026 Japan Car of the Year (JCOTY), beating out favorites such as the Honda Prelude and the Toyota Crown Estate.
The Forester won JCOTY jurors with its driving performance, practicality, comfort, off-road capability, and safety. The deciding factor, undoubtedly, is the introduction of the Subaru S:HEV (Strong Hybrid Electric Vehicle system).
This is the fourth time Subaru has won the Japan Car of the Year, the last being the Levorg in 2020. In addition, the Forester has been selling well in Japan, exceeding 30,000 units since its launch.
The very same Forester is the one available in the Philippines. It rides on an enhanced version of the Subaru Global Platform. For this generation, it’s been toughened with a full inner frame construction and wider use of structural adhesives.
The electrified 2.5-liter horizontally-opposed 4-cylinder engine offers a peak output of 197 horsepower—the highest since the turbocharged Forester XT. Yet, it can also go up to 1,000 kilometers on a single tank of gas. This is all done with no compromises to its all-wheel drive system which maintains a traditional transfer case.
Here’s how the voting stacked up:
- Subaru Forester – 1149 points
- Honda Prelude – 1076 points
- Toyota Crown Estate – 654 points
- Nissan Leaf – 622 points
- Volkswagen ID.Buzz – 578 points
- Hyundai Inster – 477 points
- BMW 2 Series Grand Coupe – 416 points
- Peugeot 3008 – 393 points
- Suzuki eVitara – 357 points
- Daihatsu Move – 338 points
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