10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 5 / 0
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 1 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 18,523 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
Since purchasing this vehicle in October, 2016, I have purchased two new batteries. It continues to die with no apparent reason. Even with a new battery that was installed this past spring, it died again on July 5th. Yes, it is available for inspection. Nobody was at risk. The mechanic who works on my car checked the battery before he replaced it a second time. He said there was nothing wrong with it; then, when he changed the oil and did some routine maintenance, it died. He replaced it a second time. This was in the spring. There were no warnings. I need to reset the automatic window feature each time this happens. I do not understand why the battery continues to be a problem. I have had to get it jumped multiple times, both in my garage as well as the parking lot at work.
- Eastlake, OH, USA
Windshield cracked straight across. Looking to see if this is part of the class action lawsuit. We have replaced the windshield
- Festus, MO, USA
I was driving down the street and the whole car shut off without warning. It was the scariest thing ever. I had to pull over the side of the road with cars driving past me. I felt like I had no control of the car.
- Pittsburgh, PA, USA
I bought a certified pre-owned 2017 Subaru Forester on June 19 2020. I have had an intermittent safety issue with the vehicle not responding correctly when I try to accelerate since. When I press the gas pedal the car will begin to accelerate with my rpms rising normally. Then my rpms will start to drop when they would normally rise and my car stops or maintains the acceleration prior. Once they have dropped they will stay there for a little and then will shoot up suddenly and red line. I have tried a variety of things to prevent this from happening; I have taken my foot off the gas, kept the same or more pressure on the gas, and breaking. Regardless of what I do the vehicle red lines and my speed will either drop or stay the same. I have taken the vehicle to Subaru dealerships on 3 separate occasions and it was returned to me without diagnosing or repairing the problem. The last time I drove my vehicle it did this again and the rpms red lining causing my engine to fail. I was accelerated from a stop at a street light and the vehicle stopped accelerating even though I was pressing the accelerator. The rpms redlined and my engine began making a terrible noise that we later discovered was from unrepairable engine damage. The vehicle has now been at the dealership for over a month to replace my engine and try to fix this issue. Every week they tell me I will get it back the next week and then something else fails or causes a set back. I bought a Subaru Forester because of advertisements about how "safe" and 'reliable' they are supposed to be. Instead I have had near misses when merging onto the interstate or turning across traffic in a busy denver intersection because the vehicle doesn't respond as expected. The dealership has ignored my concerns by either saying "that just happens with Foresters sometimes" or "we can't fix it unless we can replicate it.'
- White Rock, NM, USA
Driving on the highway and the driver side window which is rolled up completely shattered. There are no cracks no indentation that the glass would have broken at time of the incident. The only issue leading up to this the window would not roll up all the way at times. Which is why I personally never rolled the window down once I knew that was an issue
- Clarksburg, MD, USA
I had to get my catalytic converter replaced after discovering an exhaust leak. The shop that performed my work said he has seen numerous Subaru Foresters with the same exact problem. The vehicle has not sustained any damage or been in any accidents that might warrant this issue to have occurred.
- Hopwood, PA, USA
Key gets stuck in ignition when parked. Must constantly move shifter back and forth and slam into park. Subaru service bulletin 16-112-18R. Seems to be a popular problem as per forum. Constant problem at this time
- Warwick, NY, USA
Forester windshield started cracking for no clear reason, spread quickly to a 20" or longer crack that continues to spread.
- Austin, TX, USA
Windshield cracked with no cause while parked at work
- Portland, OR, USA
When you shut the engine off you can't take the keys out off the ignition.
- Southaven, MS, USA
Periodically unable to remove key from the ignition. Has been happening more frequently over the past 2 months. Key is "locked" in ignition, unable to completely "turn off" key switch and therefore unable to remove the key. Only resolution has been to turn the vehicle back on and shift the gears and reattempt to turn car off and remove key. This is also, likely, affecting being able to use the remote start for my vehicle.
- Geneva, OH, USA
Windshield crack
- Grand Rapids, MI, USA
The windshield seems to be chipping in multiple places and I fear it might crack while I am on the road
- Columbia, MD, USA
My car windshield is cracked
- Orlando, FL, USA
Car check engine light went on while driving. Safety features advertised with the Subaru Forester such as blind spot detection, cruise control, forward accident avoidance all stopped working. Once the code was cleared from the car, these safety features returned. The check engine light was caused by failure to secure gas cap tightly. I believe that safety features should not be disabled with check engine light going onb.
- New York, NY, USA
I had a cracked windshield after only having the car for less than a month. The dealership would cover this at the time. The windshield just cracked again for no apparent reason and I believe the car was stationary as it start out as a small crack and has grown to across the windshield..
- Columbus, OH, USA
Have a 2017 Forester. At least a couple times a week, the key get stuck in the ignition. You can turn the car off, but you can't remove the key. If I start the car back up, and shift it into drive, and them slam it back into park, then I can turn the car off and remove the key.
- Lincoln, RI, USA
Original owner of 2017 Subaru Forester with eyesight. Driving on open road in clear weather. Noticed a small line above registration sticker that looked like a blade of grass. Stopped at our destination and noticed a crack that tripled in length in the 30 minutes it sat parked across the left lower section of the windshield. It proceeded to spread over the next day. Have never had a chip or impact to this windshield previously, but if there was any object that hit the car it was incredibly small as the crack is entirely in the driver's eyeline and I did not see or hear anything.
- Dallas, TX, USA
After parking and turning off the engine, the key can't be removed from the ignition. The key will only move to the accessory position and no further. Eventually by restarting the engine, driving back and forth and sometimes turning the wheels a little I've been able to remove the key from the ignition. I brought my car in to a Subaru service center and left it there for it to be checked tomorrow.
- Bellerose, NY, USA
- South Bend , IN, USA