2023 Subaru Forester problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Visibility/Wiper (11) · Vehicle Speed Control (4) · Service Brakes (4)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Subaru Forester model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (1)
Power Train:driveline:driveshaft 2023-11-09 · campaign 23V754000 · 4,701 vehicles
Defect: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2024 Crosstrek, Impreza, 2023-2024 Forester, and 2023 WRX vehicles. The front driveshaft assemblies' outer race may develop cracks and break.
Risk: A broken driveshaft can cause a loss of drive power while driving or vehicle rollaway when the vehicle is in park without the parking brake engaged. Either of these scenarios can increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the left and right front driveshafts as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 8, 2024. Owners may contact Subaru's customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRP-23.
Service bulletins (259)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-10-05 · SubaruNet Announcement (M · Other
this announcement provides information on a new software update for the midtronics dss and dca machines.
Power Train 2026-09-28 · SubaruNet Announcement (T · Other
this announcement provides information on an enhancement of the techshare cvt diagnostic assitance application.
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-18 · 13-109-26 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this bulletin provides paint code information for 2027 model year vehicles.
Electrical System 2026-09-18 · 18-244-26 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
"this bulletin announces additional troubleshooting steps for the following dtcs: dtc c1956: rh actuator circuit dtc c1957: lh actuator circuit"
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-15 · SubaruNet Announcement (C · Other
this announcement provides an update to all 2027 model year subaru warranty coverages for wear items and adjustments.
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-14 · 15-333-25R · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this bulletin contains illustrations of exchange components and their manufacturer as well as a description of the proper exchange procedure. this is an revised version of the original bulletin.
Showing the 6 most recent of 259 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-02 · Service Brakes“transmission slipped, stranded me in the middle of a road xxx. stopped wouldn’t go. started locking down in reverse 1 month after i purchased the vehicle. xxx, my husband was backing down a road that had no turnaround. the rab locked down, slammed so hard, the car slid six feet and the motor shut down. i found out a week later that l-5 was fractur…”
2026-08-05 · Vehicle Speed Control“i am writing to formally report a critical safety defect regarding the driver-side footwell design in my 2023 subaru forester sport, which poses an immediate and severe risk of a crash. a hard plastic lower extension for the hvac air duct sits dangerously low directly above the brake and accelerator pedals. for drivers with larger or longer feet, …”
2026-07-27 · Service Brakes“eyesight collision braking system engaged as i was rolling up my driveway to go into garage. garage door was rolling up and was about 5 feet off the ground when anti collision system engaged and slammed the brakes on. i was going under 1 mph and would not have hit the door. it beeped right before brakes engaged. this is the second time it has en…”
2026-07-19 · Suspension“tires are wearing badly on the inside edge only. suspension and drive train components make noise during normal operation. …”
2026-07-10 · Forward Collision Avoidance · 15,000 mi · 💥 crash“the contact owned a 2023 subaru forester. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle independently accelerated, and the forward collision avoidance system was inoperative, causing the front center of the vehicle to crash into five other vehicles while trying to stop the vehicle. the air bags deployed as needed. no wa…”
2026-06-10 · Engine · 🔥 fire“vehicle caught fire after oil change. oil leaked from engine onto catalytic converter and causes catastrophic engine fire…”
2026-05-04 · Unknown Or Other“this 2023 windshield can easily be chipped. it has more than 10 visible chips/cracks.…”
2026-04-15 · Unknown Or Other“my vehicle has experienced repeated stalling events, including while the vehicle is in operation. the first occurrence began at approximately [mileage] and has continued intermittently despite multiple service visits. during these incidents, the vehicle unexpectedly loses power without warning. this creates a serious safety concern, particularly wh…”
2026-04-11 · Unknown Or Other“this vehicle has died 4 times in one week. when this happens, multiple lights have flashed in the dash board, including the "eye sight" warning. then, it would not restart but continued to "turn over" when the ignition button was pushed. one instance was on a busy street at a stop light, another at a busy intersection in the inner left turn lane, t…”
2026-03-27 · Lane Departure: Warning“eyesight camera randomly turns off and on while driving. has been consistent over several months pierced to be an ongoing issue that was previously recorded from 20 14–20 21 super forrester. very similar issue now with my 2023.…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.