2025 Subaru Forester problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Visibility/Wiper (13) · Fuel/Propulsion System (8) · Exterior Lighting (6)
🧭 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 (3)
Equipment:other:labels 2026-07-07 · campaign 26V436000 · 541,237 vehicles
Defect: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2026 Crosstrek Hybrid, 2025-2026 Forester Hybrid, Forester, and 2019-2026 Ascent vehicles. These vehicles were manufactured with an incorrect Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR) on the certification label. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 110, "Tire selection and rims."
Risk: An incorrect GAWR label may lead to an overloaded vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Subaru will mail a new certification label to owners, free of charge. Owners may also choose to have a dealer install the new label, free of charge. Letters informing owners of the safety risk were mailed August 27, 2026. Additional letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRH-26.
Child Seat 2025-06-19 · campaign 25V419000 · 2,938 vehicles
Defect: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2025 Forester vehicles. The child seat anchor bolts may have been improperly tightened, allowing the bolts to come loose.
Risk: A loose child seat anchor bolt increases the risk of injury to a child during a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the child seat anchor bolts and, if necessary, tighten the bolts, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed August 15, 2025. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRC-25.
Wheels 2025-01-23 · campaign 25V033000 · 20,366 vehicles
Defect: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2025 Forester vehicles equipped with 18" aluminum alloy wheels. The wheels may have been manufactured with an incorrectly specified lug seat surface, which can result in the wheel being improperly attached and cause a loss of vehicle stability.
Risk: A loss of vehicle stability increases the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the wheels, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 28, 2025. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRB-25.
Service bulletins (188)
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.
Structure:body 2026-09-29 · 12-259-26 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this bulletin announces the repair procedures to be followed when encountering cases of excessive gap reported between the left and right rear d-pillar and headliner.
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.
Showing the 6 most recent of 188 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-23 · Steering · 💥 crash“there have been intermittent failures of numerous vehicle systems over the last 4 months. some of these systems have impacted the cars safety systems including but not limited to steering, braking, collision avoidance, inability to enter vehicle in an unfamiliar location and stranding owner hundreds of miles from home.…”
2026-10-16 · Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking · 💥 crash“my car came to a sudden and immediate stop, causing the car behind me to collide with my rear end. in researching this, i have discovered that my car make and model are subject to a class action suit for what is called "phantom braking." i was not injured but the driver of the other car claimed that his son in the back seat was injured. there were …”
2026-10-08 · Lane Departure: Warning“on october 7, 2026 at approximately 7:40 pm, the eyesight system inexplicably stopped working with a warning light notification. prior to the eyesight failure, the touchscreen froze completely with subsequent inability to control the climate and other control options. after pulling over and stopping the engine and then restarting several times, the…”
2026-10-05 · Seat Belts“i never ride in the back seat and very infrequently have back seat passengers. however, every time i do they all complain about how difficult it is to "buckle up", i never thought much about it until i started visiting my grandkids and would have to buckle them; it is very difficult to access the clip. that in itself is bad enough, but there have b…”
2026-09-28 · Engine · 15,000 mi“the contact owns a 2025 subaru forester. the contact stated that while her husband was driving on a road trip at interstate speed with the contact and her daughter inside the vehicle, the vehicle started shaking violently from side to side. the driver pulled over to the side of the road momentarily. the driver resumed driving, and upon accelerating…”
2026-09-25 · Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking“i had made a right turn onto an avenue, then crossed another main avenue that breaks up the first avenue, and attempted to continue onto the original avenue. suddenly, before i could continue to drive down the avenue and complete the maneuver, the pre-collision breaking system activated (i could see the wording in red on the screen above the steer…”
2026-09-14 · Unknown Or Other“the radio/hvac system in the 2025 subaru forester has a major delay problem which causes the unit to freeze and not accept user input, delay connectivity, and hvac conteol, and volume comtrol/on/off, etc. this can take up to 90 seconds to work and if already driving, causes unnecessary fiddling which is a safety concern. the manufacturer is awar…”
2026-09-14 · Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking“driving in middle lane on i-87 heading towards albany (around it), car alarmed (flashed a red box on dashboard) and then the aeb braked for shadows in front and caused cars to swerve behind us with semi trucks getting too close. could not get the car to stop breaking and other drivers were very upset at us. will be taking to subaru for next appoint…”
2026-09-10 · Fuel/Propulsion System“i recently noticed that the metal lip and outer cap area of my fuel filler neck is rusting. this isn't just a cosmetic issue this is the exact surface where the gas cap needs to seal to keep the fuel system airtight. because it’s rusting it’s going to ruin that seal, cause fuel vapor leaks, and trigger a check engine light. in addition to the fuel…”
2026-08-18 · Structure:body“sunroof cracked completely on its own while vehicle was parked. no surface impact, chip, marking or exterior imperfection in the glass was present. there were small air bubbles in the pane mould around the corner where the crack appeared and spread across the pane. dealership replaced it under factory warranty after subaru of america approved th…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.