2025 Subaru Forester Recalls, Ratings & Complaints

Incident: October 27, 2026 · Filed: October 29, 2026

The contact leased a 2025 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked in the driveway with his wife seated in the front passenger’s seat, the passenger’s air bag status indicator displayed that the air bag was off. The vehicle was taken to a local Subaru dealer for inspection. Initially, the dealer stated that the passenger did not meet the required weight threshold and that the Occupant Classification System (OCS) did not recognize the passenger in the seat. After performing diagnostic testing, the dealer determined that the OCS needed to be recalibrated. The contact stated that Subaru Advocacy stated that the passenger’s seat met the weight specifications. When the contact and a dealer representative sat in the seat, the light worked as designed due to meeting the weight requirements. The contact was concerned that the passenger air bag may not deploy as intended in a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the front passenger. There was no indication of an issue during the inspection at the time of leasing. The failure mileage was approximately 7,000.

Incident: September 4, 2026 · Filed: October 23, 2026

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.

Incident: October 9, 2026 · Filed: October 16, 2026

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 no warning indicators going off, either visual or audio. the vehicle's condition was observed by a XXX Police Officer at the scene, and an accident report (XXX) was filed, to be available sometime next week. I contacted my insurance company, State Farm, about 8 PM, after having been directed by an officer to pull around the corner to a side road. they issued a claim # XXX and told me to have the car towed to their approved body shop Bucci's Auto Body in [XXX]. [XXX], the principal at Bucci's inspected the car the following morning and provided an estimate for repairs which State Farm accepted and I authorized to begin. He has not touched any of the electronic data system modules, nor disconnected the battery, and has been instructed in writing not to, so that the forensic evidence can be retrieved. Therefore, there is no information available yet on the mechanical or systems causes of the crash, but it is being preserved for future retrieval and analysis. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Incident: October 7, 2026 · Filed: October 8, 2026

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 problem did not resolve. After parking and shutting the engine and then restarting after a hiatus of not driving, the problem resolved. The EyeSight system failure created a risk due to loss of pre-collision braking and throttle management, lane keep assist and adaptive cruise control. No incident occurred. I am scheduling a visit to Subaru dealer on October 13, 2026.

Incident: August 24, 2026 · Filed: October 5, 2026

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 been two occasions now where the seatbelt has come undone after I know it was properly latched, causing my grandsons booster to not be restrained while I was driving. I scheduled an appointment with AutoNation Subaru in Carlsbad CA on 30 September to see if the seatbelt clips could be extended for better access. When I showed up for the appointment, I was told there was nothing they could do to correct the issue. I looked online and discovered this is a common problem with this vehicle and others are complaining about similar issues such as the clip not fastening, the clip being difficult to access and an alarm sound/not sounding. As far as I could find, there are no recalls for this issue. I feel this is a significant safety issue. I'm not sure if it is the difficulty in accessing the clip, or faulty clips, but if these can't be relied upon to be stable during routine driving, I am terrified as to what might happen in a collision. This is the first time I have ever purchased a Subaru, and I did so because of their reputation for safety. I am now second guessing my choice. Could you please look into this for me and the other owners. Thank you

Incident: September 19, 2026 · Filed: September 28, 2026

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 to overtake a vehicle, the engine made an abnormal sound; the vehicle started shaking violently and pulling from side to side and made abnormally loud and rumbling sounds. The driver pulled over to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was test driven, and the failure was duplicated. The vehicle was diagnosed with engine failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure by phone and by email. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.

Incident: September 18, 2026 · Filed: September 25, 2026

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 steering wheel) and the breaks were triggered by the system thereby completely stopping the car. (phantom breaking). Fortunately, the road ahead was clear (there was nothing on the road, and the weather was perfectly clear) and I was going slow and wearing a seatbelt. Of course my safety was put at risk because (a) I was jerked in my seat and (b) I could easily have been rear-ended or hit broadside by oncoming traffic to my right. In the case of both a rear-end collision or being hit broadside, another driver or passenger could have been injured. I brought the car to the dealer at my earliest opportunity. The tech didn't see whatever code he was looking for and therefore could not reset the system. I am concerned about continued driving of this car and understand this is not an entirely uncommon event for the 2025 Subaru Forester. Although the system could not be reset, I feel it's important to report this incident to the NHTSA for inclusion in your data base. Thank you

Incident: September 14, 2026 · Filed: September 14, 2026

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 appointment to recalibrate and teach me how to turn off. Have not confirmed yet with dealer or had inspection yet, as it only happened today 9/14/26 around 12pm-1pm. Unknown for availability for inspection upon request. Has happened in past for smaller turns on backroads around home but never this bad.

Incident: December 14, 2024 · Filed: September 14, 2026

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 aware of the issue and considers it acceptable. Compared to other manufacturers, it is far from acceptable or safe. Since the manufacturer is clearly aware of the issue without intending to fix the issue, I am bringing this to your attention and hope you can do something to help. Now that the HVAC and entertainment comtrols are integrated into the vehicle and aftermarket is no longer an alternative, the consumer is dependent upon the manufacturer to provide and fix a bad/faulty product. The more I have to take my eyes off the road. The greater the risk for an accident.

Incident: August 25, 2026 · Filed: September 10, 2026

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 neck, both my front driver and passenger side windows screech and vibrate heavily whenever they get wet from rain or a car wash. The glass binds up in the wet run channels, which is putting unnecessary strain on the window regulators and motors and makes it difficult to see out of my windows and view my side mirrors properly. Dealership admitted that there are four other vehicles I have within the same make, model,year and similar mileage that have the exact same issue which is a need for there to be a safety recall. They got a bad batch of vehicles with a defect that is affected multiple other vehicles that are like mine.