2016 Subaru Forester Problems

409 owner complaints filed with the United States safety regulator · top issue: Air Bags · verdict AVOID 26/100

Source NHTSA public complaint and recall record · methodology

What breaks, by owner reports

Air Bags97
Electrical System93
Unknown Or Other69
Engine60
Power Train49
Vehicle Speed Control37

In the owners’ words

“When I drove the car, All most all light on the dashboard are on onthe road, and when I stop and tried to go, the car is somewhat not controled. I immidieatly went to dealership and dignosed P2764 CVT balve problem. And they add wheel bearing is problem. Subaru noticed these problems but my 88,278 mile 2016 forester has all the lights on and it was very scared and it took 4400 dollars for fixing.”NHTSA complaint, 2016 Subaru Forester owner
“SRS airbag error warning appears randomly when driving. It turns off passenger side airbags with a passenger in the seat and makes it unsafe to drive. Narrowing it down to the wiring harness seems to be an issue with a loose connection in the airbag seat sensor. Unplugging and re-plugging plus restarting the car seems to fix it at least temporarily. Others have posted about this issue online as well. No liquid has be”NHTSA complaint, 2016 Subaru Forester owner
“Problem: Recall for passenger side airbag malfunction in heated seats for my model year. Manufacturer has said they addressed the recall but they have not. My car and thousands of others are unsafe for passengers to ride in because the airbag system does not work. Warning light is the airbag symbol and message that alerts driver that SRS system is not working. Manufacturer and dealers want to charge 200 to look probl”NHTSA complaint, 2016 Subaru Forester owner

Recall campaigns

ReportedComponentSummary
28/02/2019Exterior Lighting:Brake Lights:Switch SAFETYSubaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2014-2016 Forester, 2008-2016 Impreza sedans, 2012-2016 Impreza station wagons, 2008-2014 WRX sedans (including STI), and 2013-2017 Crosstrek vehicles. Exposure to c
03/10/2019Air Bags:Sensor:Occupant Classification SAFETYSubaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Forester vehicles equipped with heated seats. An electrical connection in the front passenger seat for the Occupant Detection System (ODS) may loosen.
21/03/2016Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine:Gasoline:Turbo/SuperchargerSubaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 WRX vehicles manufactured April 10, 2015, to October 21, 2015, and Forester 2.0XT vehicles manufactured April 10, 2015, to October 20, 2015. The

Questions owners ask

Is the 2016 Subaru Forester reliable?

On the federal record it scores 26/100: 409 owner complaints (40.9 per year on the road) and 3 recall campaigns, 2 touching safety-critical systems.

What is the most common problem with the 2016 Subaru Forester?

The most-reported component in NHTSA complaints is Air Bags, with 97 of 405 categorised reports.

Share this verdict

The 2016 Subaru Forester scored 26/100 on the federal record.

Full 2016 data pagecosts, verdict, every numberAll Forester yearswhich year to avoid Most complained-about carsthe national ranking