10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
18 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
7 / 0
Average Mileage:
21,224 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2017 Subaru Forester engine problems

engine problem

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2017 Subaru Forester Owner Comments (Page 2 of 2)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #13

Oct 102019

Forester

  • 46,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While on driving 65mph on the highway during the evening rush hour and suddenly my accelerator was unresponsive in that the rpms just revved (as if the transmission was shifted to neutral). I have two small, children 2 year old and 6 months, and had to quickly coast over to the shoulder and was able to exit the highway. The vehicle shut off while exiting the ramp and I had to call 911 and request an emergency vehicle to park behind me for my safety as I was unable to pull completely over before the vehicle stopped. I attempted to restart the vehicle but was unsuccessful. I had the vehicle towed and am still researching how to repair. I had a 3 year 36K mile warranty that has recently expired since I'm currently at 46K miles. This is a serious concern as I'm finding that my model has not been included in any transmission recalls. For a car manufacturer that prides itself in the highest of safety, this has to be the unsafest I've ever felt driving a vehicle. I'm basically at a loss on what to do at this point because I am confident that the dealership is going to rack up a bill for repair and diagnostics to repair my issue and I'm going to responsible for the outrageous cost of their guessing game of repairs.

- Saint Louis, MO, USA

problem #12

Sep 142019

Forester 4-cyl

  • miles
2017 Subaru Forester. Consumer writes in regards to unintended acceleration. The consumer stated while attempting to park the vehicle, it accelerated in reverse. The vehicle drove over a curb and crashed into a tree. The brakes were inoperable. The key was removed from the ignition in order to bring the vehicle to a stop. The airbag did not deploy.

- Wantagh, NY, USA

problem #11

Apr 042019

Forester

  • 23,825 miles
I am writing in regard to fbi alert number 1-031716-psa. My husband and I believe that our 2017 Subaru Forester is being remotely exploited. Sep. 29, 2018 we purchased our Forester from tucson Subaru (4901 N. oracle road tucson, AZ 85704). Oct. 3, 2018 we took car to tucson Subaru because car was braking when the brakes were not applied, and there was a diagnostic code in the power-train system. Dealer kept car and returned it to us Oct. 4, 2018 stating that they could not duplicate the problem. The brake problem increased after receivng our car back. The following anomalous vehicle behavior began to occur, intermittently and now daily. 1)car accelerates on its own and when brake is lightly pressed. 2) when turning, car stops momentarily and at other times accelerates into the turn from the rear wheels causing the car to almost fishtail. 3)car self accelerates from the rear like it's being pushed. 4)car brakes when no brakes are applied, and when gas pedal is lightly pressed. 5)speed does not register correctly on speedometer when car self accelerates and self brakes. 6)wheels lose traction at random times making it like driving a boat on water. It feels like all manual controls disengage. 7)during anomalies, something in car causes difficulty in concentration to near passing out. Exiting car decreases symptoms. 8)something at front floor in car causes feet to heat up, vibrate, go numb, swell, and form small blood clots beneath the skin surface making it difficult to hold on the brake or gas. 9)the anomalies occur when a car tails us or stays a specific distance behind our car. All anomalies have occurred when there are other cars in the vicinity of our car, during city and highway driving (cruise control is off). Nov. 17, 2018 and Apr. 23, 2019, we took the car to tucson Subaru. Dealership stated that they could not duplicate these anomalies.

- Tucson, AZ, USA

problem #10

Jan 292019

Forester

  • 20,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owned a 2017 Subaru Forester. While parking the vehicle, it accelerated forward on its own. The contact engaged the parking brake, but the vehicle finally stopped after crashing into another vehicle. The air bags deployed. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was destroyed and towed away. The contact was injured and taken to the hospital for medical attention. A police report was filed. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The cause of the failure was not determined. The dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 20,000. The VIN was unknown.

- Guilford, CT, USA

problem #9

Sep 242018

Forester

  • 11,000 miles
The contact owns a 2017 Subaru Forester. While driving 5 mph, the brake pedal was depressed and the vehicle accelerated independently without warning. As a result, the vehicle crashed into a cement divider. The vehicle then lunged forward and crashed into a tree three times and a parked vehicle. The contact sustained head injuries that did not require medical attention. It was unknown if a police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow lot and later towed to mckenna Subaru (located at 1880 beach blvd, huntington beach, ca 92648, (888) 685-1421). The dealer was unable to locate a failure code. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided case number: SR1-36575883866. The approximate failure mileage was 11,000.

- Coto De Caza, CA, USA

problem #8

Sep 242018

Forester

  • 11,000 miles
Accident 9/24/2017, 2017 Subaru Forester, 11,000. Miles. Driving slowly in a shopping parking lot, on a dry sunny morning, around 10 am, after pushing on the brakes my car accelerated. My car ran on it's own when turned off, then I put it in park, it lunged over a cement planter, on off and put in park, it hit a tree a few times before it stopped itself. There was bumper damage. Geico my insurer advised me to take it to prestige auto, in mission viejo, ca the brakes and cause of car acceleration was not worked on, the insurance company acted unethically, they didn't care if I got into another accident, they withheld information and urged me to take the car. I had it towed to the dealership I bought it from, they checked and would not take responsibility, I contacted Subaru of America, and I am waiting on them to inspect the manufacturer defect.

- Coto De Caza, CA, USA

problem #7

Sep 292018

Forester

  • 33,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

On 9/29/18, 1:35 pm while in the process of parking the vehicle and initiating a turn to the right the car suddenly accelerated from idle to full throttle unintentionally and launched itself towards a 12' X 20' wood framed outbuilding on our property which has an attached deck. Before the vehicle could be shut off it had jumped up onto the deck and smashed into and partially penetrated the front of the outbuilding. Forward progress was halted when the rear portion of the car had become high centered on the edge of the deck. Presently the car is still on the deck and partially in the building. The right rear wheel is I" off the ground. The left rear wheel dug itself 3" down into the gravel. - no one was injured during this accident. The car was occupied by only the driver. - the airbag did not deploy even though the car experienced two (2) significant impact events. 1st when it hit a temporary wood step and the edge of the deck (18" above grade) and 2nd when it struck the building. Most of the bumper was torn off the car when it hit the deck and is now pinned under the car. The impact shifted the building approx. 3/8" on it's post & pier foundation. - this report was written & submitted on 10/1/18. - a wrecker is scheduled to extricate the car from the outbuilding on 10/2/18. - the driveway and parking area where this occurred is crushed rock/gravel. - the distance from where the car instantly accelerated to the edge of the deck was approximately 22 feet. The face of the outbuilding is 8 feet from the edge of the deck. The distance covered by the car during this accident was approx. 30 plus feet. - during this event an attempt was made to control/stop the car with extreme application of the foot brake and handbrake and ultimately the stop button. - it was a dry, sunny, early fall day in the West side of the cascade mountains in Washington state.

- Seattle, WA, USA

problem #6

May 312018

Forester

  • 30,000 miles
The contact owns a 2017 Subaru Forester. While driving 5 mph, the vehicle inadvertently accelerated rapidly after the brake pedal was depressed. As a result, the vehicle was involved in a crash and struck two vehicles. The air bags did not deploy. A police report was not filed. There were no injuries sustained. Planet Subaru in hanover, Massachusetts was made aware of the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was 30,000.

- Marshfield, MA, USA

problem #5

May 252018

Forester

  • 10,322 miles
Extreme hesitation from standing stop going straight ahead and turning. At 5 separate instances the car came to a complete rolling stop with no acceleration. After 5 to 7 seconds the car finally accelerated. When turning with plenty of room, for them, oncoming cars blared their horns, missing me by a few feet. Someone is shurely headed for a hospital or funeral home on this problem. Both NHTSA and Subaru have been warned numerous times with no result for recall, repair or replacement. Dealers are saying they can't find a problem. This problem has been ongoing for years now. Maybe everyone's first stop should be at your state attorney generals office if we don't get results from either of you soon.

- Amherst, NY, USA

problem #4

Feb 202018

Forester

  • 10,000 miles
After backing up, I removed my foot from the brake, put the car in drive and lightly touched the accelerator (I was in a small parking lot). The accelerator left my foot and fully depressed by itself which caused an accident.

- Lilburn, GA, USA

problem #3

Mar 292018

Forester 4-cyl

  • 20,120 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owned a 2017 Subaru Forester. While attempting to pull the vehicle into a parking space, it suddenly experienced unintended acceleration. The driver lost control and crashed into a parked vehicle. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to an undisclosed location. A police report was filed. The driver sustained injuries to the left wrist, which required medical attention. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 20,120.

- Dana Point, CA, USA

problem #2

Feb 202018

Forester

  • miles
After backing up in a gas station, I put the car in drive and lightly put my foot on the gas petal with the intention of merging onto a highway. I felt the gas petal go all the way down all by itself - the car took off! I hit a landscape box truck.

- Lilburn, GA, USA

problem #1

Jan 162017

Forester

  • 800 miles
My 2017 Subaru Forester has a 6-speed manual transmission. Whenever I attempt to slow the vehicle by downshifting, the vehicle will often continue to accelerate. This unwanted acceleration is most noticeable when driving down a grade, however it also frequently happens on flat ground. For example, if I am going 35 mph in 4th gear and am anticipating a stop light ahead, I would typically release my right foot from the accelerator pedal and downshift to 3rd gear, then 2nd gear while lightly braking to decelerate the vehicle. Instead, downshifting has minimal affect on the speed of the vehicle, while downshifting merely increases engine RPM, not assist in braking the vehicle. There have been scenarios when the speed of the vehicle has actually increased on flat ground (without driver acceleration input) despite downshifting. This particular scenario happened once on icy roads and caused me to almost lose control of the vehicle. As a frame of reference, I have driven a manual transmission as a primary vehicle for all of my driving life (nearly 22 years). I have never previously experienced a manual transmission that accelerates without driver input on flat ground. It seems that this issue of unwanted acceleration could eventually lead to an accident that would have otherwise been avoided. Thanks.

- Missoula, MT, USA

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