One problem related to gas recirculation valve (egr valve) has been reported for the 1998 Subaru Forester. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
1. Engine failure due to a manufacturer's defect -- the cylinder walls are being bored into to place the engine bolts on the Subaru 2. 5l engines. In this case the cylinder wall cracked through the entire section where it was substantially bored into on the number 1 cylinder causing the engine to fail completely. Each of the 4 cylinder walls on my vehicle were bored into to some degree. I have a 1998 Subaru Forester l. With 72,000 miles. There was never an indication of a problem prior to engine failure. At the time of failure a blown head gasket was thought to be the problem. . Read more...