239 problems have been reported for the 2003 Subaru Forester. The following chart shows the 21 most common problems for 2003 Subaru Forester. The number one most common problem is related to the vehicle's fuel system, other with 32 problems. The second most common problem is related to the vehicle's engine and engine cooling (30 problems).
In our research we use the PPMY index to compare the reliability of vehicles. The PPMY index of a certain model is defined as the problems reported per thousand vehicles per Year. The total sales of the 2003 Subaru Forester in the United States are 66,770 units [1]. If the total number of problems reported by Subaru Forester owners in the last 22 years is 239, and the age of the vehicle is 22, the PPMY index can then be calculated as
PPMY Index = 239 / 66,770 / 22 * 1000 = 0.16.
For more information, refer to this page: A study of reliability comparison across Subaru Forester model year vehicles.
The following chart shows the number of problems reported during each of the service years since the debut of the 2003 Subaru Forester in 2003.
| Service Year | Number of Problems |
|---|---|
| 2025 | |
| 2024 | |
| 2023 | |
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| 2003 |
When making the decision between buying a new or used Subaru Forester, the following table can be used to compare the 2003 Subaru Forester with the Subaru Forester from other model years. Note that the number of problems reported for the 2003 Forester is 239 while the average number of problems reported for the 28 model years of the Subaru Forester is 286.