Six problems related to cruise control have been reported for the 2015 Subaru Forester. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2015 Subaru Forester based on all problems reported for the 2015 Forester.
While driving in the highway at 75 mph with cruise control on the car suddenly went to 5000 rpm and at the same time started to brake all the lights in the dashboard came on I pulled over and the car's engine shut down. I tried to started about 5 06 times the car wouldn't star and after that the car was completely dead. I had it tow to a shop. The next morning it started like nothing the mechanic at the shop said it was the battery. After changing the battery I took it to the gas station after putting gas it wouldn't start again after several tries it started. At this point I don't think the battery was the issue but I am glad I got home. This happened in starkville ms 200 miles from where I live.
Twice while driving on the interstate on a 3-4 hour trip going approximately 70 mph using cruise control with approximately 1/12 - 1/6 tank of gas, my engine began to rev and at the same time lost power and speed. The first time I pulled off the road, shut the engine off, waited approximately 10 minutes and was able to restart the engine and finish my trip. It happened the second time with mostly identical circumstances. I pulled off the road, turned off the engine, waited and was unable to start the engine. I had to tow my vehicle to a dealership. They ran diagnostics with nothing turning up. They were however able to start the car when they tried. This was extremely dangerous being in 70 mph traffic and having no speed control. I have the dealership paperwork from the service. Now the engine does not seem to have the normal power it usually does when accelerating.
When highway driving multiple warning lights are illuminated on dash, traction control, eyesight, cruise control off, hill assist. The eyesight systems are disabled shutting off cruise control. When this happens the rear brakes light are not working. When the car is the shut off then restarted and the brake is depressed the car will not come out of park after starting. This happens when it is reset after the car sits off overnight. The last time I could not get it out of the park I went behind the brake pedal and move the brake switch and pressed the connection on top in. This reset the system and I was able to get the car out of park and all the warning light on the dash disappeared. The stoplight switch/brake switch part #83311fj001 is defective. On 3/1/19 Subaru announced a recall not sure if it's this part/issues but I am hoping it is.
Problem is with the Subaru "eyesight" system on this vehicle. The system has been sutting itself off more and more over the past few weeks until now, it shuts down the system and cruise control multiple times daily even at night. Daytime or whenever it wants to. The local dealer checked it and found no problem that he could see for it.
Most recent near-miss fatal incident happened on Nov. 6, 2016 driving on a highway at the speed of about 65- 68 miles , car suddenly died, and stopped completely without any warning signs and warning lights, it felt like car suddenly lost the power and completely stopped. When tried to re-start immediately, car didn't start. After a few minutes, car started. Total driving distance on the highway before this incident happened was about 260 miles. I was able to pull the car on the shoulder; I was driving in a right lane at the time of the incident. It could have been a major fatal accident, as I was driving on a 2 lane highway, 90 east thruway, because sudden change in the speed from 68 mph to zero speeds without any warning in a matter of less than 1 minute. There was lot of traffic on the thruway. Timing of the incident was at about 5 pm on Nov. 6, 2016. There were 2 other passengers in the car. This was the scariest experience I ever had. Car was not set for cruise control while driving on the highway. There were no emergency lights or signs visibly or no noise alert at all. I took the car to Subaru dealer for a check on 11/ 8/2016 and reported this incident. Subaru dealer in service reported that they didn't find the cause for this near fatal incident. Second near miss fatal incident occurred on April 21, 2016 at about 3 pm. I was backing up the care in a driveway, vehicle suddenly would not stop, breaks didn't work, I had no control of the steering wheel. I was able to put the vehicle in the park to gain control of the vehicle again. I took the care for a service and reported this incident to Subaru dealer on April 22, 2016. Subaru dealer service department were not able to find the reason for this terrible incident. Speed at the time of the incident was 5 mph, estimated.
While starting the car with only 2. 2k miles the check engine light came on and disabled the vehicle dynamics control, the cruise control and the incline start assist leaving the vehicle without important safety features in bad weather conditions.