Electrical System Problems of Subaru Forester - part 1

**component or system:** Subaru eyesight driver assist system (specifically the pre-collision throttle management system). **incident description & warning messages:** there were no warning lamps, messages, or symptoms of any problem prior to this failure. The incident occurred while I was stopped at a red light at a busy intersection. When the light turned green, I removed my foot from the brake and pressed the gas pedal to proceed, but the vehicle would not accelerate. The system had engaged a false-positive throttle cut. At that exact moment, the car began beeping repeatedly and the eyesight logo flashed on the dashboard, incorrectly indicating an obstacle or imminent collision, even though the path in front of my vehicle was completely clear. **safety risk:** my safety and the safety of others were put at significant risk because the vehicle was unexpectedly immobilized in an active intersection during a green light. This sudden, unwarranted loss of acceleration created a high risk of being rear-ended by the drivers behind me who were expecting the flow of traffic to resume. **reproduced, confirmed, or inspected:** because this incident just occurred, the problem has not yet been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center. Furthermore, the vehicle has not yet been inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance representatives.

See all problems of the 2020 Subaru Forester 🔎.

My new vehicle, with under 4,000 miles, has already suffered multiple chewed wires due to rodents attracted to the soy-based wire coatings used by the manufacturer. This is not a minor inconvenience — it is a serious safety issue. Damaged wiring can cause loss of power steering mid-drive, abs and braking system malfunctions, airbag deployment failures, engine stalling on highways, and electrical fires — any of which can result in injury or death. The manufacturer knows soy-based coatings attract rodents, the consequences are safety-critical, and proven mitigations exist (capsaicin-infused coatings, hardened sheathing, metal conduit) yet are not implemented from the factory. If vehicles are engineered to withstand foreseeable environmental hazards like water intrusion, heat, and road debris, there is no justification for leaving critical wiring defenseless against a well-documented and predictable threat. A material choice known to invite damage, paired with insufficient physical barriers, is not an external cause — it is a design flaw.

See all problems of the 2025 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Infotainment center had popup ad about sirius xm trial ending soon and a phone number to call to extend. Had to hit small x in the corner to disable while vehicle in motion or have no access to air, radio controls, or see map.

2021 Subaru Forester the vehicle has experienced recurring electrical and battery-related issues for several years. The original battery was replaced by the Subaru dealer with a larger-capacity battery because of repeated starting concerns. The replacement provided only temporary improvement. The vehicle continues to experience rough starting on a regular basis, even after installation of a newer aftermarket battery with a higher cold-cranking-amp rating. The current battery is approximately five months old. The most significant safety concern occurs during auto start-stop operation. On multiple occasions, the engine has shut off at a stop as intended, but then failed to restart when attempting to move again. When this occurs, multiple warning lights illuminate on the dashboard and the vehicle is unable to proceed until it is shifted into park and restarted manually. Because of this issue, I now disable the auto start-stop feature on every drive to avoid a potential failure to restart while in traffic. The issue has been ongoing for years and has occurred with multiple batteries, including the dealer-installed replacement battery and a newer aftermarket battery. The dealer suggested that an aftermarket dash camera could be contributing to battery drain. The dash camera was disconnected, but the problem continued. I am concerned that failure of the vehicle to restart after auto start-stop operation could leave the vehicle disabled in traffic and create a safety hazard. The condition appears to involve the vehicle’s electrical system, battery management system, charging system, auto start-stop system, or a combination of those components. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request.

See all problems of the 2021 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Sirius add pop-up on the infotainment screen, locks you out of the system. Not allowing use of hands free calling, text or climate control. Recurring issue making vehicle unsafe.

While driving the head unit was connected to google automotive with google maps giving me directions and music through you tube music when a full screen sized ad for sirius xm took over the entire screen. I could no longer see the map and directions, couldn't use the climate control. The entire screen was locked by this add until I removed my focus from the road to hit the small x icon in the top right corner of the add to close it out. Ads for a product I've never used taking over my entire head unit distracting my driving and following the directions from google maps is unacceptable and unsafe.

Brand new 2026 Forester's factory amplifier system completely failed within a week from purchasing at approximately 570 miles, disabling hands-free communication. California law strictly requires drivers to use phones in a hands-free manner. Drivers are prohibited from holding or physically touching their phone for any reason while operating a vehicle.

June 2025: I proactively replaced the battery October 2025: left the car parked for 17 days. Dead battery. Got a jump, drove for 2 hours. May 2026: left the car parked for 10 days. Dead battery. Got a jump, drove to mechanic who replaced it under warranty. Saw article about Subaru class action lawsuit about this issue, so I'm reporting it. I will visit the Subaru dealer where I purchased to car and ask them about it and Subaru's plans for permanent repair.

See all problems of the 2018 Subaru Forester 🔎.

I have owned this vehicle since 2019 and the auto start has always stalled out when I stop at a light or stop sign. The vehicle needs to be put in park and restart the car. It is very dangerous.

Vehicle stopped at light,auto start stop engine off,stepped on gas to go engine didn’t restart,my passenger and I jumped out and grabbed a noco gb40 jump box I carry and jump started car,we were on a road trip out of town and could not wait for the dealership so finished our trip with the auto start stop turned off and if we had a problem starting used the jump box.

This vehicle has died 4 times in one week. When this happens, multiple lights have flashed in the dash board, including the "eye sight" warning. Then, it would not restart but continued to "turn over" when the ignition button was pushed. One instance was on a busy street at a stop light, another at a busy intersection in the inner left turn lane, the other 2 instances were in parking lots. The first 2 times the vehicle was able to be jump started and was not taken to the dealership. The 3rd, it was jump started and taken to the dealership. They said the battery was slightly low, but had sufficient charge. They changed the fob battery, and topped off the car battery. That was all. The next day was the episode where it died in the turn lane. I had it towed to the dealership. This time they changed the battery to a more high capacity battery, and admitted that these vehicles have a battery put in them at the manufacturer that is not strong enough for the systems it runs. I even found a service bulletin about it online, #TSB 07-218-23r. This should be a recall item, and they should have changed this battery at my first visit! a vehicle suddenly dying on a busy roadway puts those inside at risk, as well as everyone around them. Very disappointed in this 2023 Subaru Forester premium.

See all problems of the 2023 Subaru Forester 🔎.

We have replaced the battery twice and likely will need a third battery soon. I have learned that there is a known issue with the dcm trying to connect using 3g. This is causing a parasitic drain on the battery. The vehicle will fail to start. This has occurred many times over the last few years. We have just learned of the problem.

See all problems of the 2019 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Automatic start/stop fails to turn car on - intermittent. Taken it to Subaru detailer miltiple times and paid for services to correct the issue, but the issue persists. Fist time - replaced the battery in July 2025. 2nd time, went on a ride along for 1 hour, issue did not happen, replaced spark plugs, issue persists. 3rd time, updated tcm software, issue still persists. Subaru of America is aware of the issue and have not gotten a resolution either.

My apple car play has never worked since I bought the car new in 2020. The dealership's solution each time I asked about it was for me to get a new plug in cord, update my iphone settings, and then they can update the system manually. I have taken it in multiple times, and each time it has worked for 2-3 weeks before it no longer works again. This is dangerous because it usually happens mid-drive, and I no longer have the directions of where I am going, without stopping the vehicle. I also have to hold my phone and look at the directions since it does not display on the screen.

I had my foot on the brake, opened the garage door with my garage door opener, and before I took my foot off the brake the car surged, jumped, and smashed into the brick wall next to the garage. I did not put my foot on the gas.

See all problems of the 2016 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Driving along and various system warnings came on, then started losing power, then the engine died and the car was completely dead. Got a jump start and the car ran for a couple of minutes and died again. Had it towed to a repair shop and when they checked it the next morning, they couldn't find a problem and it ran great for them. I replaced the battery and alternator just to be safe because we were about to leave on a trip.

Stalling/shutting down at stoplights with the auto start-stop feature has occurred continuously for the last 2 years I’ve taken to dealer, and multiple mechanics and they can’t find a problem.

Navigation system gives incorrect directions including wrong freeway exits and and incorrect home location ( off by about 300-500 feet ) . This creates a safety hazard while driving. Vehicle has been taken for repair about six times , but the issue remains unsolved. Dealer com bined multiple visits into fewer repair orders.

My son, [xxx] is currently driving this car. The car only has 29,200 miles so far. Last week, while at the stop light on the hill, he had near fatal accident! Forester suddenly completed shut down. The only functioning part was the brake. My son had to put the car in park and restart the engine. I reported the incident to customer advocate at Subaru and taking the car in for inspection. We never skip any scheduled maintenance. My next maintenance not due until April. I also purchased Subaru safety monitoring software. The car never shows any malfunction. It’s a very serious issue. We strongly suspect it’s related to the start-stop system on this car. We strongly support to override the system at consumer level giving their unreliability. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Sincerely, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The gps/map display, displays the wrong speed, on some traffic circles it directs me to go around in the wrong direction. The auto vehicle uses the speed limit from the installed map to display the speed limit on the main dash between the tach and speedometer. Both conditions could easily cause and accident. Contacted the manufacturer, the corporate headquarters, my dealership where I purchased the vehicle, and tomtom in the netherlands. None will assist in the correction of the issue. Tomtom did commit to investing the issue after I gave them the specific locations, but they closed my record/complaint file. On fb, I see a good many people complain about the same issues and also that they can't get sny help from the dealership, like me, to resolve the issue. Please help the all consumers to be able to purchase a new car that is functioning as advertised and to be confident that they will be safe when driving the highways.

I have a 2016 Subaru Forester and started 3 weeks ago with a problem when I turn it on all the lights on the dashboard turn on and the car won't star. The mechanic has changed the battery and the problem continues. It's happened three times now that it's suddenly shut off while I'm driving. It was very scary. Now the mechanic said that I have to take to the dealer because it is the body control module.

Car drains battery. 45,000 miles and has had 3 batteries and have been told it needs another. Dealer says start stop switch, requires a battery of 750 cca and not the Subaru recommend battery. Car will die in traffic and driver seat adjusts to different positions by itself. Told that these problems will never stop unless I get a higher rated battery than required.

Report of failed recall remedy (recall 19v-149 / wue-90) my 2015 Subaru Forester experienced a total recurrence of the defect addressed in 2019. The vehicle became trapped in 'park' intermittently on several occasions before remaining immobilized. During one incident, the manual shift-lock override failed to function. While the brake lights functioned during these incidents, the failure to shift is a documented symptom of a failing brake light switch. I had the switch replaced by a technician who initially suggested a full shifter assembly replacement. However, replacing only the brake light switch immediately and permanently resolved the issue. This confirms the recall-related part was the point of failure. Subaru of America was notified but declined to acknowledge this as a failure of the safety remedy. I am also reporting intermittent 'ghost' activations of the right turn signal stalk.

See all problems of the 2015 Subaru Forester 🔎.

There was a recall on this vehicle from 2022, and we did not own this vehicle at that time. Recall passenger side airbag contact under seat can cause fire or electrical issues. I contacted Subaru and they said the recall was satisfied in 2022. If that's the case, the repair piece must have been faulty as the issue has come back. The dealership I took the car to said they have seen about 4 of this same issue within the last two weeks. Subaru is unwilling to assist in this, and I cannot pay the 1800. 00 dollars the dealership wants to repair this vehicle. I've asked more questions of Subaru since their answer and have not received a response. I would like to know why their website says this was complete July 15, 2025, not 2022. It was not complete in 2025, or we would have had the repair done. Any help in getting someone to see if this is in fact another recall and how to tell if the recall was truly completed in 2022, possible faulty recall parts now. This is crazy if numerous folks have gone in with the same issue. We need Subaru to take a good look at this.

See all problems of the 2017 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Two incidents happened first battery died, we replaced the battery. Then battery died again, we replaced the alternator on June 5, 2025. Then on Saturday September 13, 2025; all system lights came on at once on the dashboard then the battery died again. Car locks up and is stalled out. Cannot restart car, has to be towed. We replaced the battery cable and cleaned the terminals. Three months later, December 1, 2025; the battery light came on then all system lights came on at once, the battery died again. This happened on interstate 95, it could easily have caused a crash. Car locks up again and is stalled out again. Cannot restart car again, has to be towed again. Something in the electrical is causing this, we do not know what.

Subaru Forester 2019 January - February of 2025: issue initially presented as the hatch beeping, indicating that it was not closing fully. The hatch would not pop back up as if something was in the way, just remain down & continue beeping. The car would then not start, with only the hatch beeping noise (beep beep beep) going off. When I drove it, it kept warning me that the hatch wasn't shut completely. After I parked it in the garage, the next morning it would be dead. The issue was supposedly resolved in February of 2025 as I replaced the battery on my own and replaced this part: 29182aa060. Schomp subuaru reported no issues with their diagnostic tests. November 30th - December 2025: I started the car just fine. When I opened the trunk and closed it, it gave me three beeps and wouldn't fully close, even if I pushed it shut and locked it. The next morning, the car would not start - the battery was dead. The tow company also could not jump start the car. As the car was being towed, the hatch alert was the only thing working/beeping. Even when not trying to use the hatch. I have used the car every single day up until this issue started. I have not left the keys in the car. The car is now back at the dealership. The unreliability of this can/has left me and my passengers stranded and cold. The dealership found no issue the last time this occurred even though there was a class action lawsuit about this exact issue, but somehow my car was not considered included. I cannot have Subaru tell me that there is no issue again.

On 5/15/2024 and 5/21/2024 I had sudden uninteded acceleration. I had a auto shop try to solve the problem by replacing the air fuel ratio sensor and the mass air flow sensor. This seem to fix the issue until 11/27/2025 & 12/7/2025 when the sudden uninteded acceleration returned.

See all problems of the 2014 Subaru Forester 🔎.

I have reported this before but it never went anywhere. When at a red light or in a traffic slowdown, the car will activate the auto start/stop system. Three times in the past 2 days, the car would not turn back on and required me to turn the car off and back on again. You can imagine that this leaves me in a dangerous situation because the cars behind me see a green light and get ready to move, or they see traffic clearing up and they get ready to move. I am forced to turn my car off and back on again in the middle of a 4 lane highway or on a busy city street. I get cursed at and nearly rear ended each time this happens. I did an internet search and there are entire threads dedicated to this exact problem with this Subaru model and year. There should be a recall. It is very unsafe.

Passenger airbag safety intermittently turns on stating that the passenger airbag is not able to deploy. If I turn the car off and on it goes away and doesn't turn until another time I start the car. Also detects a passenger in the seat when there is no passenger or weight in that seat. Overall some sort of issue with the airbag safety system in the front passenger seat. I will state no liquids have been spilled on the seat.

The electrical system fails, and the battery is not charging sufficiently. When the auto start/stop engages, the car does not restart in traffic. Requested a battery test at the dealership in may 2025; was told it could not be done that day because it would require leaving the dealer service shop. Eventually, the electrical system became unstable, and the car stopped in traffic on 11/07/2025. Replaced battery following oem specs. In February 2026, symptoms reappeared with a new battery failing on 02/15/2026, resulting in all saftey systems failing in traffic when auto start/stop enages.

The defect presents itself when the equipped data communications module (dcm) attempts to communicate with 3g cellular networks. As 3g networks within the u. S. Are no longer functioning, the call will continuously fail even after the vehicle has been turned off, draining the battery and resulting in a no-start safety risk for drivers. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

My Subaru has an auto start/stop. I was at a complete stop, making a left-hand turn, and my car completely shuts off with the following message: for safety, auto restart disabled; eyesight with a \ through the words, put car in park and restart vehicle. In the time it took me to put the car in park and restart, I was almost t-bone. This was terrifying. This had happened on previous occasion in stop and go traffic which is dangerous because my car has come to a complete stop without any warning to me where the driver behind me there are no warning symbols, warning lights, or any type of signal or symptoms to notify me that my car was going to stop completely. . Typically I remove my foot from the break, the car starts and then I put my foot on the gas pedal and the car moves forward. In the situations described above the car just stopped. It just flat out stopped. There’s never been any indication or signal to indicate the car is not going to restart the retailer replaced my battery and said it should help. I called the Subaru factory rep who was of no help. She said she is not a trained technician and all that she could offer to do was to contact the retailer. The dealer was not able to reproduce the problem. The retailer replaced the battery without any response about the safety issue. I asked if Subaru had a safety board I could report this too and the factory rep said no, but she will document it and they’ll do an internal review to see if we have any other similar issues reported, however, they will not contact me because they don’t talk to the public about these issues. I told her there are hundreds of these if not, thousands concerns online stating the same issue. The rep said she would document my concern. Documentation is good if there’s a fix but I’m concerned about the unnecessary death of a driver. The retailer also advised I could do the auto start override, I’m trying to make a point of how serious of a safety issue this problem can be. Thank you!.

Previous recall for passenger ods. Having continued issues with passenger airbag ods not recognizing someone sitting there. Intermittently turns on and off even if no one is sitting there. Took it to a dealer and they want me to pay out of pocket for diagnostic and possible parts. Very high concern for even allowing someone to sit in the car (even my pregnant wife) in the case there was ever an accident.

Persistent battery drain on a 2021 Subaru Forester limited. Problems began in year 4 of ownership (~17,000 mileage), after Subaru starlink subscription services expired. Red (error) starlink sos indicator light was evident, where a normal light would show green. Battery would fully drain after about 3-4 days of inactivity while parked in a commercial garage. After repeated dead batteries, a jump-starter battery pack was used regularly, as well as a wall-outlet battery charger. The problem has not resolved with a new and appropriately specified agm battery, replaced in December 2025. The only solution is to pull the engine-bay fuse #5, which disables the data communication module (dcm), as well as other features (hands-free microphones and audio system). By pulling the fuse #5 consistently, the problem has ceased, even after a two-week period of no use. This provides irrefutable evidence that the dcm powered by fuse #5 is the source of the battery drain. The only resolution Subaru would offer was to insist on a dedicated diagnostic visit to a dealership, with the associated costs of hundreds of dollars to be borne by me, the customer, without a clear understanding of the costs or remedies to resolve this problem. I feel unsafe driving my vehicle for more than short trips given the risk of stranding or further electrical malfunctions that would impact critical vehicle functions or safety systems.

While driving on public roads, all dash warning lights illuminated simultaneously. The instrument cluster displayed “eyesight off. ” at the same time, the electronic parking brake engaged / the vehicle would not accelerate and required me to stop and shift to park. The only way to restore drivability was to turn the vehicle off and restart. This has occurred intermittently, including in traffic, creating a serious safety hazard for myself and surrounding drivers.