Engine And Engine Cooling Problems of Subaru Forester - part 1

On 3 different occasions the car randomly accelerated at a high speed without stepping on the gas pedal. The first time was in a parking lot. The second time was on a busy road while traveling at 35 mph. The car accelerated to about 60 mph, fortunately once applying the brakes the vehicle slowed down to gain control. The third time it happened was recently on [xxx] while slowly backing down [xxx]. The car accelerated backwards at a very high speed narrowly missing a fence in the neighbors yard. These incidents have happened with large time frame gaps in between the occurrences. After the third incident I took the car to a dealer planet Subaru in hanover MA. After keeping the car for a few days, the dealer called and said that they could not find anything wrong with the car and there was nothing that they could do for me. This issue is obviously very serious, if the car surges forward randomly while someone is crossing in a crosswalk it could be potentially fatal. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

See all problems of the 2015 Subaru Forester 🔎.

On january16,2026 while driving from houston,TX to austin TX the vehicle experienced a complete loss of power on highway 71 w. We were traveling at approximately 70 mph when the engine completely failed. We were forced to immediately pull over onto a narrow shoulder our situation at that point was dire: we could not exit the vehicle as other cars were speeding by. Fortunately an emergency vehicle from the texas department of transportation pulled up behind us with his emergency lights flashing. He told us we were in a dangerous situation and, due to our location, he was not able to tow us to safety. Our only option at that point was to allow the emergency vehicle to puss us to a safe location off of the highway. The driver pushed our vehicle approximately 1/2 mile to a motel parking lot. We contacted austin Subaru, arranged for a tow truck, and proceeded to the dealer. The dealer technician advised us the thermo control valve had failed. We were told this failure was common. The repair was at no charge since Subaru, being aware of the problem, had extended the warranty on this part. The action by Subaru to extend the warranty instead of proactively replacing the part before failure seems blatantly irresponsible.

See all problems of the 2021 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Took to local dealership for 20,000 mile oil change. After the oil change the service advisor informed me of an oil leak on the right side of the engine. He could not confirm where the leak was from. I have scheduled to have it repaired under factory warranty. After researching on the internet it has been noted that the valve cover/ spark plug boot seals are known to split and cause an engine oil leak. I am concerned that this oil leak could come in contact with the exhaust manifold which may lead to an engine compartment fire. Would your administration department please check into this concern.

See all problems of the 2024 Subaru Forester 🔎.

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.

Engine lost power and was misfiring while many warning symbols appeared on the dash. There was a divider separating the lanes. The car coasted to almost to a stop, but the engine chugged enough to slowly turn left at the first opening in the divider and just barely made it off the main road. The engine stopped. I restarted it several times. The engine was misfiring barely running. The electric brake was applied on its own. The car did not respond to moving the shift selector out of park, so the car was immobilized. I put the 4-way flashers on and called aaa. There seemed to be no way for me to move it out of park or release the electronic parking brake. Aaa could not respond quickly and suggested I call the police to divert traffic around my car for safety which I did. The tow truck operator was able to disengage the wheels and was able to flatbed it to the nearest repair shop. This being Saturday 1/3/26 it wasn't until Tuesday the repair shop determined the car would not run long enough to provide a reliable diagnosis due to the multiple trouble codes coming up on the computer analysis. I had the car towed to the nearest Subaru dealership who replaced the thermos control valve under their warranty extension. The dealership said usually when this part fails it just triggers a check engine light and not the dangerous situation I experienced. I believe a recall to replace this part should be issued on all cars with this defective part as its failure can cause a dangerous situation without warning.

See all problems of the 2019 Subaru Forester 🔎.

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 🔎.

While driving my 2020 Subaru Forester at approximately 15 mph, the engine unexpectedly shut off, resulting in an immediate loss of propulsion (vehicle stall while in motion). This created a safety risk because the vehicle was in traffic and could have been struck from behind or lost the ability to accelerate out of danger. No crash occurred and there were no injuries. There were no warning lamps, warning messages, check engine light, or limp mode before, during, or after the stall event. The vehicle later experienced catastrophic engine failure, also without any warning indicators. The vehicle has been inspected by an authorized Subaru dealership. The dealership confirmed the failure and diagnosed crankshaft bearing failure on cylinder 3, and recommended short block replacement along with related engine component replacement (including cam phasers and gaskets/seals). The engine/vehicle remains available for inspection upon request. Manufacturer has been notified through Subaru of America customer advocacy. Subaru has offered partial goodwill assistance but has declined further escalation or full remedy. Note: I have video of this showing no engine lights however unable to upload it below. Can send via email if required. Thank you. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

See all problems of the 2020 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.

The engine in my 2010 Subaru Forester (VIN: [xxx] ) suffered a sudden and complete mechanical failure on November 15, 2025. While driving, the vehicle abruptly lost power without any warning lights or messages. I was able to pull off the roadway, but the loss of power posed a significant safety risk. Had this occurred in traffic or at highway speeds, it could have caused a collision. The vehicle was inspected the next business day by wiygul automotive. Their technicians found no measurable oil on the dipstick and added three quarts just to restart the engine. They confirmed no external oil leaks, and diagnosed the failure as a catastrophic internal oil consumption defect that had been occurring over time. This defect resulted in oil starvation and severe internal engine damage. The engine is fully available for inspection upon request. Wiygul provided a written diagnostic report confirming the cause of failure. The dealership has been notified but has not yet performed an inspection. ?no manufacturer, insurance, or law enforcement inspections have occurred to date. Importantly, the vehicle had a documented pre-purchase inspection on August 7, 2025, which noted the engine oil was significantly overfilled by approximately one quart and that all diagnostic codes had recently been cleared. These findings are consistent with an existing engine issue that would not be detectable by an ordinary consumer. On August 28, 2025, a full synthetic oil service was performed and again documented no external leaks. There were no symptoms, warnings, or drivability indications prior to the sudden loss of power. The failure occurred without warning, and the underlying defect was only discovered after the breakdown. This internal oil consumption defect rendered the vehicle unsafe and unfit for use, and the sudden engine shutdown created a clear risk to my safety and the safety of others on the road. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

See all problems of the 2010 Subaru Forester 🔎.

The vehicle has experienced four separate engine shutdowns while stopped in traffic. Each time, the engine turned off unexpectedly, requiring a manual restart. One incident occurred near a railroad crossing with my child in the car. The vehicle also lurches forward at low speeds and hesitates when accelerating after being stopped. These issues persist despite service visits. I believe they may relate to technical service bulletins regarding the auto start/stop and battery systems (tsbs #16-147-24, #10232217, #07-218-23r, #10251098). Subaru service staff have acknowledged awareness of these problems. I’m submitting this complaint to ensure the safety risk is documented and investigated.

I was steering my car into my own garage as I do daily. Suddenly, as the car was making the turn, the car accelerated abruptly on its own. I was somehow able to steer into the garage, but the rapid acceleration continued. I braked and stopped the car just before it went into the wall that adjoins the interior of my home. There was an inch to spare. There were no warnings or messages or sympoms prior to this event.

See all problems of the 2022 Subaru Forester 🔎.

I hit a deer going 45 mph, the air bags deployed, and my engine caught on fire. Within 10 minutes my car burned to the ground.

2020 Subaru Forester periodically will stall out at a light or stop sign in heavy traffic. It then takes several attempts to restart. (sometimes completely dead) my mechanic hasi changed the battery and checked the alternator, all in working order. It’s hard to figure out what is wrong because it doesn’t happen all the time.

When stopped at an intersection the car stalled. It would not restart for three minutes and caused a dangerous situation for my family and children in the car while traffic was moving. There were no warning signs, lights, or engine codes. The problem is random and cannot reproduced. The car is available for inspection.

We were traveling in rural California, 1 hour north of bishop, CA on CA-120 when our vehicle's "check engine" light, "parking break" light, and several other lights lit up on our dashboard. Our car began to stall out immediately. We were able to pull off to the side of the road as best as we could as we were towing a camper at the time as well. We waited for 4 hours to get our vehicle and camper towed 1 hour away to a mechanic. The mechanic couldn't fix our car, but we were able to get an engine code reader to clear the codes as they came up. The closest Subaru dealership was 4 hours away in las vegas, nv. We had to drive through mountains and death valley. Despite using the engine code reader to clear codes every 30 seconds, our car stalled out 6 times on the way. The problem was the thermo control valve for p26a6, a known problem with Subaru vehicles like ours. We had our vehicle serviced in July 2025 for 60,000 miles and the dealership did not say anything about this known issue.

Car has died 10+ times in the last 2 weeks. Will not hold a charge and it’s getting to the point that my car is dying in the middle of the road, during heavy traffic. That or the car will just not start unless jumped.

I, the owner of a 2020 Subaru Forester am writing to you in regards to an issue with my vehicle’s eyesight program. Over the past month, there have been several instances where the eyesight program fails and caused the vehicle to suddenly stop without warning. This prevents me from safely moving the vehicle to the side of the road as the car stops. In other words, the car abruptly stops on the spot. This creates an immediate danger to life and health to myself and to other motorists. This issue must be addressed immediately and the necessary steps taken to ensure the safety the driver, passengers and other motorists on the road. Thank you for understanding.

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while his wife was stopped at a red traffic light in the middle lane and surrounded by other vehicles, the auto start/stop system engaged; however, when the brake pedal was released, the vehicle failed to restart. After several attempts, the vehicle eventually restarted, allowing the driver to safely pull over. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with a dead battery. The dealer advised the contact about turning off the auto start/stop system. The battery had been marked as good on two separate occasions. The battery was replaced. The contact reached out to the manufacturer, who opened a case but confirmed there was no warranty coverage on the vehicle. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 36,585.

Parasitic battery drain.

While driving the vehicle I began to hear a loud grinding noise from the engine compartment when the a/c was engaged. I pulled over to look under the hood and it sounded like the noise was coming from the serpentine belt. Upon inspection by a Subaru dealership it was determined that the a/c compressor is failing. I was informed that there was a known issue with the 2018 Forester a/c compressor and the compressor has been redesigned. I was also informed that if I postponed repair then the compressor could seize up with would cause the serpentine belt to break which would then cause immediate engine failure. Such failure could be extremely dangerous if it happens when driving on a highway, etc. There was no warning light that appeared when the grinding noise started. I also listen to music when I drive so it was lucky that I heard the noise before the compressor seized. If Subaru had to redesign the compressor then it seems reasonable that a recall should be issued to prevent engine failure. All routine maintenance has been preformed on this vehicle at the dealership in a timely fashion. There is 78,000 miles on the vehicle and I am the original owner.

See all problems of the 2018 Subaru Forester 🔎.

About a month ago while approaching a stop light turning green at a busy intersection, I was slowing into the left turning lane when my car just stopped. No avoidance, no alerts. I had a semi behind me who started pulling out around me in heavy traffic. I could use my flashers. I turned the car off, then on and it finally restarted. This is a 2019 Subaru Forester, original owner, only one incident - but it was definitely weird, and unsafe!.

Vehicle began surging during acceleration. Dealer stated that the engine intake valves had carbon deposits that were causing performance issues including poor fuel economy, increased emissions and running concerns. The valves required a cleaning to correct the issue. This is a 4 year old vehicle with only 38,000 miles, this is unacceptable for issues like this so soon. Estimated cleaning cost is $300 and is mentioned no where in the scheduled maintenance information.

The ac compressor/condesor needs replaced and I see a lot of complaints on-line about this specific model- 2018 Forester. My kids and I were on a road trip in August 2025 when it stopped working. It was extremley hot even with the windows down and heat stroke became very real while we were sitting in bumper to bumper traffic. There was already a recall on this but now with the new part the ac stopped working and sounds very bad under the hood while the car is turned on. Ac is very much needed during hot summer day. S.

Driving on the garden state parkway in NJ on August 1st at approximately 1pm my car just stopped in traffic and steering locked up and all lights came on dashboard along with a constant beeping sound-I was in the middle of a four lane highway traveling south-I could not get out of my car and feared someone would hit me as I was a "sitting duck" while cars were swerving around me-my only saving grace was that my flashers worked after I turned them on-I called roadside assistance as I was starting to panic and was told they could not help me as I was on a private road-I saw a helicopter overhead and at the same time a police office weaving in and out of traffic behind me to slow and stop the traffic-he then proceeded to push my car off the road with his car to the shoulder and called a tow truck-car was towed to nearest Subaru dealer where they performed a diagnostic test and found nothing wrong with my car!! how could that be?? I was then charged for the test and the tow-have called Subaru customer care several times but they say they cannot help me because the test result showed nothing-please help me as I no longer have peace of mind driving this vehicle and I am a single woman in my 70's who needs to drive long distances several times a month- there were no previous warnings in my car it just stopped.

My Subaru smelled like gas and caught on fire while I was driving to work less than 72 hours after it left the service department at the local Subaru dealership. Earlier that week I dropped the car off for service due to a check engine light and multiple other warning lights on the dashboard. The check engine light was determined to be due to a faulty thermo control valve (a known issue on several models of 2019-2021 Subarus). During that service appointment, the thermo control valve was replaced under warranty, the 60000 mile service, state inspection, and an oil change/tire rotation were completed. The morning of the incident, the car smelled like gas, but there were no warning lights on the dashboard and the temperature and gas gauges were all in range. While looking for a safe place to pull over on the side of the road, the gas smell worsened, I heard a pop, the check engine light and every single other light on the dashboard lit up, it smelled like burning jet fuel, and the front of the car was smoking and there were flames, and all mechanical and electrical control of the vehicle was compromised. The car coasted to the side of the right lane. I was unable to operate the gear shift to put the car in park. I opened the driver’s side door, removed my seatbelt, grabbed my backpack, lunch bag, and phone, and exited the vehicle while it was still rolling. I ran around the back of the car to get onto the side walk. Flaming, melting pieces of plastic were coming off the bottom of the car. Flames and smoke were visible on the front hood of the car. I called 911 while the car continued to roll across several lanes onto the other side of the road. The burning car rolled and hit a guardrail on the opposite side of the road and continued to burn until the local fire department arrived on scene. Local police and the fire inspector wrote reports. My insurance declared the car a total loss. I have informed the local dealership and worked to get them access to the vehicle.

I was stopped at a red light and the engine stalled. It read "for safety, auto restart disabled". All warning lights on the dashboard lit up. I had to put the car in park and restart it in order to drive. I was honked at and put in a dangerous position. This has happened at least twice now.

I just found out that there was a problem with oil consumption in a 2014 Subaru Forester. I purchase it two years ago. Is there anything they can do to fix it.

Yesterday 6/19/25 I was driving out the driveway when the vehicle accelerated on its own, and not slowly, but like it had been punched. I was actually coasting at the time since I didn't want to stir up dust. My foot was not on the gas pedal. And it was not the floor mat. It happened on its own, the first time in 87,000 miles. It probably cannot easily be replicated as it was completely random, although now that it's happened once, it very well could happen again if there's a faulty or aging part or sensor. Neither the local dealer nor Subaru has acknowledged the problem (I called both today) but it's a serious safety issue. No check engine light or other means of warning. It just happened out of nowhere. Glad I was in the driveway and not in town waiting while a pedestrian was crossing the street.

While at a stop as the engine turns off and awaits decompression of brake to turn on again vehicle moves forward bit, then the engine shuts down while in drive (stalls) had a vehicle hit me in rear but luckily I had my trailer hitch on because it saved me from body damage . I had to place in park and restart this has happened several times before and I’m kinda nervous and makes my wife nervous when stopping at lights or stop signs it might turn off in the middle of the intersection. When this occurrence happens all dash lights pop up … I checked engine with code reader after the incidents but it doesn’t give out any info on what could possibly be happening. I had the dealership change the thermo control module in 2025 but these occurrences has happened before and after the tcm replacement. Having the dealership check is like wasting my time and money because they aren’t able to pinpoint the cause without a code . There has to be a problem somewhere in the system it’s just that the dealership in hawaii has no clue . .

During severe stop/go, thick, holiday traffic on I-495 (DC beltway), during daylight hours, once again (this has happened several times before), the auto engine shutoff feature catastrophically malfunctioned, turning the car off, and simultaneously, activated the entirety of the dashboard to flash on/off, causing nearly every indicator light to come on, and then had difficulty restarting. This has been brought to Subaru's attention multiple times and they essentially have washed their hands of it and stating since they can't duplicate it, it essentially must not be occurring and they cannot repair it.

My Subaru suddenly had numerous warning lights go on. Took it to the dealer and they said it was due to a recalled part: thermo control valve. They replaced it for free but said my head gaskets needed to be replaced after checking my oil for $4000 plus. I believe the recalled part caused the head gasket issue and shouldn’t have to pay also the mileage is only 66k.

The contact owns a 2021 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while stopped at a traffic signal, the vehicle stalled. No warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The contact stated that on a separate occasion, while driving over railroad tracks, the vehicle stalled. No warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The contact continued to drive, and two blocks later, the vehicle stalled. No warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with battery failure. The battery was replaced. The contact picked up the vehicle, and on the drive back to the residence, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that the vehicle was almost rear-ended by the vehicle behind. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The dealer replaced the fuel injectors. The contact picked up the vehicle, and the following day, while driving to work, the vehicle jerked abnormally and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to the dealer; however, no cause for the failure was found. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 32,000.

My car is a 2019 suaru Forester 54,268mi I was driving from houston to dallas on the freeway during a thunderstorm on [xxx] [xxx]. I got off the freeway and was almost on the road near my house when my car engine suddenly died, I had no control of my car, my car engine would not start anymore. I had no problems with my car before. I towed it home the next day and had it checked with a scanner and it came up with about 25 check engine codes. 5/14/2025 Subaru dealer (ewing of plano) had it checked and had the thermo control valve replaced because it was bad. They had no previous notices or recalls. If my car had stopped in the middle of the freeway it could have been a major accident. . Other people's lives are important. . Please look into this issue information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

2021 Subaru Forester limited- stop start when stopping at a red light. Sometimes the engine does not restart when releasing the brake pedal. Message on dash put car in park and press start. Occurred. April 24 2025 and may 5 2025.

Subaru forrester was misfiring and sputtering as if it was going to stop running. The car was shaking. Had car towed to Subaru dealer for service. At first we thought spark plugs and ignition coils but this did not fix the issue. Service determined a spring valve was broken which caused the issues. I have escalated the issue with Subaru corporate, waiting for their response. Other Subaru models have had this issue with the spring valves.

See all problems of the 2016 Subaru Forester 🔎.