Gas Recirculation Valve (egr Valve) Problems of Subaru Forester

Vehicle had 82,401 miles when on January 19, 2021 the "engine low level warning light" illuminated. Oil level on dip-stick measured at very end of stick. Added 1qt 0-20w synthetic oil, scheduled a complete "leak-down test" at dan o'brien Subaru in vermont. The service also performed a 2k mile "consolidated engine oil consumption test". The results measured no oil consumption but the "compression & leak-down test" measured: cylinder #1 = 160psi & 5%, #2 = 148psi & 25%, #3 = 165psi & 5%, #4 = 153psi & 20%. They reported most of "leakage was going into block past pistons and some was "leaking" by intake valves. Recommend replacing short-block". To date, due to the "oil consumption test" and not the "compression and leak-down test" results, the dealer is not willing to repair and/or remedy the problem, even though, the compression and leak-down test indicates a "severe" degradation to the engine with only 84,770 miles. This is well below Subaru's advertised 100,000 mile drive-train warranty publicized. Note: this vehicle has been serviced regularly by only Subaru dealerships since it was purchased in 2017, and the carfax report stated it was only used by Subaru dealership as a corporate personnel rental before then. Additionally the current carfax report showed no incidents or accidents and all vehicle services maintained properly.

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I've experienced the leaking fuel line when temperatures dropped below 20 degrees and get terrible gas fumes inside the cabin especially during cold and damp weather. It is more prominent with the heat on. This smell/leak can be noticed while parked, driving, anytime with the engine running with fuel pressure.

See all problems of the 2005 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Engine shut off while driving on interstate at 70 mph. No warning or engine sputtering. Plenty of fuel. Foggy weather and 37degrees f. Dash lights stayed on same as if it was in the on position. After 1 1/2 hours vehicle restarted and hasn't shut down while driving since. Took in to the dealer and they said battery was weak and replaced that. They said other engine codes pointed to power supply. I have never heard of a vehicle quitting while driving because of a weak battery so am suspicious about this as a good repair. This is potentially a very dangerous problem.

Driving with eyesight enabled at 75mph in heavy traffic on loop 202 freeway at approximately 2:30pm local time. Weather was sunny and dry, approximately 97 degrees. Nearly resulting in a crash. Feet were not on any pedal. Vehicle suddenly lost power and revd to redline as if the car was in neutral, engine then shut off. Instrument cluster showed every warning light illuminated. Eyesight display showed a vehicle directly in front yet there was no vehicle present. I checked to make sure gear selector was still in drive. Pressed the accelerator which had no affect, no rpm change. Was able to coast a short distance but still obstructed traffic. Police had to shut down freeway to move my vehicle to the shoulder. Attempts to restart vehicle failed, all warning lights on instrument cluster illuminate any time the key is turned to the "on" position. Subaru roadside assistance towed vehicle to local Subaru dealer, awaiting diagnosis.

While driving vehicle on highway speeds in temperatures around 85-90 (or greater) degrees vehicle will not allow acceleration. Vehicle stumbles, detonates and will not allow the driver to apply power without hesitation and engine stumbles. This problem can be recreated at will and yet the vehicle will not throw a cel unless a larger failure happens, which typically is the #3 cylinder burns off the spark plug electrode and damages the engine. Subaru is aware of the issue but considers this condition normal. The vehicle is not appropriately mapped for the Subaru suggested fuel octane level, has turbo boost piping leaks according to numerous individuals.

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The current mileage of my car is 45,751. I faithfully follow all maintenance schedule, particularly, oil changes. On two occasions now, my oil light has come on, the last one 2,000 miles before the next oil change. When I questioned the Subaru dealership service guy about this, he said, well, I need to have oil changes at 5,000k instead of the recommended 6000k. He said 6000k is for ideal driving condition - temperature should not below 30 degrees, no stopping here and there, no idling, etc. Synthetic oil is expensive enough and I certainly do not need to be paying someone to top it off every time. And I do not want to be caught with this problem while I'm travelling. I bought this car new and at this mileage, I should not be having this problem. Fyi, the mileage of this car is mostly highway miles. From reading online, I learned that other Forester owners are having problem with oil burning as well. There is definitely something wrong with the car and Subaru needs to remedy this. Would appreciate any assistance to this problem. Thank you.

After work, I got in my car and started it up. Check engine light came on, followed by traction control and tire pressure lights. This was odd because these lights had never been on before. I started to drive home--it was too late to bring the car to have it checked out. I live a minute and a half from work. The cruise control light then came on and flickered in no particular pattern. Then, about 45 seconds into my 90 second drive, the temperature gauge light came on. The weather was about 50 degrees and rainy. When I got home the engine fan was spinning really fast. I popped the hood. No smoke or anything visibly wrong. At roughly 2:10am there was no way I could bring it to get the issues looked into. So I left the hood open to let some heat out and when the fan slowed and then stopped, I closed the hood and went inside. About 10-15 minutes later, during which time the car had been stationary and the engine had been shut off, I heard a pop sound. It was a strange noise and I got up to check it out. It was a massive engine fire. It toasted the engine and melted a good portion of the front end. The fire dept shattered the windows and peeled the hood back. The car is totaled. The fire was just feet away from my house on one side, and the neighbor on the other side. Had I been asleep the fire could have spread to my house or my neighbor's, potentially killing people. It was one of the scariest things I've ever experienced. There is a video on youtube with something similar (search Subaru engine fire). The car is a 2010 Forester xt, completely stock. It has been very well maintained and has about 85,000 miles on it. My mother originally owned it. She bought it brand new from the Subaru dealership and I bought it from her.

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Anytime the temperature drops below 60 degrees fahrenheit there's a strong smell of gasoline inside the cab of the vehicle. When looking under the hood I can see it dripping out of something underneath the intake manifold. Severe gas leak. Nauseous and dangerous fumes.

See all problems of the 2004 Subaru Forester 🔎.

In cold weather (below 20 degrees or so) the fuel lines in the engine compartment come loose and leak raw gasoline onto the hot engine. Obviously there is a good chance of an engine fire with possible loss of life. This has been reported in several forums, there is a TSB out on this for the wrx (same engine, same part numbers), and most dealers (in cold states) know of this problem.

At cold starting, approximately one time out of 20, the car is very difficult to start. It cranks for up to 10 seconds before starting. I don't know if it's a fuel delivery or an ignition problem. It has happened at ambient temperatures from 35 to 65 degrees. If I didn't continue cranking the engine to an extent that I think is harmful to it, it wouldn't start. I consider that a safety issue, if I needed to get the car going quickly.

Upon starting and running the vehicle in temperatures below freezing (32 degrees f), the fuel lines near the intake manifold in the engine bay leak gasoline, transmitting an unburnt fuel smell to the cabin via the hvac system and blower fan. These fumes are toxic and therefore hazardous to motorist and passenger health. Also, fuel dripping near a hot intake manifold is a fire hazard. The lines appear corroded in spots and the fuel leak is visible and apparent. There is no recall for this issue. However, based upon the inspection, the apparent fuel leak in such close proximity to the hot engine is a major hazard for the motorist of the Forester and other motorists on the road - this issue should be resolved and Subaru should announce a recall on all (2003) Forester models.

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After I purchased my vehicle, I noticed a hesitation between 20 - 40 mph. This is the first year for the Forester's to have a cvt engine so I thought it needed broken in. I also went through 3 cycles of filling up my gas tank from 3 different gas stations and the hesitation continued. The first time I brought it in the technician said he overfilled the oil a slight bit, removed it, and I should notice a difference. No difference. I brought my vehicle back to the dealership addressing the same issue. They performed the tests Subaru of America (soa) suggested and nothing was found. The last time it happened, > month ago, I feared an accident because it hesitated through an intersection. I returned the vehicle wanting answers. Subaru sent out their own technician to gather information to send to fuji and what I was told was that their equipment did not find anything wrong and that it was normal for a cvt engine. I test drove several more Foresters and they all had varying degrees of hesitation and all had different mileage on them.

Started and drove vehicle approx. 1 mile in 20 degree weather when I began to smell an extremely strong raw gasoline odor. The passenger compartment was inundated with the odor. I checked for leaks but did not see any(it was at night). I slowly drove home with my passenger-side windows open. Haven't driven the vehicle since. . . .

Stopped to fill up car with gas on way to work and when I restarted the engine I heard a real loud knocking noise. As I pulled away the car was very sluggish and the noise from the engine started getting louder. I went to get off the road and turn into a parking lot and the car died and I narrowly missed hitting a baltimore city work truck as the power steering and power brakes were non responsive because the engine had cut off. I was very lucky to not crash into the work truck. I had the car towed to valley motors Subaru in cockeysville and they called to inform me that I need a new at least a new lower block if not a whole engine replacement. I looked online for some information on any known issues with style of car and engine and was shocked to see that in April 2008 a " stop sale" was issued by Subaru of America on my exact car. Legacy vehicles have been added to the stop sale we regret to inform you that we must place an immediate stop sale order on all of the 2008/2009 Subaru impreza, Forester and legacy vehicles equipped with a 2. 5l turbo engine produced with the beginning chassis number and later as shown below. Model body type chassis number production date forester wagon 701045 or later 2008/01/08 or later the reason for this immediate quality assurance action is that there have been several reports of "engine knocking noise" from other markets on vehicles produced after the production dates listed. Initial investigation confirms an internal wear issue on the failed units. I bought my car in October 2009 and you can see the VIN # is pretty close in the range and I have read in forums of people with almost identical VIN's as mine of having the same exact issue.

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On 5/24/11, while driving through an intersection, my Forester was hit broadside by another vehicle that ran a red light. The impact of the speeding vehicle caused the Forester to spin 360 degrees and flip-over on the driver's side. I was left trapped inside the Forester and witnesses pointed out that the engine and transmission continued to run after the Forester flipped over. Apparently there is no engine or transmission kill switch. Furthermore, there is no interior release of the rear hatch. As a result I remained trapped inside the vehicle and concerned about a gasoline leak and possible explosion. I was eventually removed from the vehicle by emts and brought to the hospital. My concern is that if similar accident occured in a remote area or if the driver was more seriously injured, more serious consequences could have resulted.

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Strong fuel odor inside cabin developed when operating on cold mornings; fuel odor typically went away within 15 minutes of starting the car. Inspection of fuel lines, filter, etc. Revealed no obvious leaks above the intake manifold. Dealer quoted approximately $800 to remove intake manifold and inspect. I have had two independent shops attempt to fix this issue over the past 3 years with varying degrees of success; the most recent (2011) removed the intake manifold and replaced all rubber fuel lines under the manifold, but the problem has recurred this fall and winter and at increasingly warm temperatures. Now, there is a visible and obvious leak from a fuel line just as it goes under the manifold--inaccessible without removing the manifold. Clearly, the problem is with the design of the metal fuel rail to rubber line interface, since this is a common problem in Forester xts across several model years. Subaru of America issued a recall for this problem on the wrx, but so far has not acknowledged the problem for the Forester or Forester xt. This is a costly repair and a huge safety issue: the leaking fuel drips directly onto the engine cylinder heads and in some cases (on passenger-side fuel line leaks) is in close proximity to the turbocharger--representing a significant risk of engine fire. The fuel fumes in the cabin are also a health and safety risk which should be dealt with by Subaru.

When outside temperature falls below 10 degrees f. , car will not start or starts only with greatest difficulty. Last year(2004), same sort of starting problem was attributed to a cracked ignition coil. This year dealers service department can not find a problem, also can't explain the problem.

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...

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