Subaru Forester - Problems, Statistics, and Analysis

Subaru Forester owners have reported a total of 8,315 problems for their cars built in the 29 model years listed in the chart below. The chart shows the number of problems reported across all service years for each given model year of the Subaru Forester. The 2019 Subaru Forester cars have the most problems reported (1,054 problems).

Table 1. Total number of problems by model year for Subaru Forester

Model Year	Number of Problems
2026 Forester	1
2025 Forester	83
2024 Forester	32
2023 Forester	95
2022 Forester	124
2021 Forester	263
2020 Forester	777
2019 Forester	1,054
2018 Forester	634
2017 Forester	736
2016 Forester	579
2015 Forester	870
2014 Forester	556
2013 Forester	92
2012 Forester	139
2011 Forester	198
2010 Forester	303
2009 Forester	226
2008 Forester	67
2007 Forester	89
2006 Forester	119
2005 Forester	108
2004 Forester	270
2003 Forester	239
2002 Forester	109
2001 Forester	168
2000 Forester	91
1999 Forester	156
1998 Forester	137

🔍 Common problems of Subaru Forester

The following chart shows the 33 most common problems for Subaru Forester cars. The number one most common problem is related to the vehicle's visibility (1,236 problems). The second most common problem is related to the vehicle's engine and engine cooling (987 problems).

Table 2. Common problems of Subaru Forester

Problem Category	Number of Problems
Visibility	1,236
Engine And Engine Cooling	987
Equipment	841
Air Bag	781
Electrical System	766
Power Train	552
Vehicle Speed Control	506
Suspension	411
Service Brakes	370
Other Fuel System	365

Seats	243
Structure	205
Steering	174
Forward Collision Avoidance	169
Gasoline Fuel System	134
Wheel	107
Exterior Lighting	97
Seat Belt	94
Lane Departure	71
Electronic Stability Control	66
Tire	62
Unknown Or Other	25
Latches/locks/linkage	17
Back Over Prevention	15
Child Seat	5
Parking Brake	4
	3
Traction Control System	2
Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness	2
Air Brake	2
Tether, Lower Anchor (on Car Seat Or Vehicle)	1
Carry Handle, Shell, Base	1
Diesel Fuel System	1

📉 Compare Reliability Across Model Years Using PPMY Index

It would not be fair to compare the Subaru Forester of an older model year to newer model years since older vehicles have been in service longer and thus are expected to have more problems. In order to compare the reliability across Forester model years, we use the PPMY index which is defined as the problems reported per thousand vehicles per Year. A smaller PPMY index indicates greater reliability of the given model year cars.

PPMY = P / S / Y * 1000,

where P = total problems reported during the life of a Subaru Forester model year; S = total units sold of the model year; Y = years since the debut of the model year (the age of the vehicle).

The results are shown in Table 3.

Table 3. Use PPMY Index to Compare Reliability Across Forester Model Years

Forester Model Year	Problems	Sales [1]	Vehicle Age	PPMY Index
2022	124	116,603	4	0.27
2021	263	176,275	5	0.30
2020	777	190,394	6	0.68
2019	1,054	179,257	7	0.84
2018	634	202,761	8	0.39
2017	736	194,976	9	0.42
2016	579	156,361	10	0.37
2015	870	224,272	11	0.35
2014	556	146,483	12	0.32
2013	92	42,774	13	0.17
2012	139	64,138	14	0.15
2011	198	74,802	15	0.18
2010	303	112,517	16	0.17
2009	226	88,759	17	0.15
2008	67	30,406	18	0.12
2007	89	43,985	19	0.11
2006	119	55,165	20	0.11
2005	108	51,547	21	0.10
2004	270	63,323	22	0.19
2003	239	66,770	23	0.16
2002	109	55,764	24	0.08
2001	168	64,051	25	0.10
2000	91	29,996	26	0.12
1999	156	46,567	27	0.12

📊 Number of Problems Reported During the First Year

Another way to measure the reliability across the model years of the Subaru Forester is to use the total number of problems reported during the vehicle's first year in service, as shown in the Table 4.

Table 4. Number of problems in vehicle's; first service year

Model Year	Problems Reported
2025 Forester	57
2024 Forester	16
2023 Forester	29
2022 Forester	53
2021 Forester	74
2020 Forester	178
2019 Forester	296
2018 Forester	76
2017 Forester	48
2016 Forester	56
2015 Forester	73
2014 Forester	38
2013 Forester	10
2012 Forester	14
2011 Forester	15
2010 Forester	21
2009 Forester	22
2008 Forester	3
2007 Forester	10
2006 Forester	14
2005 Forester	10
2004 Forester	7
2003 Forester	26
2002 Forester	11
2001 Forester	36
2000 Forester	19
1999 Forester	25
1998 Forester	33

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