Steering Problems of Subaru Forester - part 2

During the last few months, the steering wheel has been locking, and I am not able to remove the ignition key. This happen when I stop and park the car, and want to turn the ignition off. I have to move the steering wheel from right to left or vice versa, or drive the car back and forward, until unlocks the steering wheel and I can remove the key. I just found through a web search that other drivers had similar issues.

See all problems of the 2017 Subaru Forester 🔎.

The contact owns a 2018 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that the front passenger’s side seat was extremely hot. Additionally, air bag warning light was illuminated. The contact also stated that the taillights were inoperable. While his wife was driving at an undetermined speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost power steering functionality. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the taillight bulbs were replaced; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 90,400.

See all problems of the 2018 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Corrupted driver assist software. Dashboard icons for hands on steering wheel, dynamic vehicle control, lane change control were flashing that systems were off, controls were turned off randomly. Vehicle was not tracking appropriately in its lane, steering was not acting correctly. Car at times acted as if it were being blown by a strong crosswind. Steering between lanes was not consistent. Icon warning that my hands were not on steering wheel when both my hands were on the steering wheel.

See all problems of the 2020 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Driving in merging four lane traffic 70mph when forward motion stopped due to power loss. Almost wrecked getting to shoulder of road. Stranded in 90+ heat. Vehicle would not crank.

See all problems of the 2015 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Aug. 12, 2022. Milage 124,028. Dealer (serra auto park, in akron, OH) had to replace faulty right front axelshaft. Parts and labor $812. Left axelshaft has already started making the same noises and we can expect it to be replaced soon as well. Are we the only ones with this problem???.

See all problems of the 2016 Subaru Forester 🔎.

Subaru has a known issue with a thermo control valve in Foresters. Apparently the part is failing all over the place and they redesigned the part and are replacing it. The problem is the part is backordered and the dealerships are telling people it is safe to drive the car. Our car completely shut off at highway speed. I have since learned this is happening to a number of other owners who were also told it was safe to drive it while the part is back ordered. This vehicle has a lot of advanced driver features and some or all of them are shut off when this happens. Very dangerous for them to tell people to keep driving it and the vehicle should be recalled to replace the defective part that is failing.

Stopped at a red light. The Forester was in auto start/stop mode and was in stop. When I tried to start the Forester up again, it would not. A bell started ringing and all the warning lights lit up. I put the car in park and and within a minute it started up again.

See all problems of the 2019 Subaru Forester 🔎.

The steering began to shake and vibrate at interstate speeds upon changing lanes or making a "lazy" turn. It has very disconcerting. I slowed down, avoided changing lanes and very wary of the turns while I continued on my journey back home. Over time the problem became progressively worse. I had the tires rebalanced but the problem continued to worsened even at slower speeds. I took the car to another shop but they could not find a problem. I was finally took onto a shop where the mechanic instantly knew what the problem was. He stated he had seen many 2017 Subarus with the same problem over the past few months. Both steering control arms had to bee replaced and the tires aligned at a cost of $816. 57. When the problem started the vehicle only had 56,000 and has never been driven off road and only driven on gravel roads at slow speeds about 6 miles a year. I have been driving for over 50 years and have had numerous vehicle during my life and I have never had this happen to a 5year old vehicle with only 56,000 miles.

The lane keeping assist even when shut off prevents lane changes. A truck drifted into my lane and I had to use extreme force to steer over the car. The collision assist will randomly brake at high way speeds, also while off. The brakes will get squishy, not properly engage and make funny noises while the parking collision is off as well.

The contact owns a 2016 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while backing out the driveway at approximately 2 mph the electronic power steering became difficult, and the steering wheel was unable to turn. The electronic power steering warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 19v065000 (steering ). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 83,000.

My vehicle's horn stop working about six months ago, not long after I had to replace the battery. I took it to dealership and they had to replace the clock spring , roll connector. I use the horn only when absolutely necessary. I have never had a cars horn go out. I think they ought to last at least ten years if not longer. Is this a defect? I just wanted to let you know.

Incident on highway 80 on may 30, 2020. Entered highway 80 (east) from donner sumit roadside rest, accelerated in the slow land and passed a truck and accelerated in the fast lane to 65-70 mph. Began feeling a severe/violent shaking of the steering wheel, a couple of inches or so, side to side. Pulled over and steering wheel was still shaking and brought the vehicle to a full stop. Shaking stopped. Inspected wheels for looseness and nothing appeared abnormal. Lane keeping system was not engaged at the time. Could be new automatic emergency steering but activated falsely. Felt very unsafe and had to hold steering wheel tight to retain control took vehicle to dealer who could not find anything wrong with car, no codes in diagnostic. No warning lamps or messages appeared.

See all problems of the 2022 Subaru Forester 🔎.

I was made a turn at roughly 15mph and the front passenger side control arm sheared in half causing me to lose control of the vehicle and then abruptly come to an immediate stop. My family was in the car and at a higher speed this could have been fatal. Had there been any vehicles behind me that could have caused an accident with unknown results. Had this been moments early I would have been in a head on collision. This is a known issue for this year, make, and model that was not properly resolved in the past by the manufacturer. The part should not fail in that manner. There were no warnings. The failure was inspected by the tow truck driver.

See all problems of the 2006 Subaru Forester 🔎.

On 19 January 22 while driving approx 60mph on I-95n s/o exit 92 (at that point hwy is divided 2 lanes n/b), the steering wheel suddenly froze and decelerated to 20mph, sending my vehicle leftward into passing lane in the path of tractor trailers traveling at high speeds. I don't know how but I was able to wrestle car back into r/h lane and off hwy. It was towed to a repair shop where the alignment was severely off. They also found evidence that the r front brake had locked. They replaced calipers and realigned wheels. Within 20 miles after repairs the steering again became very stiff. I had the car towed to my mechanic who found "numerous" codes indicating failure of steering control module and rack and pinion assy. Since that time it has been realigned three times but I still feel the steering is erratic with vibration of both the steering cheel and chassis. After 2 attempts, a Subaru service shop seems to have eliminated the steering wheel vibration by dismounting the damaged front tires and switching the damaged outer treads onto the inside. This has now made the car feel like it wobbles under 20mph and over 55mph. They have pronounced the car safe to drive, despite my concern for the way the car feels while driving.

When operating the vehicle at low and high speeds, the eyesight system intermittently turns off with a "check owner's manual" message and the system remains off until at least the next vehicle restart. Additionally, after the eyesight system disengages, when making turns at low speeds (turning corners), the steering shudders (quick violent turns to the left and right), the eyesight warning light disappears and then re-appears after the vehicle turn is completed. At the same time the vehicle steering shudders, some portion of the internal electrical system appears to be reset (any radio / music system turns off temporarily, and the user-selected display in the main instrument panel resets to its default setting. This puts the vehicle occupant(s) at risk as it introduces an unsafe driving condition due to the vehicle shudder, which may result in a driver panic-reacting, or the vehicle failing to remain in the intended lane.

On December 30, 2021, I was driving on I-95 s around 4 pm about 1/2 a mile from exit 43b when my 2019 Subaru Forester with 64,000 miles stalled in the middle of the highway. I was going about highway speed during rush hour 55-65 pmh when the check engine light came on, the eyesight feature light came on, and the emergency brake light came on. Scariest moment in my life. The vehicle stalled, the steering got really stiff, and the vehicle started sputtering along probably at 2 mph. I managed to make my way to the breakdown lane and called Subaru starlink roadside assistance. After towing the vehicle to the dealership, the diagnosis revealed that both tumble generators on the air intake manifold failed and I also needed a fuel line replacement. After doing a lot of research on the internet it appears that Subaru Foresters have a history of these failures and there has been a number of recalls for this particular model detailing the vehicle losing power or stalling. Unfortunately, the dealership and corporate Subaru refuse to cover the full cost of the repairs as they claim the vehicle is past the warranty period; they have $750 to cover $1800 worth of repairs. This is clearly a safety issue and defect, and Subaru is clearly neglecting its responsibility to cover known defects from the factory.

Safety recall: wvx34 NHTSA campaign: 11v464000 the front lower passenger side control arm completely rusted in half. It occurred while parking vehicle, fortunately not driving at high speed. The recall was previously completed by Subaru dealership in ann arbor, michigan, in 2011. According to service records, they had been treated with anti-corrosion coating. . . I purchased the vehicle from a family member of the original owner, weeks ago, December 2021. It had been serviced regularly by the dealership and now has 162,000 miles. This structural failure of the lower control arm could have been extremely disastrous if driving at speed on the road or highway! I contacted my local dealership in traverse city, mi, and was told by the service advisor the recall had been completed and would not be covered again for subsequent replacement. My vehicle is undrivable and Subaru is not standing behind their parts or workmanship.

See all problems of the 2003 Subaru Forester 🔎.

November 8/21, temperature 41 f. Started the car and started to move and steering wheel was stiff. Steering warning light came on. Shut off and started car two more times and steering went back to normal and warning light went off. A code of c2532 was stored. This issue was identified as a problem as far back as 2016, but no recall has been issued. The part has been updated, supposedly, as the original had what they called a frozen relay. It is an obvious safety issue that was identified long before warranty expired. I realize your organization is for american's but our vehicles are the same and unfortunately we do not have a player with the clout that yours brings to these issues. The salt in the wound for us was the close to $1000 cdn. Bill for the updated part to be replaced. Close to $800 for the part alone! thank you people.

I drive this v little, but the steering wheel has repeatedly tried to jerk me into the left lane when tuning right and right when turning left! I stopped using cruise, but it still does it. I am an advanced driver, but don't low, if I could overcome this if it acted like some other 2020 Foresters I've read owners state have gone off the road and rolled over! also the auto stop - start often shuts engine off when power is needed - is totally unpredictable! this is my wife's car, but she got it as the seat works with my v bad back! had I known the eyesight system would malfunction (I did not trust it, but hoped it would be ok!), I'd have insisted on getting a good older car without unproven so called driver aids! we really don't have the $ to replace the car!.

Engine shuts off when coasting into a turn when car is moving at less than 5mph. Causes loss of steering. Will restart if gas pedal is pumped. Dealer can find no problem. Does not happen predictably and can not always be replicated. Very dangerous.

When I stop the vehicle and put in park, I cannot not turn car off or pull out key. I put car back in drive and drive a few feet forward or back. After putting in park again, I can then turn car off and pull key out. It is now happening more frequently, like every time I drive it. Also sometimes have trouble turning the key to start the car. Have had problems periodically for several years. Now its getting to be a regular problem. Very dangerous when you cannot turn the car off. And it will probably get worse with snowy weather. A safety issue. I see there is a NHTSA safety bulletin #10155220 that lists this problem. It looks like an existing problem with Subarus. Not sure why there is no recall?.

The ignition key has started getting stuck in the ignition after turning the motor off. It takes several tries, involving turning the motor back on and pulling the key out as I’m turning the motor off and pushing the stick back into park really hard per Subaru. . . . Subaru has acknowledged it’s a faulty part and lots of complaints online. . . They even did a tech bulletin # 16-112-18r but say its a customers problem. . . .

Lane keep assist feature the lane keep assist feature seems, in general, to over steer causing sway back and forth across the lane. While I find this bothersome, most recently, at highway speed, the lane keep assist pulled the car (suddenly and somewhat violently) onto an exit ramp rather than holding the right lane. No one was hurt. No damage occurred. I was able to yank the wheel back to the lane with the entire incident over in less and a second. Safety at risk? highway speed with unanticipated veer of intended path. It was good that traffic was quite light. I have not reported this to the dealer. No special warnings other than that the system "worked".

I was getting on the highway in minnesota doing 55-60 mph when the car started violently shaking and I lost steering with cars whizzing by me at 65-70+ mph. I was finally able to get the car just off the road and called for roadside assist. Once the car was left at my house I examined the right front wheel which was cockeyed to discover the lower control arm steel body had disintegrated (see photos). Looking online I discovered there had been a recall on these arms 9 years ago. I sent a message to Subaru customer care and received no reply. I sent a tweet on twitter to Subaru of America and received no reply. I finally called their 800 number and was told the recall had been completed on this vehicle in 2012 by putting some "rust-proofing" on the arms. They did not go through the effort to replace with the upgraded replacement part. Soa said they would not cover any repair or replacement of the lower control arms. There have to be 10s of thousands of these vehicles on the roads with arms rotting from the inside out because soa did the recall on the cheap. The bushings and balljoint was still intact and no clunking or judder prior to the catastrophic failure. Is it going to take a death(s) to get this corrected. Soa know they should have replaced these arms and will sell you the upgraded one for around $300. No aftermarket companies are making these arms as far as I can find. Subaru admits on their own parts site the arms "do not often fail" I. E the body and instead the bushings wear out. The body of the car has very minimal rust and no signs the arm(s) would have deteriorated. I have asked soa to replace the arms with ones that are structurally sound but think a second recall on cars that didn't get new arms may be required.

See all problems of the 2008 Subaru Forester 🔎.

The contact owns a 2014 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 50 mph, the steering wheel moved back and forth while on cruise control with the tires wobbling. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and diagnosed that the front driver’s and passenger’s side tires were able to move 6-8 inches without effort. The steering gear and all four tires were replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 78,000.

See all problems of the 2014 Subaru Forester 🔎.

The contact owned a 2019 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal needed to be depressed to the floorboard to stop the vehicle. Additionally, the steering wheel would jerk out of the contact's hand while at a stoplight. The dealer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that it was normal. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The contact traded the vehicle in for another vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 23,000.

I bought the 2003 forrester off craig's list while driving the car the steering is very loose and sways on the road . I noticed a small it was funny I could not identify it. I woke latter that night with a headache at the base of my skull and was extremely dizzy and nausea. I felt that way. Through out. The day. I drove it a short. Distance the next day with the windows down. I begin hearing a grinding. Thumping noise in the rear . Tites or brakes . Bur it sounded like it was going to fall apart. The inside of the car had a oily dust all over it. And the funny smell. I looked. At exhaust. Pipe to see. How it looked and I put my finger in what was coming. Our. And it was dark oil. I have not driven the car since. I found out the name on the tittle is not who sold me the car. He lied to me about every thing. He said buyers remorse. I believe the car unsafe to drive I could have bern killed.

With engine running and shift lever in park (cvt transmission) driver is unable to turn the engine off or remove the ignition key from the steering wheel. This occurs sporadically/unpredictably such that driver has no forewarning and cannot take proactive steps to avoid the problem, resulting in instances where driver is forced to leave the car running in situations that present safety concerns. (examples: in a garage or enclosed area; when temporarily exiting vehicle necessitating leaving the doors unlocked; etc. ). The problem is widespread in Subaru vehicles and consistent with problems exhibited/described in Subaru technical service bulletin (TSB) #16-112-18r for which no recall has to date been issued for corrective action by Subaru. Driver was told by Subaru of America that a diagnostics test is needed by a Subaru dealer to verify existence of the problem (which as stated occurs unpredictably) at driver's expense (locally approximately $140), with repair coverage of defective/poorly-designed shift or electrical components not being covered by Subaru beyond the standard warranty period for the affected vehicle. Estimated cost of repair for defects as listed in the TSB (per on-line sources). . . $400-$650 depending on dealer and geographical location.

I am writing to inform you of the following problems with the steering system of my 2017 Subaru Forester: 1) when turning or changing car lanes, the steering wheel does not engage the wheels until the steering wheel is turned to about a 90 degree angle in the direction of the turn, left or right, 2) after making a turn, it takes more rotations of the steering wheel to come out of the turn than it took to make the turn. At other times it takes more rotations of the steering wheel to make the turn than it does to come out of the turn, 3) constant adjustments to steering have to be made in order to stay in a lane regardless of whether the lane is straight or curved. It's like trying to maneuver a boat on water or like driving on a frictionless surface. It feels like the car switches to a different control system, either void of any driver control, or delayed response to driver input, and 4) the steering wheel has to be turned to almost a 90 degree angle before it engages the wheels while the car is running and stationary. With the exception of item 4, the steering problems occur when there are other cars in the vicinity of our car. On secluded roads our car drives fine, so far. The steering issues occur during city and highway driving. The steering problems occur even when the following car assistive technologies are all set to off: automatic braking, hill assist, lane change assist, x-mode, eyesight, and cruise control. On may 4, 2021, we took the car to the Subaru superstore of chandler in arizona. We showed the dealership a video of item 4 and they observed it. They described it as "egregious". The dealership stated that they could not find a reason for item 4 and they could not duplicate the other problems. They stated that they documented the problem. Having an unresponsive/delayed response steering system could prove disastrous when seconds count to avert a disaster. This has been an ongoing problem since October 2018, with no resolution from Subaru.

The 12-16 impreza, 13-17 crosstrek, and 14-18 Forester have a known issue of the electric steering rack becoming compromised, leading to steering issues. The issue is described in the issue bulletin as just "uneven steering effort" and that it is not unsafe and so is not a recall item, however I came to learn about this issue with my car after it suddenly starting this problem while driving, causing me to jerk wildly to the other side of the road with only the slightest left turn of the steering wheel, which could have very definitely caused an accident (this all being in front of a police officer, of course). I am 8 months pregnant and now all of a sudden have a possible dangerous issue with my car but cannot afford the fix immediately- I am hoping this can become a recall item in order to feel safe in my car again.

Vehicle has 50k miles. Window motor on driver window replaced twice. Keeps failing. Also uneven tread wear on brand new tires indicating something wrong with vehicle.

Have a 2019 Subaru forrester. Had 30,000 mile service recently at dealer. Since then, multiple electric malfunctions. First abs turned off, then auto start stop started malfunctioning for 2 weeks, took to the dealership, they told me "hood sensor malfunctioning, and bring it back in 4 weeks when part arrives. " four days later, I was driving my car and in the middle of traffic, engine shut off completely! whole dashboard lit up with "eyesight disabled" sign, engine light on. Unable to move the car at all. After 10 minutes of car stopped in the middle of traffic with engine disabled, finally was able to restart the car, then engine shut down again. Took it to dealership and they replaced hood sensor and said "everything is fine. " meanwhile multiple electric failure issues, passenger side seatbelt alarm beeps even though seat empty, abs shuts off randomly. Please beware 2019 forrester has catastrophic electronic failure that Subaru is failing to address properly as a company. This is a major safety hazard! imagine car shutting off in middle of traffic repeatedly. I bought this car new, have kept it well serviced with oil changes. Subaru seems to think this is ok. They kept saying "it's just an electrical issue," just an electrical issue that can cause severe injury and accidents! how many accidents will have to occur before Subaru will take responsibility for this and fixes this?.

Tl the contact owns a 2017 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving 25 mph and turning right onto the highway ramp, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact pulled off the highway onto the shoulder, shut-off and restarted the vehicle, and the steering functionality returned. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to rhett allen/mark miller Subaru southtowne (10920 state st, sandy, utah 84070, (801)553-5200 where the vehicle was diagnosed however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure recurred. The manufacture was notified of the failure however, provided no assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 61,000.

Received a warning light saying to check power steering. Nothing to check on electric power steering. Light went off by switching ignition off and back on. Internet search found failures while driving on the eps system, so I took car in for diagnosis. A code had been stored that lead to a diagnosis of bad eps gearbox. Repair necessitated replacement of entire steering rack. Not an isolated incident. Problem needs to be addressed for obvious safety reasons - loss of steering!.

Have less then 10,000 miles on my vehicle. I purchased it brand new. When I tried to start it today, the steering wheel seemed locked and the error message came on. It's parked in a semi-heated garage at home.