2016 Subaru Forester problems
Owners have filed 627 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Subaru Forester. Air bags is the most reported problem area, at 18% of complaints. After that come electrical system (15%) and engine (10%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 627 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 18% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 78 and 6
- Injuries and deaths
- 38 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 39,000 miles 321 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 93 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 73 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 98 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 28 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 6 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 10 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 2 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 5 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 3 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 1 |
| 200k+ miles | 2 |
What the data shows
Among the 321 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 39,000 miles. For air bags specifically, the median reported mileage is about 40,000 miles (55 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 78 complaints mention a crash; 6 complaints mention a fire; 38 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2016 ranks 6th most-complained-about out of 29 model years of the Subaru Forester with enough data (411 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 3 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
The car was being driven in a residential area. The driver stopped to make a u-turn then slowly started to take her foot off the brake while moving the steering wheel to the left when the car suddenly accelerated to the right (opposite direction). The driver lost control of the vehicle and the vehicle stopped only after colliding into a street pole.
While stopped at a “STOP” sign, the Subaru Forester unintentionally accelerated into a tree although the brake pedals were repeatedly utilized; it was totaled.
I copied this message from another complaint which explains exactly what I am trying to complaint. Subaru is knowingly building its cars with faulty passenger side air bag sensors which will randomly turn off the air bag while the passenger seat is occupied under normal life driving conditions. It is in the 2016 and 2017 owners manual that if there is a cell phone or electrical device in the front area of the car then the air bag sensors could malfunction.
Tl* the contact owns a 2016 subaru forester. The contact stated that the key was stuck in the ignition. The contact stated that several attempts were made before the key released and was removed from the ignition. The mechanic attempted to tap the shift column to dislodge the key however, the key remained stuck in the ignition. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 25,000.