2017 Subaru Forester problems
Owners have filed 812 complaints with NHTSA about the 2017 Subaru Forester. Air bags is the most reported problem area, at 25% of complaints. After that come wipers, windshield & visibility (14%) and electrical system (13%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 812 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 25% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 66 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 38 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 30,000 miles 441 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 | 136 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 148 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 95 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 32 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 16 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 9 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 1 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 4 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 441 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 30,000 miles. For air bags specifically, the median reported mileage is about 26,000 miles (104 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 66 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions 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 2017 ranks 4th most-complained-about out of 29 model years of the Subaru Forester with enough data (615 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 1 safety recall campaign.
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.
Tl* the contact owns a 2017 subaru forester. While driving approximately 25 MPH, a tractor trailer collided into the passenger side of the contact's vehicle. As a result, the contact's vehicle rolled down a hill several times and the front end was severely damaged. The driver and passenger side air bags did not deploy. The contact stated that only the passenger and driver side curtain air bags deployed. The driver sustained an injured left hand and left leg as well as shoulder injuries.
My vehicle was involved in a five car accident where is was completely destroyed and flipped upside and the two front airbags never deployed which caused head, back, and neck injuries to the two passengers that were in the two front seats. There was a recall on the the passenger front air bag which supposedly got fixed by Palm Springs subaru on July 13, 2020. This recall air bag never deployed during or after the major accident.
The contact owned a 2017 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while attempting to make a left turn at an intersection, the contact observed there was a vehicle coming towards the intersection at high speeds. The contact stated that the stop light was green, however, the contact stopped the vehicle, and the vehicle coming towards the contact, depressed the brake pedal causing the vehicle to swerve and crash into the contact's vehicle on the front passenger's side at approximately 50 MPH.
While operating my subaru forester an icon appeared on the dash indicating there was an issue with the airbags, at the same time the warning light indicating that the passenger airbag was off even though my wife was seated in the passenger seat. I contacted the dealership and had the car examined and was told that the passenger occupancy sensor was failing and needed to be replaced.
Black foam insulation keeps falling out of my windshield. They have already replaced my windshield previously and had the same problem. They previously put me in a loaner while windshield was on back order. It was a safety concern that the windshield might blow out. They are now telling me this time that this is a known problem problem with the forester. The service advisor told me to just push it back in with a ruler or just pull it out. How can this be a safe solution. What if I have no insulation left ?