2021 Subaru Forester problems
Owners have filed 290 complaints with NHTSA about the 2021 Subaru Forester. Wipers, windshield & visibility is the most reported problem area, at 31% of complaints. After that come electrical system (11%) and engine (11%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 290 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Wipers, windshield & visibility 31% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 28 and 10
- Injuries and deaths
- 19 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 9,000 miles 41 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 | 29 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 12 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 0 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 0 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 0 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 0 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 0 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 41 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 8,000 miles. For wipers, windshield & visibility specifically, the median reported mileage is about 5,000 miles (21 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 28 complaints mention a crash; 10 complaints mention a fire; 19 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2021 ranks 8th most-complained-about out of 29 model years of the Subaru Forester with enough data (290 complaints in that window).
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 contact owned a 2021 Subaru Forester Sport. The contact stated while driving at 75 MPH, the front end of the vehicle crashed into a small deer. The air bags did not deploy. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact's friend who was occupying the front passenger seat exited the vehicle and inspected the front end of the vehicle. The contact's friend then advised her to immediately exit the vehicle as there were flames underneath the hood of the vehicle.
The contact owned a 2021 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 4 MPH and slowing to park, the vehicle accelerated on its own. The contact stated that the vehicle drove out of the parking lot and crashed into a wall. The contact stated that the air bags deployed and that the vehicle had then shifted into reverse (R) and driven out away from the wall and crashed into a parked vehicle and stopped. The contact stated she was unaware of any warning lights.
The contact owns a 2021 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while depressing the brake pedal and attempting to park in the driveway, the vehicle excessively independently accelerated in speed. The brake pedal failed to stop the vehicle and the vehicle was shifted into Park in order to come to a stop. The vehicle caused damage to the door and garage. There were no injuries reported. The vehicle was not diagnosed.
On march 2, 2021 I needed to get to an appointment and my car wouldn't start, nor would my fob work to even open the doors. After calling for assistance they jumped the battery. Then I brought it to subaru where they did a complete diagnostics test and found that the battery was defective. I had bought the car nov. 25, 2020, only three months before! They replaced it with the same kind of battery. I was dismayed to find that I had been sold a new car with a defective battery.