2018 Subaru Forester complaints

I'm filing a complaint regarding a battery drain issue in the 2018 Forester Limited. After sitting idle and not being started for 1.5-2 weeks the battery is fully drained. Fully drained is defined as the car won't start with a portable jumper. The power source car needs to be running and connected to the battery of the dead Forester for upwards of 20mins to give it a partial charge prior to the battery dead Forester being able to start. I've been told various reasons from various dealers and cannot get a straight answer. [A] one subaru dealersip said it's normal to have a dead battery in 3days. [B] another subaru dealership said it was because I had a bad battery, but after replacing it the issue still persisted. I have made sure to manually shut off all lights including making sure the running lights are in the off position, not the automatic on/off position. This incident has occurred multiple times when traveling for week at a time and upon returning to the car to try and start it and it won't start. The same dealership [B] claimed that the parasitic draw was because I kept a cigarette lighter car charging adapter plugged in even though the car was off. I have read several other complaints about this issue regarding this car and hope there can be a recall/legal claim filed against subaru for this issue so they resolve it.

Hi, I came home. Parked in my carport on a moderately cool morning. Three hours later I came out and there was a huge crack up the center of my windshield around 10” long

Temperature dropped to -20 and large crack randomly appeared on driver side windshield. This crack has caused the eyesight safety feature to not work meaning I don’t have lane departure warning or forward collision warning. Informed my warranty does not cover the windshield repair or required camera recalibration.

I bought my 2018 Subaru Forester in may of 2020 it is now January of 2022 and I have replaced the entire windshield THREE TIMES. If requested, my vehicle can be inspected. It is clear that this windshield is too fragile and poses a safety risk for myself and those passengers that enter my vehicle. It is also costing me a lot of money to repair multiple windshields and causing my insurance to go up for something out of my control. I can only imagine what would happen if I were ever to get into an accident with the windshield being that fragile. I am not a dangerous driver nor have I ever been in an accident, I have a clean record. A class action lawsuit filed in 2017 stating that “The cracks were allegedly due to the deicer creating a condition that makes the glass susceptible to cracking after a minor strike to the glass, such as the stone's impact“ it also stated that the lawsuit included 2.5 million Subaru models between the years of 2017-2020. “[XXX], represented by Attorneys [XXX] Law Group, Moon Law APC, and [XXX], contends the Subaru models have "defective and dangerous" windshields that are prone to "cracking, chipping and otherwise breaking."” After the first windshield crack in June of 2020 (1 month after I purchased the vehicle) I called my authorized Subaru dealership and asked if there was a common problem or known safety issue with the windshields, I was told there was not and my issue was singular. This is a SEVERE safety concern. A minor crack went through both

The contact owns a 2018 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving into a parking space at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle unintendedly accelerated, which caused a collision. The contact depressed the brake pedal, but the vehicle crashed into a traffic signpost, a boulder, and then a tree, which stopped the vehicle. No injury was sustained and no medical treatment was received. No air bags were deployed. No police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and diagnosed that the computer system did not show a failure. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer. The vehicle was not deemed totaled by the insurance company. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. Prior to the collision, the vehicle had inadvertently accelerated on several occasions. The failure mileage was approximately 38,000.

While turning in a parking lot car accelerated and hit a tree. Foot was on brake and airbags didn’t deploy despite extensive damage. Body shop estimator said computer wouldn’t confirm problem. It was not caused by floor mat! No warning lights prior to incident.

Hello, I am writing to report an incident of a cracked windshield while driving on highway 5 in Los Angeles, CA. I have owned this vehicle for about 6 months. The vehicle is available for inspection and I have attached the photos for review. The windshield has been inspected by a Subaru dealership who states they cannot repair or replace the windshield. The dealership suggested filing a claim with NHTSA and visiting their partner, Safelite AutoGlass. A Subaru dealer and partner, Safelite AutoGlass, both confirmed that Subaru's defective or weak/brittle windshield is a known and common issue. The windshield malfunction appears to be a recurring problem across several models nation-wide with a lawsuit pending: https://bergermontague.com/cases/subaru-windshield-cracking/. Furthermore, this commonly known issue was not prefaced during contract reviews and Subaru warranty does not cover the damages. The windshield issues was not highlighted or recommended for coverage when purchasing insurance. Safelite AutoGlass offered to replace the windshield with the original glass and confirms we do not have the option of choosing stronger or better quality windshield options. Continuously replacing a poor product with the same poor product could be dangerous if this continues to occur especially in the event it blocks visibility. Additionally the frequency of the problem will be burdensome especially since this car was purchased specifically to drive in harsh weather conditions. There was n

Windshield easily getting chips and pits affecting visibility and now a crack from, a small pebble.

Bought vehicle June 2021. Battery failed multiple times. Sometimes it will start with a jump, but on 12/2/21 it was completely dead and required tow to Michael's Subaru dealer in Bellevue, WA. Battery was replaced twice within 6 week period.

At around 35,400 miles on the odometer, the vehicle first started backfiring as I was driving. I began an uphill climb through low mountains and the check engine light began flashing, the "emissions control systems" warning light came on the screen, the engine began seriously sputtering and lost a lot of its power, all occurring at the same time. Luckily I have a standard transmission and was able to downshift through gears to regain some power and was able to drive 10 miles, seriously sputtering the whole time, to a safe location. I turned off the engine and it wouldn't start back up again, therefore, I had to have it towed home. The next day I had it towed to a Subaru dealer. It took them 5-6 days to diagnose the cause and fix. I was told it was a VERY rare occurrence; it was pinpointed to the fuel injector and coil, they went bad in cylinder #1. The parts were replaced with new ones and a new spark plug was installed as well. ALL codes are gone and the problem was completely fixed. Thankfully, the service was covered by manufacturer's warranty of 5yrs/60,000 miles power train. For being such a fairly new engine, this problem should not of occurred. A defective fuel injector. However, I can understand that there can always be some sort of flukes. As of this writing, I have not gone to the dealership to pick up the vehicle.

The contact owns a 2018 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH, there was an abnormal sound coming from the rear wheels. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with needing the wheel bearings replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that the parts would be replaced free of charge. The failure mileage was approximately 77,409.

On 10/9/2021the front windshield was hit by a small rock on the lower left driver's side and a crack developed within a few minutes. The crack grew and obstructed the driver's field of vision. This required the entire windshield being replaced. This was done by Safelite AutoGlass on 9/13/2021 at my residence. It was paid by my insurance and I paid a $100 deductible. In addition the replacement windshield was damaged by another small rock hitting it on I71 north near Louisville KY. This time the damage was limited to a bulls eye fracture. This was repaired by myself using a Rainx windshield repair kit. The windshield seems very fragile and prone to be damaged easily as both "rock his" did not seem that bad and should not have caused damage. I found after this repair that there are additional complaints and a class action lawsuit for similar problems with this vehicle.

Purchased this certified pre-owned, with warranty on 4/30/21. Required jumpstarts for dead battery five + times over the first 4 months, in moderate weather. Dealership confirmed that a new battery was installed at the time of my purchase. The vehicle has been towed to the dealership several times, they can find no issues. They then replaced the battery on 8/4/21 as the 3-month old battery failed testing per fail code JRGKF50-328J0D1. The car required a jump start on 11/21, again on 11/26, and I am currently waiting (12/2/21) for Subaru Roadside assistance, for yet another jump start. The car was last driven (commute home from work) yesterday. External temperatures have not been overly cold - yet. It should be noted that I turn off the radio and heat/air before shutting off the ignition. I have also disconnected my phone from the car's system in order to prevent any further battery drain. This is completely unacceptable. Roadside assistance takes a minimum of 60-90 minutes to respond. I work in Trenton NJ, where it is dangerous to be with a disabled vehicle for possibly hours awaiting service. I've owned over a dozen cars through the years, and have never experienced battery drain issues.

Windshield crack.

My windshield appeared to crack for no reason. The crack randomly appeared one day without a corresponding incident (no previous chips/crack in that area and nothing hitting my windshield). The crack began on the edge of the windshield in the upper corner on the passenger side and has continued to spread. There is no mark or indication in that area that the windshield was hit. The dealership mentioned when I purchased the car that I should get the windshield warranty due to an excessive amount of windshield cracking in my area. They claimed Subaru even did an investigation into Subaru vehicles in Michigan due to the high windshield replacement rate. It appears to be a defective windshield that the company is aware of and not recalling. The crack has spread across 80% of the windshield at eye level. It must be replaced for safety reasons but Subaru says this is over $1,000 as they have to calibrate it.

My battery keeps draining for some unknown reason. It's parked in the garage and locked but it is always dead when I need to use it. I need a reliable transportation and I have never had this problem before. I have had 4 - 5 jumps from my insurance company in the last few weeks. And it's dead again today after a jump a few days ago.

I left my car for 19 days while on vacation in my garage and the battery was dead when I returned. I charged the battery after jumping it with our other car. Now, 14 days later, the car would not start again and needed to be jumped. I have read about the battery drain. My care only has 21K miles.

There seems to be a fast battery drain on my car. After using the car and letting it stay parked (with all the interior lights off and checked to make sure everything was completely off) for 36hours, the car would not start. This has happened multiple times. It was not dead winter cold, it was approx 70º or hotter.

Repeatedly the passenger air bag turns off even when car is in motion (warning lights turn on) with passenger in front seat. We have heated seats but apparently are not part of the recall that covers other Foresters with the exact same problem. Anytime we are in the car and it is deactivated it puts the passenger at risk if an accident would occur. This is extremely dangerous and can lead to death from a problem that the company appears to be aware of. It used to be we could turn the car off, have the passenger get out, restart the car, and the sensor will work, but now that does not happen. We would love to get rid of this vehicle but that is not an option at this time.

NHTSA Recall No. : 19V-701 Manufacturer Recall No. : WUM-98 The issue in this recall is affecting my car and it fits the description in the recall and the exact issue is happening in my car but dealership is charging me $1087.58 to fix it.

Second time windshield had to be replaced from cracking after sustaining small rock chip.

WINDOWSHIELD GLASS (FRONT) HAS A CRACK (ABOUT A FOOT LONG) JUST BY ITSELF.

Repeatedly the passenger air bag turns off during road trips (warning lights turn on) with passenger in front seat. This will be my second complaint because I felt you all needed time to add my cars VIN to your recall list. Anytime we are in the car and it is deactivated it puts the passenger at risk if an accident would occur.

Sudden unexplained acceleration incident. Car accelerated without input from driver and rear-ended a parked vehicle in front of the vehicle Eyesight system did not engage to warn or prevent impact with rear end of car in front. The vehicle was travelling at low speed and suddenly accelerated. This is dangerous because it does not provide enough time to prevent from hitting an object in front of the vehicle like a car or person. The problem has not been reproduced by by the manufacturer who sent a technician who inspected the vehicle and could not find any saved info in the event data recorder or saved diagnostics codes. Complaints were filed with the dealership before the incident that the eyesight system did not appear to be functioning correctly. The first time this has happened was 6/02/2021 in the afternoon on a clear day on a clear pathway without any obstructions. The second time this happened was 9/06/2021. The second incident the vehicle accelerated while travelling at low speed with the eyesight system briefly warning tone beeping. The brakes were applied quickly and the car seemed almost to stall. The engine made a noise as the stalling conditions ended and the car went back to normal. Subaru filed a service report SR# 1-70302162357. State Farm opened a claim 3620R756C.

Sudden unexplained acceleration incident. Car accelerated without input from driver and rear-ended a parked vehicle in front of the vehicle Eyesight system did not engage to warn or prevent impact with rear end of car in front. The vehicle was travelling at low speed and suddenly accelerated. This is dangerous because it does not provide enough time to prevent from hitting an object in front of the vehicle like a car or person. The problem has not been reproduced by by the manufacturer who sent a technician who inspected the vehicle and could not find any saved info in the event data recorder or saved diagnostics codes. Complaints were filed with the dealership before the incident that the eyesight system did not appear to be functioning correctly. The first time this has happened was 6/02/2021 in the afternoon on a clear day on a clear pathway without any obstructions. The second time this happened was 9/06/2021. The second incident the vehicle accelerated while travelling at lo speed with the eyesight system briefly warning tone beeping. The brakes were applied quickly and the carr seemed almost to stall. The engine made a noise as the stalling conditions ended and the car went back to normal. Subaru filed a service request previously. SR# 1-70302162357.

With car in park key will not turn to the off position and can not be removed.

Battery was dead when we tried to leave, no reason as the car had been fully turned off. Left myself and my daughter stranded for 90 minutes in the heat without viable cell service, until I was able to find someone with jumper cables. Went to car parts store and bought a new $176 battery- as I wasn’t able to make it the 45 minutes to the dealer. Want reimbursement for battery and repair/explanation so it doesn’t occur again.

Passenger air bag light came on two weeks after the 3 year warranty expired. Vehicle was purchased on August 4th 2018 and light came on last week on Tuesday August 24th. No previous issues. Passenger air bag is deactivated even with passenger in the seat. Resetting ECU and other basic troubleshooting did not solve the issue. Wiggled wires and connectors under seat and light went off but came back on during driving. Upon research, this is a known issue with my car that has heated front seats, which mine does. However, for whatever reason, my car VIN is not associated with the recall. ODS issue. The NHTSA campaign number is 19V701

When putting the car in park and attempting to turn the car off and take the key out of the ignition, the key is stuck. I typically have to shift back into R or N and then back in park a few times before the key is able to be released. This has been happening off and on for about 6 months and seems to get worse in the heat.

During the winter of 2019 I was driving during a heavy wet snow storm. I had to stop every 5 -10 minutes to wipe off my headlights as they were covered in heavy wet snow. This was a safety issue as I needed to get out of my car on the side of the interstate near Hardin MT, where often many vehicles would pass near the car. For an all weather SUV, this is a safety issue. The lights did not produce any heat to melt the snow so that I could continue to drive in a safe manner. Have never run into this issue before with any vehicle. I have written Subaru about this issue after this occurred, but have never received any response.

WINDSHEILD CRACKED ON PASSENGER SIDE FOR NO REASON

Passenger side airbag sensor malfunctioning, vehicle has heated seats. Sometimes when passenger is seated the passenger airbag does not turn on and the airbag malfunction light comes on. There is a recall for the same issue for the same year model Subaru Recall #19V701000. However, my particular Subaru does not fall within the date range listed on original recall, though it appears to be the exact same problem based on the description.

WENT INTO THE DOCTORS OFFICE YESTERDAY AND WHEN I CAME OUT THE REAR HACH WAS OPEN. THE CAR WAS LOCKED AND SECURE WHEN WE WENT IN.

The CVT transmission is begining to fail, the car has come near stalling several times and has a very rough/lurching shift while accelerating onto highways and merging. Subaru dealership says it does not qualify for a warranty replacement even though Subaru extended the warranty specifically for this problem.

The AC System has failed, most likely the compressor at 76,000 miles. This problem is widespread across Subaru models 2017 & 2018 and repairs cost at around $1,500.00. For a less than 3 year old, very maintained car components should not be failing this soon. Having no working AC is a safety hazard to be in while driving in 100+ degree weather and also the windshield will fog over because moisture is not being taken out of the air now.

The key would not pull from the ignition. We took the car to a Subaru Dealership and they had to replace the shifter assembly. This would have cost $650 had it not been covered by our 30 day limited warantee. We had just bought the car a week prior. There was no recall on the required notice we got when we bought the car because Subaru had not issued at that time. I discovered this when visiting forums of others with a similar experience. The owners know their experience, but that knowledge has not risen to the level of public acknowledgement by Subaru. The windshield cracked in 3 places for no discernable reason. We had it looked at, and they are not deep enough for service, at this time. However, we anticipate having to get a replacement windshield with estimated costs of $1000 or more. Another discovery found in the forums, but not from Subaru directly. The general public relies on the credibility of manufacturers and dealerships when making this long term investments. Subaru concealing information this information is quite concerning. If they do not disclose then neither do the dealerships selling them. In the end, the consumer ends up with the expense.

Multiple times, I've had the car parked for several days and when I try to start it, the battery is dead. I've had the dealer check the battery twice, and the entire charging system once. They couldn't find a problem. This doesn't happen every time consistently, but it's happened enough that I wanted to report the issue.

When a passenger sits in the front passenger seat of my Subaru Forester, the airbag notification light indicates that the airbag is "OFF". It is my understanding that there was a recall for this very issue but when I contacted Subaru to get it fixed, they said that my vehicle wasn't on their list of recalled vehicles and would not service it under the recall.

The contact owns a 2018 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that the vehicle was parked when she noticed there was a crack on the windshield. There was no impact to the windshield that could have caused the crack. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The dealer and manufacturer were not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 33,203.

The windshield has several small cracks in it and it was not hit by rocks or any other debris.

Battery keeps dying without daily use. I drove my vehicle less than a week ago, no lights left on, nothing in the charging ports, no doors open, and still the battery didn't have enough power to start. I've had to call AAA and have neighbors jump start my vehicle a few times but when I get my battery tested I'm told that my battery is fine and that I do not need a new one. Something is draining my battery and I don't know what.

There is a crack in the glass of my moon roof and the moon roof is not properly sealed so water leaks in to the car. I purchased the vehicle on 6/18/21 and noticed the crack today (6/25/21) as I was examining the car when I was showing it to a friend of mine. I noticed the water leaking in to the car on 6/19/21 and 6/24/21 when I took the vehicle to get washed.

Follow up-to complaint #11420905 submitted 6/14/2021. The car was taken back to the dealership due to stall, hesitation, slowness, and erratic uncontrolled acceleration. Safety was the main issue. The dealer confirmed the concern and replaced the transmission with a remanufactured one. The problems still remain with the exception of the stalling. We believe this situation requires further thorough investigation and possible recall or new transmission installation.

The 2018 Forrester XT was taken to Subaru Dealer (Gwinnett) for a routine 42,000-mile service. There were no issues with the car. Shortly after picking up and driving approximately 30 miles the car stalled twice at traffic lights. The engine was restarted but started to exhibit sluggish and erratic acceleration, especially from 0-45 MPH. The car was taken back to Gwinnett Subaru the next day. They did some data retrieval and found a mass airflow event, cleaned the air filter, test drove the car, and released it to us. The next few days, the same problems were experienced but the car did not stall. At one point, at a traffic light, the car would simply not accelerate even with full pedal pressure which was gradually increased. When it finally did, it was uncontrolled and erratic. Highway driving once speed was reached seemed normal, but any acceleration from a slower speed was problematic. On Monday 6-14-2021 the car was taken back to the dealer due to serious concerns about safety and the possibility of the loss of power when critically needed or when on the highway. The dealer promised to investigate the problem further. That evening, we were informed that it was their assessment that the car would need a brand new CVT transmission. The car has approximately 41,100 miles and we were told that it would be covered by the 5 years/60,000 miles powertrain warranty. Expected to take 7-10 days for repair.

When applying gentle gas pressure at low speed car does not respond for 2-4 seconds, then lurches strongly forward as tho full throttle has been applied. Happens at random times. Dealer said nothing wrong when first happened 2 years ago. Was rare until today when it happened 6 times within 50 miles of city driving. Will see dealer tomorrow. No warnings of any kind. Grave safety hazard as could be hit by traffic when trying to enter street or get out of somebodies way when car does't respond.

The windshield, after being in a garage for A whole weekend cracked. There was no impact, it just split up the middle. This issue has had a class action lawsuit brought up against Subaru, and is something that sadly happened to me to. I am now stuck with an almost 1000 bill. There were no warnings or causes. It happened with no indication this would occur.

The windshield cracked over half way across due to no apparent reason. Noticed it in the morning after vehicle had been parked in a protected area. The crack continued to get bigger over the next day and now covers over half of the windshield.

Changing wipers blades. Blade hit passenger side windshield and creates a 12 inch crack. Windshield had to be replaced.

I have had numerous times that my car would not start because the battery was dead. I upgraded my battery at purchase because I had the dealer install a remote start. Within a few months my car was completely dead and had to be towed to the dealer, 2.5 hrs away. Subaru replaced the battery with the biggest battery that would fit. The next winter, the same dead battery issues happened. It was suggested that I get a car starter jump pack, to keep on hand, which I used often. Then the battery stopped holding charge for even four days. So they recommended that I get a Trickle charge battery tender, so I did. The dealer thought it might be the remote starter, and replaced that. So far, it has been okay, but it is warmer weather now too. They also recommended that I keep the battery tender plugged in all time, year round, which seems crazy for a new car. I tried several times and ways to download my invoices showing these repairs. All failed.

BATTERY DRAINS FOR SEEMINGLY NO REASON. THE RADIO OR LIGHTS ARE NOT LEFT ON THAT WOULD MAKE THE CAR DRAIN WHILE THE CAR OFF. I HAD TO REPLACE THE BATTERY ON 5/14/2021.