2016 Subaru Forester
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Air bags is the leading concern among 414 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 6th highest complaint count among 26 Forester model years with reports.
Of the 2016 reports, 40 involved a crash and 3 involved a fire. 17 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Air bags, sensor, occupant classificationOct 3, 2019
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Forester vehicles equipped with heated seats. An electrical connection in the front passenger seat for the Occupant Detection System (ODS) may loosen.
If the connection loosens, the front passenger airbag may deactivate even though the seat is occupied, increasing the risk of injury to the front passenger in the event of a crash.
Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, replace the ODS sensor mat harness, free of charge. The recall began February 11, 2020. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WUM-98.
Campaign 19V701000 on NHTSA.gov
Exterior lighting, brake lights, switchFeb 28, 2019
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2014-2016 Forester, 2008-2016 Impreza sedans, 2012-2016 Impreza station wagons, 2008-2014 WRX sedans (including STI), and 2013-2017 Crosstrek vehicles. Exposure to certain contaminants may cause the brake light switch to malfunction, preventing the brake lights from illuminating and also preventing keyless ignition vehicles from starting and CVT/automatic transmissions from being able to be shifted out of Park.
Brake lights that do not illuminate properly will not alert other drivers that the vehicle is slowing or stopping, increasing the risk of crash.
Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the brake light switch, free of charge. The recall began April 15, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WUE-90.
Campaign 19V149000 on NHTSA.gov
Engine and engine cooling, engine, gasoline, turbo/superchargerMar 21, 2016
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 WRX vehicles manufactured April 10, 2015, to October 21, 2015, and Forester 2.0XT vehicles manufactured April 10, 2015, to October 20, 2015. The turbocharger air intake duct may crack and possibly result in an engine stall.
An engine stall increases the risk of a crash.
Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the turbocharger air intake duct, and replace it as necessary, free of charge, depending on the lot number found on the duct. The recall began April 2016. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-800-782-2783. Subaru's number for this recall is WTA-62.
Campaign 16V162000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
414 reports, newest first.
Vehicle speed control, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Sep 19, 2023
This 2016 Subaru Forester PCV Valve does not regulate the combustion system properly, this allows oil to enter this chamber. It causes loss of power and acceleration when driving. Hazardous driving conditions can cause accidents. crankcase ventilation issues engine oil system issues
Other or unspecified, Sep 15, 2023
My tire pressure warning light came on even though all tire pressures were correct. My key fobs also stopped working to lock/unlock the car at the same time. There are hundreds of posts online in Subaru forums, people experiencing the same issues. The TPMS/keyless entry module fails because moisture get into the area it is mounted due to poor design. I had to spend $800.00 parts and labor to get this fixed. Subaru should assume responsibility for this issue. They changed the location of the TPMS module in later models, but those of us with older cars shouldn't have to pay such an expense. The tire pressure monitoring system was deemed necessary by NHTSA. Subaru should have to ensure is it free from defect and initiate a recall.
Other or unspecified, Aug 25, 2023
On 8/13/23 one of the lift gate struts on my 2016 Forester sheared off at the bolt while I was loading groceries into the back. It crashed onto my shoulder with no warning, no sound, and very quickly. I was unable to reach up to stop it in time and was standing under the gate. While I did not require medical attention it did cause a bruise and muscle soreness for a few days. I should still have the lift gate strut that broke unless the dealer took it from my car. I have photos either way. This situation could be extremely dangerous for a couple reasons, one because it sheared off at all, and also because the other lift gate strut does not support the weight of the gate by itself, and it was 11 days before I could get the broken one replaced. It could have hit me in the head, broken a bone, landed on a child or pet, etc, either when it sheared off initially, or when the gate crashed down onto me or another person during the time I was waiting to get the repair. You also cannot close the gate without removing the broken lift gate strut which is dangerous by itself. I am aware that there is an extended warranty, but Subaru told me it only applies if the lift gate strut breaks or doesn't work, so I could not get them replaced prior to this under the warranty. I feel this should be a recall, not a warranty extension, because if consumers have to wait until the lift gate strut fails, then it's more likely to cause serious injury. On a Forester owner's forum online I looked for similar issues and immediately found a couple other people to whom this happened. I did not look much farther than that, I just wanted to know if it was only me, and it wasn't. So the dealer did replace the one that broke, under the warranty, but they said the non-broken one was not covered. That means I have to either pay them excess money to replace it (vs. going to my own mechanic, paying less but thereby voiding the warranty) or wait until the second one fails. This needs to be a recall. The contact stated on 8/26/23 the second lift gate strut sheared off and the gate again crashed down. Fortunately I was clear of it this time. But I need to amend or add all of this information and more (including photos) to the original complaint.
Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Aug 22, 2023
My 2016 Subaru Forester is having acceleration and possibly fuel propulsion issues. It stays in low gear, high RPM when accelerating. This happened after a Yellowstone week long road trip from San Leandro, CA. The MPG has dropped from 24mpg to 12mpg and has been at Hayward Subaru since 8/15/2023. They have not provided a known issue. Still trying to figure out what is wrong. There was a low oil warning light on the way home and we stopped for an oil change in West Sacramento within 15 miles of the light coming on. The issue has been happening since the oil change. Only oil change and air filter replacement done on 8/8/2023. Thought maybe its a fuel injector issue. Still at dealership. We did fill the fuel tank with 85 octane in Elko, NV once.
Engine, Aug 13, 2023, fire
The car caught on fire while in operation. A complete loss. It started in the engine
Electrical system, Exterior lighting, Aug 1, 2023
The backup camera and reverse taillights stopped functioning soon after I bought this vehicle in 2020. I am the 2nd owner and bought it from Peterson Toyota dealership in Boise, ID. There was no particular incident, i just noticed that the backup camera no longer showed an image when putting the car into reverse. I later found out while getting an oil change that the reverse taillights were not functioning either. It is available for inspection, and I have taken it to 2 Subaru dealerships who assessed it and said they couldn't find any specific issue. They confirmed the problem however. It has not been assessed by insurance representatives or police. There was no warning lamp or indication that my reverse lights were not working, other than realizing why no one was letting me out of parking spots. I have tried both replacing the bulbs and replacing the fuses for these systems, with no change. Upon researching, I found an identical problem occuring in Subaru WRX's manufactured between 2015-2021 that is listed under recall 22V522000. I would like to get this fixed as soon as possible and would like to see if it is possible to extend the existing recall to include my vehicle?
Air bags, Jul 24, 2023
While driving, the passenger airbag system would initiate an alert that it needed service, at which time the passenger airbag would turn off with somebody sitting in the seat. My, and my passengers', safety was at risk by the airbag turning off with a full-grown adult sitting in the seat. A Subaru dealership confirmed the alerts and reset them. The code they captured was 'occupant detection sensor malfunction'. The alerts persisted, as did the airbag turning off. There is a previous recall related to this issue - the dealership made it clear that they would do nothing beyond the NHTSA required 'solution', which had already been done and did not solve the problem. They said the only way to positively fix it would be to replace the seat, and quoted me $1500 to do so. I contacted Subaru of America multiple times regarding this issue. They agreed to cover the cost of the seat replacement.
Wheels, Jul 24, 2023
Lug nuts stripped off on the drivers rear wheel, that was corrected. Now my right rear lug nuts have been stripped completely off.
Other or unspecified, Jul 20, 2023
The potential safety issue is with my 2016 Subaru Forester. I'm aware of a recall on the 2017 & 2018's for the a/c condenser assembly. My vehicle has the same issue. The passenger side output is cold, as it should be. The drivers side output is hot air. I've also been made aware that the 2015 Forester's with a sunroof & navigation (which my vehicle also has) had a recall for a wiring harness in the a/c system which apparently could lead to a fire. Knowing that there have been recalls for the Foresters made the year prior to, and for the 2 years after my own.....and experiencing the exact same issue, has me greatly concerned. I would be curious to know if there is any chance they are preparing to recall the 2016's for the a/c condenser. And if not, how can my concern be added to other 2016 Forester owners complaints for the same problem, so it can be brought to the attention of those who are in charge of issuing recalls. Thank you, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Steering, Electrical system, Jul 17, 2023
The Horn stopped working in the vehicle. This is a known issue with many Subarus. The horn is essential for safety reasons due to this the vehicle cannot pass a safety inspection. The culprit of this issue is the electrical coil spring component in the steering wheel behind the air bag. The component has multiple connections going to it including an airbag connection. In the event of accident it is not guaranteed that the spring coil component would deliver the signal for the air bag to deploy. This component is defective in many Subarus and is a very costly repair due to all the electrical and safety components connected to cloak spring. This component has been an issue in previous Subaru models but has not been extended to newer models that clearly have the same issue. please see document attached.
Seats, Other or unspecified, Jul 12, 2023
The Driver Seat Lumbar suddenly broke while driving, which caused a sudden unplanned shit of my driving position. There was also a loud hardware breaking or snapping apart, which caused a certain degree of panic and distraction while driving. I fixed the broken lumbar seat approximately less than two years ago and now the incident I mentioned previously, has happened again. I paid for the first repairs through an extended warranty I bought, I explained this to Subaru Corporate Customer Service, and they refuse to take responsibility for the inferior nature of the Lumbar System and thus refuse to cover the cost of fixing it.
Air bags, Jul 6, 2023
With car engine running and adult sitting in passemger seat, the passenger airbag on-off orange warning light will flicker between "on" and "off".
Electrical system, Jun 16, 2023
Battery drain due to CAN system. Has caused loss of power to functions of car resulting in vehicle dynamic control and airbags to be turned of in the middle of driving causing the ABS to become unusable in the case of an accident putting everyone in the car at risk of injury or death.
Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Jun 14, 2023
Subaru Forester 2016. Sitting at red light with foot on brake. Car lunged forward. Was able to brake and stop it however it did continue to acceletate briefly.
Air bags, Jun 10, 2023
Occupant Detection Sensor Mat faulty. Intermittent ODS warning while passenger is seated. DTS B1760 and B1650. Seat has never experienced water damage, but shows staining due to age (7 years at this point). This is an obvious safety concern while driving with my loved ones.
Vehicle speed control, Jun 9, 2023
My wife was pulling into a parking space and braking. All of the sudden, the car accelerated. Fortunately, she was able to brake enough to stop it. We have a dashcam and you can see it a bit in this video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/10CzPCDWEwxmfKK4siRRTRez3YUxusMFR/view?usp=sharing
Air bags, Jun 6, 2023
I took my vehicle in for one of the recalls to replace the sensor mat for the passenger airbags. About a year went by and a warning came on and said problem with the SRS System Airbag and to get the issue checked out. This happens when a passenger is in the front passenger seat and the airbag is turned off when this alert comes on. I brought it back to the dealership, only for them to say that it wasn’t the recall and the mat go wet. The mat has not gotten wet. However, the recall is for the same issue the sensor is having. The dealership said it would be $1300 to replace. I feel this is an issue that should have been resolved in the recall. Maybe if I didn’t take it in then I wouldn’t have this issue.
Air bags, Jun 6, 2023
The SRS Airbag light is coming on and off due to a manufacturer defect.
Steering, Other or unspecified, May 30, 2023
Steering Rattle Sound / Steering Wheel Vibration This is a potential safety issue especially when driving free way at 60 or 65K mph. I would like to request if the lower control arm bushing can be part of a recall for subaru forester. Please see attached service bulletin.
Suspension, Structure, Other or unspecified, May 24, 2023, fire
I purchased on March 18, 2023 at HGREG West Palm Beach dealership. The salesperson did not disclosure the previous car incident information, I found it later that car has 2 car incidents. After purchasing a car on April 30, after I parked my car, its started unprovoked alarms. I have no control over my car for about 15 min. I knew that my car has an anti theft device so I contacted MagniShield and Road Vantage- the companies affiliated with HGreg Dealership where I purchased my car. I spoke with the MagniShiled representative- Edter but they refuse to explain what is the service installed in this car and refuse to cancel this service by my request. During this time, I have been contacting Dealership almost every week trying to get any clear explanation but they refused to give me any information or cancel the warranty contract. The fact that the car had several severe safety issues. On April 3, 2023 I was driving my kids from school and my car started to burn on the road. Heavy smog and explosions started coming from under the hood - inside the car. I had to do an emergency stop on the side of the road, quickly grab my two boys and run away from the car. I called 911. The police came and they called the fire station. Police officer made a police report, I have a case number. Same day my car was taken to the Midas. Midas specialist explained to me that this car was under the risk of fire to drive and can start burning at any time. The air conditioner exploded because it was under very high pressure. The mechanic found another safety issue - suspension was not attached properly and it was very loose. It might have caused a loss of control over the car, while driving, ultimately resulting in a severe accident Also, less than a week before, on March 28, 2023 I had to do another major service at Midas for the same car. This was just 10 days after the purchase. I changed oil, all filters and did wheel alignment, because they were heavily misaligned.
Vehicle speed control, Other or unspecified, May 24, 2023, crash
While stopped at a “STOP” sign, the Subaru Forester unintentionally accelerated into a tree although the brake pedals were repeatedly utilized; it was totaled.
Vehicle speed control, Engine, May 22, 2023
parked in angle space and turned off car. went into store for about 15 minutes. got in car and started it. heard a noise sounding like a car revving engine and looked behind me to see if it was another vehicle. realized it was my car. tried to push foot on accelerator but it was all the way to floor and would not come up. immediately put foot on brake and turned off car. looked at floor mat and found that was not the issue. waited about 30 seconds and turned car back on and found that the accelerator was not all the way to the floor like before. It ran like it always has. drove 10 minutes back home with no issue. when home, went in house for 15 minutes; came back out and started it and ran like normal. i then searched the issue and discovered SEVERAL complaints about this issue. Thankful that I didn't run into a building as anyone else (there was a man walking into a house DIRECTLY in front of where I was parked.....I would have hit him if i had put the car in drive.) No warning lights or anything else visible on car. no issue prior. not been inspected by anyone else or the dealer at this time. Not reported to police department or insurance company. I am NOT an elderly person and I KNOW I did not accidentally do anything wrong when this issue occurred. purchased this subaru in 2018 as they are highly rated as far as safety goes and very dependable. I am extremely disappointed that there has NOT been a recall on this issue. Do people have to die before subaru will issue recall?!?! I was planning to trade in for a newer Subaru but am definitely hesitant to do so at this time. I drive with my young grandchildren in vehicle and am even hesitant to do that in the future. PLEASE, Subaru, issue a recall for this issue.
Engine, May 19, 2023
Engine oil and coolant were mixing. This caused coolant to drain and engine overheat. Resulted in several blown gaskets. Yes, available for inspection upon request. My safety was put at risk because of engine overheat while driving on highway. Problem has been evaluated by a car repair shop. Vehicle has been inspected by car repair shop, but not by manufacturer, police, or insurance. Red engine overheat warning light turned on only as the overheat occurred; no yellow check engine light turned on prior to overheating.
Suspension, Wheels, May 16, 2023
The vehicle fails to maintain stability at either a right turn, and at left turn angles. The vehicle makes a clicking sound on either turn and loses power when you complete the turn and attempt to drive straight. This poses an incredibly unsafe driving experience.When this occurs the traction message light turn on, as well as the passenger airbag, and the upwhill light turns on.
Electrical system, May 3, 2023
The horn does not work due to failure of the clock spring. This is a common problem among many Subaru vehicles. Without the use of a horn warning noises cannot be made to alert other drivers of potential hazards. There are numerous video and forums detailing this issues on multiple Subaru models.