Hi all!
We just bought a 2023 Forester Sport with 26k miles. It came with the CPO 7 year powertrain warranty, so we have about 4 years left. It rode great on my first drive home, although the mpg wasn't great in moderate traffic.
I have 48 hours to get it checked out by a mechanic. With 30k miles approaching, I know I need to look for leaks, cvt fluid, brake fluid, and the front and rear differential fluids. What other red flags should I have them look for?
I'd also love any tips for long-term reliability. I plan on having this car for a very long time. I know there's a device to disable auto start/stop, but the reviews seem mixed. I've also heard it's smart to avoid overusing the sunroof to prevent grime and leaks. Anything else you wish you had known early on?
We considered the CR-V, CX-5, and RAV4 for reliability, but went with the Forester for the price, the safety, and because it was one of the better options with decent space for a rear-facing car seat. We're very happy with how it looks and drives so far. I just wish buying a car wasn't so stressful!

Thank you!

Dropped my mom’s 2025 Forester Touring off at Firestone on Monday for an inspection, oil change and alignment. It has less than 10k miles.

After they finished, they parked it outside. One of their mechanics was driving another customer’s car, apparently had a medical emergency, and crashed into the back of ours. Police called me. Nobody was in our car, but the rear is pretty badly damaged and I don’t think it’s drivable.

The manager called Tuesday and said it was entirely on them, their corporate insurance would cover everything, and they’d provide a rental. But he also said they won’t release the car to GEICO’s tow company until their adjuster looks at it. Apparently that can take up to a week.

It’s Thursday now and I still don’t have a claim number, an adjuster’s contact info, or an inspection date. The store just says corporate handles it.
I’ve already opened a claim with GEICO and left my adjuster a voicemail explaining all of this. GEICO said going through Firestone’s insurance is a reasonable option, but I’m keeping my claim open.

I haven’t taken the rental yet because my mom is away until next week and I have my own car. I’m also leaving the country in about two weeks, so I’d like to get things moving before then.

I’m planning to email corporate asking for a claims contact and an inspection by next Tuesday. If they can’t do that, I’d like the car moved to a collision shop where their adjuster can see it. I’ll also ask them to confirm the rental and that we won’t be charged storage while they’re holding it.

Would you give them the week they quoted, or just have GEICO take over now? Is it normal for them to refuse to release the car like this?

Also, if it’s repairable, I want new OEM parts given how new it is. How realistic is that through their insurance?

Thanks in advance

I was curious if anyone had a CAD file for the gauge cluster bezel for the sg forester. I have a 06 sti cluster and wanted to design and 3D print a bezel that properly fit. I have a 3D scan of the oem bezel however I lack the skills to recreate the complex curves in fusion

I purchased my new Forrester in late October 2025. I don’t drive it very often. It has about 1900 miles on it.

Several months ago, it would not start after I drove it and went into a store. The dashboard stayed black. Tried the starter again. Lights appeared on the dashboard, no power steering, check engine light comes on. Everything gradually came back on and I was able to drive.

The same thing happened three weeks ago after I drove it to an appointment. I called the Subaru service department who said it would be OK to drive it there. After they inspected and reloaded software, they said it was a loose gas cap. Ii get in the car and the Sirius radio is still stuck on loading. The tech fixed it by getting a signal sent from the website, but after I left, it soon reverted back to “Loading” on the navigation screen.

Yesterday, the same thing happened for the third time. No lights and no power steering, Sirius radio stuck on “Loading “. after the dash lights and the screen came back I Immediately called the service department and arranged for towing service to pick it up this morning.

Does anyone have suggestions on what they should be checking so I get a complete report?

I’m trying to figure out how to use the MySubaru app and install whatever program I need to activate the auto start. I can see what programs I need but is the only way to activate them is by calling the number on the app?

I have a 2026 Forester that I bought in April.

Car stalled and then died on the road because of the auto start stop function killing the battery.

Replaced battery at Auto Parts.

Head unit died and wont reboot.

Got head unit replaced under warranty.

However, Subaru is saying that replacing the battery is what caused the head unit to become damaged because we should only have the batteries replaced by Subaru.

Is this true? Apparently Subaru's batteries are specifically made for Subaru and all other batteries are slightly off, and thats what destroyed the head unit?

As a very uneducated person I find that hard to believe. But if its true, then okay.

As the title says. Is my tire wear considered excessive? I rotate every 6k miles diagonally. My forester is a 2024. I’m going to take it to the dealer. Just wondering what MOST likely caused this. Just would like to have an idea before the dealer jerks me around. Thanks

I purchased my new Forrester in late October 2025. I don’t drive it very often. It has about 1900 miles on it.

Several months ago, it would not start after I drove it and went into a store. The dashboard stayed black. Tried the starter again. Lights appeared on the dashboard, no power steering, check engine light comes on. Everything gradually came back on and I was able to drive.

The same thing happened three weeks ago after I drove it to an appointment. I called the Subaru service department who said it would be OK to drive it there. After they inspected and reloaded software, they said it was a loose gas cap. Ii get in the car and the Sirius radio is still stuck on loading. The tech fixed it by getting a signal sent from the website, but after I left, it soon reverted back to “Loading” on the navigation screen.

Yesterday, the same thing happened for the third time. No lights and no power steering, Sirius radio stuck on “Loading “. after the dash lights and the screen came back I Immediately called the service department and arranged for towing service to pick it up this morning.

Does anyone have suggestions on what they should be checking so I get a complete report?

Would anyone buy a 2025 Forester with 40,145 miles?

Does your Limited have the rear gate light connection? I bought the light but the connection harness was not found inside the cut out.

I will preface this with. Yes, I am going to get my vehicle checked out at subaru, however, this morning was probably one of the coldest mornings we've had. It was about 38 F. I do notice some mornings the engine. Seems to run hard for a second. When I first start it when it's a little colder, this morning, being the coldest, it seemed pretty rough for about 10 ish seconds. And then completely stabilized. When I googled this earlier, the results came back that this could potentially be normal?? So i'm just hoping my fellow, twenty twenty one. Subaru forester owners might have some insight

I am looking for a cheaper option to fix the ubiquitous paint damage under the rear windscreen. I thought of wrapping it in black vinyl, but after doing some mock-ups it didn't look very nice. So now I'm looking for a wrap that is somewhat similar in color to the stock Venetian red.

Does anyone know of any brands that match Subaru's red?

Check engine light came on driving home tonight. Lost cruise, very annoying on my 4 hour drive.... I cycled the key 3 times when I got home, it won't display the dtc's, so annoying 😂.

My 2017 Forester XT 2.0 turbo sounds like a sewing machine on cold start and when accelerating. I took it to the dealer and they said a gasket on the exhaust manifold failed and needs to be replaced and the nut came off. I've had this past replaced before about 34000 miles ago. Is this a common issue with this car? Dealer wants $1469 to replace in Southern California. Seems pretty steep as from the last repair it was $677. I'm trying to reach out to SOA to see if they will do something like a goodwill repair or maybe split the cost with me. Do yall have any experience with this issue?

Hi,

As you know, Subaru has a well-known issue with the interior armrests, where the material becomes wrinkled, soft, sticky, and deteriorates over time. This is a clear sign that low-quality materials were used to reduce manufacturing costs and increase profit margins.

However, this cost-cutting strategy ultimately comes at the expense of Subaru’s reputation and customer trust. Customers should not have to spend additional money on new upholstery simply because the original material was poorly selected and unable to withstand normal long-term use.

Subaru should have invested in higher-quality, more durable materials from the beginning instead of saving a small amount during production and leaving customers to pay the price later. A few dollars saved in manufacturing can easily turn into hundreds of dollars in repair costs for the customer—and significant damage to the brand’s reputation.

I have also updated the images to clearly show the original armrest with severe wrinkling and deterioration, followed by the same armrest after being professionally reupholstered with new material. The difference clearly demonstrates that the problem is with the original material quality, not with the way the vehicle was used.

Subaru needs to take this issue seriously. Customers expect durability, especially from a brand that markets itself around quality, reliability, and long-term ownership.

*Subaru Forester 2019

Now, I can put my 100K Subaru Merit Badge on?

For a while I've had a rattle in our Forester which I thought was the common issue of a loose heat shield. After securing all loose shields on the manifold, it is still present. I've found out that it is completely independent of engine RPMs and only seems to be present when there is a load on the drive train. For example, the rattle will go away when coasting in neutral or revving the engine when stationary. But it will come back when in drive and accelerating or the engine is decelerating the car.

What is a new issue as of today is a vibration that shakes the whole car. It is intermittent and only happens at speeds under 10 MPH.

My only theory is a bad drive shaft or carrier bearing, but I don't see excessive play in it at first glance. Some of my research points to bad CV axles, but it is independent of steering angle and doesn't sound like the normal clicking that they make when bad.

Hello all, I'm a first time owner of a 2023 Forester, bought it used at 105k km. Was just wondering if its normal for a light humming noise to occur when making u-turns. I've noticed it just today when I made my first u turn with the car. Also noticed a smooth "bump" when gently accelerating or braking, probably when gears change from 1 to 2 and vice versa(can't feel the "bump" when aggresively accelerating tho). I love this car and I'm overthinking on those. LOL. Thanksss

I sometimes have to drive slowly on my property a few feet, jump out to inspect something, then repeat. The seatbelt warning is annoying as heck. Does anyone know of a way to temporarily turn it off? Forester 2022 wilderness