What 405 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Subaru Forester

Battery drains quickly and car dies, even after replacing with a brand new battery.

NHTSA ODI 11464763

While driving on highway using cruise control at 70 mph my car suddenly stalled …. I was able to get to apron of road , but my steering locked and I had no brakes.. I could put car into neutral but had to “jam” it into park , trying to get it to stop rolling . It would not restart . I had it towed to an auto repair center as there was no Subaru dealer in the area. Because I had kept trying to restart it , my battery was dead . They recharged my battery and the car then started . I took it to a Subaru dealer where I was told they could find nothing wrong …. Except I needed a new battery . This was NOT the reason that my car suddeney lost power ! It had happen once before while on the highway but I was able to restart it at that time . This could have caused a serious accident and I worry that it will happen again. I warning was indicated prior to episode . I have receipts from auto repair shop (In Lincoln, Illinois) and Subaru dealer ( in Columbia Missouri)

NHTSA ODI 11464689

I arrived at work. I was placing my car in park with foot on the brake. The car took off and the brakes took time to stop the car. I tried to stop the car as we hit a fence and was headed through it it and into a pond. Pumping the brakes throwing car in reverse stopped us from ending up in the pond. Major car damage incurred. Thank goodness noone was seriously hurt. The car just accelerated with my foot on the brake and with me attemtping to put it in park.

NHTSA ODI 11463552

Vehicles wheel studs and nuts striped. Common complaint with Subaru's. Nuts won't come off and unable to completely put back on to contact with rim. Nuts also won't come off all together, frozen on stud, studs breaks when trying to remove. Unable to remove with extension bar or impact wrench.

NHTSA ODI 11461838

I have had to replace the car's battery three times in under 3 years. The most recent battery lasted for under a year. I am attaching paperwork from last year. I just a battery replace this week as well but am awaiting the paperwork on that.

NHTSA ODI 11461631

I have replaced the battery 3 times since June 2020. The car battery dies after the car has sat for 8-12 days. We have had to get it jumped, towed and called an on call roadside service to replace.

NHTSA ODI 11460950

Car accelerated while I was parking in a parking spot and hit fence and unoccupied storefront.

NHTSA ODI 11457842

During the January snow storm in the Washington, DC area the ADAS system began to malfunction. The system that controls Adaptive Cruise Control, Automatic Emergency Braking, Forward Collision Warning and Lane Departure Warning all shut off. The vehicle was parked at an upward facing angle in order to allow all moisture to drain out/off the back of the vehicle. Once dry, the issue resolved itself. The same issue happened in the past and was tied to an issue with a brake light switch. It appears that the same issue is occurring again on the vehicle and moisture is still effecting the brake light switch.

NHTSA ODI 11453835

Parasitic drain after car left parked and locked for ~4 days. This has occurred since I purchased the car new in 2016. I have replaced the battery 4 times but it has not helped the issue. I am now forced to leave the car plugged in to a battery tender when parked.

NHTSA ODI 11450455

The battery in my car continually dies. It all started about 2 years ago, we replaced the battery, but I have to charge it frequently. The car never dies while I’m driving it, but sometimes I will come to start my car and it won’t start. This happens about 1-2 times a month.

NHTSA ODI 11449458

The Controller Area Network ("CAN") did not enter sleep mode when the car was turned off, resulting in a "parasitic battery drain." I replaced 3 batteries over a period of 24 months of ownership, and just paid $1355 to have the manufacturer-installed computer chip replaced to stop the battery drain and properly shut off the vehicle. This is a safety issue for several reasons - not knowing when my battery would be dead when the vehicle was needed, living in northern MN and having a dead battery in cold and potentially life-threatening conditions, and living in a rural area without ready access to businesses or others when support or a battery jump was needed.

NHTSA ODI 11448232

The contact owns a 2016 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving and approaching a stop sign, the brake pedal was depressed however, the vehicle failed to stop. The contact released the brake pedal and the vehicle slowed down. There were no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 110,858.

NHTSA ODI 11447293

The contact owns a 2016 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at an unknown speed, there was a loud humming noise coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the rear wheel bearing failed but the contact was unaware which wheel needed to be repaired. The vehicle was repaired but years later the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that both rear wheels bearings failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 60,050.

NHTSA ODI 11443608

Car’s battery/ electrical system seems to drain car battery excessively. Even with a new battery, car battery dies if car isn’t run at least every 2 or 3 days, meaning I can’t rely on car if I take a trip of any length and leave the car behind. There’s a risk of being stranded. Car is 6 years old, and already has had 4 batteries. Im concerned about being stranded

NHTSA ODI 11442143

November 8/21, temperature 41 F. Started the car and started to move and steering wheel was stiff. Steering warning light came on. Shut off and started car two more times and steering went back to normal and warning light went off. A code of C2532 was stored. This issue was identified as a problem as far back as 2016, but no recall has been issued. The part has been updated, supposedly, as the original had what they called a frozen relay. It is an obvious safety issue that was identified long before warranty expired. I realize your organization is for American's but our vehicles are the same and unfortunately we do not have a player with the clout that yours brings to these issues. The salt in the wound for us was the close to $1000 Cdn. bill for the updated part to be replaced. Close to $800 for the part alone! Thank you people.

NHTSA ODI 11441193

The battery drains quickly compared to my husband's car. I had to get a new battery every other year. Subaru has known issues with the CAN system and it hasn't been addressed. This is dangerous as my car wouldn't start. I didn't feel safe. Other people have posted similar situtations online and those have to be corrected. I would rather not waste money on a battery every other year. My safety is more important of course. The electrical systems need to have a recall put in so this can be fixed without money coming out of my pocket as this is a wide-spread issue for subaru.

NHTSA ODI 11440727

There was a short in the wiring harness, causing the car to loose power and stall.

NHTSA ODI 11437916

In March 2020, I took my 2016 Subaru Forester to the dealership to fix the issues associated with the Subaru Safety Recall WUM-98 / NHTSA Recall 19V-701 (unstable electrical connections causing issues with the occupant detection system in determining the correct status of the right front seat occupant, which would prevent the front passenger-side airbag from deploying in the event of a crash). Service was performed and the ODS harness was replaced. In August of 2021, I took my Forester back into the Subaru dealership (where previous service was performed) because the “airbag warning” light and the “Passenger airbag off” indicator began to illuminate, however this occurred somewhat inconsistently. Sometimes both warning lights illuminate when someone sits in the front passenger seat, sometimes they do not illuminate at all and everything seems fine. Other times, the lights illuminate when no one is sitting in the front passenger seat. Additionally, sometimes the seatbelt alarm sounds when no one is sitting in the front passenger seat. However, this is also inconsistent. In August 2021, the Subaru dealership told me that the issue is likely caused by water damage (a spill) on the front passenger seat that has caused the sensors within the seat to malfunction. I told them that I did not recall spilling any liquids on the front passenger seat. Now the dealership is telling me to replace the passenger seat bottom assembly sensor for $1,211 USD.

NHTSA ODI 11436840

When I stop the vehicle and put in park, I cannot not turn car off or pull out key. I put car back in drive and drive a few feet forward or back. After putting in park again, I can then turn car off and pull key out. It is now happening more frequently, like every time I drive it. Also sometimes have trouble turning the key to start the car. Have had problems periodically for several years. Now its getting to be a regular problem. Very dangerous when you cannot turn the car off. And it will probably get worse with snowy weather. A safety issue. I see there is a NHTSA Safety Bulletin #10155220 that lists this problem. It looks like an existing problem with Subarus. Not sure why there is no recall?

NHTSA ODI 11435166

At least a couple of times a week, the key gets stuck in the ignition. I can turn the car off, but I can't remove the key. If I start the car back up and shift it into Drive, and then slam it back into Park, after several tries, I can remove the key. I searched the Subaru forum and found this is a long-existing issue for all Subaru models with the key ignition. All with the stuck key issue here is the TSB 16-112-18R info https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2018/MC-10153178-9999.pdf and the P/N for the select lever (shifter) mechanism 3511AL00C.

NHTSA ODI 11434984

I was into hour 6 of a 7 hour drive. I had 2 bars left on the gas meter. I was on the highway driving about 70 MPH on a major interstate. Suddenly the car acted like it shifted into neutral (though I did not) and could not accelerate and all the lights on the dashboard lit up. Luckily I was in the left lane and could get to the side quickly, but the car essentially suddenly quit without any warning. If I were in the middle lane I fear I could have been in a terrible accident since I was decelerating quickly and have no idea if my brake lights or anything was working properly while this happened. No engine lights on the dash came on prior and the car was running just fine the entire trip up until that moment. After I pulled over I opened the hood and nothing seemed overtly wrong. I tried to start up car at least 3 times and when I did it acted like it was trying to do something and lights flashed on dashboard as it was trying to turn over, but I could not get it started again. Had it towed to a subaru dealership and they are telling me it started right up after sitting overnight there and they can't find anything wrong when they run diagnostics. I don't feel comfortable driving the vehicle again knowing this happened and could happen again without warning. It could have been in a terrible accident involving myself (and my kids) and other people on the highway.

NHTSA ODI 11430416

Per Subaru's TSB 16-112-18R, it appears that my 2016 Subaru Forester XT is experiencing a failing Park-Range switch. Starting around July 26, 2021, I started having issues trying to take the key out while in Park. It started as intermittent but slowly has grown to where I having issues almost everyday now. Currently, there is not an official recall but there really should be given the number of folks I have read on internet forums having this occur from all makes, models, and years of Subaru vehicles. The unofficial workarounds present a safety hazard because the workaround disables the safety mechanism for the ignition key.

NHTSA ODI 11428820

The ignition key has started getting stuck in the ignition after turning the motor off. It takes several tries, involving turning the motor back on and pulling the key out as I’m turning the motor off and pushing the stick back into PARK really hard per Subaru.... Subaru has acknowledged it’s a faulty part and lots of complaints online...they even did a tech bulletin # 16-112-18R but say its a customers problem....

NHTSA ODI 11428706

While returning home from a trip in our 2016 Subaru Forester the driver’s side airbag warning light remained on; additionally, a SRS warning appeared briefly on the screen indicating that the airbag/seatbelt safety system could not be relied upon.This all occurred after restarting the Forester following a brief rest stop. Adhering to the Subaru owner’s manual guidance we went to our Hendricks Southpoint dealership. The dealership scheduled an appointment for one week later. The occurrence of this problem without a timely resolution by Subaru creates a unnecessary safety situation for owners.

NHTSA ODI 11428525

Key stuck in switch when car is put into park. Steering locks up and then can not restart or remove key. This happens almost daily at this point

NHTSA ODI 11424727