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2017 Subaru Forester Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 590 complaints with NHTSA about the 2017 Subaru Forester, most often about the air bags (28% of complaints, typically around 30,000 miles). It is 4th of 27 Forester model years by number of complaints and has 1 recall.
Most common 2017 Subaru Forester problems
Air bags
165 complaints · 28%Half of these problems showed up before 30,000 miles. Parts named most often: sensor.
Passenger airbag sensor malfunction of some sort causes airbag system to be switched to "off" even when a passenger is in the vehicle. I had taken it to the dealer the first time, and the code was "reset" in the memory and I was instructed to bring the vehicle back if it happened again. It did happen again, and this…
My wife has been using a seat cushion, for her back problem, for over a month. Starting 4 days ago the passenger seat air bag sensor indicates off. The air bag indicator only goes back on when the seat cushion is removed. I brought the vehicle into my Subaru dealer and they indicated that there were no error codes. I…
Visibility and wipers
116 complaints · 20%Half of these problems showed up before 33,500 miles. Parts named most often: windshield, defroster/defogger/hvac system, rearview mirrors/devices.
Windshield cracks at very little impact and cracks spread rapidly through windshield. I had windshield replacement twice in 2018 and it cracked again on 01-01-2019. It happened on the same road I commute for 20 years and never had windshield cracks with my previous vehicles.
I purchase my 2017 Forester from the annapolis dealer as a used loaner car with less than 7000 miles with the original and extended warranty coverage. After reading about windshield problems I started checking the windshield on my Forester. There are a number of hairline cracks that are difficult to see and best seen…
Electrical
106 complaints · 18%Half of these problems showed up before 38,000 miles. Parts named most often: ignition, 12v/24v/48v battery, instrument panel.
The contact owns a 2017 Subaru Forester. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, the key occasionally seized in the ignition. The contact believed that the issue was related to the shifter sensor or the key sensor. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed.…
I've been having more problems with taking my key out of the ignition. It start of happening once in awhile and now everytime I turn off my car and take the key out. I search on the problem and read alot of people having this problem. I called my bryan Subaru and they said this has been happening.
Other or unspecified
96 complaints · 16%Half of these problems showed up before 30,000 miles.
I am reporting to separate incidences. Both incidences are because of a small rock hitting my windshield, creating a bullet-sized crack in my windshield. One occurred while driving on the highway and one occurred while driving on county roads. The first bullet hole crack has since spread into a crack that covers the…
Continuous battery drainage issues. Over the past half a year I've had 3 battery replacements. My car was under warranty when the first battery replacement happened but has since then lapsed. In all of the cases, the battery would die after 2-3 days of not starting the car. Dealership insists that this is normal.
Engine
48 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 19,000 miles. Parts named most often: exhaust system.
We have a 2017 Subaru Forester xt touring model 2.0 turbo engine with approximately 20,000 miles. Wife and son were traveling to a wedding when check engine light came on no sooner did light come on heavy smoke filled inside of car from air vents heavy smoke was coming out from under hood also waited for smoke to…
I was merging on I-95 at 4pm and it was raining, I was accelerating into the traffic pattern in the right lane when suddenly the accelerator would not respond, the car panel went black,no lights or info showed. I coasted off to the side of the road,the car was in drive,ignition on. The emergency light wouldn't go on…
Transmission
46 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 33,500 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission.
When shifting vehicle from reverse to park, then turning vehicle off, the key cannot be fully taken out of the car. The only way to get it out is to restart the vehicle, take it out of park and slam it back into park. Supposedly a switch within the shifter that prevents a solenoid in the steering column from opening.…
Have a 2017 Forester. At least a couple times a week, the key get stuck in the ignition. You can turn the car off, but you can't remove the key. If I start the car back up, and shift it into drive, and them slam it back into park, then I can turn the car off and remove the key.
Seats
33 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 28,000 miles.
While traveling at any speed, the passenger air bag will switch to off. An error message will appear indicating that the SRS airbag system needs checked. Issues appears to be located with the occupant detection system in the passenger seat.
Passenger airbag warning light comes on/ goes off intermittently. The light warns US that the airbag is off despite having a passenger in the seat. I have seen online that many people are having this problem so I wanted to log our issue with NHTSA as well. The vehicle has never deployed it airbags nor been in a front…
Speed control
33 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 29,000 miles.
The contact owned a 2017 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH and making a turn, the vehicle hydroplaned as the contact lost control of the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle inadvertently accelerated while hydroplaning going across 3 lanes of oncoming traffic and hit a…
I was driving on the high way for about 2 hours, 70 MPH, gas was at about 1/8 full, but low gas light on. The gear shifter remained in d and the indicator on the dash said d. The engine revved as if it were in neutral and would not provide power to the wheels. The check engine, traction control, and cruise control…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2017 Subaru Forester recalls
Air bags: occupant classification
Risk: 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.
Fix: 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.
Full defect summary
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.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Occupant detection system (ods) failure
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe19-009 to investigate 51 complaints and additional early warning report (ewr) data related to allegations of front passenger seat occupant detection system (ods) malfunctions in model year (my) 2016 through 2018 subaru forester vehicles. These vehicles use a capacitive type ods, which is intended to classify the occupant of the passenger seat as either full-sized, small stature, a child seat or other object. The complaints reported the ods failed to operate properly, the SRS (supplemental restraint system) warning light illuminated, and/or the ods incorrectly suppressed (turned off) the front passenger air bag when the seat was occupied by a
Questions about the 2017 Subaru Forester
- What are the most common problems with the 2017 Subaru Forester?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: air bags (165 complaints, typically around 30,000 miles); visibility and wipers (116 complaints, typically around 33,500 miles); electrical (106 complaints, typically around 38,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2017 Subaru Forester have?
- 1 recall listed by NHTSA, the latest from October 3, 2019 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2017 a bad year for the Subaru Forester?
- It is 4th of 27 Forester model years by number of complaints, with 590 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.