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2001 Subaru Forester

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2001 Subaru Forester do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 131.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

73 reports with mileage · 66 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 29 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 23 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 16 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

31 crash reports0 fire reports20 injury reports

Steering complaints

2 reports
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189,000 miles · Apr 23, 2013
Electrical SystemEngineSteering

I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE FREEWAY AT NIGHT WHEN I HEARD A LOUD BANG NOISE AND LOOKED BEHIND ME AND SAW BLACK SMOKE AND HAD LOST ALL POWER, NO POWER STEERING, NO BRAKES AND NO LIGHTS I HAD TO TRY TO CROSS 2 LANES OF TRAFFIC TO GET MY CAR TO THE SHOULDER WHILE IT WAS DECELERATING. I GOT THE CAR TO THE SHOULDER AND NOTICED SMOKE COMIN…

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I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE FREEWAY AT NIGHT WHEN I HEARD A LOUD BANG NOISE AND LOOKED BEHIND ME AND SAW BLACK SMOKE AND HAD LOST ALL POWER, NO POWER STEERING, NO BRAKES AND NO LIGHTS I HAD TO TRY TO CROSS 2 LANES OF TRAFFIC TO GET MY CAR TO THE SHOULDER WHILE IT WAS DECELERATING. I GOT THE CAR TO THE SHOULDER AND NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT, AND WAS WORRIED OF A POSSIBLE FIRE. I GOT OUT AND CALLED A TOW TRUCK AND HAD IT TOWED. THE RESULT WAS A BLOWN HEAD GASKET THAT HAD BLOWN THE ROD THROUGH THE BACK PILLAR AND SPRAYED OIL OVER EVERYTHING CAUSING THE BATTERY TO SHORT OUT WHICH LED TO THE POWER LOSS. THE WHOLE ENGINE ON THE CAR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED FOR THE SECOND TIME. BOUGHT CAR WITH A REBUILT ENGINE FROM SAME PROBLEM AT 141,000 MILES. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10509215

Mileage unknown · Feb 26, 2002
SteeringStructure

ALARM SYSTEM REENGAGES BY ITSELF AFTER BEING DISENGAGED BY DEALER, VEHICLE WOULD NOT ALLOW CONSUMER TO GAIN ENTRANCE WHEN THIS OCCURS. *AK CONSUMER STATED THAT HER BABY WAS LOCKED IN THE VEHICLE AND HAD TO BE RESCUED OUT BY THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, CONSUMER STATED SHE PAID SUBARU TO HAVE THEM REMOVE THE ALARM SYSTEM AT THE TIME OF…

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ALARM SYSTEM REENGAGES BY ITSELF AFTER BEING DISENGAGED BY DEALER, VEHICLE WOULD NOT ALLOW CONSUMER TO GAIN ENTRANCE WHEN THIS OCCURS. *AK CONSUMER STATED THAT HER BABY WAS LOCKED IN THE VEHICLE AND HAD TO BE RESCUED OUT BY THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, CONSUMER STATED SHE PAID SUBARU TO HAVE THEM REMOVE THE ALARM SYSTEM AT THE TIME OF LEASING THE VEHICLE, SUBARU STATED THAT THE PANIC BUTTON WAS SOMEHOW DEPRESSED AND CAUSED DOORS TO LOCK AND LIGHTS TO FLASH, CONSUMER STATED THERE WAS NO WAY THE PANIC BUTTON WAS DEPRESSED BECAUSE THE KEYS WERE LYING ON THE FRONT SEAT WHEN SHE HAD EXITED THE VEHICLE. *SLC

NHTSA ODI #8004554

Official recalls

0

No recalls in this snapshot.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.

Go deeper into Subaru Forester problems