2014 Subaru Forester

DRIVING 65 MPH ON HIGHWAY. CAR SUDDENLY NO LONGER RESPONSIVE TO ACCELERATOR AND SPEED DROPS. RECOVERED IN A FEW SECONDS. DEALER EXAMINED AND STATES IT WAS DUE TO DEFECTIVE CONDITION IN BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH THAT WAS INSTALLED 6 MONTHS EARLIER DUE TO RECALL. DEALER STATES CAR WENT INTO "LIMP" MODE. SWITCH CONDITION RESOLVED WITHOUT REPLACEMENT ACCORDING TO DEALER.

CVT TRANSMISSION FAILURE OF MY 2014 SUBARU FORESTER TOURING 2.0 TURBO MODEL. WHEN I PUT THE CAR INTO PARK AND TURNED OFF THE CAR AFTER DRIVING, IT DID NOT TURN OFF THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS, THE BELTS WERE STILL SPINNING AND I HAD TO REMOVE THE BATTERY TO SHUT IT OFF. 1 WEEK LATER THE BATTERY WAS DEAD. I JUMP STARTED AND THE ENGINE LIGHT AND OTHER ALERTS WERE ALL LIT. WHEN I BROUGHT THE CAR TO MY MECHANIC, HE RAN DIAGNOSTICS AND SAID THE TRANSMISSION WILL NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE CAR IS ONLY 5 YEARS OLD. TOP OF THE LINE SUBARU AND I ONLY HAVE 56,860 MILES ON THE CAR.

THE STEERING WHEEL "LEATHER" COATING HAS BEEN DISINTEGRATING FOR OVER A YEAR NOW. THE SUBARU SERVICE SAID IT IS A COMMON ISSUE WITH 2014 SUBARU FOREST. & SHOULD BE RECALLED. EVENTUALLY, THE UNDERCOAT FOAM MATERIAL WILL ALSO DISINTEGRATE, HE SAID. ALSO, BOTH FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS, BUSHINGS,BAND DRIVE, (SOMETHING LIKE A DRIVE SHAFT), STRUT & AXEL JOINT HAD TO BE REPLACED AT ONLY 69K MILES. MY CAR HAS NEVER BEEN IN ANY ACCIDENT OR HIT ANYTHING. SUBARU PAID FOR FAILED CONTROL ARM REPLACEMENT. THIS IS AN EXTREMELY UNSAFE CAR!

1) CVT VALVE KIT DAMAGED (3 YEARS OLD) 2) BUT MAIN REASON FOR THIS COMPLIANT IS REAR COILS BREAKING, I DO NOT KNOW BUT THEY HAVE BEEN BROKEN FOR SOME TIME CAUSING REAR BEARINGS AND REAR SHOCKS DAMAGE. DID SOME RESEARCH AND FOUND EVERYONE W/ 2014 THRU 2015 FORESTERS ARE HAVING THIS PROBLEM AT ANY MILEAGE. TOLD DEALER AND THEY SAID SUBARU KNOWS OF THIS PROBLEM BUT HAS NOT ISSUED A RECALL? THE AVERAGE PERSON WILL NOT REALIZE THEIR COILS COULD BE BROKEN LIKE ME UNTIL BEARINGS AND SHOCKS FAIL ..... THIS SOUNDS LIKE A MAJOR ISSUE TO ME?

THE TRANSMISSION FAILED COMPLETELY IN JULY, 2018. I CONTACTED A SUBARU DEALER ON JULY 30 FOR SERVICE, BUT THE FIRST APPOINTMENT AVAILABLE WAS ON AUGUST 1ST. I FOUND OUT THAT SUBARU HAD BEEN HAVING SOME OF THESE PROBLEMS AND EXTENDED THEIR WARRANTIES. BECAUSE MY ACTUAL SERVICE WAS ON AUGUST 1ST, SUBARU SAID I MISSED THE EXTENDED WARRANTY BY ONE DAY! CORPORATE SUBARU OFFERED TO PAY HALF OF THE $7,500 COST FOR A NEW TRANSMISSION, BUT I WAS LEFT TO PAY THE REST. THEY SAID IF I HAD BEEN A "MORE LOYAL" CUSTOMER THEY WOULD HAVE PAID MORE THAN HALF. I LEFT THE CAR AT THE DEALERSHIP FOR 3 MONTHS TRYING TO NEGOTIATE THE PRICE DOWN. EVENTUALLY I HAD TO PAY FOR $2,000 OF THE REPAIR. I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY SUBARU HAS NOT HAD TO RECALL THE VEHICLES EXPERIENCING THESE TRANSMISSION FAILURES, OR AT LEAST PAY FOR REPAIRS ONCE IT FAILS. WHEN WE FIRST FELT THE VEHICLE NOT RESPONDING NORMALLY, WE STOOPED DRIVING. IT WAS NOT SAFE.

THE CAR COMPLETELY LOOSES POWER AND STUTTERS. THE ENGINE DOES NOT SHUT OFF, BUT THERE IS NO POWER GOING TO THE WHEELS. AT THIS POINT THIS HAS HAPPENED DOZENS OF TIME. IT BEGAN AROUND 20-30,000 MILES, AND CONTINUES INTO 90,000+ MILES. IT CAN HAPPEN GOING 20-40 MILES PER HOUR OR 55 OR 70. IT'S UNDER LOAD USUALLY, AND HAPPENS MORE WHEN IT IS HOT OUTSIDE. SOMETIMES IT HAPPENS ONCE, THEN I DON'T HAVE IT FOR MONTHS, AND OTHER TIMES IT HAS HAPPENED REPEATEDLY FOR MILE AFTER MILE OF DRIVING. I HAVE TO LET MY FOOT OFF THE GAS AND RE-APPLY MULTIPLE TIMES TO KEEP THE CAR MOVING. IT'S HAPPENED IN NEIGHBORHOODS, DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY, AND TRYING TO PASS ON THE HIGHWAY. I HAVE TAKEN IT TO MY DEALERSHIP NUMEROUS TIMES AND THEY REFUSE TO KEEP IT LONG ENOUGH AND TEST IT ENOUGH TO REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. IT IS STILL UNDER THE EXTRA WARRANTY I PAID FOR IT AND SUBARU REFUSES TO HELP AS WELL.

TRANSMISSION/COMPUTER MALFUNCTION. INITIALLY DRIVING THROUGH MOUNTAINS, USING SPORT # MODE IN LOW SPEED CURVES ON OLD ROAD. HAD ONE 'SURPRISE' EPISODE WHERE IN A STRAIGHT SECTION OF HIGHWAY, TRANSMISSION DOWSHIFTED SUDDENLY, WITH RPMS RACING UP TO NEARLY 5000RPM, ALTHOUGH I DIDN'T TOUCH THE PADDLES, AND DIDN'T EVEN HAVE MY HANDS ON THEM. AFTER REACHING A NORMAL STRAIGHT HIGHWAY OUT OF THE MOUNTAINS, AN HOUR LATER, WHILE SIMPLY DRIVING AT 75MPH, THE ENGINE LOST POWER, GAS PEDAL BECAME UNRESPONSIVE, RPMS FELL, VEHICLE WAS COASTING DOWN FROM HIGHWAY SPEED, AND TRANSMISSION DID SEVERAL ODD SHIFTS WITH VARYING RPMS, AND DECELERATIONS. COASTED TO A STOP, FLASHERS ON, OFF THE HIGHWAY. ENGINE WAS NOT RUNNING. STARTER MOTOR WORKED. ENGINE WOULD NOT START. FLASHING LIGHTS ON CRUISE CONTROL, CHECK ENGINE, AND "AT TEMP", AND POSSIBLY OTHERS NOT RECALLED. CALLED SPOUSE. CONTACTED TOWING SERVICE. OPENED HOOD: FLUIDS, OIL LEVEL, ETC ALL APPEARED NORMAL WHEN CHECKED. TEMP DISPLAY IN VEHICLE SHOWED NORMAL (219 DEGREES RADIATOR TEMP). TRIED TURNING KEY ON/OFF REPEATEDLY TO SEE IF COMPUTER WOULD RESET: NO LUCK. SPOUSE CALLED 30 MIN LATER: ONLINE RESEARCH FOUND REMOVING PLUG NEXT TO TRANSMISSION SHIFT LEVER IN CENTER CONSOLE, AND USING LONG SCREWDRIVER TO PRESS SWITCH AT BOTTOM MIGHT RESET SOME DEVICE. TRIED IT DIFFERENT TIMES: KEY 'ON', KEY 'OFF', ETC, RESET APPEARED TO TAKE EFFECT WITH KEY 'OFF', THEN TURNED ON. VEHICLE NOW COOLING DOWN (45 MINUTES ON ROADSIDE, NOT RUNNING). NOW RESTARTS WHEN CRANKED. VARIOUS LIGHTS "CHECK ENGINE', 'AT TEMP', CRUISE CONTROL LIGHT NO LONGER FLASHING. WARNING ON PANEL STATING "VEHICLE HILL START ASSIST NOT AVAILABLE" NO LONGER SHOWING. CAR APPEARS TO RUN. DROVE ~ 5 MILES TO ROADSIDE BUSINESS. CANCELLED TOW. CHECKED CAR AGAIN. DROVE GENTLY TO HOME CITY. RESCHEDULED FLIGHT TO ALASKA VACATION BECAUSE OF THE DELAY.

CVT 2.5I 70K MILEAGE. ON 8/12/17, WHILE DRIVING ON INTERSTATE HIGHWAY NONSTOP FOR 310 MILES, WITH CRUISE ON 76 MPH, TRANSMISSION SUDDENLY AND WITHOUT WARNING WENT "OUT OF GEAR." ENGINE RPMS RACED TO OVER 5,000 BUT CAR WAS OUT OF GEAR. NO PROPULSION WHATSOEVER. IT FELT EXACTLY LIKE WHEN A MANUAL TRANSMISSION POPS OUT OF GEAR OR IS SHIFTED INTO NEUTRAL BY ACCIDENT AY SPEED, BUT THIS IS AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. SHIFT LEVER HAD NOT BEEN TOUCHED. TRANSMISSION JUST FELT LIKE IT "GAVE WAY." I SHIFTED INTO NEUTRAL AND COASTED TO THE SHOULDER AND ENGINE DIED. "CHECK ENGINE," "VEHICLE DYNAMICS CONTROL," AND BATTERY CHARGE WARNING" LIGHTS LIT ... MAYBE OTHERS. ENGINE DIED. PUT IN PARK. WAITED A COUPLE OF MINUTES AND THEN RESTARTED ENGINE. IT RAN ROUGH FOR A FEW SECONDS THEN SMOOTHED OUT AND WE DROVE 2 MILES TO FILL UP GAS AND PROCEEDED ANOTHER 100 MILES OR SO WITHOUT DIFFICULTY. 2 DEALERS NEVER RESPONDED TO MY INQUIRY. DROVE AROUND TOWN FOR A FEW DAYS WITHOUT INCIDENT. THEN, ON 8/20/17 WHILE AGAIN DRIVING NON-STOP FOR OVER 300 MILES AND AGAIN WITH CRUISE CONTROL SET ON 74, THE EXACT SAME THING HAPPENED AGAIN. NO WARNING. SUDDENLY "OUT OF GEAR." ENGINE REVS SPIKED. WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON. COASTED TO SHOULDER. SHUT DOWN ENGINE FOR MAYBE 20 SECONDS THEN RESTARTED ENGINE AND PROCEEDED ON WITHOUT INCIDENT TO REFUEL AND RESUME TRIP. WAS ALMOST REAR-ENDED BY A TAILGATER THIS TIME SINCE HE WAS DRIVING SO CLOSE TO ME WHEN I SUDDENLY LOST PROPULSION. BOUGHT CAR NEW OVER 70K MILES AGO AND HAD NEVER EXPERIENCED ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE 8/12/17 AND NOW IT HAS HAPPENED TWICE WITHIN 8 DAYS AND UNDER VERY SIMILAR CONDITIONS. VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION.

I WAS OUT OF THE COUNTRY AND DIDN'T START MY CAR FEW ABOUT TEN DAYS. WHEN I COME BACK THE BATTERY WAS DEAD. I HAD IT JUMP STARTED. AS I WAS LEAVING THE LOT AND GOING UP A SLIGHT INCLINE THE CAR STALLED WHILE IN DRIVE - THE BATTERY WAS DEAD AGAIN. I COULD NOT MOVE THE TRANSMISSION FROM DRIVE TO PARK WITH A DEAD BATTERY. FORTUNATELY I WAS ABLE TO GET THE CAR RESTARTED WITH ANOTHER JUMP. IN THE MEANTIME THE CAR ROLLED BACKWARDS UNTIL I APPLIED THE EMERGENCY BRAKE.. SO THERE WERE TWO ISSUES, YOU CANT MOVE THE TRANSMISSION FROM DRIVE TO PARK IF THE BATTERY IS DEAD AND THE CAR ROLLS BACKWARD IN DRIVE (WHICH I HAVE EXPERIENCED ON OTHER OCCASIONS). *TR

VEHICLE IS UNSTABLE DUE TO STALLING AND LURCHING FORWARD UNDER ALL THROTTLE RANGES. VEHICLE MAY "CHUG" AT VARIABLE DRIVING SPEEDS. THE FAILURE IS INTERMITTENT AND VARIES FROM SUBTLE TO HEAVY EFFECTS. SEVERE EFFECTS CAUSES VEHICLE TO SHUDDER AND/OR STALL THEN ABRUPTLY ACCELERATE. ISSUE DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE RELATED TO "TURBO LAG" AS IT OCCURS UNDER LOW BOOST CONDITIONS. TRANSMISSION ALSO PRODUCES "CLICKING" SOUND WHEN ENGAGING FROM NEUTRAL OR UNDER CHANGES IN SPEED. CONDITION OCCURS THROUGHOUT ALL DRIVING MODES (I, S, S#). CONDITION OCCURS MOSTLY UNDER ACCELERATION FROM DEAD STOP, BUT MAY ALSO OCCUR UNDER "PICK UP" ACCELERATION, IE OFF THROTTLE TO DECELERATE (55MPH-45MPH) THEN LIGHT THROTTLE TO RESUME DRIVING SPEED. VEHICLE MAY ALSO BACKFIRE UNDER ACCELERATION. VEHICLE MAY HESITATE FOR SEVERAL SECONDS BEFORE ACCELERATION FROM STOP OR AT HIGHWAY SPEED THAN UPON RESUMING ACCELERATION VEHICLE MAY HAVE A FLAT/SLOW ACCELERATION IN SPITE OF HEAVY THROTTLE. FACTORY AUTHORIZED REPAIRS ATTEMPTED TO REMEDY CONDITION BY CLEANING THROTTLE BODY AND "UPPER ENGINE" CLEANSE AND STATES UNABLE TO REPLICATE FAILURE. CONDITION HAS BEEN ON-GOING FROM PURCHASE WITH APPROXIMATELY 30K MILE TO CURRENT WITH 74K MILES.