IllustrationVEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED WHEN I HAD MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE. IT WENT OVER AN EMBANKMENT AND CRASHED NOSE FIRST INTO THE PARKING LOT BELOW.
2016 Subaru Forester
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Forester years
Owner complaints for the 2016 Subaru Forester are substantially higher than the model-year median of 131.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Forester years →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
690–25K
7825–50K
4350–75K
1175–100K
9100–150K
7150K+
217 reports with mileage · 196 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.
- Air Bags. Review the 99 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 93 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine. Review the 60 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
39 crash reports3 fire reports14 injury reports
What owners actually said
413 reports2016 SUBARU FORESTER. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO EXCESSIVE WEAR ON VEHICLE TIRES. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED THE OUTER EDGES OF THE VEHICLE'S TIRES WERE EXCESSIVELY WORN. ALL FOUR TIRES WERE WORN OUT IN LESS THAN 20,000 MILES. *JS
WHEN MAKING A RIGHT OR LEFT TURN THE VEHICLE WILL BOG DOWN AND IT WILL NOT MOVE. THE SITUATION LAST ABOUT 5 SECONDS AND DURING THIS TIME I AM UNABLE TO GET OUT OF THE WAY OF ONCOMING TRAFFIC. THE HAPPENS MULTIPLE TIMES PER DAY TO NONE PER DAY. I HAVE BROUGHT THIS TO THE ATTENTION OF MY SERVICE REP AND HIS ANSWER WAS THAT THIS IS…
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WHEN MAKING A RIGHT OR LEFT TURN THE VEHICLE WILL BOG DOWN AND IT WILL NOT MOVE. THE SITUATION LAST ABOUT 5 SECONDS AND DURING THIS TIME I AM UNABLE TO GET OUT OF THE WAY OF ONCOMING TRAFFIC. THE HAPPENS MULTIPLE TIMES PER DAY TO NONE PER DAY. I HAVE BROUGHT THIS TO THE ATTENTION OF MY SERVICE REP AND HIS ANSWER WAS THAT THIS IS NORMAL FOR THE TRANSMISSION IN THIS VEHICLE. THIS HAS BEEN AN ONGOING ISSUE FOR ABOUT THE LAST 12 MONTHS. THE LAST INSTANCE WAS THE DATE SELECTED ON THE CALENDAR.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 SUBARU FORESTER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED, THE VEHICLE UNEXPECTEDLY SURGED FORWARD. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENGINE ACCELERATED VIOLENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. TH…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 SUBARU FORESTER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED, THE VEHICLE UNEXPECTEDLY SURGED FORWARD. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENGINE ACCELERATED VIOLENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 20,000. UPDATED 05/02/17*LJ UPDATED 11/17/2017*JS
DRIVER WAS PARKING FRONT FIRST INTO A PARKING SPOT, TRAVELING STRAIGHT FORWARD AT LESS THAN 5 MPH. WHEN THE 2016 SUBARU FORESTER REACHED THE PROPER PARKING LOCATION, THE DRIVER, WITH HIS FOOT ON THE BRAKE, ATTEMPTED TO MOVE THE GEAR SHIFTER FROM D TO P. SUDDENLY THE ENGINE REV'D AND THE CAR LURCHED FORWARD, OVER THE PARKING CONC…
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DRIVER WAS PARKING FRONT FIRST INTO A PARKING SPOT, TRAVELING STRAIGHT FORWARD AT LESS THAN 5 MPH. WHEN THE 2016 SUBARU FORESTER REACHED THE PROPER PARKING LOCATION, THE DRIVER, WITH HIS FOOT ON THE BRAKE, ATTEMPTED TO MOVE THE GEAR SHIFTER FROM D TO P. SUDDENLY THE ENGINE REV'D AND THE CAR LURCHED FORWARD, OVER THE PARKING CONCRETE BLOCK, OVER A SMALL BUSH AND INTO THE WINDOW WALL OF THE ADJACENT CONDO. DAMAGE WAS SUSTAINED TO THE WALL, AND RIGHT HAND SIDE FRONT OF VEHICLE. DRIVER STATED THAT HE COULD NOT DO ANYTHING ELSE BECAUSE HIS FOOT WAS ALREADY ON THE BRAKE. NEITHER AIRBAG DEPLOYED.
I'VE HAD THE SAME ISSUE HAPPEN ON 2 SEPARATE OCCASIONS (OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER 2016) - WHILE DRIVING THE CAR I BOUGHT BRAND NEW, AND GOING APPX. 75 MPH DOWN THE INTERSTATE, DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 2 HOURS STRAIGHT ON FLAT INTERSTATE, THE RPM'S ALL OF A SUDDEN SHOOT UP AND IT FEELS LIKE MY CAR FALLS OUT OF GEAR. THE CAR ESSENTIALLY …
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I'VE HAD THE SAME ISSUE HAPPEN ON 2 SEPARATE OCCASIONS (OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER 2016) - WHILE DRIVING THE CAR I BOUGHT BRAND NEW, AND GOING APPX. 75 MPH DOWN THE INTERSTATE, DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 2 HOURS STRAIGHT ON FLAT INTERSTATE, THE RPM'S ALL OF A SUDDEN SHOOT UP AND IT FEELS LIKE MY CAR FALLS OUT OF GEAR. THE CAR ESSENTIALLY SHUTS DOWN AND FAILS TO ACCELERATE AND SLOWS DOWN QUICKLY, WHILE TOTALLY UNRESPONSIVE. WE HAVE TO QUICKLY PULL OFF THE ROAD TO AVOID BEING HIT. SEVERAL LIGHTS SHOW ON THE DASH (HAVE PHOTO) AND THE VEHICLE DOES NOT RESPOND TO ACCELERATION. WE HAD TO SHUT THE CAR OFF COMPLETELY AND TURN IT BACK ON - NO RESPONSE TO ACCELERATION OR ANYTHING. IT DID NOT RESPOND UNTIL THE 2ND TIME TURNING IT OFF AND BACK ON. UPON BRINGING TO DEALERSHIP, THEY HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO PULL ANY CODES OR DUPLICATE THE ERROR (EITHER TIME). THEY ALSO HAD A SUBARU FIELD ENGINEER LOOK AT IT AND FOUND NOTHING. I AM CONTINUOUSLY SENT AWAY WITHOUT A SOLUTION OTHER THAN TO "CALL ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE" IF IT HAPPENS AGAIN, WHICH PUTS MYSELF AND OTHERS IN SERIOUS DANGER. THE MOST RECENT TIME THEY PUT 300 MILES ON IT AND FOUND THAT IT "FELL OUT OF CRUISE CONTROL", BUT AREN'T OFFERING TO FIX IT AND DIDN'T ACTUALLY DUPLICATE THE SAME ERROR AS I HAD. I'M AFRAID I'M GOING TO GET INTO A SERIOUS CAR ACCIDENT AND HURT MYSELF OR SOMEONE ELSE THE NEXT TIME THIS HAPPENS. IT FEELS LIKE SUBARU (OR DEALER) ISN'T OWNING UP TO THIS PROBLEM OR POSSIBLY TRYING TO COVER IT UP TO KEEP THEIR GOOD SAFETY RATINGS. THE DEALERSHIP HAS TOLD ME THAT I'M "THE ONLY PERSON IN THE WHOLE UNITED STATES REPORTING THIS ISSUE", WHICH I FIND VERY DIFFICULT TO BELIEVE.
SOFT BRAKES. HAD TO APPLY BRAKE AHEAD OF TIME TO STOP IN THE SIGNAL. SLOW TRAFFIC SAME ISSUE EVERY TIME YOU APPLY BRAKE YOU WILL BE SCARED IF IT WILL STOP. IT WILL NOT SLOWDOWN THE CAR IN THE TURNS. STREET CITIES AND SLOW TRAFFICS AND EXIT FROM HIGHWAY
WHILE TRAVELING AT SPEEDS ABOVE 25 MPH IN MILD TO MODERATE WINTER CONDITIONS, THE REAR END IS FISHTAILING AND PUSHING THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE IN AN UNSAFE MANNER. MY FAMILY AND I WERE NEARLY THROWN INTO A DITCH SEVERAL TIMES IN A 2 MILE EXCURSION ON THE INTERSTATE ON CHRISTMAS DAY. EVEN AT VERY LOW SPEEDS, THE STEERING IS UN…
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WHILE TRAVELING AT SPEEDS ABOVE 25 MPH IN MILD TO MODERATE WINTER CONDITIONS, THE REAR END IS FISHTAILING AND PUSHING THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE IN AN UNSAFE MANNER. MY FAMILY AND I WERE NEARLY THROWN INTO A DITCH SEVERAL TIMES IN A 2 MILE EXCURSION ON THE INTERSTATE ON CHRISTMAS DAY. EVEN AT VERY LOW SPEEDS, THE STEERING IS UNRESPONSIVE TO THE FORCE THAT FEELS LIKE IT IS COMING FROM THE REAR END. THE MAXIMUM SPEED AT WHICH WE COULD KEEP THE VEHICLE SOMEWHAT UNDER CONTROL WAS AROUND 25-30 MPH WHICH CAUSED US TO BE ANOTHER TYPE HAZARD ON THE INTERSTATE. DURING CITY DRIVING, THIS VEHICLE IS UNABLE TO MAINTAIN SINGLE LANE PRESENCE IN MILD TO MODERATE WINTER CONDITIONS. TIRE PRESSURE WAS EQUAL ON ALL 4 WHEELS. VEHICLE WAS WITHIN ALIGNMENT SPECS. THE DEALER HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THERE IS A PROBLEM (4 OTHER CARS IN THE SAME DEALERSHIP WITH THE SAME ISSUE) AND STATES THAT THEY ARE UNABLE TO MAKE A DIAGNOSIS. THEY HAVE HAD MY CAR IN THEIR POSSESSION FOR 3 WEEKS AS IT IS UNSAFE TO OPERATE. THE SUBARU CORPORATE REPRESENTATIVE HAS SUGGESTED THAT WE "TRY" SEVERAL PROPOSED SOLUTIONS (TO A PROBLEM WHICH THEY CANNOT IDENTIFY) AND CONTINUE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE TO DETERMINE IF THE PROBLEM IS FIXED. I DO NOT FEEL SAFE IN THIS VEHICLE. IT IS EXTREMELY IRRESPONSIBLE FOR SUBARU TO INSIST THAT MY FAMILY AND I BE USED AS AN EXPERIMENT IN AN ATTEMPT TO FIGURE OUT WHY THEIR PRODUCT PUT ME AND MY FAMILY IN GRAVE DANGER. *TR
2016 SUBARU FORESTER WAS RATED BY INSURANCE INST FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY AS POOR FOR HEADLIGHTS. HAVING DRIVEN ON DARK COUNTRY ROADS I CAN AGREE. HEADLIGHTS ON PASSENGER SIDE LIGHT UP RIGHT SIDE OF ROAD, DRIVER'S SIDE HAS FOCAL POINT OF LESS THAN 100FT. GOING DOWNHILL, A DARK LINE BLOCKS ALL LIGHT SO THAT SEEING ROAD AHEAD IS VERY DI…
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2016 SUBARU FORESTER WAS RATED BY INSURANCE INST FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY AS POOR FOR HEADLIGHTS. HAVING DRIVEN ON DARK COUNTRY ROADS I CAN AGREE. HEADLIGHTS ON PASSENGER SIDE LIGHT UP RIGHT SIDE OF ROAD, DRIVER'S SIDE HAS FOCAL POINT OF LESS THAN 100FT. GOING DOWNHILL, A DARK LINE BLOCKS ALL LIGHT SO THAT SEEING ROAD AHEAD IS VERY DIFFICULT. HIGH BEAMS ARE A BIT BETTER, MORE OF SURROUNDING COUNTRY SIDE LIT UP; DOWN-RANGE LIGHTING MIGHT HAVE FOCAL POINT OF 200/250 FEET, WELL BELOW IIHS STANDARDS. DEALER SAYS LIGHTS ARE PROPERLY AIMED. SUBARU, NEW JERSEY, CONTACTED. THEY CLAIM NO KNOWLEDGE OF IIHS REVIEW AND MY COMPLAINT WAS TREATED AS IT KINDA SUCKS TO BE YOU. *TR
2016 SUBARU FORESTER. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO VEHICLE EYESIGHT SYSTEM PROBLEMS, FRONTAL COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM AND ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM ISSUES. *SMD THE CONSUMER STATED OCCASIONALLY, THE SYSTEM WOULD SHUT DOWN AND THE DASHBOARD DISPLAYED THE APPROPRIATE WARNING LIGHTS. THE SYSTEM WOULD RE-START ON ITS OWN…
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2016 SUBARU FORESTER. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO VEHICLE EYESIGHT SYSTEM PROBLEMS, FRONTAL COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM AND ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM ISSUES. *SMD THE CONSUMER STATED OCCASIONALLY, THE SYSTEM WOULD SHUT DOWN AND THE DASHBOARD DISPLAYED THE APPROPRIATE WARNING LIGHTS. THE SYSTEM WOULD RE-START ON ITS OWN ANYWHERE FROM IMMEDIATELY TO FIVE MINUTES AFTER FAILURE. WHILE THE SYSTEM WAS INOPERATIVE, THE FRONTAL COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM AND THE ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL DID NOT WORK. IF HE ENGAGE THE CRUISE CONTROL, IT WOULD DISENGAGE WITHOUT WARNING AND THE VEHICLE WOULD RESPOND BY SLOWING DOWN. *JB
Official recalls
319V701000 · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification
Oct 3, 2019
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.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: 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.
Remedy: 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.
19V149000 · Exterior Lighting:brake Lights:switch
Feb 28, 2019
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2014-2016 Forester, 2008-2016 Impreza sedans, 2012-2016 Impreza station wagons, 2008-2014 WRX sedans (including STI), and 2013-2017 Crosstrek vehicles. Exposure to certain contaminants may cause the brake light switch to malfunction, preventing the brake lights from illuminating and also preventing keyless ignition vehicles from starting and CVT/automatic transmissions from being able to be shifted out of Park.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: Brake lights that do not illuminate properly will not alert other drivers that the vehicle is slowing or stopping, increasing the risk of crash.
Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the brake light switch, free of charge. The recall began April 15, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WUE-90.
16V162000 · Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:gasoline:turbo/supercharger
Mar 21, 2016
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 WRX vehicles manufactured April 10, 2015, to October 21, 2015, and Forester 2.0XT vehicles manufactured April 10, 2015, to October 20, 2015. The turbocharger air intake duct may crack and possibly result in an engine stall.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An engine stall increases the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the turbocharger air intake duct, and replace it as necessary, free of charge, depending on the lot number found on the duct. The recall began April 2016. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-800-782-2783. Subaru's number for this recall is WTA-62.
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
1PE19009 · Occupant Detection System (ods) Failure
Opened Aug 6, 2019 · Closed Jan 22, 2020
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags; Air Bags:frontal; Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module; Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification
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 full-sized passenger. In a frontal crash that is sufficient to warrant deployment, a suppressed air bag may increase the risk of injury to the occupant of the seat.On August 14, 2019 ODI sent an Information Request (IR) to Subaru requesting information on the subject vehicles and MY 2014-2015 Subaru Forester vehicles.On October 3, 2019, Subaru submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) to NHTSA describing a safety defect in the passenger-side front airbag Occupant Detection System (ODS) harness of 366,282 MY 2015-2018 Subaru Forester vehicles equipped with seat heaters.The DIR stated that over time, due to a decrease in contact pressure between the terminals in the ODS sensor mat harness, a temporarily unstable electrical connection may be possible. If the connection is temporarily unstable, the ODS may not properly determine the status of the right front seat occupant. If the ODS is unable to correctly determine the status of the front occupant, the airbag warning light may illuminate, and 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.Using vehicle production data and field occurrence frequency, Subaru determined the potentially affected vehicle production range to be between January 20, 2015 ?and August 1, 2017.In addition, Subaru indicated that over 99 percent of the related MY 2015-2018 field reports with vehicles in the production range involved vehicles with seat heaters.NHTSA's analysis of complaint and warranty claim data showed 1,440 of the complaints and 11,672 of the claims involve vehicles with seat heaters that were built within the production range covered by Subaru's recall.In addition, NHTSA's analysis showed a complaint rate of 393.1 per hundred thousand vehicles for the recalled population and 89.0 for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall. Analysis of warranty claim data found a claim rate of 3.2 percent for the recalled population and 0.3 percent for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall.Subaru will instruct owners with Subaru Forester vehicles produced in the affected vehicle production range, to bring their vehicles to a dealer to have the sensor mat harness, inspected and replaced with a new part, including the seat cushion assembly, if necessary.Based on ODI's analysis, the actions taken by Subaru mitigate any unreasonable risk to safety posed by ODS sensor mat failures in the subject vehicles. For subject and peer vehicles outside the recall population and those equipped without seat heaters, ODI's analysis indicates that there is currently no safety-related defect trend. Given these circumstances, further use of the agency resources in this matter does not appear to be warranted. Accordingly, this investigation is closed.
Additional source detail variants (4)
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module
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 full-sized passenger. In a frontal crash that is sufficient to warrant deployment, a suppressed air bag may increase the risk of injury to the occupant of the seat.On August 14, 2019 ODI sent an Information Request (IR) to Subaru requesting information on the subject vehicles and MY 2014-2015 Subaru Forester vehicles.On October 3, 2019, Subaru submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) to NHTSA describing a safety defect in the passenger-side front airbag Occupant Detection System (ODS) harness of 366,282 MY 2015-2018 Subaru Forester vehicles equipped with seat heaters.The DIR stated that over time, due to a decrease in contact pressure between the terminals in the ODS sensor mat harness, a temporarily unstable electrical connection may be possible. If the connection is temporarily unstable, the ODS may not properly determine the status of the right front seat occupant. If the ODS is unable to correctly determine the status of the front occupant, the airbag warning light may illuminate, and 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.Using vehicle production data and field occurrence frequency, Subaru determined the potentially affected vehicle production range to be between January 20, 2015 ?and August 1, 2017.In addition, Subaru indicated that over 99 percent of the related MY 2015-2018 field reports with vehicles in the production range involved vehicles with seat heaters.NHTSA's analysis of complaint and warranty claim data showed 1,440 of the complaints and 11,672 of the claims involve vehicles with seat heaters that were built within the production range covered by Subaru's recall.In addition, NHTSA's analysis showed a complaint rate of 393.1 per hundred thousand vehicles for the recalled population and 89.0 for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall. Analysis of warranty claim data found a claim rate of 3.2 percent for the recalled population and 0.3 percent for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall.Subaru will instruct owners with Subaru Forester vehicles produced in the affected vehicle production range, to bring their vehicles to a dealer to have the sensor mat harness, inspected and replaced with a new part, including the seat cushion assembly, if necessary.Based on ODI's analysis, the actions taken by Subaru mitigate any unreasonable risk to safety posed by ODS sensor mat failures in the subject vehicles. For subject and peer vehicles outside the recall population and those equipped without seat heaters, ODI's analysis indicates that there is currently no safety-related defect trend. Given these circumstances, further use of the agency resources in this matter does not appear to be warranted. Accordingly, this investigation is closed.
Air Bags:frontal
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 full-sized passenger. In a frontal crash that is sufficient to warrant deployment, a suppressed air bag may increase the risk of injury to the occupant of the seat.On August 14, 2019 ODI sent an Information Request (IR) to Subaru requesting information on the subject vehicles and MY 2014-2015 Subaru Forester vehicles.On October 3, 2019, Subaru submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) to NHTSA describing a safety defect in the passenger-side front airbag Occupant Detection System (ODS) harness of 366,282 MY 2015-2018 Subaru Forester vehicles equipped with seat heaters.The DIR stated that over time, due to a decrease in contact pressure between the terminals in the ODS sensor mat harness, a temporarily unstable electrical connection may be possible. If the connection is temporarily unstable, the ODS may not properly determine the status of the right front seat occupant. If the ODS is unable to correctly determine the status of the front occupant, the airbag warning light may illuminate, and 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.Using vehicle production data and field occurrence frequency, Subaru determined the potentially affected vehicle production range to be between January 20, 2015 ?and August 1, 2017.In addition, Subaru indicated that over 99 percent of the related MY 2015-2018 field reports with vehicles in the production range involved vehicles with seat heaters.NHTSA's analysis of complaint and warranty claim data showed 1,440 of the complaints and 11,672 of the claims involve vehicles with seat heaters that were built within the production range covered by Subaru's recall.In addition, NHTSA's analysis showed a complaint rate of 393.1 per hundred thousand vehicles for the recalled population and 89.0 for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall. Analysis of warranty claim data found a claim rate of 3.2 percent for the recalled population and 0.3 percent for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall.Subaru will instruct owners with Subaru Forester vehicles produced in the affected vehicle production range, to bring their vehicles to a dealer to have the sensor mat harness, inspected and replaced with a new part, including the seat cushion assembly, if necessary.Based on ODI's analysis, the actions taken by Subaru mitigate any unreasonable risk to safety posed by ODS sensor mat failures in the subject vehicles. For subject and peer vehicles outside the recall population and those equipped without seat heaters, ODI's analysis indicates that there is currently no safety-related defect trend. Given these circumstances, further use of the agency resources in this matter does not appear to be warranted. Accordingly, this investigation is closed.
Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification
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 full-sized passenger. In a frontal crash that is sufficient to warrant deployment, a suppressed air bag may increase the risk of injury to the occupant of the seat.On August 14, 2019 ODI sent an Information Request (IR) to Subaru requesting information on the subject vehicles and MY 2014-2015 Subaru Forester vehicles.On October 3, 2019, Subaru submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) to NHTSA describing a safety defect in the passenger-side front airbag Occupant Detection System (ODS) harness of 366,282 MY 2015-2018 Subaru Forester vehicles equipped with seat heaters.The DIR stated that over time, due to a decrease in contact pressure between the terminals in the ODS sensor mat harness, a temporarily unstable electrical connection may be possible. If the connection is temporarily unstable, the ODS may not properly determine the status of the right front seat occupant. If the ODS is unable to correctly determine the status of the front occupant, the airbag warning light may illuminate, and 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.Using vehicle production data and field occurrence frequency, Subaru determined the potentially affected vehicle production range to be between January 20, 2015 ?and August 1, 2017.In addition, Subaru indicated that over 99 percent of the related MY 2015-2018 field reports with vehicles in the production range involved vehicles with seat heaters.NHTSA's analysis of complaint and warranty claim data showed 1,440 of the complaints and 11,672 of the claims involve vehicles with seat heaters that were built within the production range covered by Subaru's recall.In addition, NHTSA's analysis showed a complaint rate of 393.1 per hundred thousand vehicles for the recalled population and 89.0 for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall. Analysis of warranty claim data found a claim rate of 3.2 percent for the recalled population and 0.3 percent for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall.Subaru will instruct owners with Subaru Forester vehicles produced in the affected vehicle production range, to bring their vehicles to a dealer to have the sensor mat harness, inspected and replaced with a new part, including the seat cushion assembly, if necessary.Based on ODI's analysis, the actions taken by Subaru mitigate any unreasonable risk to safety posed by ODS sensor mat failures in the subject vehicles. For subject and peer vehicles outside the recall population and those equipped without seat heaters, ODI's analysis indicates that there is currently no safety-related defect trend. Given these circumstances, further use of the agency resources in this matter does not appear to be warranted. Accordingly, this investigation is closed.
Air Bags
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 full-sized passenger. In a frontal crash that is sufficient to warrant deployment, a suppressed air bag may increase the risk of injury to the occupant of the seat.On August 14, 2019 ODI sent an Information Request (IR) to Subaru requesting information on the subject vehicles and MY 2014-2015 Subaru Forester vehicles.On October 3, 2019, Subaru submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) to NHTSA describing a safety defect in the passenger-side front airbag Occupant Detection System (ODS) harness of 366,282 MY 2015-2018 Subaru Forester vehicles equipped with seat heaters.The DIR stated that over time, due to a decrease in contact pressure between the terminals in the ODS sensor mat harness, a temporarily unstable electrical connection may be possible. If the connection is temporarily unstable, the ODS may not properly determine the status of the right front seat occupant. If the ODS is unable to correctly determine the status of the front occupant, the airbag warning light may illuminate, and 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.Using vehicle production data and field occurrence frequency, Subaru determined the potentially affected vehicle production range to be between January 20, 2015 ?and August 1, 2017.In addition, Subaru indicated that over 99 percent of the related MY 2015-2018 field reports with vehicles in the production range involved vehicles with seat heaters.NHTSA's analysis of complaint and warranty claim data showed 1,440 of the complaints and 11,672 of the claims involve vehicles with seat heaters that were built within the production range covered by Subaru's recall.In addition, NHTSA's analysis showed a complaint rate of 393.1 per hundred thousand vehicles for the recalled population and 89.0 for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall. Analysis of warranty claim data found a claim rate of 3.2 percent for the recalled population and 0.3 percent for MY 2014 through 2018 vehicles that are not included in the recall.Subaru will instruct owners with Subaru Forester vehicles produced in the affected vehicle production range, to bring their vehicles to a dealer to have the sensor mat harness, inspected and replaced with a new part, including the seat cushion assembly, if necessary.Based on ODI's analysis, the actions taken by Subaru mitigate any unreasonable risk to safety posed by ODS sensor mat failures in the subject vehicles. For subject and peer vehicles outside the recall population and those equipped without seat heaters, ODI's analysis indicates that there is currently no safety-related defect trend. Given these circumstances, further use of the agency resources in this matter does not appear to be warranted. Accordingly, this investigation is closed.