IllustrationTHE REAR HATCH DOOR HAS OPENED THREE TIMES WITHOUT MY DOING ANYTHING TO OPEN IT.. EACH TIME I HAVE FOUND THE DOOR UP AFTER THE CAR HAD BEEN PARKED OVERNIGHT IN MY CARPORT. I LIVE ALONE AND NO ONE ELSE HAS ACCESS TO THE ELECTRONIC CONTROLS.
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
Electrical System complaints
93 reportsTL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2016 SUBARU FORESTER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN PARKED FOR APPROXIMATELY 5 MINUTES BEFORE THE NEIGHBOR NOTICED FLAMES COMING FROM UNDER THE HOOD OF THE VEHICLE. MOMENTS LATER, THE VEHICLE WAS ENGULFED IN FLAMES. THE NEARBY MOTOR HOME AND HOUSE ALSO CAUGHT ON FIRE AND WERE DESTROYED ALON…
Read full complaint
TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2016 SUBARU FORESTER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN PARKED FOR APPROXIMATELY 5 MINUTES BEFORE THE NEIGHBOR NOTICED FLAMES COMING FROM UNDER THE HOOD OF THE VEHICLE. MOMENTS LATER, THE VEHICLE WAS ENGULFED IN FLAMES. THE NEARBY MOTOR HOME AND HOUSE ALSO CAUGHT ON FIRE AND WERE DESTROYED ALONG WITH THE VEHICLE. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS CALLED TO THE SCENE TO EXTINGUISH THE FLAMES. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. THE LOCAL DEALER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS INFORMED OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 45,000.
WE'VE HAD THE CAR FROM NEW LEASE THE BATTERY HAS DIED AT LEAST 4 TIMES. AFTER THE 2ND TIME, WE TOOK IT TO THE DEALER TO BE CHECKED. THEY SAID BATTERY AND CHARGER WERE FINE. IT IS NOT FINE IF THE BATTERY CAN'T HOLD ENOUGH POWER TO START CAR AFTER LEAVING KEY ON ACC FOR 15 MINUTES WITH NO LIGHTS, NO RADIO, NOTHING KNOWINGLY DRAWIN…
Read full complaint
WE'VE HAD THE CAR FROM NEW LEASE THE BATTERY HAS DIED AT LEAST 4 TIMES. AFTER THE 2ND TIME, WE TOOK IT TO THE DEALER TO BE CHECKED. THEY SAID BATTERY AND CHARGER WERE FINE. IT IS NOT FINE IF THE BATTERY CAN'T HOLD ENOUGH POWER TO START CAR AFTER LEAVING KEY ON ACC FOR 15 MINUTES WITH NO LIGHTS, NO RADIO, NOTHING KNOWINGLY DRAWING POWER. EVEN WHEN THE BATTERY STARTS THE CAR NORMALLY, CRANKING IS SLOW, ALMOST UNABLE TO CRANK. I HAVE HAD TO RESCUE MY WIFE, HER SON-IN-LAW HAS HAD TO, BUT WHAT IF WE AREN'T AVAILABLE. A CAR SHOULD BE GENERALLY ABLE TO START UNLESS YOU'VE LEFT THE LIGHTS ON FOR HOURS. THE LAST SITUATION, DRIVEN TO MCDONALD'S, PARKED AND ENGINE OFF, KEY WAS TURNED TO ACC TO ROLL DOWN WINDOW; NOTHING ELSE. AFTER 15-20 MINUTES, CAR WOULD NOT START, DEAD BATTERY. I HAD TO COME AND JUMP IT.
MY VEHICLE ALARM SYSTEM CAME ON UNEXPECTEDLY TOWARD THE END OF A DAY-LONG DRIVE, WITH THE ENGINE LIGHT, HILL ASSIST, EYESIGHT, AND OTHER DASH WARNING LIGHTS ALL ILLUMINATED. THE PROBLEM DISABLED THE EYESIGHT SYSTEM, WHICH IS A SAFETY ISSUE IN CLEAR WEATHER WHEN A DRIVER EXPECTS IT TO WORK. THE REMAINDER OF THE DRIVE WAS UNNERVIN…
Read full complaint
MY VEHICLE ALARM SYSTEM CAME ON UNEXPECTEDLY TOWARD THE END OF A DAY-LONG DRIVE, WITH THE ENGINE LIGHT, HILL ASSIST, EYESIGHT, AND OTHER DASH WARNING LIGHTS ALL ILLUMINATED. THE PROBLEM DISABLED THE EYESIGHT SYSTEM, WHICH IS A SAFETY ISSUE IN CLEAR WEATHER WHEN A DRIVER EXPECTS IT TO WORK. THE REMAINDER OF THE DRIVE WAS UNNERVING, LATE ON A THURSDAY NIGHT, ON A HIGHWAY IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, WHEN NOTHING WAS OPEN. TURNS OUT THIS PROBLEM IS ALL OVER THE INTERNET. IT DESERVES A RECALL!
WATER IS ENTERING THE INTERIOR OF THE CAR FROM UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD NEAR THE GLOVE COMPARTMENT. THE CARPET IS STARTING TO SMELL OF MILDEW. I AM AFRAID OF THE REACTION WITH THE ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS AND WATER. I NOTIFIED MY DEALERSHIP AND AWAITING A RESPONSE. MEANWHILE, I TAKING MY CAR TO BE SERVICED.
I DROVE FROM NJ TO ME (BOUGHT IN 2017). I NOTICED DIFFICULTY WHEN TRYING TO ACCELERATE/PASS CARS FROM THE LEFT LANE. I THOUGHT NOTHING OF IT. AFTER 5 HRS I GOT OFF THE HIGHWAY & MADE A RIGHT ONTO A MAIN ST WHEN I HEARD A LOUD NOISE, FELT IT PULL BACK & MY WHEELS LOCK UP. I THOUGHT I HIT SOMETHING OR GOT A FLAT & WAS RIDING ON MY…
Read full complaint
I DROVE FROM NJ TO ME (BOUGHT IN 2017). I NOTICED DIFFICULTY WHEN TRYING TO ACCELERATE/PASS CARS FROM THE LEFT LANE. I THOUGHT NOTHING OF IT. AFTER 5 HRS I GOT OFF THE HIGHWAY & MADE A RIGHT ONTO A MAIN ST WHEN I HEARD A LOUD NOISE, FELT IT PULL BACK & MY WHEELS LOCK UP. I THOUGHT I HIT SOMETHING OR GOT A FLAT & WAS RIDING ON MY RIMS. FROM THE RIGHT LANE I MOVED ONTO THE SHOULDER-IT JERKED ROUGHLY BUT REMAINED STUCK. I WALKED AROUND IT & NOTICED NOTHING WRONG ON THE OUTSIDE. I WAITED 2.5 HRS FOR A TOW TRUCK TO TAKE ME 6 MINS AWAY TO OUR HOTEL. I CALLED A FEW LOCAL REPAIR SHOPS. NONE COULD SEE ME FOR A WEEK SO MY PLAN WAS TO BRING IT TO THE HOTEL. THE TOW TRUCK DRIVER SAID MY CALIPER WAS STICKING & RECOMMENDED I HAVE IT TOWED TO SUBARU SINCE NO ONE WOULD BE ABLE TO SERVICE IT AT THE HOTEL. SUBARU CALLED/SAID SOMEONE PULLED MY REAR DIFFERENTIAL PLUG & IT WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED WITH POSSIBLE TRANSMISSION DAMAGE. THEY BLAMED THE OIL CHANGE GUY, SAYING HE MADE AN ERROR (THE DIFFERENTIAL WAS NEAR THE OIL DRAIN PLUG) & THE REPAIR WAS NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. THE DIFF THEY MEANT WAS THE FRONT DIFF-THEY ARE CLOSE. THERE ARE 2 DIFFS & THE REAR DIFF IS WHERE MY ISSUE WAS-10 FT AWAY FROM OIL DRAIN. I'VE ONLY HAD OIL/BRAKE PAD CHANGES & NEITHER HAD A REASON TO TOUCH ANY DIFF. THAT WORK IS RECOMMENDED BETWEEN 30-50K MILES & I HAD 31K. I DROVE A RENTAL TO NJ WHILE MY CAR WAITS IN NH. I TALKED TO CORPORATE/SERVICE ALL WEEK BUT THEY WON'T LISTEN TO ME EVEN THOUGH I MAKE A VALID POINT. THEY ASKED WHO DID THOSE ROUTINE SERVICES. I SHARED THE INFO & ASKED WHY IT WAS RELEVANT. HE "HINTED" THAT IT COULD VOID THE WARRANTY. I ASKED IF THAT WAS WHY MY CLAIM WAS DENIED BUT HE SAID HE DIDN'T SAY THAT WAS THE REASON. IT'S ILLEGAL TO TELL CUSTOMERS ONLY SUBARU CAN SERVICE THEIR CARS. EXPERIENCED MECHANICS SAY IF ANYONE PULLED THE DIFF PLUG IN NJ I WOULDN'T HAVE MADE IT TO ME-5 HRS AWAY.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 SUBARU FORESTER. WHILE ATTEMPTING TO PARK THE VEHICLE, IT SUDDENLY ACCELERATED WITHOUT THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL BEING DEPRESSED. AS A RESULT, THE VEHICLE CRASHED INTO A FENCE AND A POLE. THERE WERE NO INJURIES AND A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED. THERE WAS EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO THE BUMPER. THE VEHICLE WAS TO…
Read full complaint
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 SUBARU FORESTER. WHILE ATTEMPTING TO PARK THE VEHICLE, IT SUDDENLY ACCELERATED WITHOUT THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL BEING DEPRESSED. AS A RESULT, THE VEHICLE CRASHED INTO A FENCE AND A POLE. THERE WERE NO INJURIES AND A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED. THERE WAS EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO THE BUMPER. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT BODY SHOP AND THEN TO SUBARU OF ENGLEWOOD (135 SOUTH DEAN STREET, ENGLEWOOD, NJ 07631, (201) 816-6000). THE DEALER STATED THAT THEY COULD NOT FIND ANY FAILURES. THE CONTACT RESEARCHED AND LEARNED OF MANY SIMILAR OCCURRENCES, WHICH WERE DUE TO ELECTRICAL FAILURES. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THERE WAS AN EVENT DATA RECORDER THAT THE DEALERS DID NOT HAVE AND THEY WERE INVESTIGATING THE MATTER. THE MANUFACTURER FURTHER STATED THAT THEY WOULD CALL THE CONTACT IF THEY DECIDE TO SEND THE EQUIPMENT TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 20,000. THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE HAS HAD TO INCIDENTS OF SUDDEN ACCELERATION THAT CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO CRASH INTO OTHER VEHICLES CAUSING DAMAGE.*JS
I'VE HAD THIS CAR FOR 1.5 YEARS AND IT'S ALREADY STALLED TWICE TIMES. BOTH TIMES I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AND WITHOUT ANY WARNING MY CAR JUST STARTED TO RAPIDLY DECREASE SPEED. BOTH TIMES, I MY GAS METER SAID THAT I HAD OVER 50 MILES OF GAS LEFT IN MY CAR. ITS ABSOLUTELY TERRIFYING BECAUSE WHEN THE CAR SHUTS OFF, I HAVE ABOU…
Read full complaint
I'VE HAD THIS CAR FOR 1.5 YEARS AND IT'S ALREADY STALLED TWICE TIMES. BOTH TIMES I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AND WITHOUT ANY WARNING MY CAR JUST STARTED TO RAPIDLY DECREASE SPEED. BOTH TIMES, I MY GAS METER SAID THAT I HAD OVER 50 MILES OF GAS LEFT IN MY CAR. ITS ABSOLUTELY TERRIFYING BECAUSE WHEN THE CAR SHUTS OFF, I HAVE ABOUT TWO MINUTE TO GET TO THE SHOULDER BEFORE IT'S COMPLETELY DEAD.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 SUBARU FORESTER. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH, THE VEHICLE'S POWER SEIZED. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO FITZGERALD TOYOTA (907 N FREDERICK AVE, GAITHERSBURG, MD 20879) WHERE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DETERMINED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE …
Read full complaint
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 SUBARU FORESTER. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH, THE VEHICLE'S POWER SEIZED. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO FITZGERALD TOYOTA (907 N FREDERICK AVE, GAITHERSBURG, MD 20879) WHERE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DETERMINED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.
WE GOT OUR 2016 SUBARU FORESTER PREMIUM 2.5I FROM BAY RIDGE DEALER IN BROOKLYN ON JUNE 7,2016.
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.