IllustrationThe front lower control arm bushing were breaking apart at 53,156 miles. Shop reported significant play in the wheel while on the stand. Sounds like a safety hazards.
2017 Subaru Forester
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Forester years
Owner complaints for the 2017 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
1270–25K
12125–50K
4450–75K
1875–100K
8100–150K
3150K+
321 reports with mileage · 265 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 164 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 106 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Visibility/wiper. Review the 104 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
40 crash reports1 fire reports25 injury reports
Suspension complaints
11 reportsMy [XXX] mother in law was told by Subaru White Plains NY her both her front control arms and both front sway bar links had to be replaced due to rust as they were not safe and would not pass the NY vehicle inspection. So I did a Google search and saw 2017 Subaru Foresters had rust issues in this area and had a recall. However …
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My [XXX] mother in law was told by Subaru White Plains NY her both her front control arms and both front sway bar links had to be replaced due to rust as they were not safe and would not pass the NY vehicle inspection. So I did a Google search and saw 2017 Subaru Foresters had rust issues in this area and had a recall. However it doesn't show up for this VIN. [XXX] ) Her car was built before 7/2016 when she bought it new. Could it have fallen between the cracks, does NHTSA need to have these added as they also obviously have the same issue as they have age to that point of danger. This obviously puts not just 2017 owners at danger, but the public around them. I will try to attach the bills which show what was replaced as unsafe and unable to pass NY vehicle inspection. As I under stand the bill this was a video inspection, so they may have video that you can review. I live in Indiana 800 miles from my mother in law so I was not able to see any of the above in person. I am going on what I was told by her and what I have seen on the bill. I am not asking you to address the bill. I will do that if at some point NHTSA has Subaru add her car and others to a recall. Thank You for looking into this, (Son In Law) [XXX] [XXX] cell [XXX] [XXX] The owner is [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
After a recent regular tire rotation and balance, my vehicle steering felt shakier than normal. Had rotation and balance checked again, but problem continued. Thought an alignment might rectify the problem but was informed this was not needed. Went to my regular mechanic and did notice the steering vibration. Found that it had …
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After a recent regular tire rotation and balance, my vehicle steering felt shakier than normal. Had rotation and balance checked again, but problem continued. Thought an alignment might rectify the problem but was informed this was not needed. Went to my regular mechanic and did notice the steering vibration. Found that it had to do with the forward bushings, and provided me a copy of a service bulletin issued by Subaru dated 6/20/18, #05-63-18R addressing this item, and also provided me with a video and picture of the problem to provide to Subaru repair. Since the Subaru dealer that I went to was not interested in repairing with the information provided, went back to my mechanic and had the work done. No more vibrating steering wheel.
First was a control arm bushing and than a rear wheel hub assembly. At around 40000 miles. Both failures created unsafe control of the vehicle. Subaru has a tsb with updated parts, so they know the original are poor quality. It has been confirmed with dealer and independent shops. No warning lamps.
While driving at 50 miles an hour or greater on the freeway the right front wheel began to shake violently and it felt like the wheel was going to come off. I checked online and found similar complaints that referenced a Subaru Service bulletin # 05-63-18R dated 6/20/2018 revised 7/10/2018. It effects 2014 -- 2018 Foresters. As …
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While driving at 50 miles an hour or greater on the freeway the right front wheel began to shake violently and it felt like the wheel was going to come off. I checked online and found similar complaints that referenced a Subaru Service bulletin # 05-63-18R dated 6/20/2018 revised 7/10/2018. It effects 2014 -- 2018 Foresters. As it turned out my mechanic said I need to replace front two lower control Arms. The issue was the suspension. My car has 72,000 miles. The cost was $1200.00
The control arms on my 2017 Subaru Forester started malfunctioning at a relatively low mileage (~48K miles) and need to be replaced. This seems to be a common issue with Subaru Forester and Outback models manufactured between 2014 and 2019: - [XXX] - [XXX] - [XXX] - [XXX] There are many similar complaints and discussions o…
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The control arms on my 2017 Subaru Forester started malfunctioning at a relatively low mileage (~48K miles) and need to be replaced. This seems to be a common issue with Subaru Forester and Outback models manufactured between 2014 and 2019: - [XXX] - [XXX] - [XXX] - [XXX] There are many similar complaints and discussions online. My family has used our car in the San Francisco Bay Area exclusively for commuting. The roads here are in decent condition, and the climate is far from severe. The fact that these parts wore out so quickly suggests a possible manufacturing defect. I wonder why there hasn’t been a recall on these parts, given the potentially fatal implications. The car begins shaking on highways at speeds of 55–65 mph, making it feel as though the wheels might fall off. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
My wife's Subaru Forester (2017, VIN [XXX] ) at 70,131 miles started to have a loud droning sound from the rear of the vehicle on [XXX]. I took the SUV to a local mechanic, and they diagnosed the problem as two faulty rear wheel bearings. They removed the old bearings on September 4, 2024 (I have the faulty parts if needed) and …
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My wife's Subaru Forester (2017, VIN [XXX] ) at 70,131 miles started to have a loud droning sound from the rear of the vehicle on [XXX]. I took the SUV to a local mechanic, and they diagnosed the problem as two faulty rear wheel bearings. They removed the old bearings on September 4, 2024 (I have the faulty parts if needed) and placed new bearings. The mechanic warned me that the faulty wheel bearings can seize and cause an accident if they are not replaced. The repair resulted in the disappearance of the droning sound from the rear of the car, so it was clearly a correct diagnosis. In looking online, I have learned that many 2017 Subaru Foresters have a problem with rear wheel bearing failures. The company has expressed no interest in my concern about this incident. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Ball bearings all broke in car. This is a known issue but not until I googled it. It causes horrible noises and potential inquiry if not corrected.
46,000 miles and the lower control arm is broken. Causing the vehicle to shake and almost be undrivable.
The contact owns a 2017 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving over 60 MPH, the vehicle would shudder and produce a loud noise coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the lower control arm bushing and transmission pan needed to be replaced.…
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The contact owns a 2017 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving over 60 MPH, the vehicle would shudder and produce a loud noise coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the lower control arm bushing and transmission pan needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.
Official recalls
119V701000 · 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.
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.