There are 43 owner-reported speed control & cruise complaints for the 2015 Subaru Foresterin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
On 3 different occasions the car randomly accelerated at a high speed without stepping on the gas pedal. The first time was in a parking lot. The second time was on a busy road while traveling at 35 mph. The car accelerated to about 60 mph, fortunately once applying the brakes the vehicle slowed down to gain control. The third time it happened was recently on [XXX] while slowly backing down [XXX]. The car accelerated backwards at a very high speed narrowly missing a fence in the neighbors yard. These incidents have happened with large time frame gaps in between the occurrences. After the third incident I took the car to a dealer Planet Subaru in Hanover MA. After keeping the car for a few days, the dealer called and said that they could not find anything wrong with the car and there was nothing that they could do for me. This issue is obviously very serious, if the car surges forward randomly while someone is crossing in a crosswalk it could be potentially fatal. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at 1 MPH into a parking space, the contact attempted to shift the transmission into park (P) while depressing the brake pedal when the vehicle inadvertently lunged forward and crashed into a building. No warning light was illuminated. The air bags did not deploy. The impact caused soreness in her chest and stomach. The contact received medical attention on the scene from Emergency Medical Technician (EMT). A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the tow yard. The vehicle was not yet deemed totaled by the insurance company. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000.
The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving approximately 65–70 MPH, the vehicle failed to accelerate as needed. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the contact was referred to the dealer for assistance. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while at a carwash moving forward, the vehicle accelerated up to approximately 35 MPH and crashed into the rear of a Ford Explorer. There were no warning lights illuminated. The driver sustained injuries to his chest due to striking the steering wheel. Medical attention was provided. The contact was able to drive away from the crash site. A police report was filed. There was no air bag deployment. The vehicle was taken to a Collision Center. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified about the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 70,000.
The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Forester. The contact stated upon pulling into a parking space, the brake pedal was depressed, however, the vehicle accelerated unintendedly and crashed into the side of the apartment building of her friend. The contact stated that the crash damaged the apartment of her friend located on the first floor. There was no warning light illuminated. The air bags failed to deploy. There were no injuries sustained. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow lot. The dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 82,000.
Suddenly lost acceleration and engine stopped - without any dashboard signal of low gas or engine issue. Car was able to start after couple of minutes. At the time of losing acceleration and stopping gas indicator was showing two bars - and car was not running with low fuel indicator. My whole family was in the car and stopping in the middle lane of a busy national highway of 65 miles speed limit on a Saturday late in night was very scary!
The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration causing the driver to immediately depress the brake pedal to abruptly stop the vehicle. After the failure, the vehicle operated as normal. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were not yet notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 72,000.
I have had several instances while driving on the highway when my forester revs to a very high RPM, the vehicle speeds up suddenly, and then shuts off completely. The only fix is to put the vehicle in neutral, move to the shoulder, and restart the vehicle. This has happened approximately 4 times during my 1 year of ownership and it is completely random when it occurs.
Sudden accelerations.
The 2015 Subaru Forester accelerated unexpectedly while slowly turning into a a Walgreens parking lot. The acceleration could not be stopped by stepping on the brake, and the car crashed into the brick building. The vehicle is at Phil's Auto Body Shop in Rosemount, MN. The estimate on the car is complete, and waiting on State Farm insurance to approve. The police were at the scene of the accident. Walgreens has video of the accident from their security cameras.
AUTO ACCELERATED UNEXPECTEDLY AFTER LEAVING CAR WASH BAY. AUTO SPED THROUGH PARKING LOT INTO STREET AND CRASHED INTO ANOTHER AUTO TRAVELING ON A ROAD.
CAR IN MOTION. HAPPENS ON A STOP, PARKING THE VEHICLE IN PROGRESS, DRIVING SLOW. WHEN PUSHING GAS PEDAL SLOWLY FROM START POINT; VEHACLE SPEED UP SO MUCH THAT I HAVE TO PRESS BRAKES PEDAL TO HOLD THE SPEED DOWN. HAPPENS ONCE EVERY OTHER TIME.
WHILE DRIVING IN THE HIGHWAY AT 75 MPH WITH CRUISE CONTROL ON THE CAR SUDDENLY WENT TO 5000 RPM AND AT THE SAME TIME STARTED TO BRAKE ALL THE LIGHTS IN THE DASHBOARD CAME ON I PULLED OVER AND THE CAR'S ENGINE SHUT DOWN. I TRIED TO STARTED ABOUT 5 06 TIMES THE CAR WOULDN'T STAR AND AFTER THAT THE CAR WAS COMPLETELY DEAD. I HAD IT TOW TO A SHOP. THE NEXT MORNING IT STARTED LIKE NOTHING THE MECHANIC AT THE SHOP SAID IT WAS THE BATTERY.AFTER CHANGING THE BATTERY I TOOK IT TO THE GAS STATION AFTER PUTTING GAS IT WOULDN'T START AGAIN AFTER SEVERAL TRIES IT STARTED.AT THIS POINT I DON'T THINK THE BATTERY WAS THE ISSUE BUT I AM GLAD I GOT HOME. THIS HAPPENED IN STARKVILLE MS 200 MILES FROM WHERE I LIVE. *TR
The contact owned a 2015 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, pulling into a parking space, and while attempting to park the vehicle on the street, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration. The contact had to depress the brake pedal several times before the brakes were engaged. The failure occurred on two separate occasions. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the dealer could not replicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired and was later sold to St. Cloud Subaru (141 Park Ave S, St. Cloud, MN 56301). The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately under 60,000.
I DROVE INTO GARAGE AT ABOUT 1 M.P.H. AND PUT THE CAR IN PARK. AFTER IDLING FOR ABOUT 3 SECONDS THE ENGINE ACCELERATED TO 2,800 R.P.M. AND STAYED THERE,I COULDN'T GET IT TO SLOW DOWN. I PRESSED ON THE ACCELERATOR MANY TIMES,IT WOULDN'T SLOW DOWN OR SPEED UP. IT JUST STAYED AT THE SAME SPEED. PRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL DIDN'T DO ANYTHING. I GOT IT STOPPED BY TURNING OFF THE IGNITION. WHEN THIS HAPPENED THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I GOT CODE P2138. I AM REPLACING THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL POSITION SENSOR AS I AM AFRAID TO DRIVE IT.THE CAR IS EXACTLY 5 YEARS OLD,I BOUGHT IT NEW. IT HAS 16,552 MILES ON IT NOW. I WAS VERY LUCKY IT WAS IN PARK WHEN IT DID THIS. I HOPE THE NEW PART FIXES IT.AFTER 4 RESTARTS THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WENT OUT. I TOOK IT FOR A SHORT DRIVE,AND THE ENGINE KEPT WANTING TO RUN FAST. TWO DAYS LATER IT SEEMS OK,IT SLOWS DOWN NOW.
WE WERE DRIVING IN THE FREEWAY AT 65MPH, WE HAD BEEN DRIVING ABOUT AN HOUR, ON THE FREEWAY WITH SOME TRAFFIC BUT MOSTLY MOVING NORMALLY. SUDDENLY WITH NO WARNING NOR ENGINE LIGHTS, THE CAR REVED BUT DIDN'T RESPOND TO THE GAS PEDAL. AS THOUGH IT HAD RUN OUT OF GAS. THE LOW FUEL LIGHT HAD GONE ON ALREADY, IT TURNS ON AROUND 70 MILES TO EMPTY, BUT WE STILL HAD 50 MILES TO EMPTY. WE PULLED OVER AND CALLED ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE TO DELIVER GAS SINCE THAT'S ALL WE COULD FIGURE HAD HAPPENED. AFTER ABOUT 30 MINUTES WAITING WE DECIDED TO TRY IT AND JUST SEE IF IT WOULD START AND IT DID! WE DROVE TO THE NEXT EXIT AND GOT GAS WITH NO FURTHER PROBLEMS, AND CONTINUED ON HOME AFTER. THIS WAS VERY SCARY AND LEFT MY FAMILY SITTING STRANDED ON THE SIDE OF THE FREEWAY. NO ENGINE LIGHTS, NO CODES, NOTHING OBVIOUS TO FIX. NOW I'M NERVOUS TO DRIVE WITH MY KIDS IN THE CAR IN CASE IT HAPPENS AGAIN.
TWICE WHILE DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE ON A 3-4 HOUR TRIP GOING APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH USING CRUISE CONTROL WITH APPROXIMATELY 1/12 - 1/6 TANK OF GAS, MY ENGINE BEGAN TO REV AND AT THE SAME TIME LOST POWER AND SPEED. THE FIRST TIME I PULLED OFF THE ROAD, SHUT THE ENGINE OFF, WAITED APPROXIMATELY 10 MINUTES AND WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE ENGINE AND FINISH MY TRIP. IT HAPPENED THE SECOND TIME WITH MOSTLY IDENTICAL CIRCUMSTANCES. I PULLED OFF THE ROAD, TURNED OFF THE ENGINE, WAITED AND WAS UNABLE TO START THE ENGINE. I HAD TO TOW MY VEHICLE TO A DEALERSHIP. THEY RAN DIAGNOSTICS WITH NOTHING TURNING UP. THEY WERE HOWEVER ABLE TO START THE CAR WHEN THEY TRIED. THIS WAS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS BEING IN 70 MPH TRAFFIC AND HAVING NO SPEED CONTROL. I HAVE THE DEALERSHIP PAPERWORK FROM THE SERVICE. NOW THE ENGINE DOES NOT SEEM TO HAVE THE NORMAL POWER IT USUALLY DOES WHEN ACCELERATING. *TT*JB
ON 2 SEPARATE OCCASIONS WAS DRIVING MY 2015 SUBARU FORESTER (TOURING EDITION) AT HIGHWAY SPEED, 70 MPH, THE CAR LOST POWER AND STARTED DECELERATING. LUCKILY BOTH TIMES I WAS ABLE TO GET OVER TO THE SHOULDER. THE CAR RE-STARTED AFTER AWHILE. THE FIRST TIME THE LOW FUEL LIGHT WAS ON BUT I HAD OVER 50 MILES LEFT ACCORDING TO FUEL SENSOR. THE SECOND TIME, A MONTH OR SO LATER, NO LOW FUEL LIGHT WAS ON. THERE WERE 2 BARS LEFT ON THE FUEL GAUGE. AGAIN CAR TOTALLY DECELERATED AND THEN A FEW MINUTES LATER WAS ABLE TO BE DRIVEN. SUBARU DEALERSHIP CLAIMS THEY HAVE NOT HEARD OF THIS PROBLEM BUT SOMEONE DID CALL THEM ABOUT IT THE DAY BEFORE I CALLED. I AM SCHEDULING AN APPOINTMENT WHERE THEY SAY THEY WILL DO A DIAGNOSTIC ON IT. I AM SEEING MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS ON THIS EXACT CAR ON CARCOMPLAINTS.COM THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS PROBLEM AND SUBARU SHOULD NOT BE WAITING FOR FATALITIES TO HAPPEN BEFORE RECALLING THESE CARS.
IN HEAVY TRAFFIC MY SPEED CONTROL FAILED. THE ENGINE RPMS WENT DOWN BY THEMSELVES WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON FREEWAY. THE GAS PEDAL COMPLETELY UNRESPONSIVE.
WHEN HIGHWAY DRIVING MULTIPLE WARNING LIGHTS ARE ILLUMINATED ON DASH, TRACTION CONTROL, EYESIGHT, CRUISE CONTROL OFF, HILL ASSIST. THE EYESIGHT SYSTEMS ARE DISABLED SHUTTING OFF CRUISE CONTROL. WHEN THIS HAPPENS THE REAR BRAKES LIGHT ARE NOT WORKING. WHEN THE CAR IS THE SHUT OFF THEN RESTARTED AND THE BRAKE IS DEPRESSED THE CAR WILL NOT COME OUT OF PARK AFTER STARTING. THIS HAPPENS WHEN IT IS RESET AFTER THE CAR SITS OFF OVERNIGHT. THE LAST TIME I COULD NOT GET IT OUT OF THE PARK I WENT BEHIND THE BRAKE PEDAL AND MOVE THE BRAKE SWITCH AND PRESSED THE CONNECTION ON TOP IN. THIS RESET THE SYSTEM AND I WAS ABLE TO GET THE CAR OUT OF PARK AND ALL THE WARNING LIGHT ON THE DASH DISAPPEARED. THE STOPLIGHT SWITCH/BRAKE SWITCH PART #83311FJ001 IS DEFECTIVE. ON 3/1/19 SUBARU ANNOUNCED A RECALL NOT SURE IF IT'S THIS PART/ISSUES BUT I AM HOPING IT IS.
Showing 1–20 of 43 complaints
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026