NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2025 Subaru Forester. Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA and do not by themselves prove a defect or defect rate.
I believe there are some issues related to the reliability of the windshield of this vehicle. My windshield cracked by itself from the bottom without hitting anything, which is similar to other complainant.
The vehicle, which has less then 1k miles, had the rubber "pad" on top of the brake pedal dislocate while driving. Did not know until I tried to brake to pull into driveway, pad obstructed the break. Had to put full weight on brake to make the vehicle stop, and was able to put in park. Could have easily caused collision.
Recently, my mother died in a car accident. A bystander reported that she was driving normally and then suddenly drove off the road. The police investigated and found that the conditions weren't likely to contribute to an accident. There was no immediate explanation for what happened. The car did catch fire as a result of the accident after it struck a tree. We just received a notice in the mail that states there's been a safety recall on the wheels of the 2025 Subaru Forrester that may contribute to accidents. We don't know for sure that it was related, but are concerned that it may be.
Driver's side mirror vibrates when driving at highway speeds on freeways; vibration is so bad that it makes the image blurry when using the mirror to change lanes
My sight turn off when out side temperature in cold, or raining hard, fog on wind shield. Sony when the weather seem perfect all safety systems turn off. I have told my dealer about this event with no real positive answer. The pit system on compute and said it was working as designed so best auto and most reliable on road does not seem to be true
The low beam lighting on my 2025 Subaru Forester is dangerous. The beam is set so that it is flat on top and too low. When the car dips at all the beam does not allow you see straight ahead. This is very dangerous when you cannot use the high beam as with oncoming traffic. I have taken it to the dealer and they state that the low beam is set according to Subaru specifications. Contact with Subaru America offered no correction.This is a dangerous condition and needs to be corrected.
Driver side exterior rear view mirror shakes/vibrates at highway speeds (65mph or higher) making it difficult to safely change lanes/view following traffic. The dealership inspected this and was able to replicate the issue, but said there is nothing they can be done / they’ve seen it before / it’s just how it is - “not that bad”. This is a dangerous defect and it needs to be fixed. It is especially a problem at nighttime.
The contact owns a 2025 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 MPH, the driver's side mirror vibrated abnormally. The failure caused the reflection in the mirror to become distorted. The contact stated that while driving faster than 40 MPH, the vibration of the mirror increased. The contact stated that the Blind Spot warning operated as needed; however, the distortion of the mirror caused visual eye strain while looking into the mirror. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer three times, and the mirror was replaced on the first visit. The vehicle was repaired; however, the vibration reoccurred and was more pronounced. The contact stated that after the last visit to the dealer, a technician wedged two pieces of rubber into the mirror. The vehicle was not repaired, and the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and advised the contact that there would be no further action taken. The failure mileage was approximately 4,000.
I have noticed my new Suburu driver side mirror shakes during highway speeds and this causes cars and backgrounds to look blurry. I didn't notice this on my other mirrors. It makes it difficult to drive and is distracting.
I believe there should be a windshield recall due to abnormally easy cracking. I purchased/took ownership of my 2025 Subaru Forester, Touring model, on September 3, 2024. The odometer was just 4 miles. Barely a month later I had 2 cracks in the windshield; the 1st happened on October 2, 2024 and the 2nd occurred on October 13, 2024. Both happened simply while driving on interstate roads and something hitting my windshield (nothing big, didn't see any object and didn't even hear the 2nd one, just noticed the crack when I got home) . Two different places on the windshield. It is now November 12, 2024 and I have still not had the windshield replaced because SafeLite is waiting for an OEM windshield (which is on backorder with no delivery date yet provided). I have had it parked since the 2nd incident. This is the 14th car I've owned and I have never had a cracked windshield before and I believe this must be a defective product!
Low visibility and dark (shadowy) spots on road surface when low beam LED lights are on, and you’re driving on a dark rural road. The cutoff of the visual field is uneven, with a shorter visual field and dark spots on driver side. Got the car on August 17th. I didn’t drive it at night until the morning of September 5th. That’s when I noticed the problem with the lights. Took car to Subaru dealer on September 10th. According to the dealer the lights are level and working as designed. On September 11th I called Subaru and reported the problem, and the dealer comments to them. The customer advocate told me that a specialist will contact me within a couple of days. On September 16th I called and I was told that the specialist was not in the office, and the next day when he would come in he would contact me. Today is September 19th and I still have not been contacted by the Subaru specialist. I live in a rural township that doesn’t have street lights or sidewalks. Due to the low visibility and dark spots I don’t feel comfortable driving the car at night.
The head lights are seriously defective in low beam. In low beam the car is not road worthy. It is dangerous! It is available for inspection upon request. We did not drive the car after dark until a week after taking delivery. We were at risk as was any other vehicle on the road at that time. We have not driven the car after dark since. The dealer who sold the car to us has been made aware of the problem. No one has inspected the car. There were on warnings or symptoms.
Paddle shifter does not work appropriately—when shifting rapidly using paddle shifters, right shifter (up-shift) occasionally commands transmission to shift down.
Both headlights have a shadow of the light bulb at the top center of both headlights causing a distraction/confusion under certain conditions at night. I have never had a shadow show up in my line of sight in all the many vehicles I have owned in the past from my headlights. I previously owned a 2019 Subaru Forester and there was no shadow appear from the headlights beam of light. I talked to the local Subaru dealer, where I purchased the 2025 Forester, and they told me it is working as designed. .
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026