CarComplaints.com Notes: Is burning a quart of oil every 1,000 miles normal? Depends on who you ask. While Subaru says it's within "normal specifications," owners wonder why they need to top off their oil reservoir 4 times between every 5,000 mile oil change.

1.8

hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
94,200 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2014 Subaru Forester seat belts / air bags problems

seat belts / air bags problem

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2014 Subaru Forester Owner Comments

problem #5

Jun 252023

Forester

  • 191,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2014 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that the passenger-??s side air bag warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where a diagnostic test was performed. The diagnostic test showed that the ODS (Occupant Detection System) was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure, and the contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 191,000.

- Columbia, SC, USA

problem #4

Apr 012022

Forester 4-cyl

  • 170,000 miles
The contact owns a 2014 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that the passenger-??s seat air bag sensor failed to recognize a passenger seated in the passenger-??s seat. The air bag off message remained off while driving. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the contact was provided an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and offered assistance. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 170,000.

- Portland, OR, USA

problem #3

Jan 152022

Forester

  • miles
I have a 2014 Subaru Forester and I am having the exact same problem described in the NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V701000. The dealership wants to charge $1250 dollars to replace the seat bottom for a part that is recalled for all Subaru Foresters from 2015-2018. An electrical connection in the front passenger seat for the Occupant Detection System (ODS) is causing the airbag sensor to remain in the OFF position even when there is a passenger in the car. This is unsafe! When I contacted corporate they were unwilling to pay for replacing the part. My only recourse is to hope that the recall is expanded to include the 2014 Subaru Foresters.

- Powhatan, VA, USA

problem #2

Dec 312016

Forester

  • 110,000 miles
My vehicle has a problem with the airbag system. I was first alerted by my cars warning system, which states 'SRS airbag system needs to be checked' and gives me a red warning symbol of the airbag being inflated. Secondly it shows my passenger airbag is off even when someone is sitting in the passenger seat. This warning did not come on due to a collision as my vehicle has never been in a collision or involved in an accident otherwise. It simply appeared seemingly out of nowhere for no reason at all. I have taken my vehicle in several times to different Subaru dealerships to ask what the problem is. I was first told there was no problem with the system that perhaps it was just a malfunction in the sensor. Then the other dealerships told me that there was an issue with the passenger seat sensor, but that they are unable to confirm if this is the source of the problem causing the airbag light to come on and the passenger airbag to be turned off. They said I would need to replace the entire passenger seat, but they were unsure if this would fix the issue. I took it to an independent machanic and they also were unable to verify the source of the problem and referred me back to the Subaru dealership. I contacted Subaru of America about the issue and I never received any communication from them, although they promised to get back to me about the issue. I just know there is nothing I could have done to make this problem appear. I believe this is a manufacturer issue, just based on the fact that Subaru could not identify what the problem is or it's cause. So far I just have been told the passenger seat sensor is somehow defective and that it is not covered under any warranty.

- Camas, WA, USA

problem #1

Oct 042018

Forester

  • miles
My 2014 Subaru Forester 2.0 xt has had some issues with the warning lights come on. One of them has been the passenger side airbag light. When no one is sitting in the seat the seatbelt warning will chime the entire time I'm driving, then eventually the airbag sensor light will come on and I'll receive an indicator to have it checked. Upon taking it to the Subaru dealer they informed me that I would need an entire bottom seat at the cost of $1,000 plus $400 for install. I was told the part would take a month to come in as it has to be custom made. I was told that when the light is on none of my airbags would function on the vehicle. With two children I can't be driving a car that doesn't have working air bags. I've been borrowing a family vehicle for the last week while I try and work with Subaru corporate to get the cost of the repair fixed. It seems to me there should be a cheaper option to replace the computer sensor that's under the passenger seat. I've also read on some online forums that apple products, in particular iphones laid in the seat can impact this sensor. That seems like an issue as well. I'm hoping Subaru ends up paying for my seat or covering part of the repair since it sounds like a malfunction that doesn't have an easy fix, and the impact of the malfunction is to not have any functioning airbags.

- Normal, IL, USA

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