NHTSA — Electrical System Problems

2020 Subaru Forester (Page 4 of 4)

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
1,462 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.

2020 Subaru Forester electrical problems

electrical problem

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2020 Subaru Forester Owner Comments (Page 4 of 4)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #8

Sep 222020

Forester

  • 70 miles

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

Vehicle has some electrical issue with the TPMS that less than a year in, one of them is seems to be going out. Thee head unit (infotainment sys) also had connection issue that was aware and known by subura dealer rep when called and as to bring in for maintenance. Blinds pot monitor on the right has tendency to not flash or alert every so often.

- Upland, CA, USA

problem #7

Sep 152020

Forester

  • 4,500 miles
One day I looked up at my windshield and there is a scratch/crack visible on the inside. Nothing hit it.

- Chesterton, IN, USA

problem #6

Oct 192020

Forester

  • 600 miles
Wiring harness, transmission, soy based - destroyed by rodents at 600 miles, 9 months. Vehicle on home drive, daylight, as our basement was repaired from flood damage. 1 week on driveway.

- Midland, MI, USA

problem #5

Jun 202020

Forester

  • 1,400 miles

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

Power lift gate open while parked during all-day sporting event (total of 8 hours). No other doors open, no auxiliary use of battery was in use, battery was dead and I was left stranded in parking lot.

- Lake Villa, IL, USA

problem #4

May 152020

Forester 4-cyl

  • 4,748 miles
Battery died 3 times and the car has less than 5000 miles the vehicle was in my driveway and usually driven at least every other day also, it seemed like it jerked forward a few times when I started it. It has a push button start.

- Hulmeville, PA, USA

problem #3

Mar 112020

Forester

  • 100 miles
A change in some 2019-2020 Subaru models causes an incompatibility between obd-II devices and the Subaru starlink system (which is used to dispatch emergency services in the event of an accident, and for other purposes). Subaru service bulletin 15-257-19 11/11/2019 recognizes the problem, but does not offer a solution other than tell the customer not to use the obd-II device. Since the starlink system prior to model year 2019 was compatible with obd-II devices, it seems likely that a Subaru initiated change is causing this incompatibility. As stated in the bulletin, in order to avoid having the car notify the dealer every 3 days of the problem, they have changed the notifications to once every 10 days. This is not solving the problem, but merely pushing it down the road. Some consider starlink a safety system, and pay extra to have it available. Copy of service bulletin attached. This is a continuing, repeated problem starting on 3/11/2020 and is a continuing intermittent problem. First dealer service on 3/17/2020 found no problem because the issue had temporarily resolved itself. The service bulletin was not found by the owner until 4/2/2020 after several back and forth emails with Subaru customer service before then.

- Silver Spring, MD, USA

problem #2

Feb 292020

Forester

  • 1,800 miles
Vehicle ignition is off and in park. The safety issue occurs when the rear tailgate is left open. After 20 minutes of leaving the rear tailgate open, all the interior lights turn off correctly as a published safety feature to help prevent a dead battery upon departure. The user thinks everything has shut off when the lights turn off, however, the rear tailgate ECU does not turn off or go to a low power state after the initial 20 minutes causing a high drain on the battery. The hatch ECU continues to draw in excess of 4 amps while the hatch is left open, causing a dead battery in as little as a few hours. The user can unknowingly be left stranded with a dead battery causing a safety issue. This is a serious oversight and engineering error that will likely leave many people unknowingly stranded with a dead battery.

- Lomira, WI, USA

problem #1

Dec 292019

Forester

  • 30 miles
When driving the driver heated seat puts out low heat even if the switch is in the off position. At 15 minutes sitting, heat can be felt on the buttocks skin and caused minor skin burn at around 30 minutes.

- Fort Washington, MD, USA

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