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2025 Subaru Forester

Hybrid Gas Compact SUV

20262025202420232022202120202019201820172016
Specs & fuel economyRecallsComplaintsCrash ratings
D
Safety Signal
66 / 100
DSafety Signal · 66 / 100
4Recalls · 1 critical
90Complaints · owner reports
5★Crash rating · NHTSA overall
35 mpgFuel economy · best combined
⚠️
Active NHTSA advisory: park outside and away from structures until repaired. Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and see the recall details below.

The 2025 Subaru Forester is sold in the U.S. as a hybrid and gas compact SUV with 4 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the Forester Hybrid AWD, is EPA-rated at 35 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 4 recall campaigns for this model year, 1 rated critical, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of D. Owners have filed 90 complaints, most often about unknown or other. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy (EPA)

ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombAnnual fuel*
Forester Hybrid AWDHybridAWD2.5L 4-cyl + 259V Li-Ion353435$1,800
Forester AWDGasAWD2.5L 4-cyl263329$2,150
Forester Sport/Touring AWDGasAWD2.5L 4-cyl253228$2,250
Forester Wilderness AWDGasAWD2.5L 4-cyl252826$2,400

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year and EPA reference fuel/electricity prices. Source: fueleconomy.gov vehicle records.

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Recalls (4)

Equipment

minor
541,237 vehiclesHybrid only

Problem: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2026 Crosstrek Hybrid, 2025-2026 Forester Hybrid, Forester, and 2019-2026 Ascent vehicles. These vehicles were manufactured with an incorrect Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR) on the certification label. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 110, "Tire selection and rims."

Risk: An incorrect GAWR label may lead to an overloaded vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: Subaru will mail a new certification label to owners, free of charge. Owners may also choose to have a dealer install the new label, free of charge. Letters informing owners of the safety risk were mailed August 24, 2026. Additional letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRH-26.

NHTSA campaign 26V436000 · reported Jul 7, 2026 · Subaru of America, Inc.

Fuel System, Gasoline

critical
Park outside69,870 vehiclesHybrid only

Problem: Subaru of America, Inc. is recalling certain 2026 Crosstrek hybrid, and 2025 Forester hybrid vehicles. When the fuel tank is near full capacity, an increase in ambient temperature may cause the fuel to expand and spill out of the filler neck due to an insufficient seal on the fuel cap.

Risk: A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source increases the risk of a fire.

Fix: Owners are advised to park outside and away from structures, and to limit the fuel level to 50% until the remedy is completed. Dealers will replace the fuel filler cap gasket, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 25, 2026. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRD-26. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on February 16, 2026.

NHTSA campaign 26V106000 · reported Feb 23, 2026 · Subaru of America, Inc.

Child Seat

high
2,938 vehicles

Problem: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2025 Forester vehicles. The child seat anchor bolts may have been improperly tightened, allowing the bolts to come loose.

Risk: A loose child seat anchor bolt increases the risk of injury to a child during a crash.

Fix: Dealers will inspect the child seat anchor bolts and, if necessary, tighten the bolts, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed August 15, 2025. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRC-25.

NHTSA campaign 25V419000 · reported Jun 19, 2025 · Subaru of America, Inc.

Wheels

high
20,366 vehicles

Problem: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2025 Forester vehicles equipped with 18" aluminum alloy wheels. The wheels may have been manufactured with an incorrectly specified lug seat surface, which can result in the wheel being improperly attached and cause a loss of vehicle stability.

Risk: A loss of vehicle stability increases the risk of a crash.

Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the wheels, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 28, 2025. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRB-25.

NHTSA campaign 25V033000 · reported Jan 23, 2025 · Subaru of America, Inc.

Owner complaints

90 complaints filed

11 involved a crash, 2 a fire, 6 injuries, 1 deaths reported by owners.

Filed by year — 2024: 7 · 2025: 37 · 2026: 46

Most-cited components

  • Unknown Or Other — 18
  • Forward Collision Avoidance — 15
  • Visibility/Wiper — 13
  • Fuel/Propulsion System — 12
  • Exterior Lighting — 8
“My Subaru issues, false warnings to “KEEP HANDS ON STEERING WHEELâ€� while both hands are holding the steering wheel. The warnings are inconsistent and follow varying sequences. In most cases, the warning begins with a yellow outlined warning, on the instrument panel, to keep hands on the steering wheel with the acco…”Feb 20, 2025 · Forward Collision Avoidance · NHTSA owner report
“I recently purchased a 2025 Subaru Forester. My wife is a petite woman, about 93-97 pounds and 5 feet 4 inches tall. When she sits in the front passenger seat the airbag light stays in the "airbag off" position. She is not heavy enough to activate the "airbag on" light. The dealer inspected the passenger seat and said …”Feb 1, 2025 · Air Bags · NHTSA owner report
“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 - …”Jan 27, 2025 · Visibility · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
SUV AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆17%
SUV AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆17%
SUV AWDnot rated★★★★★★★★★★not rated17%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program. Standard driver-assist: forward collision warning, lane departure warning, automatic emergency braking.

Other Forester model years

B

2026 Forester

3 recalls · 19 complaints

C

2024 Forester

2 recalls · 29 complaints

A

2023 Forester

1 recalls · 73 complaints

A

2022 Forester

1 recalls · 97 complaints

A

2021 Forester

0 recalls · 207 complaints

A

2020 Forester

0 recalls · 598 complaints

C

2019 Forester

3 recalls · 833 complaints

C

2018 Forester

3 recalls · 493 complaints

A

2017 Forester

1 recalls · 584 complaints

C

2016 Forester

3 recalls · 411 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records (ids 48932, 47740, 47741, 48931). Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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