2004 Subaru Forester

No clear pattern

1.1% of complaints about the 2004 Subaru Forester arrived in its first year of service. That is an unusual figure for a 2004 vehicle, but with only 270 complaints on record the sample is too small to call it a pattern — the margin of error covers the range where ordinary vehicles sit. The figures below are reported without a verdict. The most-reported system is fuel / propulsion (63 complaints), typically at 12.2 yr or about 123,000 miles.

Complaints: 270
Median age at failure: 9.8 yr
Median mileage: 97,000 n=224
Crash / fire / tow: 10.4% of reports
Safety recalls: 2

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

11V464000 2011-09-06

Suspension:front:control arm:lower arm

SUBARU IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2002-2007 IMPREZA, MODEL YEAR 2003-2008 FORESTER, AND MODEL YEAR 2005-2006 SAAB 9-2X VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM SEPTEMBER 5, 2000 THROUGH NOVEMBER 26, 2007 ORIGINALLY SOLD, OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN, MASSACHUSETTS, MARYLAND, MICHIGAN, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NEW YORK, PENNSYLVANIA, VERMONT, WISCONSIN, CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, IOWA, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, MAINE, MINNESOTA, MISSOURI, NEW JERSEY, OHIO, RHODE ISLAND, WEST VIRGINIA AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS MAY BREAK AT THE HANGER BRACKETS DUE TO CORROSION IF THE HANGER BRACKET IS EXPOSED

A BROKEN CONTROL ARM CAN RESULT IN THE LOSS OF CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

04V473000 2004-10-01

Engine cooling

ON CERTAIN PASSENGER AND SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, THE COVER BOLTS FOR THE ENGINE OIL CONTROL VALVE MAY NOT BE SUFFICIENTLY TIGHTENED, ALLOWING OIL TO LEAK FROM AROUND THE COVER GASKET.

IF LEAKING OIL CONTACTS COMPONENTS OPERATING AT HIGH TEMPERATURES, A FIRE COULD RESULT IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT.

In owners’ own words

Engine cooling 8,000 mi 1.3 yr in service crash / fire / tow

CAR PRODUCING NOXIOUS ODOR INSIDE. WHEN PARKING CAR IN GARAGE, ACCIDENTALLY STEPPED ON ACCELERATOR RATHER THAN BRAKE. HIT AND DESTROYED BACK WALL. COSMETIC DAMAGE TO CAR. DEALER CLAIMS LEAVES WERE SUCKED INTO THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT THROUGH TURBOCHARGE INTAKE. BUT, ODOR WAS OF BURNT RUBBER OR PLASTIC, NOT LEAVES. AND, THE CAR IS ALWAYS PARKED IN THE GARAGE. FINALLY, MOST LEAVES WERE DOWN SEVERAL WEEKS EARLIER THIS YEAR, I.E., BY END OF NOVEMBER. *NM

Engine cooling 300 mi 1.3 yr in service

EXCESSIVE SULFUR DIOXIDE ODOR (ROTTEN EGG). COMPANY REFUSES TO FIX CONVERTER, BLAMES FUEL. CONVERTER SHOULD HANDLE THE SULFUR CONTENT OF FUEL, REGARDLESS. *JB

Engine cooling 29,500 mi 2.3 yr in service

WHEN OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE FALLS BELOW 10 DEGREES F., CAR WILL NOT START OR STARTS ONLY WITH GREATEST DIFFICULTY. LAST YEAR(2004), SAME SORT OF STARTING PROBLEM WAS ATTRIBUTED TO A CRACKED IGNITION COIL. THIS YEAR DEALERS SERVICE DEPARTMENT CAN NOT FIND A PROBLEM, ALSO CAN'T EXPLAIN THE PROBLEM. *JB

Air bags mileage not reported 1.2 yr in service

FUEL DOOR RELEASE BUTTON DOES NOT WORK. AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON POSSIBLE ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS. *BF 5 DAYS AFTER PURCHASING THE VEHICLE, THE FUEL DOOR RELEASE BUTTON FELL OFF. OPENING OF THE FUEL DOOR WAS AND CONTINUED TO BE DIFFICULT. THE CONSUMER WOULD LIKE A FULL REFUND FOR THE VEHICLE. *TC *JB

Other Forester model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

2004 Subaru Forester

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

In owners’ own words

Other Forester model years

How to read this