2007 Subaru Forester — Known Issues & Recalls

While driving, your Forester suddenly began vibrating violently, which you initially thought was a blown tire. When you stopped to check, the tires were fine, but the vibration returned after driving a few more yards. When the car was towed, the front wheel was noticeably angled outward instead of pointing straight ahead. A mechanic determined the likely cause was a faulty lower control arm on the driver's side front wheel.

While driving at 50 mph on a highway, the front passenger suspension arm broke and separated from your vehicle, causing you to lose control. You were able to safely pull over to the road shoulder. This requires immediate inspection and replacement of the failed suspension component.

Your Forester was subject to a recall for front suspension control arm failure, and you took it to the dealership for inspection. On October 15, 2021, the front control arm broke shortly after you exited the highway, which could have caused the tire to separate and created a serious safety hazard. You suspect the recall repair was either not performed or not done correctly, as there were no warning signs before the failure.

While driving slowly in a parking lot at 5 mph, your lower control arm fractured and your vehicle had to be towed. A mechanic determined the lower control arm broke due to rust. Your car had been previously repaired under a Subaru recall for suspension issues, but this new fracture occurred around 69,000 miles. The repair will involve replacing the fractured lower control arm.

You heard a rattling noise from the front end of your Forester while driving at various speeds. While backing up, your driver's side front control arm and axle suddenly fractured without any warning. The cause of this failure is unknown, and it occurred at 129,000 miles. The repair will likely require replacement of the fractured control arm and axle assembly.

Your 2007 Subaru Forester is subject to a suspension recall (Campaign 11V464000), but the replacement parts needed to fix it haven't been available for an extended period. You were notified about this recall during routine maintenance, and both the dealer and manufacturer confirmed the parts are still unavailable. The repair hasn't been completed yet.

While driving on the freeway, your engine temperature gauge suddenly fluctuated and began rising, and coolant was forcefully spraying from the overflow tank. After shutting off the engine, the temperature dropped quickly, but when the coolant warmed up again during idling, it violently expelled from the radiator cap and overflow tank. You also noticed sooty exhaust. This indicates a blown head gasket, which allows coolant to escape and exhaust gases to enter the cooling system. Fixing this requires removing the cylinder head and replacing the head gasket.

Your engine's head gasket failed suddenly while driving on the highway at 65 mph with 115,000 miles on the odometer, and your radiator also failed at the same time. After replacing the radiator, resurfacing the cylinder heads, and replacing the head gasket, the same head gasket is now leaking again after only 15,000 additional miles. This suggests the repair may not have been completed properly or there's an underlying issue causing premature failure.

Your car has been shaking abnormally while driving at around 45 mph on several occasions. A mechanic diagnosed that the wheel bearings need to be replaced, though the repair hasn't been done yet. This issue started around 101,000 miles.

Your car developed a vibration that appeared after about 30 minutes of driving, which you initially thought was a tire issue. While driving on the highway, you heard a loud pop and discovered your lower right control arm had broken — a failure that could have caused loss of control at highway speeds. The vehicle had been regularly serviced at the dealer, including a recall performed in 2012, but the broken control arm was not caught during inspections.

Your front end feels unstable and pulls the steering wheel out of your hands when you hit bumps at highway speeds. You've had alignments every 6 months without improvement, suggesting the problem is with suspension components rather than alignment. This likely requires inspection and replacement of worn suspension parts like struts, control arms, or bushings.

While backing out of a parking spot, you heard a loud noise and your car stopped moving. The right front tire was tilted at an extreme angle, pointing in a different direction than the left tire. Upon inspection, the lower control arm completely separated from its attachment point due to corrosion, which also disconnected the right CV axle at the transmission. This happened at low speed with no injury, but the owner notes this could have been dangerous at highway speeds.

Your car's lower front control arm on the driver side rusted through completely, causing the car to drop onto the wheel and disconnect the drive axle from the transmission. The rust developed from the top of the part, making it difficult to spot during a routine inspection. This failure occurred immediately when backing out of the driveway, and represents a serious safety hazard that could cause loss of vehicle control while driving. Repair will require replacement of the lower control arm and inspection of the drive axle connection.

While reversing in the driveway, your car suddenly accelerated hard on its own and crashed into a retaining wall and nearby unit, even though the accelerator pedal wasn't pressed. After shifting into drive, the car accelerated violently a second time before stopping in the driveway. No warning lights appeared beforehand. This unintended acceleration issue caused injury to the driver and resulted in the vehicle being declared a total loss.

Your gear shifter may have failed to shift into reverse as intended. When you tried to put your car in reverse, it accelerated forward instead, causing a crash. This resulted in serious facial injuries requiring eye surgery. The vehicle was towed but the mechanic couldn't identify or fix the problem. The issue likely involves the transmission control linkage or shift mechanism and may require inspection or replacement of shifter components.

While driving, your car pulled suddenly to one side and you nearly lost control on the road. You discovered a rear wheel bearing had failed due to extensive rust underneath the vehicle, which also damaged the front lower control arms and other suspension parts. Your mechanic found the rust caused serious mechanical problems, and Subaru claims a recall for the front lower control arms was already completed on your vehicle, but you're experiencing the same issue at relatively low mileage. Fixing this will likely require replacing the damaged wheel bearing, front lower control arms, and addressing rust damage to suspension components.

A fuel line inside your car developed a pressure leak, causing an entire tank of gas to spill into the interior of your vehicle, particularly on the rear driver's side floor where the fuel lines are routed. Gasoline soaked into the carpet and seats, creating harmful fumes that cannot be safely removed. The owner considers it unsafe to drive the car and unsafe to have fuel lines running through the passenger cabin.

Your brake pedal suddenly went to the floor with no warning while preparing to reverse. You discovered a pinhole in your rear brake line near the passenger side with heavy corrosion around the 4-way joint connector, causing brake fluid to leak. Although Subaru has issued recalls for brake line corrosion on similar model years (2005-2013 for Legacy/Outback and 2008-2011 for Impreza/WRX), your 2007 Forester is not covered. Fixing this will require replacing the corroded brake lines and refilling the brake system.

Your car unexpectedly accelerated on its own while exiting a car wash, crossed the street, and hit a curb before crashing into a cement divider. The airbags did not deploy during the crash. The vehicle was totaled, and a police report was filed. This happened at 67,000 miles.

Your transmission fluid warning light started flashing while driving at 40 mph. When you tried to add fluid, you couldn't locate the fill point and the dipstick was stuck. Your mechanic determined the issue wasn't low fluid but rather a transmission problem. The transmission may need replacement or significant repair.