2022 Subaru Forester — Known Issues & Recalls

Your pre-collision braking system suddenly applied the brakes hard while you were driving 30 mph on a straight, empty country road in good weather with no obstacles present. The system activated without any apparent trigger, causing your car to slam to a stop as if you'd hit something. The dealer was unable to reproduce the issue during testing and found no fault, leaving the cause unresolved.

Your Subaru Forester's automatic emergency braking system activated on its own while you were driving 32 MPH on a main road with no vehicles or objects nearby. The dealer recalibrated the system and suggested your EZ Pass toll device may have triggered the false alarm, though you've had it in your car for three years without prior issues. The repair involved recalibration at the dealer.

Your car's adaptive cruise control is activating emergency braking when there's no vehicle directly in front of you, usually when you're passing diagonally. You're also getting false forward collision warnings with nothing ahead, and the EyeSight system keeps turning on and off while driving. This likely involves recalibrating or replacing the camera sensors that power the collision avoidance system.

After hitting a deer at 45 mph, your airbags deployed but your engine caught fire. The vehicle burned completely within 10 minutes of the collision.

While stopped at a traffic light, your Forester's engine didn't respond when the accelerator pedal was pressed, and you heard three unusual beeps along with several warning lights appearing on the dashboard. The vehicle was towed to the dealer but they were unable to diagnose or fix the problem. This issue may involve the engine control system, throttle response, or related electronic components that may need diagnostic scanning and potential software updates or component replacement.

Your rear window suddenly developed cracks across the entire glass while you were driving, even though nothing hit it or fell into it. The cracked glass then completely fell out of the vehicle. This unexplained failure of the rear window glass is a visibility and safety concern.

Your 2022 Forester's front windshield developed a crack while the vehicle was parked, with no known impact or accident involved. This happened at around 29,000 miles. You've scheduled a windshield replacement to address the issue.

Your car's safety systems—including lane assist, adaptive cruise control, and forward collision avoidance—shut off completely when certain non-critical problems occur, such as a blown fog light fuse or a faulty oxygen sensor. These issues typically cause only minor performance impacts like reduced fuel economy or slower engine warm-up, but trigger a full safety system shutdown that requires a service visit costing hundreds of dollars. If this happens while you're relying on lane assist or adaptive cruise, you could lose critical safety features unexpectedly at highway speeds. The fix will require replacing the faulty component and possibly having Subaru reprogram the safety system logic.

Your brakes suddenly activated on their own while you were driving at 40 mph, causing them to lock up and make an abnormal sound. You were able to regain control and continue driving, but the dealer was unable to diagnose or repair the issue when you brought it in. Subaru has opened a case to investigate the problem.

Your Subaru's EyeSight forward collision avoidance system unexpectedly disables while you're driving, including when adaptive cruise control is active, forcing you to brake suddenly to avoid a collision. The system displays a message on the dashboard when it shuts off. Your dealership confirmed this is a software issue and charged you $288.60 to install an update to fix it, even though the problem appears to be a known defect. The fix involves installing an updated software version to your EyeSight system.

Your 2022 Forester has been experiencing multiple serious safety issues since March 2023, including thick white exhaust smoke and a burning smell during acceleration in all temperatures. Your steering, suspension, and braking systems feel unstable, and your car's safety features (Eyesight ADAS, computer system) freeze and reset while driving without warning, disabling navigation and safety features. The remote start produces chemical fumes instead of heat, and your car has randomly unlocked itself. Despite four authorized dealerships claiming nothing is wrong and two closed warranty claims with Subaru of America, you have extensive documentation of repeated service visits. Addressing this will likely require a comprehensive diagnostic evaluation at an authorized dealership, possibly including computer system reprogramming, coolant system inspection, and a full safety system review.

While turning into your garage at low speed, your car suddenly accelerated on its own without any warning. You managed to steer into the garage and brake hard, stopping just before hitting the interior wall. This unexpected acceleration happened without any prior warning lights or symptoms.

Your 2022 Forester's Auto Start/Stop system unexpectedly shut off the engine while driving on the highway in live traffic, and the engine failed to restart immediately, leaving you stranded in the left lane. Your dealer said the system shut down due to a weakening battery with no warning, creating a serious safety risk since a non-critical fuel-saving feature disabled your ability to drive. The fix would likely involve investigating the battery management system and the Auto Start/Stop logic to prevent engine shutdown while the vehicle is in motion.

When you pulled into a parking space and slowed down, your car suddenly surged forward instead of stopping smoothly. Even though you pressed the brake pedal, the car continued accelerating for a few seconds before the brakes finally engaged. You nearly hit a fence and had to drive around on the grass until you regained control. This issue may involve the throttle control system, brake system response, or electronic speed control components that need inspection and repair.

Your back window shattered without any apparent cause—there was no vandalism or impact. The incident occurred after the temperature dropped 45 degrees overnight when you closed the side door, even though the car hadn't been started and the rear defroster wasn't on. This suggests the glass may have failed due to thermal stress from the extreme temperature change.

Your car's front struts have failed twice before 100,000 miles — the first set failed around 36,000 miles and the replacement set is failing again around 60,000 miles. This premature failure affects your vehicle's stability, handling, and braking performance, which is a safety concern especially at highway speeds. You may notice a rougher ride, noise from the suspension, or reduced vehicle control. Fixing this will require replacing the strut assemblies with new units.

The trim piece on your car's B-pillar (the metal support between your front and rear doors on the passenger side) has warped and bubbled, pulling away from the vehicle at around 24,700 miles. The dealer says the entire window panel assembly needs to be replaced and it's not covered under warranty. There's a risk the loose trim could detach while driving, especially at highway speeds, and it may also affect your door and window sealing.

Your forward collision avoidance system has activated unexpectedly on the freeway at 65 mph even though there was no vehicle in front of you, nearly causing a rear-end collision. Additionally, your EyeSight camera system has turned off within the last two weeks. Both issues appear to be recurring problems affecting other vehicles.

Your Bridgestone Ecopia tires may wear out prematurely, sometimes as early as 12,000 miles but typically between 20,000-30,000 miles. You might notice cracks developing on the inner sidewalls that are hard to spot without removing the tires, and these issues appear to be worse in cold weather climates. The fix may involve tire replacement or inspection of wheel alignment and suspension components that could be causing accelerated wear.

Your windshield developed a vertical crack on the passenger side that runs from the bottom to the middle, even though nothing hit it and it was fine the day before. This appears to be a spontaneous crack rather than damage from road debris. The windshield will likely need to be replaced, as cracks of this size typically cannot be safely repaired.