The Used Car Index

2004 Subaru Forester problems

NHTSA lists 219 complaints for the 2004 Subaru Forester, 13 of them mention a crash and 4 mention a fire. 7 complaints mention an injury, with 8 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-07.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as SUBARU FORESTER.

At a glance

Complaints
219
With crash
13
With fire
4
With injury (complaints)
7
Injuries
8
Deaths
0
Recalls
2
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
318,215
Investigations
1
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
146

Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. The required sales year is missing.

Where the complaints are

Top systems
SystemComplaintsShare of this vehicle's complaints
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM6328.8%
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE6127.9%
SUSPENSION2511.4%
ENGINE2310.5%
AIR BAGS219.6%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING167.3%
POWER TRAIN125.5%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL125.5%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER94.1%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM41.8%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLINGENGINE8
AIR BAGSFRONTAL3
SUSPENSIONFRONT3
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLINGEXHAUST SYSTEM2
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINEDELIVERY2
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINESTORAGE2
POWER TRAINAUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION2
STRUCTUREBODY2
SUSPENSIONREAR2
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROLACCELERATOR PEDAL2

One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.

Model-generated complaint tags: This model year has not been tagged.

Recalls

2 recalls.

11V464000

Date: 2011-09-06. Systems: SUSPENSION.

Defect: 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 (excerpt)

Consequence: A BROKEN CONTROL ARM CAN RESULT IN THE LOSS OF CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH. (excerpt)

Remedy: SUBARU WILL HANDLE THEIR VEHICLES AND SAAB WILL HANDLE THEIRS. DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE DEGREE OF CORROSION OF THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS, AND WILL EITHER RUSTPROOF OR REPLACE THEM. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING DECEMBER 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SUBARU AT 1-800-782-2783. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SAAB AT 1-800-955-9007. (excerpt)

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

04V473000

Date: 2004-10-01. Systems: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING.

Defect: 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.

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

Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND RETIGHTEN THE OIL-FLOW CONTROL VALVE COVER BOLTS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON OCTOBER 8, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT SUBARU AT 1-800-782-2783.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

Investigations

1 investigations; 0 open.

PE11011

Opened: 2011-04-07. Closed: 2011-09-23.

Front suspension control arm failure

On September 6, 2011, Fuji Heavy Industries USA, Inc, on behalf of Subaru of America, Inc notified the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) it would be conducting a safety recall of certain model year (MY) 2002 through 2007 Subaru Impreza, MY 2003 through 2008 Subaru Forester, and MY 2005 through 2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold or currently registered in one the salt belt states including

Systems: SUSPENSION.

Linked campaign numbers: 11V464000.

Manufacturer communications

146 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM60
UNKNOWN OR OTHER25
EQUIPMENT23
ENGINE13
POWER TRAIN13
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING11
AIR BAGS6
EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY5

11037943

Date: 2026-10-05. Type: Other. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

This announcement provides information on a new software update for the Midtronics Dss and DCA machines.

11037940

Date: 2026-09-18. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

This bulletin provides paint code information for 2027 model year vehicles.

11037930

Date: 2026-09-15. Type: Other. Systems: UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

This announcement provides an update to all 2027 model year Subaru warranty coverages for wear items and adjustments.

11037927

Date: 2026-09-14. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

This bulletin has been developed to outline the steps for gathering basic but essential information during diagnosis of Infotainment concerns. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.

11037929

Date: 2026-09-14. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

This bulletin contains illustrations of exchange components and their manufacturer as well as a description of the proper exchange procedure. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.

11036807

Date: 2026-08-20. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

This Service Information Bulletin outlines a systematic procedure for diagnosing parasitic draw (dark/standby current) in vehicles experiencing battery drain when the ignition is off, leading to no-start conditions or frequent jump-starts.This is an revised version of the original bulletin.

11036796

Date: 2026-08-13. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

This Bulletin has been developed to outline the steps for gathering basic but essential information during diagnosis of Infotainment concerns. (This is an revised version of the original bulletin.)

11036794

Date: 2026-08-05. Type: Other. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

Techtips newsletter locator index.

11036789

Date: 2026-08-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

This bulletin contains illustrations of exchange components and their manufacturer as well as a description of the proper exchange procedure. This is an revised version of the original bulletin

11034249

Date: 2026-06-12. Type: Other. Systems: UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

This announcement is requesting retailer staff to retain the EyeSight protective hood covers from Generation 4 EyeSight cameras.

Notes on this record

  • Complaints from the API and bulk file are merged and deduplicated by ODI number; the API alone misses records.
  • System and subsystem counts are numbers of distinct complaints, recalls or communications that name them. One record can name several systems, so shares across systems can add to more than 100 percent; a single share never exceeds 100 percent.
  • Recalls are counted once per campaign, investigations once per action and manufacturer communications once per NHTSA id, even when NHTSA lists several model names for the same record.
  • A sales denominator is a calendar-year proxy, not the population of vehicles still in use. Rates are copied from verified pipeline output.

Other names NHTSA uses

None listed.

Matched NHTSA models

Matched labels and complaints
NHTSA model labelComplaints
FORESTER219

Same model, other years

All model years | All Subaru models

Other Subaru models, 2004

Sources

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