2022 Subaru Forester: What to check before buying

Windshields crack or chip with no impact. Cracks appear overnight in a closed garage, at a red light, at parking-lot speeds, or in hot sun. Many start at the lower edge near the dashboard and grow several inches within days. Some owners report three or four cracks in a single year, starting as early as 5,000 miles. Dealers tell owners the warranty does not cover glass. One report describes a rear side window imploding while driving and showering the cabin with glass.

The windshield cracks from the bottom edge, sometimes while parked, at 7,600 to 29,000 miles. Replacement brings its own trouble. Dealers insist on OEM glass, one owner waited a month for it, and EyeSight and cruise control stopped working after the repair. One report describes the rear window cracking all over with no impact and then falling out while driving slowly.

LED low beams throw two dark rectangular shadows on the road roughly fifteen to twenty feet ahead. Because the headlights turn with the steering, the shadows move and pull the driver's eye. Owners also describe jagged cutoff lines, beams aimed too low on hilly roads, auto leveling that reacts slowly, and high beams barely brighter than the low beams. The problem is there from delivery, with one report at 10 miles. None of the excerpts mention a fix.

The battery goes dead overnight, sometimes again and again about a month apart. Dealers test it, find nothing, and say the car isn't driven enough. One fire report describes stalling, a trail of oil, then smoke and flames at 78 miles. Other complaints cover the infotainment screen going black with Apple CarPlay, doors locking and unlocking by themselves alongside warning lights, oil and onion smells in the cabin, and fuel economy stuck well below the window sticker.

The car surges forward without warning at parking speeds, usually while pulling into a space, driveway, or garage. Brakes are slow to take hold during the surge. Two crashes are reported. One driver was hurt after hitting a stone wall at about 15 mph, and another car drove into a garage and struck appliances. Dealers and a factory field technician found no fault. One case happened at 1,430 miles. A separate report describes automatic emergency braking at 65 mph with nothing ahead.

Phantom braking is the core complaint. The car brakes hard or stops completely with nothing ahead, at speeds from 20 to 65 mph. Triggers owners mention include road shadows, passing vehicles at an angle, and adaptive cruise control. One car stopped dead on an interstate four times. Following traffic creates rear-end risk. Dealers find no fault codes or simply recalibrate, and some owners turn EyeSight off. EyeSight also switches off on its own. One case occurred at 250 miles.

Two patterns appear. In the first, the car surges forward while the driver is braking into a parking space or garage and goes over a curb or hits objects. In the second, pre-collision braking slams on hard at highway speeds with nothing ahead, and in one case a truck behind nearly hit the car. One crash with 2 injuries followed a brake pedal that did not respond during a right turn. Dealers checked cars after false braking and found nothing wrong.

Airbags fail to deploy in serious frontal crashes. One car crashed into a tree after sudden acceleration at 1800 miles, and both front occupants had chest injuries. Another car hit a box truck hard enough to push the hood through the windshield. In the opposite failure, every airbag fired after a tire blowout with no collision. The passenger airbag can also stay disabled with a light adult seated. Repeated dealer visits did not fix that problem.

Fire is the main concern. Subaru's own investigation blamed one fire on a fuel line. That car had already had its engine replaced after a rod bearing failure, and it burned 600 miles later after the driver smelled fuel. Another car burned to the ground within minutes of hitting a deer at 45 mph. At about 5,000 miles, one car would not move at a stoplight despite throttle, beeping and showing warning lights. Fuel economy well below the window sticker also comes up.