"How reliable is the 2018 Subaru Forester?"

"Based on 660 NHTSA complaints, the 2018 Subaru Forester has a median complaint mileage of 14635 miles. The most common issue is VISIBILITY/WIPER."

"What are common problems with the 2018 Subaru Forester?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2018 Subaru Forester is VISIBILITY/WIPER, accounting for a significant portion of the 660 total complaints filed."

2018 Subaru Forester: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 660 complaints

660

Total Complaints

14,635mi

Median Mileage

VISIBILITY/WIPER

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

6,000 25th Percentile

14,635 Median Mileage

29,730 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

VISIBILITY/WIPER

135

AIR BAGS

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

ENGINE

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

SEATS

STEERING

POWER TRAIN

VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"THE SUBARU (NAV) NAVIGATION SYSTEM IS DANGEROUS AND SHOULD NOT BE USED. IT GIVES YOU NO ADVANCE WARNING OF UPCOMING HIGHWAY EXITS OR UPCOMING TURNS. THE NAV SYSTEM WILL EASILY BE THE CAUSE OF SEVER LIFE THREATENING ACCIDENTS DUE TO ITS POOR OPERATIONAL ABILITY TO SAFELY GIVE CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS IN ..."

"WHILE DRIVING AT 60 MILES AN HOUR ON A 4 LANE HIGHWAY, I WAS GOING AROUND A SLIGHT CURVE WHEN THE LANE ASSIST CAME ON. I WAS IN THE LEFT LANE AND NOT NEAR THE LEFT LINE IN ROAD, BUT CENTERED IN THE MIDDLE OF LANE. I HEARD ONE BEEP AND THEN THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME VERY LOOSE IN MY HAND AND IT TOO..."

"BRAND NEW VEHICLE. DRIVING ON AN INTERSTATE AT 55MPH AND MADE A SLIGHT LEFT TURN AT A BEND IN THE ROAD, WELL WITHIN THE CLEARLY PAINTED LANE MARKERS. CLEAR WEATHER, TEMP ABOUT 50 DEGREES F. HEARD ONE BEEP AND LOST CONTROL OF THE STEERING FOR A SECOND WHILE THE CAR STEERED ITSELF SLIGHTLY LEFT. MY ..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28