- Safety
- 5
- of 5 stars
- Recalls
- 1
- on record
- MPG
- 27
- combined
Open recalls on record
1 safety recall. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer — check the VIN before you buy.
Vehicle Summary
2023 Subaru Forester
Before You Buy
Safety record at a glance
- Recall campaigns
- 1
- Owner complaints
- 71
- Complaints citing a crash
- 8
These are raw counts from NHTSA records. They are not normalized by how many of these vehicles are on the road, so a model that sold in large numbers will tend to show more of everything. We do not publish a composite safety or reliability score.
1 Recall on Record
These recalls have been issued by the manufacturer. Contact any authorized dealer to verify they have been completed — repairs are free.
Safety recalls
1 NHTSA campaign affecting this model year.
- 23V754000high
Driveshaft bolt issue
POWER TRAIN:DRIVELINE:DRIVESHAFT
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2024 Crosstrek, Impreza, 2023-2024 Forester, and 2023 WRX vehicles. The front driveshaft assemblies' outer race may develop cracks and break.
Consequence
A broken driveshaft can cause a loss of drive power while driving or vehicle rollaway when the vehicle is in park without the parking brake engaged. Either of these scenarios can increase the risk of a crash.
Full campaign recordRemedy
Dealers will inspect and replace the left and right front driveshafts as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 8, 2024. Owners may contact Subaru's customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRP-23.
NHTSA crash-test ratings
NCAP star ratings and the underlying test breakdown for the 2023 Subaru Forester.
Frontal crash
- Driver
- 5 / 5
- Passenger
- 5 / 5
Side crash
- Driver
- 5 / 5
- Passenger
- 5 / 5
- Side pole
- 5 / 5
Rollover
- Rollover risk
- 16.9%
- Dynamic tip
- No Tip
Driver-assistance technologies
- Electronic stability control
- Standard
- Forward collision warning
- Standard
- Lane departure warning
- Standard
What the ratings mean
NHTSA gives the 2023 Subaru Forester 5 out of 5 stars overall. NHTSA does not publish enough comparable results for this class and year to rank it against peers.
NHTSA published results for every NCAP test in this program, so the overall star rating rests on a complete set of crash and rollover results.
NHTSA's dynamic test put this vehicle's rollover probability at 16.9% in a single-vehicle crash — the figure behind the rollover star rating, published here because the star alone hides how wide each band is.
Fuel economy & emissions
EPA figures for the 2023 Subaru Forester, with tailpipe CO₂ and class context.
22
City
34
Hwy
27
Comb
- Annual fuel cost
- $1,944
- Tailpipe CO₂
- 329 g/mi
How this compares
The EPA holds too few vehicles in this class and model year to rank the 2023 Subaru Forester against its peers.
Tailpipe CO₂ is 329 grams per mile — about 4.9 metric tons over 15,000 miles of driving.
Consumer complaints
71 owner reports filed with NHTSA.
- 71
- Total
- 8
- Crashes
- 4
- Fires
- 5
- Injuries
Most reported components
- OTHER20
- VISIBILITY12
- ENGINE8
- ELECTRICAL6
- AIR BAGS6
Notable Issues
71 consumer complaints filed with NHTSA. 5 reports involve injuries. 8 reports involve a crash.
Most reported problems
Safety timeline
Every dated recall and NHTSA investigation for the 2023 Subaru Forester, newest first.
- Recall
A broken driveshaft can cause a loss of drive power while driving or vehicle rollaway when the vehicle is in park without the parking brake engaged. Either of these scenarios can increase the risk of a crash.
Dates are the NHTSA report-received date for recalls and the ODI open/close date for investigations. Crash-test ratings are not shown here because the source does not provide a reliable publication date for them.
Specifications & ratings
Specifications
- Body class
- SUV
- Drive type
- FWD
- Engine
- 2.5L 4-cyl
- Fuel type
- Regular Gasoline
- Transmission
- Automatic
- Seats
- 5
Fuel economy
22
City
34
Hwy
27
Comb
- Annual cost
- $1,944
- Fuel
- Regular Gasoline
NHTSA crash ratings
- Overall
- Frontal
- Side
- Rollover
Explore related
Systems recalled
Safety timeline
Full timeline- Recall
A broken driveshaft can cause a loss of drive power while driving or vehicle rollaway when the vehicle is in park without the parking brake engaged. Either of these scenarios can increase the risk of a crash.