- Safety
- 5
- of 5 stars
- Recalls
- 3
- on record
- MPG
- —
- combined
Fatalities reported
Owner complaints to NHTSA include 1 report involving a death. Read the complaint record closely.
Vehicle Summary
2025 Subaru Forester
Before You Buy
Safety record at a glance
- Recall campaigns
- 3
- Owner complaints
- 83
- Complaints citing a crash
- 10
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 We do not publish a composite safety or reliability score.
3 Recalls 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
3 NHTSA campaigns affecting this model year.
- 25V033000high
Tire/wheel issue
WHEELS
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2025 Forester vehicles equipped with 18" aluminum alloy wheels. The wheels may have been manufactured with an incorrectly specified lug seat surface, which can result in the wheel being improperly attached and cause a loss of vehicle stability.
Consequence
A loss of vehicle stability increases the risk of a crash.
Full campaign recordRemedy
Dealers will inspect and replace the wheels, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 28, 2025. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRB-25.
- 25V419000high
Safety restraint issue
CHILD SEAT
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2025 Forester vehicles. The child seat anchor bolts may have been improperly tightened, allowing the bolts to come loose.
Consequence
A loose child seat anchor bolt increases the risk of injury to a child during a crash.
Full campaign recordRemedy
Dealers will inspect the child seat anchor bolts and, if necessary, tighten the bolts, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed August 15, 2025. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRC-25.
- 26V436000high
Incorrect or missing label
EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2026 Crosstrek Hybrid, 2025-2026 Forester Hybrid, Forester, and 2019-2026 Ascent vehicles. These vehicles were manufactured with an incorrect Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR) on the certification label. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 110, "Tire selection and rims."
Consequence
An incorrect GAWR label may lead to an overloaded vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Full campaign recordRemedy
Subaru will mail a new certification label to owners, free of charge. Owners may also choose to have a dealer install the new label, free of charge. Letters informing owners of the safety risk are expected to be mailed August 25, 2026. Additional letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRH-26.
NHTSA crash-test ratings
NCAP star ratings and the underlying test breakdown for the 2025 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
- 17.4%
- 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 2025 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 17.4% in a single-vehicle crash — the figure behind the rollover star rating, published here because the star alone hides how wide each band is.
NHTSA crash tests
Fuel economy & emissions
The EPA holds no fuel-economy record for this model year.
The EPA does not publish a record for every model year.
Consumer complaints
83 owner reports filed with NHTSA.
- 83
- Total
- 10
- Crashes
- 2
- Fires
- 6
- Injuries
Most reported components
- OTHER23
- VISIBILITY17
- FUEL SYSTEM12
- LIGHTING8
- ELECTRICAL7
Serious Concerns
83 consumer complaints filed with NHTSA. 1 report involves a death. 6 reports involve injuries. 10 reports involve a crash.
Most reported problems
Safety timeline
Every dated recall and NHTSA investigation for the 2025 Subaru Forester, newest first.
- Recall
An incorrect GAWR label may lead to an overloaded vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Recall
A loose child seat anchor bolt increases the risk of injury to a child during a crash.
- Recall
A loss of vehicle stability increases 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
- Unknown
- Drive type
- Unknown
- Engine
- 0L 0-cyl
- Fuel type
- Unknown
- Transmission
- Unknown
- Seats
- 0
NHTSA crash ratings
- Overall
- Frontal
- Side
- Rollover
Explore related
Systems recalled
Safety timeline
Full timeline- Recall
An incorrect GAWR label may lead to an overloaded vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Recall
A loose child seat anchor bolt increases the risk of injury to a child during a crash.
- Recall
A loss of vehicle stability increases the risk of a crash.