3 NHTSA safety recalls cover the 2018 Subaru Forester. Owners have filed 498 complaints with NHTSA about this model year. Every recall repair is free at any Subaru dealer.
Is yours affected? Recalls cover ranges of VINs, not every 2018 Subaru Forester. Check your Forester by VIN and confirm open recalls at NHTSA.gov.
Each campaign as NHTSA published it: what is wrong, what can happen, and the fix. Newest first.
Owners filed 498 complaints with NHTSA about the 2018 Subaru Forester, reporting 26 crashes, 1 fires, 9 injuries. Subaru has issued at least 411 technical service bulletins (repair instructions to dealers) for this model year. Complaints are unverified owner reports; a recall is the manufacturer’s admission of a safety defect.
Read Subaru Forester owner complaints and bulletins, every year
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation lists this model year in one investigation. An investigation is not a recall; it is how NHTSA decides whether one is needed.
Owners have filed 498 complaints with NHTSA about the 2018 Subaru Forester. A few in their own words, shortened. Complaints are unverified and are not proof of a defect or of any recall.
“The AC compressor/condesor needs replaced and I see a lot of complaints on-line about this specific model- 2018 Forester. My kids and I were on a road trip in August 2025 when it stopped working.”
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11715384
“Went to car wash,car was in nuetral after after wash finished I put the car in drive and it accelerated into the street at a very high rate of speed my foot was not on the gas.”
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11624626
“Twice in the last 4 months, after turning into a parking place and accelerating gently to pull forward into the space, the car surged forward much more than it should have given my light acceleration. The first time this happened I slammed into a split rail fence which broke, damaging the vehicle.”
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11558442
“I was making a 90 degree left turn, at a very slow rate of speed, onto a tarred parking bay located in front of a hedge approximately 4 feet high.”
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11539293
“Front end collision with car making an illegal left in front of our Subaru. Our car hood, bumper, head lights, grill and parts of the engine were smashed, with liquid draining out of the engine. My husband (wearing a seatbelt) hit his knee and shoulder on impact.”
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11528442
Search the official database: NHTSA. Excerpts are quoted from the public record, shortened at a sentence and with personal details removed.
Not every 2018 Subaru Forester is in every recall. Enter your 17-character VIN to see the recalls on record for your exact vehicle, then confirm which are still open at NHTSA.gov or with any Subaru dealer.