2006 Subaru Forester owner complaints

I have a hesitation when accelerating from a stop caused by my vehicle's drive by wire throttle body. This hesitation is ongoing despite an ECM reprogramming done by the dealer on 12/16/08. It is bad enough that I'm afraid I'm going to get into a collision sometime. *tr

Head gasket leak on the driver's side cylinder head of a 2006 Subaru forester x. Mom's car (also a 2006 Subaru forester x) has identical head gasket leak but on the passenger's side cylinder head. There is the possibility of oil dripping on the hot exhaust manifold. My car has had the head gaskets replaced under warranty. Her car is yet to be repaired. *tr

Upon start up in cold weather there is a very strong smell of fuel inside the cabin of the car. It made myself and my daughter feel very ill. Had to exit my 2006 Subaru forester xt. Inspected engine under the hood to find leaking fuel lines. Googled the problem to discover it is reacurrent with this make/model/year as evident by similar complaints in Subaru forums, google search, and fb pages. This is a danger to health and safety and should be recalled. Vehicle is under 100,000 miles. Leaking fuel drips directly onto the engine cylinder and close proximity to the turbocharger on the passenger side. There is significant risk of engine fire! Health and safety risk also from the fuel fumes in the engine cabin. Subaru dealership quoted $1,300. To fix.

Tl*the contact owns a 2006 Subaru forester. The air bag control module fails to activate at least once per week. On each occasion, the passenger side air bag off light illuminates. The occupant detection sensor does not recognize a passenger sitting in the front passenger seat. The passenger side air bag also does not activate when the vehicle is started approximately once out of 20-30 starts. The contact's wife weighs 120 lbs and is 5'5 inches tall. She sits erectly with the seat back nearly vertical. The failures have been reported and investigated by the dealer and manufacturer. The manufacturer stated that the "occupant protection system is working as its designed intent and as such we are unable to recommend a repair or modification". The current mileage was 28,000 and failur

I took my car in based on a recall sent by my dealership for my 2006 Subaru forester ll bean model original owner. They completed to service recalls on my vehicle none of which are listed on this website.wvl22 and wvu31. The wvu31 was to reprogram my ECM. As I was driving home afterwards the check engine light immediately came on and my cruise light began to flash. I called the dealer immediately who advised it was safe to drive if the check engine light was solid and not flashing which it was. He denied it could be related to the wvu31 reprogram of the ECM but I advised that my vehicle was fine not due for any service and had no issues prior to bringing to the dealership for the reprogram. I now have to return the car to the dealership and they said only "if the check engine light I

There are two problems with the 2006 Subaru forester that I have. It has less than 5000 miles on it and continually fails to start, whether from a cold start or a warm start. The engine will attempt to crank but will not catch and actually turn over. This issue has happened multiple times. I took the car into the dealership and they stated that I had to hold the ignition switch in the acc position to "prime the lines." I've never head of having to prime a car in this day and age. However, I since have tried doing that and the issue still persists. Also, the care will surge in power at various speeds. When I let up on the gas when trying to slow down ,the car will actually rev up. This happened in the snow the other day and I almost completely lost control of the car. If that car is going t

As I was waiting to pull into a small parking lot, an auto was pulling out. I had my foot on the brake waiting for him to exit. As soon as I released the brake the car lurched forward full speed towards the exiting car and I turned sharply to the right to avoid a collision but went full speed into a wall (side of a house) the exiting car was grazed, the house was damaged and my car was totaled. The sound of acceleration as I released the brake was as if I depressed fully the gas pedal which I did not do. *tr

Apparently, Subaru has gone to a ??drive by wire?? For at least 2006. The 2006 forester I have has the surging problem. It is worst driving downhill and trying to maintain a constant speed in either manual or cruise control. The steeper the hill the worse the surge. I live in the colorado mountains and if there were snow or ice this surge would cause the vehicle to loose traction and go out of control. Actively accelerating or decelerating is not a problem. The surge occurs only when a constant speed is attempted. This problem has been reviewed by a Subaru dealer service department and reproduced on another 2006 forester. Subaru said that this is not a problem and is expected with the drive by wire system. I feel that this is a safety problem as a driver could loose control with the severe

Dt: the contact stated vehicle is hesitated and surged. This happened more often when traveling down a mountain. The vehicle has been taken to a certified dealership for diagnosis, and the problem was duplicated. However, the manufacturer concluded there was actually no problem with the vehicle. In addition, the manufacturer offered $1,000 gift certificate as incentive to have no further contact with them. *ak

The cruise control light has started flashing and the check engine light is on. It started out of the blue. The cruise control is not working. This seems to be a common problem among other Subaru owners and Subaru seems to have issued a service bulletin but they won't admit its their problem. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2006 Subaru forester. The contact stated that the lower control arm was rusted again. The contact called thomas Subaru at 814-623-813 (located at 4003 business 220, bedford, pa 15522) and was informed that the vehicle was previously repaired per NHTSA campaign number: 11v464000 (suspension); therefore, the repair would need to be done at the contact's expense. The contact was unsure if the manufacturer was notified. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 126,000.

While driving my car the passenger control arm failed, snapping in half and I lost control of my vehicle. Upon lookin under my car I could see the snapped control arm, which was completely rusted out. I also observe the driver side control arm is also very rusty. Both control arms are the only isolated rusted parts under my car, the rest of my car does not have any rust. It was alarming to me that both control arms are the only completely rusted parts under my car, so I called the dealership I purchased the care from to inquire about recalled parts. They informed me that the control arm had been recalled, and my car had been "serviced" for this recall in 2012 through rust-proof spaying. The control arms were not replaced at the time of service for the recall. Upon calling Subaru of america

The contact owns a 2006 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that upon purchase of the vehicle, he discovered that the vehicle was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 11V464000 (Suspension). The contact then took the vehicle a dealer where he was informed that the recall was serviced. Less than two months later, the contact stated that while driving 60 MPH, the steering wheel began to shake as he began to lose control of the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact used excessive force to steer the vehicle off to the highway shoulder. The contact inspected the vehicle and discovered that the front driver’s side lower control arm was fractured. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where the contact discovered that no work was performed on the vehicle. The conta

Front drivers side control arm broke at bracket point and lost control of vehicle steering. And car was damaged hitting a post. Vehicle per recall for control arm had already been “fixed” contacted Subaru if control arms were replaced under recall or the “rust proofing” applied.

Front control arm failed on car. Which snapped the front axle and sway bar link on right side. Found out it was a known issue that was taken care of by dealer. Waiting to see if they will cover repairs.

This is a repeatable event that could lead to an injury: purchased a new 2006 Subaru forester 2.5x end of october 2005. After approx. Two weeks car began to experience unexpected engine RPM increases immediately after a "cold start." when car is first started, engine rpms are at around 1500. Put car into reverse and back out of parking space. When the clutch is depressed, engine rpms shoot up to 3000+. Then, after putting car in 1st gear, and releasing clutch, engine rpms drop to about 1500 but slowly increase to around 2500-3000 RPM and vehicle speed increases without foot even being on the accelerator. Problem usually clears up after driving a few minutes except on one occasion when car had been operating for around 15 minutes... When I came home for lunch and pulled into our drive a

Tl*the contact owns a 2006 Subaru forester. The vehicle has yokohama geolandar, size p215/60r16 tires. While driving 30 MPH, the rear driver side tire flattened. The road surface was smooth. The vehicle was pulled over and the tire was replaced with a spare. The dealer stated that there was a 1.5 inch hole in the sidewall of the tire. The current and failure mileages were 12,700. Updated01/08/08 *bf

Vehicle- 2006 Subaru forester with 5-speed manual transmission. On cold starts, the engine races uncontrollably up to 3500 RPM after the clutch is released. This causes the car to accelerate briskly to 15-20 MPH. This has occured repeatedly since the car was purchased new in late september. *nm

Dt*: the contact stated upon opening the driver door, there was a smell of burning plastic inside the vehicle. The interior dome light also did not illuminate upon opening the door. Upon opening the passenger door, the contact noticed that the floor of the front passenger side appeared to have been charred. The contact also noticed that the plastic around the manual gearshift had melted and resolidified. The fabric of both the driver and passenger seats appeared charred as well. There were no visible flames or smoke. Roadside assistance was contacted, and towed the vehicle to a service dealer, who was unable to determine the problem. The manufacturer was also notified, who stated that they would send a representative out to inspect the vehicle.*ak

Front hood opened twice in my wife car when she was driving. *nm