2018 Subaru Forester Electrical System Problems
Owners have filed 71 complaints with NHTSA about electrical system problems on the 2018 Subaru Forester, 14% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 9,418 miles. The words owners use most often: “battery dead” (11% of reports).
- 71electrical system complaints
- 9,418median miles at failure
- 0mention a crash
- 0mention an injury
- 0related recalls
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Battery dead: mentioned in 8 of 71 complaints (11%)
- Class action: mentioned in 5 of 71 complaints (7%)
At what mileage do electrical system problems happen?
Based on 16 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
None of the 71 complaints report a crash, fire or injury.
Subaru Forester electrical system complaints by model year
| Model year | Electrical System complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Forester | 6 | 21% | 6,000 |
| 2025 Forester | 8 | 8% | 100 |
| 2024 Forester | 1 | 3% | — |
| 2023 Forester | 8 | 11% | — |
| 2022 Forester | 10 | 10% | 18,100 |
| 2021 Forester | 33 | 16% | 14,376 |
| 2020 Forester | 103 | 17% | 2,000 |
| 2019 Forester | 134 | 16% | 8,700 |
| 2018 Forester | 71 | 14% | 9,418 |
| 2017 Forester | 106 | 18% | 38,000 |
| 2016 Forester | 93 | 22% | 39,795 |
| 2015 Forester | 82 | 13% | 40,000 |
| 2014 Forester | 42 | 10% | 61,222 |
| 2013 Forester | 3 | 4% | 10,000 |
| 2012 Forester | 10 | 10% | 60,618 |
| 2011 Forester | 11 | 7% | 63,000 |
| 2010 Forester | 13 | 5% | 69,733 |
| 2009 Forester | 22 | 12% | 57,500 |
| 2008 Forester | 5 | 10% | 90,000 |
| 2007 Forester | 5 | 7% | 86,000 |
| 2006 Forester | 7 | 8% | 82,000 |
| 2005 Forester | 3 | 3% | 23,524 |
| 2004 Forester | 4 | 2% | 48,750 |
| 2003 Forester | 4 | 2% | 64,500 |
| 2001 Forester | 2 | 1% | 189,000 |
| 2000 Forester | 1 | 1% | — |
| 1999 Forester | 4 | 3% | 175,000 |
| 1998 Forester | 6 | 6% | 98,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists electrical system for the 2018 Subaru Forester. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
On July 31, 2026, I was driving with my daughter when the a/c compressor clutch seized up and experienced a catastrophic compressor failure that also blew out the expansion valve o-rings. The failure led to a total loss of engine power and control of the vehicle. The car would not start back up…
Airbag light came on - dealership confirmed it is an occupant detection system failure - wiring harness has gone bad. No history of moisture exposure, which would leave faulty part as the problem. Similar to Subaru recall from 2020 on heated passenger seats - this vehicle was not included in that…
I brought my vehicle to an authorized Subaru dealership (Byers Imports, LLC in Columbus, Ohio) to diagnose the reason for the airbag warning lamp illuminating. The dealer had the manufacturer's WUM-98 Safety Recall (NHTSA Campaign Number 19V701000) performed to remedy a defective Occupant Detection…
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2018 Subaru Foresters have electrical system problems?
No. NHTSA has 71 owner complaints about electrical system for the 2018 Subaru Forester (14% of the 498 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2018 Subaru Forester electrical system?
No recall currently lists electrical system for this vehicle.
At what mileage do electrical system problems start?
The median reported mileage is 9,418 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
What do owners say about electrical system problems on the 2018 Subaru Forester?
The most frequent phrase is “battery dead”, in 8 of 71 complaints, followed by “class action” (5).
Other 2018 Subaru Forester problems
- Visibility/wiper problems (135)
- Air Bags problems (99)
See all 2018 Subaru Forester problems or electrical system problems across all Forester years.