2021 Subaru Forester Body and structure Problems
- Complaints
- 4about this part
- Share
- 2%of 212 total for the year
- Median mileage
- —not reported
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 4 complaints about the body and structure of the 2021 Subaru Forester, 2% of the 212 complaints for this model year.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“While driving on the highway on 8/15/24, the rear driver's side door randomly opened. The warning/indicator light came on, as well as the overhead lights. I also immediately was able to hear extra road noise coming from that side and could clearly see through my side view mirror that the door was ajar (it was not wide open). I have not had the car inspected by anyone.”
NHTSA complaint #11608800, filed 2024-08“In the afternoon when I returned to my vehicle, a large crack (roughly 8 inches) formed on the lower sector of the windshield that appeared to have oriented by the mounting of the passenger wiper arm. I inspected the windshield for damage such as a rock chip and could not find anything to suggest that the integrity was compromised in any way. Their was no visible damage to the windshield other than the crack that formed. The crack formed while the vehicle was parked in a parking lot”
NHTSA complaint #11496173, filed 2022-12“On my 2021 Subaru Forester the rear passenger wheel well rubber cover came loose during travel. This has happened on my wife's 2019 subaru forester on the driver rear, and the one on the passenger rear is coming loose. The part was slapping against the side of the car and if we had not pulled over and manually removed it it could have easily flown off the car. The driver side on my wife's car has been replaced, and a replacement has been ordered for my car. The local dealer stated that this has not happened before. To have two car suffer from this seems a bit suspect to me.”
NHTSA complaint #11483096, filed 2022-09“There’s two brackets that are at the top of the tailgate, and also at the top of the body where they meet to match up, The bracket on the right sits flush, the bracket on the left since indented about a 1/4” give or take. Because it’s painted by the factory, there’s no cracks around the bracket and the paint, meaning it happened at the factory. I’ve looked at other cars that are in that same model year bracket between 2018 and 2025, and they’re all variations of the Subaru Forrester. Didn’t matter if a sport or limited any of that. …”
NHTSA complaint #11772587, filed 2026-10Related service bulletins
- 11036824Aug 31, 2026This bulletin announces the service procedures to be followed when encountering instances of water intrusion from the sunroof area. This is an revised version of the original…
- 11036822Aug 31, 2026This bulletin provides a procedure to address customer concerns of surface rust accumulating in the top center retaining nut area of the front strut mounts. This is an revised…
- 11033052May 1, 2026This bulletin announces a design change to the Power Rear Gate Drive (PRG) Unit to address rare concerns about a very slight drop immediately after the gate is fully open.
- 11022328Aug 26, 2025"This bulletin announces the service procedures to be followed when encountering instances of water intrusion from the sunroof area for models listed. "
- 11022304Aug 11, 2025This bulletin provides information on paint codes for vehicles in the 2026 line up.
- 11016230Mar 27, 2025This bulletin announces design changes made to the Power Rear Gate Drive (PRG) Unit to address concerns of the power rear gate being inoperative.
- 11016174Mar 6, 2025This Bulletin announces diagnostic procedures to be followed when working with a Power Rear Gate (PRG).
- 11010905Nov 21, 2024This bulletin announces the initialization service procedures to be followed when diagnosing and/or repairing Power Rear Gate (PRG) systems.
- 10246093Nov 9, 2023This bulletin announces the initialization service procedures to be followed when diagnosing and/or repairing Power Rear Gate (PRG) systems.
- 10244910Oct 25, 2023This Bulletin announces the repair procedure developed to address rattle-type sounds heard from the left and/or right B-Pillar area.
Body and structure: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 3 | 9% |
| 2025 | 1 | 1% |
| 2024 | 2 | 6% |
| 2023 | 3 | 4% |
| 2022 | 2 | 2% |
| 2021 | 4 | 2% |
| 2020 | 15 | 2% |
| 2019 | 25 | 3% |
| 2018 | 14 | 3% |
| 2017 | 15 | 3% |
| 2016 | 11 | 3% |
| 2015 | 20 | 3% |
| 2014 | 27 | 7% |
| 2013 | 4 | 5% |
| 2012 | 5 | 5% |
| 2011 | 8 | 5% |
| 2010 | 7 | 3% |
| 2009 | 2 | 1% |
| 2008 | 1 | 2% |
| 2007 | 1 | 1% |
| 2006 | 7 | 8% |
| 2005 | 4 | 4% |
| 2004 | 4 | 2% |
| 2003 | 19 | 10% |
| 2002 | 3 | 3% |
| 2001 | 4 | 3% |
| 1999 | 3 | 2% |
Other parts of the 2021 Subaru Forester
90 complaintsOther or unknown
43 complaintsElectrical system
34 complaintsEngine
34 complaintsForward collision avoidance
17 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
15 complaintsVehicle speed control
12 complaintsLane departure
8 complaintsBrakes
7 complaintsFuel system
7 complaintsSuspension
4 complaintsSteering
3 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2021 Subaru Forester
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology