There are 4 owner-reported visibility & wipers complaints for the 2001 Subaru Foresterin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
I HAVE A 2001 SUBARU FORESTER WITH A DEFECTIVE MAGNA DONNELLY AUTO DIMMING REARVIEW MIRROR. THIS MIRROR IS IN A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT MAKES OF CARS, AND HAS BROADLY FAILED, IN SOME INSTANCES LEAKING (EVEN BURSTING) CAUSTIC CONTENTS THAT HAVE DISSOLVED PLASTIC COMPONENTS IN CARS. SOME CERTIFIED AUTO MANUFACTURERS MECHANICS HAVE STATED TO OWNERS OF FAILED MIRRORS THAT ONE CONSTITUENT OF THE PATENTED "A72 ELECTROLYTE" IN THE MIRROR IS A FORM OF MERCURY. THE MSDS THAT I REQUESTED FROM MAGNA DONNELLY LISTS 7 OF 8 CONSTITUENTS AS TRADE SECRETS, AND HENCE NO DETAIL. THE FACT REMAINS THAT THIS MIRROR FAILS WELL BEFORE THE AUTO HAS AGED. IT HAS BEEN KNOWN TO SPEW CAUSTIC CONTENTS. IT IS A SAFETY DEVICE THAT FAILS AND SHOULD BE RECALLED. A SIMPLE LOOK AT TWO ONLINE FORUMS DEALING WITH THIS DEVICE CAN BE FOUND AT: WWW.ACURAMDX.ORG/FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?THREADID=25607 AND HTTP://WWW.ACURAMDX.ORG/FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?S=&THREADID=19282&HIGHLIGHT=MIRROR+BLOB. MAGNA DONNELLY DID REPLACE THESE MIRRORS AT NO COST UP UNTIL LAST YEAR. THEY NO LONGER DO. BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY. *TR
HEAT STRIP ON WINDSHIELD CRACKED THE WINDSHIELD. *AK
NO SUMMARY LISTED FOR ABOVE VEHICLE. *AK
WINDSHIELD SCRATCHES TOO EASILY. THIS IS A GREAT DISTRACTION TO DRIVER, ESPECIALLY FROM THE REFLECTION OF SUN. *AK THE PLASTIC PART OF THE FRONT WINDSHIELD CAUSES THE SCRATCHES. *YH
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026