There are 7 owner-reported powertrain & transmission complaints for the 2007 Subaru Foresterin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
The contact owns a 2007 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving at an unknown speed, the gear shifter failed to operate as designed. The contact stated that while placing the vehicle in reverse the vehicle accelerated forward causing the vehicle to crash on top of a large rock. The contact stated that she sustained injuries to the face and the right eye. The contact stated that she had eye surgery due to the crash. The contact stated that Law Enforcement did not arrive on the scene and no police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic but was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
ON FEBRUARY 13, 2019 MY TRANSMISSION FLUID LIGHT STARTED FLASHING, WHEN I WAS DRIVING HOME. I STOPPED TO BY THE FLUID BUT COULDN'T FIND OUT WHERE TO FILL IT UP AT AND THE DIPSTICK WAS STUCK. I WAS DRIVING AROUND 40 MPH.. I TOOK IT TO MY MECHANIC AND ASKED HIM TO CHECK IT OUT. HE SAID IT WASN'T THE FLUID THAT WAS THE PROBLEM IT WAS THE TRANSMISSION. PREVIOUS TO THIS THE LIGHT NEVER FLASHED AND WHEN MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT GOES ON I DO GET I CHECKED TO SEE IT ITS SERIOUS OR NOT. CHAT CONVERSATION START 76K PEOPLE LIKE THIS CARS 7:55 PM HI, I BOUGHT A USED 2007 SUBARU FORESTER AND IT HAS REQUIRED A COUPLE OF LARGE REPAIRS THAT YOU WOULDN'T EXPECT. IN 2015 I HAD TO REPLACE THE OIL HEAD GASKET AT RELATIVELY LOW MILES 70K AND NOW IN 2019 AT 104K MILES I HAVE TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION. IS COMMON IN THE SUBARUS? THANK YOU, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR
MY VEHICLE REGULARLY SHIFTS IN A VERY IMPRECISE WAY, AT THE WRONG TIMES, IN PARTICULAR AT LOW SPEEDS. THERE IS ALSO UNUSUAL DELAYS IN SHIFTING DOWN WHEN QUICK POWER IS APPLIED, SOMETIMES RESULTING IN DELAYS IN EMERGENCY OR QUICKLY NEEDED MANEUVERS. THE CARE BEHAVES IN EXACTLY THE SAME WAYS AS IN NHTSA COMPLAINTS #10480933 AND #10317114. I HAVE FOUND MANY SIMILAR COMPLAINTS IN OTHER FORA IN SPECIALIZED CAR WEBSITES, WHICH LEADS ME TO BELIEVE THAT THIS IS A DESIGN AND ENGINEERING DEFECT ON THE PART OF SUBARU, WHICH HAS GRAVE SAFETY IMPLICATIONS. I CALLED ONE DEALERSHIP AND THE CUSTOMER SERVICE NUMBER AT SUBARU, AND WAS TOLD THAT NO BULLETINS OR RECALLS HAVE BEEN ISSUED FOR THIS DEFECT. IN BOTH CASES, I WAS TOLD THAT THE COST OF REPLACING THE TRANSMISSION, ABOUT $2,000 TO $3,000 WOULD BE MY RESPONSIBILITY. GIVEN THAT THIS IS A DESIGN OR MANUFACTURING DEFECT, WHICH HAS GROWN GREATER AS THE CAR AGES, SUBARU SHOULD BE REQUIRED TO RECALL AND REPAIR THE DEFECTS AT NO COST TO THE CONSUMER. *TR
REAR AXLE HANGER BEARING GAVE OUT. HAD TO REPLACE REAR AXLE. TIRES ALWAYS MAINTAINED METICULOUSLY. CONCERNING BECAUSE SYMMETRICAL AWD FAILURE IN WINTER DRIVING IS SAFETY ISSUE. *TR
THE VEHICLE HESITATES AND "BUCKS" AT LOW SPEEDS, TURNING CORNERS, ACCELERATING/DECELERATING, CHANGING LANES, GOING UP A GRADE OR HILL AND DOES NOT SHIFT SMOOTHLY. SHIFTING GEARS SEEMS TO TAKE LONGER THAN EXPECTED AND THE TACH REGISTERS HIGH AND THEN ERRATICALLY JUMPS DOWN (OR UP) TO A MUCH LOWER LEVEL ON THE TACH, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO SHIFT ERRATICALLY OR TO SEEMINGLY GET STUCK IN A GEAR. ALSO, THE VEHICLE MAY TRY TO SHIFT WHILE NOT ACCELERATING, SOMETIMES WHEN TRAVELING AT A HIGHER SPEED. THE DEALER WHERE I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE AND WHERE I HAVE HAD IT EXCLUSIVELY SERVICED CANNOT SEEM TO DIAGNOSE A PROBLEM. THEY HAVE CHANGED WIRES AND REPLACED AN AIR FUEL SENSOR, ONLY TO SAY THEY CANNOT FIND A PROBLEM THAT MIGHT BE RELATED TO THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. I NOTIFIED THE DEALER OF THIS SITUATION BEFORE MY 3 YEAR WARRANTY EXPIRED, BUT EVEN BACK THEN, THEY SAID THEY COULD FIND NO PROBLEM. I HAVE DRIVEN THE VEHICLE CONTINUOUSLY SINCE THE DATE I INITIALLY NOTIFIED THE DEALER AND HAVE REPEATEDLY INFORMED THEM OF THIS ISSUE, BUT THE CONDITION HAS CONTINUED TO GET MORE SEVERE OVER TIME. I TRULY FEEL UNSAFE IN THE VEHICLE AND THAT AT ANY POINT IN TIME, WHILE ON A HIGHWAY OR REGULAR ROAD, THAT THE VEHICLE COULD FAIL AND THIS CONDITION COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT AND/OR RESULT IN A CRASH OF SOME KIND. I HAVE NOW DRIVEN THREE SUBARU LOANERS FROM THE DEALER AND I FIND THAT EACH VEHICLE EXHIBITS SIGNS OF THE SAME SITUATION I HAVE EXPERIENCED WITH MY VEHICLE. I WONDER IF SUBARU MAY NOT BE TELLING ITS CUSTOMERS OF THIS POTENTIAL DEFECT AT THE TIME OF PURCHASE OR IF SUBARU JUST DOES NOT HAVE THE KNOWLEDGE AND/OR SKILL IN ITS MANUFACTURING PROCEDURES (ESPECIALLY RELATED TO THE TRANSMISSION) TO PROPERLY ASSEMBLE ITS VEHICLES FOR THE SAFETY OF ALL DRIVERS. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 SUBARU FORESTER. WHILE CHANGING GEARS BETWEEN THE SPEEDS OF 10 AND 20 MPH, THE VEHICLE SURGED FORWARD. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THEY ADVISED HIM TO COAST, CHANGE GEARS, OR ACCELERATE IN ORDER TO CORRECT THE FAILURE. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 1,365. UPDATED 09/26/07 *TR
IN 2007 I BOUGHT A NEW SUBARU FORESTER. THE TRANSMISSION JUMPS & SNAPS WHILE CHANGING GEARS. SOMETIMES THE WHOLE CAR IS JOLTED BY THE TRANSMISSION SNAPPING INTO GEAR. THIS PROBLEM JUST DOESN'T HAPPEN WHEN THE CAR IS COLD, BUT ALSO HAPPENS WHILE HIGHWAY DRIVING & CHANGING SPEEDS. IT OFTEN TAKES TOO LONG FOR MY VEHICLE TO CHANGE GEARS. I HAVE REPORTED THIS PROBLEM TO THE SERVICE DEPT. AT TWO DIFFERENT SUBARU DEALERSHIPS. THEY CLAIM THEY CHECKED MY TRANSMISSION & FOUND NO PROBLEMS. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE I AM CONCERNED ABOUT. I FEAR MY TRANSMISSION MAY FAIL AT A CRUCIAL TIME. *TR
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