I've experienced the leaking fuel line when temperatures dropped below 20 degrees and get terrible gas fumes inside the cabin especially during cold and damp weather. It is more prominent with the heat on. This smell/leak can be noticed while parked, driving, anytime with the engine running with fuel pressure.
2005 Subaru Forester: fuel leak
8 of the 93 complaints about the 2005 Subaru Forester describe fuel leak.
- owner complaints
- 8
- of this car's complaints
- 9%
- typical mileage
- 172,000
- recalls
- 0
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.
Fuel leak by model year
What owners say
There is a severe gas line leak where the vehicle is very unsafe leaking gas by the engine spraying the side of the passenger compartment. While in motion.
Fuel lines leaks in cold weather . There is a recall on the wrx for this same issue. On start up the vehicle will leak gas out of the fuel lines and will stink inside and outside the car . It goes away (or I get used to it) after about 30 min. This issue is a problem with allot of the subarus from these years . I've called and emailed soa and they aren't doing anything about the issue for me . Now I have to buy a fuel line kit from them and gaskets and try to fix this problem in the middle of the winter .... Needless to say I'm not happy and it's dangerous!
In cold weather, around 20 degrees fahrenheit and below, I am experiencing a fuel leak under the intake manifold caused by contracted fuel lines. This is a known issue with 03-05 foresters, especially those with turbos. Subaru should be help accountable for this, as it is a manufacturer defect that was recalled on similar vehicles around the same model year.
During cold weather starts there is a significant fuel leak underneath the intake manifold, with gas pooling on top of the engine block, next to the turbo on the passenger side of the vehicle. There are several rubber gas hose connections between hard lines underneath the intake manifold and it seems the cold causes the rubber to shrink. This makes the hose clamps not effective enough to keep pressure on the lines and gas is seeping out from those connections (which are pressurized). With raw gas pooling not only on a hot engine block (close to several electrical connections) but also next to a very hot turbo on 2003-2005 forester xt's which are factory equipped, this seems to pose a safety issue.
Strong fuel smell in cold days in cabin, leaking fuel
It had been cold, below freezing in the mid west, most of the time I would recirculate the cabin air, but every time when I bring in fresh air from outside to clear the moisture, I experienced a strong odor of raw gas coming in through the air vents. Then I noticed fuel was actually leaking in the engine compartment, one section of the rubber hose was damp as a result of fuel dripping over it.
Fuel leak located near the fuel rail only apparent while vehicle is cold, once it warms up it appears to go away .
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2005 Subaru Forester fuel leak
Is fuel leak a common problem on the 2005 Subaru Forester?
8 of 93 owner complaints about the 2005 Subaru Forester (9%) mention fuel leak. The model year with the most reports is 2004.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2005 Subaru Forester?
There is no recall or service bulletin for this area of the car on record.
Other symptoms on the 2005 Subaru Forester
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