2015 Subaru Forester: engine failure

Filed Jan 24, 2026 · Lights, Transmission · TN

I bought a used 2015 subaru forester with 117,000 miles from an auto shop/used car dealer in March of 2024. In September of 2025, 11,000 miles of driving later, a bunch of lights came on my dash. Check engine, traction control, ABS, at oil temp, and incline assist. I took it to Autozone to get the codes read and the part it suggested was the transmission oil pressure sensor. I then took it to a trusted mechanic who said they weren’t able to get the lights to turn back on and told me to come back when the lights reappeared. In December of 2025, the lights came on and they were on long enough to take it back to the mechanic. The mechanic told me that it looked to be the transmission valve body and recommended a local transmission shop. I took it there and the mechanic told me there was a speed sensor that was failing and the transmission and valve body would need to be replaced. He said that they don’t sell the speed sensor anywhere and it is impossible to obtain. I got quoted 9,100 to fix my car (I originally paid around 8,500 for it). I was told it would not be worth my time or money to fix the transmission. The transmission guy told me that Subaru cvt transmissions are horrendous and to take this is a lesson to never buy a Subaru. I heeded to this advice and traded her in for $2000 towards a 2010 rav4. Additional info: It had a rebuilt title and had been in an accident before I got it. Lived its entire life between kentucky and tennessee. I replaced the engine oil and filter every 4,000-6,000 miles. Tire treads were very mismatched for the time I had it (almost two years) which I was told by a subaru dealership can damage the transmission. Back tires had significantly lower tread than front. I had front left lower control arm, rear spring coils, brake switch lamp, and one of the battery terminals replaced during the time I had it. My TPMS light was always on. My front right headlight went out frequently. My brake light assembly also broke and wasn’t worth fixing

Filed Apr 11, 2024 · Engine · 59,000 miles · TX

The contact owned a 2015 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact heard a cracking sound coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle was driven to the shoulder of the roadway. The low oil pressure warning light illuminated, and the engine seized. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed engine and that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was sold to the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact that the repair would not be covered under warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 59,000.

Filed Mar 8, 2023 · Acceleration, Engine · MD

We were driving at 75 mph in the left lane when our car suddenly dropped in speed to 40 mph as though the transmission had dropped into neutral. There were no warning lights or any indication about what was happening. We were in heavy traffic, with trucks and car hitting their brakes. This could have caused a very serious accident. We managed to move our car to the right shoulder. The car's transmission re-engaged and we picked up our speed. This happened 3 times in the space of a few hundred miles while we were on a road trip. I called Subaru. They had no idea what it was. We went to the nearest Subaru dealer and they ran a diagnostic test, even including a 12 mile test drive with the computer hooked up. Nothing showed up. They told us to continue our trip. Then it happened 2 more times! The last time, again, in the left lane, on cruise. The engine rpm clocked up at 7500 rpm before I was able to get the car off the road. The engine died and we had to be towed to a shop. Again, no warning dash lights. This is a serious flaw and very dangerous.

Filed Aug 4, 2022 · Acceleration, Fuel system · CA

I was driving with cruise control going around 70 when the car started slowing down suddenly. Not wanting to slow down even more, I turned off the cruise control by hand using the cancel button on the steering wheel (rather than tap the brake) but when I then hit the accelerator, the engine felt like it was in neutral, revving past 6000 rpm on the tachometer. At that point, I realized I had no control over the drive train so I pulled off the road onto the center median of the highway, just as the engine died - fortunately, there wasn’t anyone following close behind. We had been driving for about 1.5 hours with the AC blasting and the gas tank at that point was low, with less than 1/8 remaining. All this happened without any dashboard warning lights turning on. This was the very last leg of a ten-day, 2,000 mile road trip. I tried restarting the engine but only got clicking. Since I thought we’d be struck a while and it was so hot, I turned the key to the accessory position and was able to roll down the windows. We sat there for a couple of minutes wondering what to do. It took another minute to find my AAA card. Before calling for roadside assistance, I tried starting the engine again and this time it turned over. We did not have any further problems in the remaining 100 miles of our trip (though I was very anxious about it happening again). I took the car in to a Subaru service center this morning (36 hours later). They did a multi-point inspection and road test but did not find any issues and were not able to replicate the problem.

Filed Jul 12, 2022 · Suspension · MD

Rear suspension is garbage, is rusted and broken and seized to the vehicle. The spring has fallen off the strut. Did not know what the weird noise was, but apparently it is the rear suspension. Cannot use the vehicle until repaired, was not notified of the brake sensor recall, and this part should be recalled as well. I want a reimbursement for my expenses to repair this faulty suspension

Filed Jul 8, 2022 · Engine · WA

Sudden, without any warning, complete engine failure. Luckily I was in the right hand lane while ascending a major mountain pass. We were in the midst of a "atmospheric river" with rain coming from all directions when the engine just stopped. I muscled the car onto a very narrow shoulder and called for help, I knew we were in a very dangerous situation as this was the Saturday after Thanksgiving 2021, and the highway was full of cars and semi trucks whizzing past our Forester, we stayed put in the car. The State Patrol eventually appeared behind my Subaru, we conversed, and the officer used his front push bumpers to move my car up the remaining 2.5 miles up the the pass summit and onto a parking lot away from the freeway. Eventually AAA tow truck driver arrived, loaded our Subaru onto the platform carrier, with my wife and me in the cab, he drove 157 miles to our dealership parking lot. When we arrived, he again checked the battery, it was dead. He then proceeded to use an external storage to charge up our battery, and after a short time he successfully started our Subaru. I chose to leave the car at the dealership lot so they could check the systems the next morning. They could find no problem whatsoever with the engine, drive train, fuel system, or electrical system. The told us to report any problem to them, but stated our Forrester was safe to drive. The next day our trusted mechanic confirmed they could find no problem in our car. We have been driving our Forester per normal since this incident happened, the problem has not repeated. In summary no warning lights appeared on our dashboard before the incident; we used our lights to warn other drivers while we waited for help and eventually all lights went off; the problem has not been reproduced by dealer, mechanic, or us. What I believed occurred is: Driving through the "atmospheric river" the volume and intensity of the rain caused an electrical short, that was removed during the tow

Filed Oct 14, 2020 · Transmission · 67,809 miles · FL

Using cruise control at 77 MPH in fast lane of i95 northbound from fl when, approx 10 miles south of va border, I felt a snap like pull in vehicle - kind of like a rope breaking when playing tug of war. The rpms increased and car rapidly lost speed and would not accurate. Fortunately, I was able to safely pull off i95. I noticed all lights on dash were on and car was running. I turned it off, approx 15 to 30 seconds after pulling off highway. After I turned car off, it would not restart. I was towed (innerstate towing) to a toyota dealership in roanoke rapids, nc due to no subaru dealership. Toyota tech looked at car and car started fine. The mechanic felt the transmission over heated. I then limped along to subaru dealership in colonial heights, va. I traveled in slow lane on i95, at no more than 70 MPH, with a full tank of gas and no issues. A subaru tech drained fluid and found metal. It was determined the transmission needed replaced. While at toyota dealership, I contacted the location where I purchased my subaru forester and that tech indicated it was a faulty fuel pump or transmission. When car lost speed, I had two fuel bars left. I am now getting the pump tested as well. Fortunately, my car is under warranty due to subaru's extension but I find this unacceptable. I could have easily been killed in an instant. This is my 3rd subaru and I have had more problems with this one than my two previous cars combined. Further, I keep going up in models and price point but the quality has declined. I am a loyal subaru customer but I think this model may be my last. Because nothing seized up and no loud bang, jerking, or rattling; I am beginning to suspect it was the fuel pump and I coincidentally the bad transmission was discovered. No belts were broken and the snap like noise is unknown. I have no invoices yet and police were not called. I am driving a loaner car.

Filed Sep 24, 2020 · Transmission · 88,000 miles · NY

I had two instances where my car stalled on the highway while doing 50-60 miles an hour. The engine runs fine and revs go up when I push the accelerator, however the car does not speed up. Both the times I was able to move the car to the side of the highway, narrowly avoiding accidents. The engine died both times and after a period of time stranded on the side of the highway I was able to start the car and drive to my destination. I took it to a local dealership to get it checked out. The dealership claims they could not find what the issue is with the car. According to them, they idled the car for about an hour to warm it up and drove it for an hour. They repeated this one more time. However, they could not replicate the issue and cannot fix it. Apparently they performed a throttle body service on the car and charged me for it. Looking at the mileages on the invoice, the car went into the dealership at 91223 miles and went out of the dealership at 91255 miles. However when I picked up the car, the mileage on it was 91241 miles. So basically they drove the car for a total of 18 miles in 2 hours? I have two issues here. 1. I have a car that has a potential to put the safety of my family and I at risk in the middle of the highway. 2. The dealership claimed they tried to diagnose it but evidently have not even tried, if you look at the mileage. I would like to know how I can get this issue fixed and feel safe in the car.

Filed Jun 29, 2020 · Engine · 43,500 miles · CA

Driving on the highway at roughly 70 MPH, engine suddenly revved and then car essentially went into neutral. Engine didn't seem connected to the transmission. Coasted to the shoulder, then engine died. Shifted back to park and tried to restart, all lights on dashboard lit up and engine turned over, but would not start. Had to be towed to dealer. Found many similar experiences online. Some found fuel pump and pump relay failure. I have not received a diagnosis from the dealer yet. This was a potentially deadly failure.

Filed Jan 2, 2020 · Engine · 78,000 miles · IN

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 subaru forester. The contact stated that the vehicle started to consume an excessive amount of oil. The vehicle was taken to tom wood subaru (3300 e 96th st, indianapolis , in 46240) four times and they advised the contact to monitor the oil consumption. After the latest failure, the dealer determined that a new engine was needed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 78,000.

Filed Dec 23, 2019 · Engine · CA

Vehicle consumes oil at irregular pace. 1 quart needs to be added every 1,500-2,000 miles. This means using 3 additional quarts of oil in between oil changes. I am concerned about the environmental impact and for catastrophic engine failure.

Filed May 22, 2019 · Engine · 39,500 miles · MS

While traveling on an interstate highway, the engine died for no apparent reason. I was driving at approximately 75 MPH at the time. I had to coast to stop on the inside median during very heavy traffic. This event occurred on april 19, 2019. The car would not start so it had to be towed. This has happened twice before: sept. 17, 2016 and oct. 9, 2016. This event has been previously reported: complaint number: 10919048