Subaru Forester maintenance costs. Full year-by-year breakdown, common problems, and which years to buy or avoid.
Last verified June 2026
$632
Annual maint.
7/10
Reliability
13%
Major repair risk (5yr)
$2,035
Avg. insurance / yr
Better than segment average
Worse than segment average
// RELIABILITY BY YEAR
Which year Forester should you buy?
Tap any year to see what to expect. Green is safe, red means known issues.
NA
NA
NA
NA
NA
Recommended
Neutral
Avoid
Not Enough Data
N/A
2010 Subaru Forester
Neutral
Vehicle Speed Control complaints most reported in 2010. NHTSA recall 14V311, 14V830, 20V001 and others issued.
17 recalls on record. Affected systems:
Air Bags
Electrical System
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Seat Belts
Exterior Lighting
// COMMON PROBLEMS
What breaks on the Forester
Top issues ranked by share of total NHTSA complaints.
Unknown or other, visibility/wiper
Common
Years affected: 2010–2014, 2018–2019, 2022–2026
Engine
Moderate
Years affected: 2010–2014, 2018–2019, 2022–2025
Vehicle speed control
Moderate
Years affected: 2010–2014, 2018–2019, 2022–2026
Air bags
Moderate
Years affected: 2010–2014, 2018–2019, 2022–2025
Electrical system
Rare
Years affected: 2010–2014, 2018–2019, 2022–2026
Suspension
Rare
Years affected: 2010, 2014, 2018–2019, 2022–2023, 2025
Service brakes
Rare
Years affected: 2010–2014, 2018–2019, 2022, 2024–2025
Steering, suspension, unknown or other
Rare
Years affected: 2010, 2014, 2018–2019, 2022–2025
Fuel/propulsion system
Rare
Years affected: 2010–2014, 2018–2019, 2022–2023, 2025
Wheels
Rare
Years affected: 2010, 2012, 2014, 2018–2019, 2022–2025
// EXTENDED WARRANTY
Is a Forester extended warranty worth it?
Worth considering. The Subaru Forester has an above-average major repair probability for the segment — a warranty is worth pricing before you buy, especially on higher-mileage examples. Pay particular attention to 2013, 2018, and 2019 model years.
// NEW VS USED
Buy new or save on a used Forester?
The Forester holds 87% of its value after 3 years — one of the best in its class. That strong resale narrows the used-car savings, but here's the real math.
87%
Value retained · 3 yr
68%
Value retained · 5 yr
54%
Value retained · 7 yr
Better than segment average
Worse than segment average
New Forester
$29,600
MSRP including destination charge for base trim
Used Forester
$22,200
KBB Fair Purchase Price, 2023, national average, good condition, ~36k miles
The Forester costs $632/year to maintain — $111 above the compact segment average of $521. Repair frequency of 37% is above the class average of 30%. Reliability score of 7 is below the class average of 8, and major repair probability of 13% is above the 11% norm. It trails the compact class average on every ownership-cost metric.
How we calculated this. Maintenance costs and reliability scores from RepairPal. Complaints and recalls from NHTSA. Fuel economy from the EPA. Insurance averages from CarEdge. Pricing from KBB. Depreciation from iSeeCars. Full methodology →