According to carcomplaints.com, the 2014 Subaru Forester problems ranked it as one of the worst when it comes to repairing cost, lower mileage, and other mechanical problem. This, however, doesn’t mean that 2014 Subaru Forester owners do not admire and love their vehicles. This vehicle has a lot of pros, including the large cargo space, the all-wheel drive, the back seating, and the good fuel economy.
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No vehicle lasts forever. Over time of use, vehicles will come to a stage where they need some attention and mechanical repairs. For a large portion of these repairs can be minor while others can be significantly major. Despite the many complaints about the 2014 Subaru Forester, it doesn’t mean that people should not consider buying a newer version of the vehicle. This is because most models tend to have problems in the older versions, and these problems reduce each time the company releases a new model.
Most reported complaints about this vehicle were related to the engine and the transmission.
In this article, we provide an overview of the most common 2014 Subaru Forester problems, according to the owners reported complaints to carcomplaints.com. The purpose of this article is to educate current and future owners about what problems and repair costs to expect.
2014 Subaru Forester description
Before we jump into the different issues with the 2014 Subaru Forester, we would like to provide a quick overview and description of this vehicle.
The 2014 Subaru Forester is the ninth generation of the series of models offered by Subaru Forester since 2006. The company now has a total of 14 different generations, and the reported issues decline year by year. However, the 2014 generation ranked as one of the worst model years for this company with the highest reported complaints.
2014 Subaru Forester comes with an all-wheel-drive along with large cargo space and great fuel consumption.
When it comes to the vehicle’s engine, it has a four-cylinder powerful engine as the standard. Upper trims have a higher power with a turbocharged four-cylinder engine. The standard vehicle comes with a six-speed manual transmission, while the higher trims have something like an automatic transmission called a continuously variable transmission (CVT).
The 2014 Subaru Forester gained a very low-reliability rate, according to the J.D. Power and Associate reliability ranking, with a score below the average. This ranking indicated that the vehicle might suffer lots of problems over its lifetime.
2014 Subaru Forester problems
While the 2014 Subaru Forester comes with great pros, the vehicle received a high number of complaints from different owners. Most complaints were related to the car’s engine, while very few complaints were related to the vehicle’s interior.
Here are the most reported 2014 Subaru Forester problems, according to carcomplaints.com:
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Problems with the engine
2014 Subaru Forester engine has the most problems reported. Most of these issues have to do with the oil consumption, engine dying while driving, check engine light illuminating continuously, issues with wining sound, and problems with the sudden surge.
The first reported problem with this vehicle’s engine is the overuse of engine oil. Most complaints reported that the engine is using too much oil. For instance, one owner mentioned that whenever she changes engine oil, she finds that there is way less oil than what she originally put in it. This clear indication of oil consumption was mostly resolved by replacing the entire engine.
According to the carcomplaints.com website, this problem was ranked as “pretty bad,” and it was mostly reported by vehicles with 26,200 miles, on average. The average price for the repair was about $2,000.
In addition to the oil consumption issue, several people reported that the engine dies suddenly while driving. This problem occurred mostly when drivers were driving at high speeds (~ 60 miles per hour) at the highways where the engine would turn off and restart on its own without any clear reason.
The website did not mention any specific repairs done to fix the issues with the engine dying suddenly. However, it mentioned that most vehicles were at 33,550 miles, on average. The problem was rated as “Really awful.”
At least one vehicle with 7,600 miles reported a “really awful” problem, according to the carcomplaints.com of check engine light illuminating frequently. While it is normal for any vehicle to have a check engine light illuminating, it is a little weird for a car with low mileage to have continuous check engine light issues, even after sending the car to the dealership to get fixed.
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Issues with the suspension system
Although suspension problems were not reported as often as engine problems, there were quite a good number of complaints about the 2014 Subaru Forester suspension system. Most problems had to do with coil springs, to shake, and vibrating issues.
For example, one owner reported that he noticed his vehicle is leaning to one side. When he took the vehicle to the dealership, they required replacing both coil springs. Most spring-related complaints were fixed by replacing the springs and the struts, and the average repair cost was about $1,060.
Broken spring coils problem was ranked as “pretty bad,” and the complaint came from vehicles with 58,700 miles, on average.
The second most reported complaint regarding the suspension system was shaking and vibrating when driving at higher speeds. At least one owner reported that the car starts shaking whenever he tries to speed higher than 45 miles per hour. The problem was solved by replacing the front lower control arm for about $1,190. This problem was rated as “really awful.”
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Problems with the transmission
2014 Subaru Forester has a long list of reported transmission problems. Most of them were related to issues with lunching and surging, problems with transmission dying, and others.
Several owners reported sudden oil temperature light, check engine light, ABS light, and vehicle dynamic warning light. This problem was solved by replacing the CVT valve body or replacing the entire transmission. On average, people had to pay about $910 to get rid of the “pretty bad” ranked problem with most vehicles around 51,400 miles.
Other owners reported significant problems with starting and stopping. They described road merging as “dangerous” using this vehicle. This is because the vehicle does not accelerate properly, and, in some cases, the battery died suddenly. The website did not indicate any information about repairs and repair costs. They mentioned, however, that most vehicles started having this problem at about 17,000 miles.
Furthermore, at least two 2014 Subaru Forester owners reported sudden transmission failure without any previous warnings. Replacing the transmission required at least $7,000 on repair, knowing that their cars were only at 75,000 miles. This problem was ranked as “Pretty Bad.”
Additional frustrating transmission issues were reported by a woman who got stuck in a parking lot with sudden transmission failure without any previous warnings. She complained that the vehicle did not only have issues with the transmission but also the trunk got stuck closed and required $600 on repairs for the mechanic just to open it. Her car was at about 79,000 miles, and the problem was ranked as “Pretty Bad.”
Lastly, additional reported transmission problems with the 2014 Subaru Forester included transmission strange winning sound. To get rid of this sound, the owner had to replace the whole part on a vehicle at about 133,150 miles. This problem was described as “Fairly Significant.”
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Issues with the electrical system
2014 Subaru Forester also had some electrical issues mostly related to blowing fuses, issues with the door ajar, and other electrical problems.
Several people reported continuous fuel pressure pump fuse on the driver’s side. The problem with these burs is that the driver indicated replacing them more than five times in a row with the same problem occurring again and again.
Other owners reported that they ABS light illuminated suddenly, and the mechanic was not able to connect to the car’s computer. Even when the car was running, the computer was saying it was not. The problem was fixed for about $300 on vehicles, with about 58,750 miles on average. The website rated this problem as “Fairly Significant.”
Lastly, some people reported issues with the door Ajar. At least one driver reported that when she got into her vehicle, the “DOOR OPEN LIGHT” came out, indicating that the driver’s door is open, followed by a second light indicating that the front passenger door is opened, and so on for at least four times. The owner reported great frustration about this problem.
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Problems with the body
While few complaints were reported about the 2014 Subaru Forester body, most of them indicated issues with the vehicle paint.
People mentioned that the car gets scratched deep, very easily leaving deep scratch marks that required a lot of effort to get fixed. Most complaints related to this problem came from vehicles with less than 10,000 miles.
Additional body issues were also reported from people who drove their cars on dirt roads. They mentioned that the passenger side headlights lens got a large scratch just from driving in this dirt road. While the website did not include any repairs or repair cost data, it mentioned that the vehicle was at 13,300 miles and described the problem as “Really Awful.”
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Other 2014 Subaru Forester common problems
In this section, we will focus on additionally reported complaints about the 2014 Subaru Forester that was not as many as the previously mentioned issues.
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Issues with the steering wheel
The 2014 Subaru Forester can have issues with car handling steering, especially on icy roads. Furthermore, several owners reported a steering power failure.
Steering issues occurred mostly on vehicles between 20,000 miles and 24,000 miles. Most steering problems were ranked as “Really Awful.”
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Problems with the AC system
The 2014 Subaru Forester has several reported problems related to the AC and heating system.
Several owners reported Freon leaks and limited heat supply. These vehicles were at 57,000 miles. These problems were also ranked as “Really Awful.”
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Problems with the exterior
When it comes to the 2014 Subaru Forester exterior issues, several owners reported that the doors stick to the weather stripping, and when you open the door, it peels like a banana.
Other owners mentioned that the 2014 Subaru Forester’s eyesight system got shut down for no reason and without any clear warnings.
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Problems with the seat belts and airbags
Some owners reported that the 2014 Subaru Forester airbags did not deploy during an accident. During these accidents, the reported cars were involved in a relatively big accident and got significant damage. However, the airbag did not deploy.
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Problems with the windows
Fewer problems were reported regarding the 2014 Subaru Forester windows. Some people had issues with a cracked windshield, while other people reported problems with windows not working at all.
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Problems with the interior
One of the coolest features of the 2014 Subaru Forester is the leather seating. Unfortunately, several people reported cracked leather on the seats, although they took good care of the vehicle’s interior.
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Issues with the fuel system
The last problem we would like to highlight here is related to the fuel system.
At least one owner-reported issue with the fuel system where the vehicle started unintended acceleration. The repair cost was about $6,000, which is considered a little pricy for such a problem.
Conclusion
Despite the long list of problems related to the 2014 Subaru Forester, no one can deny the great features that the car has, which attracted several owners.
In this article, we highlighted the most reported problems to the carcomplaints.com website for this vehicle.
Most 2014 Subaru Forester problems were either related to the engine, transmission, suspension system, electrical system, interior and exterior, and others.
The 2014 Subaru Forester was rated as one of the worst generations for the Subaru Forester with the highest number of complaints reported. This high number of complaints and reported issues helped Subaru Forester to improve their models and produce newer generations with way fewer problems.