2010 Subaru Forester Brake Problems

Which parts fail

• Foundation components › Hoses, lines/piping, and fittings
  2

Components named in complaints (service brakes, ABS, rotors and pads, parking brake).

Mileage when the problem started

• Under 25k
  722%
• 25k–50k
  1238%
• 50k–75k
  619%
• 75k–100k
  413%
• 100k–150k
  26%
• 150k+
  13%

Owner reports

Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2010 Subaru Forester owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).

The contact owns a 2010 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that the rear brakes were replaced by an independent mechanic. After 6 months, the contact noticed that the brakes needed to be replaced again. The mechanic stated that the automatic braking system was not releasing the brakes as needed, and the braking system needed to be replaced. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed; however, the rear brakes were replaced again however, and the failure persisted. The manufacturer was contacted and informed of the failure. The manufacturer suggested that the vehicle be taken to the dealer for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 87,000.

Tl* the contact owned a 2010 Subaru Forester. After reversing from the driveway, the contact placed the vehicle in drive to travel down a hill at 5-10 MPH. When the contact attempted to turn left, the steering wheel felt stiff and veered to the right. As a result, the vehicle crash into a curb and turned counter-clockwise. The vehicle then rolled backwards at a steep incline. The brake pedal was depressed and traveled to the floorboard. The contact depressed the brake pedal numerous times, but the vehicle continued to roll away. The vehicle came to a stop after the rear end crashed into a tree. Police report number: 31-19-031911 was filed. The contact sustained injuries to the neck and back, a bruised arm, and a fractured nose. The contact was transported to the hospital via ambulance. The vehicle was towed away by the insurance company and deemed totaled. …

My mother and I were out and about on a Friday 5/1/15 as we got ready to leave our location. I place my foot on the brakes and put it into reverse, then ever so slightly put my foot on the gas paddle, then the truck suddenly accelerated back at a high rate of speed and hit another truck in back of me, before it came to a complete stop. No one was injured -no police were called as it was on private property. Both vehicle were damaged. I then took the vehicle to a local mechanic the next day and was told that the rear and front break pads needed to be replace and if I had not brought it in when I did I would have needed rotors as well. There was no sound that the breaks were going bad, and there was no warning signals of any kind. This is a very high safety issues as people lives are at risk. Thank god my mother and I are okay.

I had pulled into my company parking lot and was backing into my parking space. I pulled forward, applied the brake to shift into reverse. As soon as I took my foot off the brake pedal, the car zoomed backward. I jumped a curb, went through very thick bushes and landed on top of a small Audi parked in the lot behind ours. I had to turn off the car to stop the engine. I was too in shock to take photos but others did and I can add later, with the police report when it's completed, if that's possible. I have no idea how fast the car was going. Much too fast to be backing into a parking space. Auto body shop across the street helped to disengage the cars. No towing nec.

While backing slowly into a parking space (2-3 MPH) in my apartment parking lot. Car accelerated rapidly out of control. Brakes failed. Car accelerated ftom 3mp to 20-35 MPH jumped a curb and hit car parked in street (impact so high that the car ended up in the middle of the street). Impact was the only thing that stopped the car.

I was driving on a mixture of light snow and ice and noticed ABS engaging when it shouldn't, causing me to almost slide into an intersection. I hadn't lost traction and would feel the system engage through the brake pedal. It would come on very hard and actually cause me to start sliding instead of assisting with braking. In icy conditions, it feels like Subaru's ABS is very "heavy handed" in it's application and overly sensitive in it's deployment. I was in complete control of the car until the system engaged suddenly on a downhill leading to a stop sign. This occurred the following day at a stop light. Releasing the brakes completely was the only way to regain control of the vehicle. In both instances, I was traveling between 5 and 30 miles per hour, leaving myself plenty of room to stop. …

Sudden acceleration from full stop. The vehicle had exhibited sudden acceleration 3 weeks prior but the dealer did not find any problem. From a full stop, the vehicle was placed into reverse at which time the engine revved to full throttle, overriding the brakes, resulting in the vehicle backing uncontrollably and stopping on top of a boulder with the back wheels off the ground approximately 4 feet. The incident was witnessed by a bystander. The vehicle undercarriage severely damaged and not drive-able. Photos and a police report were submitted.

Tl contact owns a 2010 Subaru Forester. The contact received a notification of NHTSA campaign number: 14V830000 (service brakes, hydraulic). The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the recall remedy was performed but failed to repair the vehicle. The specifics of the failure were not available. The contact received a second notice for the recall informing that the initial recall remedy was not a permanent repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 70,000. Updated 03/24/15 updated 10/20/2015

Rear brakes wore out at 55K miles. Front brakes still had 7mm wear on them. Technician said it was probably due to corrosion of the calipers. The calipers rusted, causing the brake pads to be in constant contact with the rotors, wearing them out prematurely. This could have caused a fire in the vehicle due to overheating of the rotors. Same thing happened on my 2009 Subaru Forester. Rear brakes wore out at 85K miles, with 6mm left on the front brakes. This sounds like a design problem to me.

NHTSA campaign 14V830000 and 14V311000: Subaru of America recall(s) were completed in 2014. However, on January 5 2020, while coming to a stop on a rural road, the brake pedal went to the floor and the car rolled through the intersection. No other cars were present and no accident occurred. Inspection revealed that a brake pipe had rusted and ruptured near the "4 way junction" at the rear of the vehicle. The very junction that is the subject of the aforementioned recalls.

Related recalls

Brake complaints in other Forester years