2007 Subaru Forester

Owner complaints, recalls, fuel economy and safety ratings from public NHTSA and EPA data, updated Oct 17, 2026.

Fuel economy
20–22 mpgcombined; city 18–20, highway 23–26; every version of this model year
Five years of fuel
$14,760–$20,120U.S. average; Ohio $13,190–$18,960 at local prices; every version of this model year; fuel only, not other costs of owning it; 15,000 miles a year, at EIA fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026
NHTSA overall safety rating
Not ratedlowest across the versions NHTSA tested
Recall campaigns
1over its history; check a VIN for open ones
Owner complaints
74filed with NHTSA; not adjusted for sales

Trims

NHTSA's VIN data lists these trims for the 2007 Forester. A trim's engine and numbers are shown as its own only where EPA names versions after the trim and no other version could be it; "seen with" means a source shows that engine on the trim, not that it was the only one. Recalls and complaints cover the whole model year: whether a recall applies to a car depends on its VIN, on NHTSA's recall lookup.

Problems owners report

Owners have filed 74 complaints with NHTSA about the 2007 Forester. These are unverified owner reports, counted by the part of the car they name; one complaint can name several parts. Counts aren't adjusted for how many were sold, so they don't show how reliable a car is.

Complaints by part of the car
PartComplaintsCrashesFiresInjuries
Suspension12100
Power train11201
Engine9000
Vehicle speed control8504
Air bags6502
Engine and engine cooling6000
Fuel system, gasoline6000
Fuel/propulsion system6100
Electrical system5110
Tires4200
Exterior lighting3000
Steering3000
8 more parts
Equipment adaptive/mobility2000
Seats2000
Service brakes2100
Service brakes, hydraulic2100
Unknown or other2100
Visibility2000
Latches/locks/linkages1000
Structure1000

Complaints by model year

Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, and counts aren't adjusted for sales, so a shorter bar doesn't mean a more reliable year.

  1. 200688
  2. 200774
  3. 200850
  4. 2009178
  5. 2010262
  6. 2011147
  7. 2012105
  8. 201378
  9. 2014403
  10. 2015615
  11. 2016415
  12. 2017590
  13. 2018498
  14. 2019834
  15. 2020603
  16. 2021210
  17. 202298
  18. 202374
  19. 202430
  20. 202597
  21. 202628

Every Forester year side by side

Recalls

NHTSA lists 1 recall campaign for the 2007 Forester over its history. Campaigns are matched by model and year, so each one may apply to a given car, and its repair may already be done: check a VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup for the open recalls on that exact car.

Suspension: front

NHTSA campaign 11V464000 · reported Sep 6, 2011 · 318,215 vehicles potentially affected

SUBARU IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2002-2007 IMPREZA, MODEL YEAR 2003-2008 FORESTER, AND MODEL YEAR 2005-2006 SAAB 9-2X VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM SEPTEMBER 5, 2000 THROUGH NOVEMBER 26, 2007 ORIGINALLY SOLD, OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN, MASSACHUSETTS, MARYLAND, MICHIGAN, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NEW YORK, PENNSYLVANIA, VERMONT, WISCONSIN, CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, IOWA, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, MAINE, MINNESOTA, MISSOURI, NEW JERSEY, OHIO, RHODE ISLAND, WEST VIRGINIA AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS MAY BREAK AT THE HANGER BRACKETS DUE TO CORROSION IF THE HANGER BRACKET IS EXPOSED TO SALTY AND HUMID ENVIRONMENTS SUCH AS ROADS CONTAINING SNOW MELTING AGENT.

Risk: A BROKEN CONTROL ARM CAN RESULT IN THE LOSS OF CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

Remedy: SUBARU WILL HANDLE THEIR VEHICLES AND SAAB WILL HANDLE THEIRS. DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE DEGREE OF CORROSION OF THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS, AND WILL EITHER RUSTPROOF OR REPLACE THEM. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING DECEMBER 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SUBARU AT 1-800-782-2783. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SAAB AT 1-800-955-9007.

NHTSA's record and documents

Service bulletins and investigations

Carmakers sent NHTSA 141 service bulletins and notices that cover the 2007 Forester, the latest on Oct 5, 2026. They tell dealers how to fix known issues.

The parts they mention most: electrical system (61), equipment (25), unknown or other (25), engine (14), power train (12).

NHTSA defect investigations

Opening an investigation isn't a finding of a defect. Outcomes are as NHTSA's summary states them. A recall is shown as an investigation's outcome only where NHTSA's summary names it; other recalls NHTSA's file lists with it are marked as listed, not caused.

InvestigationPartOpenedStatus
Preliminary evaluation PE11011
Front suspension control arm failure · covers 2 makes		SuspensionApr 7, 2011Closed Sep 23, 2011
NHTSA's file lists recall 11V464000 with it
NHTSA's record and documents

Maintenance

Oil

The owner's manual gives the oil and how often to change it. We show oil facts only once we've checked them against the manual, and we haven't yet for the 2007 Forester.

Oil change near you: Jiffy Lube · Take 5

Used ones for sale

See used 2007 Subaru Foresters for sale on: Autotrader · CarMax

These are searches on those sites; we don't copy or check their listings. Your ZIP is used for these links and never kept.

Specs

EPA class: sport utility vehicle. Each version EPA tested:

VersionEngineTransmissionFuelCity / hwy / comb
Forester
4-Wheel or All-Wheel Drive		2.5 L, 4 cylAutomatic 4-spdRegular Gasoline20 / 25 / 22
Forester
4-Wheel or All-Wheel Drive		2.5 L, 4 cylManual 5-spdRegular Gasoline19 / 26 / 22
Forester
4-Wheel or All-Wheel Drive		2.5 L, 4 cyl, turboManual 5-spdPremium Gasoline18 / 25 / 21
Forester
4-Wheel or All-Wheel Drive		2.5 L, 4 cyl, turboAutomatic 4-spdPremium Gasoline18 / 23 / 20

Sources and dates

Fuel cost: EPA mpg with fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026 and electricity prices for Jul 2026. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Oct 2026). Complaints are unverified reports owners filed with NHTSA. About the data