2016 Subaru Forester seats problems
22 owner complaints filed with NHTSA name the seats on the 2016 Subaru Forester — 5% of all complaints for this model year.
What owners report
“SRS airbag error warning appears randomly when driving. It turns off passenger side airbags with a passenger in the seat and makes it unsafe to drive. Narrowing it down to the wiring harness seems to be an issue with a loose connection in the airbag seat sensor. Unplugging and re-plugging plus…”
filed Jul 26, 2026
“Passenger Occupant Detection System is malfunctioning. It is not registering a passenger in the seat, and in turn not turning the passenger airbag on when the seat is occupied. This puts any passnger who sit in this seat at risk of the airbag not deploying. This issue has been confirmed by the…”
filed Apr 28, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Seats problems in other Forester years
| Year | Reports | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 Forester | 1 | 1% |
| 2023 Forester | 3 | 4% |
| 2022 Forester | 1 | 1% |
| 2021 Forester | 1 | 0% |
| 2020 Forester | 4 | 1% |
| 2019 Forester | 4 | 0% |
| 2018 Forester | 29 | 6% |
| 2017 Forester | 32 | 6% |
| 2015 Forester | 22 | 4% |
| 2014 Forester | 14 | 3% |
| 2012 Forester | 2 | 2% |
| 2011 Forester | 4 | 3% |
Other reported problem areas on the 2016 Subaru Forester
Counts are unique NHTSA complaints naming this component group. Complaints are unverified owner reports; mileage is computed only from complaints that included a usable odometer reading.