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Reliability report · 2019 Subaru Forester · Updated July 2026 · ~$2,150/yr fuel · what it costs to keep →

The loud fifth-gen launch year — the thermal control valve is the headline, but it's covered to 15 years, so buy one where the work got done.

2019 is the first year of the redesigned fifth-generation (SK) Forester, and it shows: the loudest complaint file in our Forester set. The defining problem is the thermal control valve (also called the coolant bypass valve) — it fails with codes P26A3 or P2682, stalling the engine and lighting up a cascade of warnings including EyeSight (Subaru's camera-based driver-assist suite). The good news is Subaru extended the valve's warranty to 15 years/150,000 miles for 2019–2021 cars, so the fix is free on almost any example.

The second big thread is the auto engine start/stop system: owners report the engine failing to restart at lights and stalling in traffic. Three recalls apply — an electric-power-steering connector (19V065), a PCV valve that can shed debris into the engine (19V856), and rear stabilizer bracket bolts (21V263) — all free. This is a Squawking year because the volume and the stalling reports are real, but nearly every headline item is covered; the cars to avoid are the ones where the valve and recall work was never done.

Evidence: 831 NHTSA complaints · 3 recall campaigns · 4 mechanic & forum sources

Canary status

Squawking

What that means: 831 federal complaints — the most of any Forester year here — as the redesigned fifth generation launched. The headline engine issue, the thermal control valve, causes stalls and warning-light cascades, but Subaru extended its coverage to 15 years/150,000 miles. The auto engine start/stop system also draws heavy stalling complaints.

CalmChirpingSquawkingFainted

831

Federal complaints

3

Recalls

Federal crash tests

5-star scale
Overall
Frontal crash
Side crash
Rollover

Tested variant: 2019 Subaru Forester SUV AWD (NHTSA VehicleId 13404)

Source: NHTSA New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) →

Known issues

Ranked by the cost of ignoring them. Every claim carries its source.

Thermal control valve (P26A3 / P2682) — covered 15 years / 150,000 miles

major

The fifth-gen engine uses a thermal control valve (also called the engine coolant bypass valve) to manage coolant flow. It fails — owners report the engine stalling, overheating, and throwing codes P26A3 or P2682 along with a cascade of EyeSight, pre-collision and check-engine warnings. It's the single most common serious complaint on the 2019. Crucially, Subaru extended the valve's warranty coverage to 15 years/150,000 miles for 2019–2021 Foresters, and the replacement uses a redesigned valve with a stainless internal shaft and better sensor waterproofing. On any 2019, ask whether the valve has been replaced with the updated part; if the coolant system codes or the engine has stalled, this is the first suspect and the repair should be free under the extension.

Thermal control valve under extension (15yr/150k)

$0

Out-of-coverage valve replacement

a few hundred

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2019 Subaru Forester (true count 831) · NHTSA recalls + manufacturer communications (19V856, 19V065, 21V263; thermal-control-valve 15yr/150k extension)

Auto engine start/stop — stalling and restart failuresmoderate

The 2019 introduced auto engine start/stop, which shuts the engine off at stops to save fuel. The federal file has a heavy, recurring thread of owners reporting the engine failing to restart when they lift off the brake — the car loses power in traffic and has to be shifted to park and restarted, sometimes taking several tries. Some of these overlap with the thermal-valve failures above; others are start/stop behavior on its own. It reads more as a driveability and nuisance concern than a covered defect, but it's persistent enough to test for. On the drive, sit through several stop/start cycles in traffic and confirm the engine restarts cleanly every time; many owners simply disable the feature each drive.

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2019 Subaru Forester (true count 831)

PCV valve recall — debris-into-engine risk, freemajor

Recall 19V856 (Subaru code WUW-08) covers an aluminum PCV (Positive Crankcase Ventilation) valve that can separate, letting the broken pieces enter the engine and cause a loss of power while driving. Dealers inspect and replace the valve free — and if the valve has separated and the debris can't be found, they replace the short-block engine free. This is a serious, powertrain-level recall; confirm 19V856 shows completed by VIN.

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2019 Subaru Forester (true count 831) · NHTSA recalls + manufacturer communications (19V856, 19V065, 21V263; thermal-control-valve 15yr/150k extension)

$0

PCV inspect/replace, short-block if needed (recall)

Electric power steering and rear-stabilizer recalls — freemoderate

Two more free recalls: an EPS (Electric Power Steering) unit connector that can short and cause a loss of steering assist (19V065, 2019 Forester/Crosstrek), and rear stabilizer bracket bolts that can loosen and detach (21V263, 2019 Forester and 2018–2019 Crosstrek). A loss of steering assist and a detaching stabilizer are both handling/crash concerns — confirm both are closed by VIN.

Sources: NHTSA recalls + manufacturer communications (19V856, 19V065, 21V263; thermal-control-valve 15yr/150k extension)

$0

EPS gearbox + stabilizer bolts (recalls)

What does NOT apply here — head gasket and the oil-consumption programminor

Two Subaru reputations that don't fit this car. The head-gasket meme belongs to the older EJ-series engines (roughly 2013 and earlier), not the FB25 in this Forester — a Subaru specialist channel raises the rumor about this generation specifically and debunks it. And the famous oil-consumption warranty program covers 2011–2015 engines only; it does not reach the 2019. Buy on the thermal-valve and recall status, not on those older stories.

Sources: Independent Subaru mechanic channel transcripts (gen5 buyers guide, head-gasket/CVT rumor debunk)

While driving, the engine stalled and many dash lights came on. The thermo control valve was the cause.
4 mechanic & owner sources

Open recalls

Free fixes at any Subaru dealer. Run the VIN — “completed” isn’t always completed.

  1. 19V856Aluminum PCV valve may separate and send debris into the engine, causing a loss of power (2019 Forester/Crosstrek/Ascent). Free valve inspect/replace; short-block replaced free if debris cannot be found. Subaru code WUW-08.open
  2. 19V065Electric Power Steering unit connector may short, causing loss of steering assist (2019 Forester/Crosstrek). Free inspect/replace of the steering gearbox. Subaru code WUC-88.open
  3. 21V263Rear stabilizer bracket bolts may loosen and detach (2019 Forester, 2018–2019 Crosstrek). Free retorque and replacement of any missing bolts. Subaru code WRD-21.open

What it costs to keep

The purchase price is what you negotiate. These are the numbers you live with afterward — each one sourced, none of them blended into a fake total.

The ownership picture — 2019 Forester

Three sourced numbers. No fake total.

Fuel

29 MPG combined (26 city / 33 highway) for the AWD, 2.5L on the EPA federal fuel-economy test.

Source: FuelEconomy.gov (EPA) — EPA’s federal fuel-economy test, recomputed with current gas prices. EPA record 40381 (Forester AWD).

$2,150/yr

at $4.15/gal · 15,000 mi/yr · 55/45 city/hwy · pulled Jul 12, 2026

Theft

Stolen about 78% less often than the average vehicle. One less thing to price into coverage.

Source: HLDI — the insurance industry’s loss-data institute — HLDI whole vehicle theft losses, 2019–21 models, published April 2022 (report WT-21). 100 = the all-vehicle average. Series read: Subaru Forester 4dr 4WD with EyeSight.

22 vs 100

78% below average

Repair risk

What this specific year is known to need. Pulled from the issues above — the repairs owners actually report, at the costs they report them. Averages from other sites blend every year together; these are this year’s own numbers.

Source: this report — 01 Known issues.

Thermal control valve under extension (15yr/150k)$0
Out-of-coverage valve replacementa few hundred
PCV inspect/replace, short-block if needed (recall)$0
EPS gearbox + stabilizer bolts (recalls)$0
Why there’s no single “cost to own” number: sites that promise one are guessing at your insurance quote, your annual miles, and your luck. These are the numbers we can actually source — and each one carries its receipt.

Shopping this year?

Get the printable pre-purchase checklist and an alert if this year’s recall sheet changes.

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Have a specific one in your sights?

The VIN is on the listing. We’ll check this exact car — build, open recalls, and whether the “completed” repairs stayed fixed.

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Before you buy

Print this
  1. 01Ask whether the thermal control valve was replaced with the updated part; if the coolant system codes or the engine has stalled, confirm 15yr/150k extension eligibility by VIN.
  2. 02Sit through several auto start/stop cycles in traffic and confirm the engine restarts cleanly every time.
  3. 03Confirm all three recalls closed by VIN: PCV valve (19V856), EPS steering (19V065), rear stabilizer (21V263).
  4. 04Treat repeated warning-light cascades (check engine + EyeSight + pre-collision together) as a thermal-valve tell, not random gremlins.
  5. 05Ignore the head-gasket and oil-consumption-program stories for this year — neither applies to the FB25 in a 2019.
  6. 06Ask for CVT (continuously variable transmission — the automatic with no fixed gears) fluid service history — serviced Subaru CVTs go the distance.

Own one already?

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vincanary.com/subaru/forester/2019