2004 Subaru Forester Subaru Forester 2004

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2004 Subaru Forester repairs by problem area

Engine (48%)

Transmission and Drivetrain (9%)

Brakes and Traction Control (5%)

Suspension and Steering (12%)

Electrical and Air Conditioning (20%)

Paint, Rust, Leaks, Rattles, and Trim (4%)

Other (2%)

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Chart based on 213 repairs.
See TSBs and recalls for the 2004 Subaru Forester.

2004 Subaru Forester transmission repair cost distribution

$2500+ (0%)

$1000 - $2499 (11%)

$500 - $999 (11%)

$100 - $499 (37%)

< $100 (42%)

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Chart based on 19 repair trips. The repair cost chart excludes repairs made under warranty, do-it-yourself repairs, and repair trips that include maintenance.

2004 Subaru Forester 4dr SUV

turbocharged 210hp 2.5L I4 5-speed manual AWD

87000 mi

US $150
Front CV axles 

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2004 Subaru Forester 4dr SUV

turbocharged 210hp 2.5L I4 4-speed automatic AWD

273000 mi

US $500
Replaced front boots and axel. 
123000 mi ongoing clunk from either transmission or differential, diff fluid clean & fairly new as is trans fluid, clunk is sporadic and goes away, normally only happens once per every few weeks, will try changing fluids, probable long term issue 
143800 mi

US $200
right front inner cv joint boot split, typical problem with this vehicles due to boot location near engine exhaust manifold. Not really bad I guess, it lasted 130k + miles. OEM new part as best replacement is expensive. 
148000 mi inner right cv boot (the one near heat location near exhaust) totally failed on trip to cold weather state for holiday, not many tools as locations, had to use too big split boot type for temp repair, worked ok too awhile, good temp fix 
161000 mi

US $65
replaced front right cv axle, extreme wheel wobble felt thru steering wheel on uneven roads, inner cv joint had failed with 2 of 3 bearing races entirely worn out allowing axle to move in the race, up and down movement on axle 

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2004 Subaru Forester 4dr SUV

165-horsepower 2.5L H4 5-speed manual AWD

184000 mi Issues developing with the transmission/AWD system. Time to trade it in. 
83500 mi

US $1120
Throwout bearing failed. Replace clutch and throwout bearing. Refill with synthetic fluid. Throwout bearing failed and buzzing loudly. Clutch shuddering. Replace clutch and throwout bearing. Refill with synthetic fluid. 
115000 mi

US $311
Replace transmission neutral switch to correct severe shuddering while driving. 
126000 mi

US $160
Replaced clutch master cylinder, clutch slave cylinder, and hydraulic hose. Clutch master cylinder was leaking and not holding pressure. 
124000 mi

US $1612
Center Differential replaced 
135200 mi

US $75
Replaced cv axel because right front inner boot failed 
70000 mi Keep getting "Check Engine" light, it's a code 5301 which turns out to be the neutral switch on the Transmission. Resets itself eventually and light goes off so no fix for now. 
145300 mi

US $150
Driveshaft u joints started to squeak, replaced driveshaft with one from junkyard with <100k on it for 150 bucks. Easy fix. 

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2004 Subaru Forester 4dr SUV

165-horsepower 2.5L H4 4-speed automatic AWD

59936 mi

US $300
Transmission pan leaking transmission fluid. Re-seal pan. 
60000 mi

US $30
AWD system chattered when turning sharply at low speeds. Corrected by replacing transmission/transfer case lubricant. 
130200 mi

C $300
Transmission was lazy, result of Fluid Leak, had to seal pipe. 
258000 mi Axle $600 to repair, estim. 
70060 mi

C $500
Part 1: The transmission shifter (automatic) was sticky/heavy to shift. This required a cleaning of the shifter area. Part 2: It was also difficult to get the transmission into Park in order to remove the key. This required a new bushing 

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2004 Subaru Forester Transmission Problems

See our lemon odds and nada odds page to see vehicles with no repairs or vehicles with more than three repairs. To see how frequently 2004 Subaru Forester problems occur, check out our car reliability stats.