Diagsheet

2020 Subaru Forester · symptom sheet

Engine stalls or loses power while driving

  • 46owner reports
  • 45,000median miles
  • 0involved a crash

Newest report Sep 5, 2026 · checked Sep 9, 2026

173 of the 598 complaints on this car are about the engine. 46 of those describe stalling.

Tick what matches of 46 reports

16
21
37
20

What got replaced

Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the battery (11 reports).

Recalls and investigations

No recall on the engine covers the 2020 model year as of Sep 9, 2026.

When it happens

The middle half of failures fell between 13,000 and 60,000 miles, from the 9 reports that gave a mileage.

120
121
722
1223
924
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726

What owners wrote

“My car completely lost power. I had driven to the stop light and was waiting when it lost power. It had no power for several minutes and was unresponsive to the ignition or anything else.”

Filed Dec 3, 2024

“Car shuts off while stopped at light. This has happened 3 times. I have taken it to Subaru service provider and keep being told nothing is wrong. Car must be put into park and restarted to work. It is unsafe. There are multiple reports online ([XXX] and [XXX] ) of people reporting the same issue. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)”

Filed Aug 13, 2024

“I was at a red light when the engine shut off and the check engine and several other warning lights came on. After multiple tries I was finally able to restart the vehicle and drive it off the road. After taking it to the dealership the confirmed issue is the Thermal Control Valve. The dealership is requesting about $1600 to replace the faulty part.”

Filed Mar 16, 2024

“When the vehicle comes to a stop light or a stop in traffic and the engine turns off the vehicle will stall. It then leaves me sitting in traffic trying to restart my vehicle thus leaving me in an unsafe situation. This happens more often than not.”

Filed Nov 30, 2023

Should you keep driving it?

This page can't tell you that. 0 of 46 reports involved a crash. Owners who file are the ones who had a bad experience, and nobody checks their reports. If the problem affects steering, braking, power or a fire risk, treat it as a safety fault and have it inspected before a long or high-speed drive.

File your own report with NHTSA. Complaint counts are how a problem gets an investigation.

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