Subaru Forester Recall for Rear Center Seat Belt Defect
Subaru is recalling 2009-2012 Foresters because the rear center seat belt may not secure child restraints properly, increasing injury risk in a crash.
What this means for you
Our assessment, not the agency’s: severity 3/5 (High).
Real risk of harm even if no illness or injury has been reported yet. Stop using the product and follow the agency's guidance.
Our severity reasoning: The recall involves a structural vehicle defect (seat belt) that increases the risk of injury to a child during a crash, but the source text does not report any specific injuries or fatalities, fitting the 'High' severity criteria for risk-of-harm products where injury has not yet been reported.
Plain-English summary
Subaru of America, Inc. is recalling certain model year 2009-2012 Forester vehicles manufactured between November 26, 2007, and March 13, 2012. The recall involves approximately 326,014 vehicles.
The automatic locking retractor in the rear center seat belt assemblies does not meet federal lockability requirements and fails to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208. This defect may prevent the proper installation and secure attachment of a child restraint in that seating position, which can increase the risk of injury to a child during a crash.
Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear center seat belt assembly with a newly modified automatic locking retractor free of charge. An interim letter was mailed on March 26, 2012. Owners may contact Subaru at 1-800-782-2783 or the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236.
The recalled product
- Product
- SUBARU FORESTER
- Brand
- SUBARU
- Manufacturer
- SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.
- Category
- Vehicle — Seat Belt
- Affected units
- 326,014
Is your product affected?
Check your packaging against the codes below. If any of them match, the product is part of this recall.
Model numbers (1)
- FORESTER
Distribution
Distributed nationwide across the United States.
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