10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
4,313 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

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problem #17

Jul 212023

Outback

  • miles
At this point I dont know what to do. This has been a reoccurring problem since I initially purchased the car. - Electrical Issues have been a problem since the day we purchased the vehicle. Initially thought it was our toddlers fault. Raised multiple times at multiple dealerships. I have yet to find a service center that can tell me why my car will not start other than they can tell something is draining the battery. No warnings. Safety is of concern, because one never knows when the issue will occur. For example, brand new battery died in parking lot of my kids school. - Fuel pump issues - took car on drive from LA to Las Vegas, with child. Car struggled to maintain speed. Exited in Barstow, CA. Parked at a Midas, which was closed, and was stranded with a toddler. After 3 hours of waiting in parking lot, was able to get car started. Drove to closest hotel. The following day, was able to get car back to midas where it was determined the fuel pump broke. Safety was at risk as my 3 year had to sit in 110 degree weather heat. Subaru did tow the car back to the closest dealership and fixed the fuel pump, and reimbursed me for the rental car. Car was in shop for over 2 weeks. Was not reimbursed for hotel or midas diagnostics.

- Manhattan Beach, CA, USA

problem #16

Jun 262023

Outback

  • miles
Driving in pouring down rain on a highway during rush hour. Car starts to loose power, gets worse and worse. Difficult to change lanes to pull over nearly causing several accidents. Car eventually just stops. Will not restart.

- Pittsburgh, PA, USA

problem #15

Jan 282023

Outback

  • miles
I went to reverse, then drive and Left turn into a parking spot inside a small flattop parking lot. My car made a popping noise and grating sounds after the reverse and turning of the steering wheel. I turned off my car once in the spot and looked under the car is it sounded like something was grating against the ground. I didn-??t see anything. Upon restarting the car, the sounds continued when I tried to accelerate or turn. I could not accelerate past 10 mph and all my warning lights lit in the dash. I turned the car off and put in park. The car would roll forward unless I had the emergency brake on.

- Port Washington, WI, USA

problem #14

Aug 152022

Outback

  • miles
The car started to accelerate or decelerate by itself while driving with constant pedal position. It didn't want to start some time. Eventually didn't start at all and had to have it towed to the dealer. The diagnostic was faulty fuel pump. Subaru has a recall for 2019 Outback fuel pump failure (NHTSA campaign number: 21V587000). I called Subaru customer service, and they did not honor the recall saying my vin number did not have any recall despite having the same problem.

- Rochester Hills, MI, USA

problem #13

Oct 112022

Outback

  • miles
My battery has died over 7 times in the 3 years I have owned it. No systems were left on. It runs one day and won-??t start the next. It shows the battery light. This first happened 6 months after owning the car leaving me stranded waiting for roadside assistance and causing me to miss work. It has happened 3 times in the past year. As I type this I am stranded again waiting for someone to come and give me a jump and praying that it will start once I get out of the grocery store. I-??m afraid to go anywhere for fear of being stranded in a dangerous place. I always carry jumper cables with me now! The second issue is that it runs out of gas when there is a 30 miles left to empty notice. I ran out of gas in the left lane of a major highway at 4:45 pm bringing a friend home from the hospital. The gas station was 7 miles away. I was stranded there, waiting on Subaru tow service for hours until the police sent their own tow truck. It was very dangerous but I know better than to trust it now. It cost me 185 dollars. I was told this was a problem with 2018s but they thought they fixed it!

- Tryon, NC, USA

problem #12

Jul 302022

Outback

  • miles
Summary: I have a 2019 Subaru Outback 3.6r with approximately 30k miles. It spent most of it's life in Texas, a low-corrosion state. When I was camping in Colorado, it started leaking fuel for extended periods from the tank area on the passenger side just in front of the rear wheel. The left a strong gas odor/fire danger as it leaked for many hours. I can supplies photos and video. The leak appeared rather suddenly, and is worse when the vehicle tank was just filled. It leaves large puddles of fuel on the ground. Failed system: fuel storage. It is available for inspection upon request. Safety: this issue resulted in a large fuel spill/gasoline vapor cloud, and the leak continues for hours. there is no crash damage/etc. to the vehicle. I have not taken the issue to a dealer yet. Should I get the car looked at by them? It is easy to reproduce by filling the tank normally at a gas station, the leak is worse when the tank is full. There are no warning lights/etc. The fuel gauge on the dashboard has also become intermittent after the leaking started. Sometimes it shows the fuel level, sometimes it shows empty (the tank is not empty). Note the image showing conflicting information on mileage to empty vs the needle fuel gauge level - the tank is appx 3/4 full in that image, neither fuel gauge is correct or agrees with each other.

- Colorado Springs, CO, USA

problem #11

Aug 022021

Outback

  • miles
My battery died overnight. I jumó started and took it to Subaru who said I needed a new battery. My car has 28k miles and under 3 years since I bought it. They replace the battery and same thing happened 2 days later. I keep having to jumó start my car every other day and they don-??t seem to know what the problem is.

- Los Angeles , CA, USA

problem #10

Apr 112021

Outback

  • miles
My 2019 Subaru Outback unintentionally accelerated. I was sitting in my SUV waiting for an electronic gate to open at my storage unit. I was about 10-15 feet in front of the gate. My foot was firmly on the brake and the car was in drive. I have been at this gate many times. This time, before the gate could fully open, the car raced forward at top speed into the gate. Damaging my bumper and terrifying me! The gate did stop the car. I felt like a ghost had slammed a foot on the gas pedal!!! The breaks did nothing. The Subaru floor mat was attached with 2 pegs and sticks like velcro to the carpet. Thank God I was not at a crosswalk or in front of a building - I would have killed myself or someone else! I reported this to my local dealer and they referred me to Subaru of America. The dealer had my car for 6 weeks and S.O.A. sent a team to inspect the car for 6 hours. Customer service after 6 weeks said my car was fine. That no issues were found! They will not provide me with a list of tests completed or what was reported by the "Black Box" on board. All I have is a email from Peter at Customer Service (that was my 3rd and final rep.) that that is all the information that he has or can get and the care is fine to drive! If that is so, why is there a CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT against them!

- Warwick, RI, USA

problem #9

Dec 022020

Outback

  • 9,300 miles
Random lack of acceleration and engine stumble; failed to accelerate when pulling out into traffic from side street nearly being hit by on-coming car. Seems to have become more frequent after engine fuel pump was changed due to recall.

- Portland, OR, USA

problem #8

Aug 082020

Outback

  • 10,000 miles
Unintended acceleration event when applying the brake at slow speed, pulling into a parking spot. Braking force was unable to over come the acceleration. Fortunately no injuries or damage. A scary situation, confidence lost in the vehicle.Subaru North America claims "the vehicle is safe and operating as designed."

- Dix Hills, NY, USA

problem #7

Jun 012020

Outback

  • 11,000 miles
I have been unable to safely drive my 2019 Subaru Outback since June of 2020. I received an official safety recall notice in the mail from Subaru. The notice stated that the vehicle was at risk for a crash if not repaired. Several weeks ago I contacted Subaru of el paso where I purchased the vehicle, as instructed in the recall notice, to schedule and complete the safety repair. I was informed at that time that the required parts were not available. The Subaru agent was unable to let me know when the parts would become available. I have received no follow-up from Subaru since that time. The repair has not been completed.

- El Paso, TX, USA

problem #6

Jul 082020

Outback 4-cyl

  • 0 miles
My 2019 Subaru Outback had a fuel pump recall, and the dealership did the recall. I drove the car for 15 miles, parked it on a city street, and when I returned back after an hour to start the car, it did not start. The whole interior started smelling like gasoline. When I exited the car, I noticed gasoline leaking from the passenger side of the car, and all over the city street. I think the new fuel pump they are installing are defective.

- Dublin, CA, USA

problem #5

Jul 052020

Outback 4-cyl

  • 15,600 miles
My Outback had fuel pump failure and stalled on highway ramp on July 5, 2020 after Subaru dealership replaced fuel pump on July 1, 2020 per safety recall wrd-20. On July 1, 2020, I had my 18,000 miles service and safety recall wrd-20 (fuel-pump) done at Subaru dealership. Picked up the car and drove it home. On July 5, I drove from pleasant hill to san francisco and the car stalled on highway 101 at off ramp. I cannot restart the car and there was heavy smell of gasoline coming inside the car. I cannot push it to the side since the driving wheel is very hard to move and the car stalled in the middle lane of three lanes highway ramp. I had to wait for tow truck to come to get off the highway and it was towed back to my home since the dealership service shop is closed on Sunday. After the tow truck dropped off my car, I was trying to start the car and found out gasoline is leaking/pouring from bottom of my car and still cannot start. I have attached two pictures to show the gasoline leaking/pouring condition. I went online and found I am not the only case that fuel pump failed again after recall wrd-20 fuel pump replacement. This is not safe for drivers.

- Pleasant Hill, CA, USA

problem #4

Jun 172020

Outback 4-cyl

  • 9,060 miles
The vehicle ran rough and then lost power while exiting I-55 in the Chicago area. The vehicle was stalled on the side of the exit ramp, but I was able to restart it and exit the interstate. It seems like it is related to the ongoing fuel pump recall.

- Westmont, IL, USA

problem #3

May 162020

Outback 4-cyl

  • 17,567 miles
In January, 2020, my 2019 Subaru Outback failed to start because the battery was dead. It did start with a jump but had a dead battery the next time I wanted to use it. I had the Outback towed to the nearest dealer over 100 miles away. They offered no help, telling me the problem was battery drainage from the remote starter I had installed. So, I drove home and then another 100 miles in the opposite direction to have the starter checked. The technician told me the remote starter was within acceptable range.I managed to get through the winter with a battery maintainer. The Outback was fine once the weather warmed up this spring. Then in may, 2020, I again had problems. The hatch did not open, made clicking noises, and beeped when I would drive the Outback. This problem after having to jump start the Outback because the battery would again be dead. Not fun, when I would have to call for help to get home from grocery shopping. My friend suggested buying a new battery with more cranking power, which I did. Now, the Outback is working fine. Will it last"?" then when contacting Subaru of America to see if I could get some reimbursement for the battery, the representative told me there was a recall on my Outback due to fuel pump problems. I have not received a notification.

- Ironwood, Michigan 49938, MI, USA

problem #2

Nov 202019

Outback 6-cyl

  • 800 miles
On several occasions the vehicle when the car was in motion (city driving) it accelerated when my foot was off the gas pedal and was on the brake pedal. It was a shock but I continued applying pressure on the brake pedal and the acceleration would stop. It happened 3 of 4 times during the initial 5 months of owning the car. Bought this car new approximately 8 months ago on 8/29/19. I called dealer and they said they had not heard about this happening with other Outbacks and I would have to leave the car with them to see if they could get it to do the same. It hasn't done this in a couple of months so I am not sure what to do. I thought I would bring it up again when I take it in for the 1st oil change.

- Denver, CO, USA

problem #1

Jul 232019

Outback

  • miles
Purchased vehicle in March 2019, since owning vehicle my miles per gallon has been off ranging from 6 miles to 99 miles per gallon and the Subaru dealer doesn't know what the issue is. Also, while applying the brakes, you have to apply the pedal all the way down to stop. The vehicle has a soft pedal and a burnt smell in the engine.

- Susanville, CA, USA