Consumer Safety Complaints
Search 2,245,377 safety complaints filed by vehicle owners with NHTSA, including 140,173 crashes, 56,794 fires, and 8,580 deaths.
What is a NHTSA consumer complaint?
A consumer complaint is a free-form report filed by a vehicle owner directly to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) describing a safety concern about their vehicle. NHTSA collects these reports through its Vehicle Owner Defect Report (VOQ) system and publishes them publicly. Each complaint includes the affected component, the date and circumstances of the incident, whether the failure caused a crash or fire, and any reported injuries or deaths. The owner's full narrative description is included verbatim, NHTSA does not edit or moderate the descriptions.
The database below contains over 2,245,377 individual complaints. NHTSA's investigators monitor it for clusters of similar reports, when enough owners describe the same failure mode on the same vehicle, NHTSA may open a Preliminary Evaluation that can lead to a recall. Many of the largest recalls in U.S. history, including the Takata airbag recall and the Hyundai/Kia engine fire recalls, started as patterns visible in this complaint database years before they became formal recalls.
How to interpret what you read
A few principles for reading consumer complaints usefully:
- One complaint is anecdote; a hundred similar complaints is data. NHTSA does not investigate the truthfulness of any individual report, that's the job of the Office of Defects Investigation, which looks at the full pattern. When evaluating a vehicle, look for whether multiple owners describe the same chain of events.
- Crash, fire, injury, and death flags are owner-set. They are not verified by NHTSA. They are still useful as a filter, because owners who tick those boxes are typically reporting more serious incidents than those who don't.
- Component categories are NHTSA-assigned, not owner-assigned. NHTSA standardizes the component field so that complaints can be aggregated. The owner narrative often goes into more detail than the component category captures.
- Complaint volume scales with sales volume. A best-selling model will accumulate more raw complaints than a niche model even at the same defect rate. To compare across vehicles, look at complaints per 100,000 units sold, not raw counts.
If you've experienced a defect
File a complaint. NHTSA's investigators rely on this database to detect emerging defects, and useful complaints, specific, concrete, with dates and mileage and clear descriptions of what happened, feed directly into the agency's pattern detection. The form takes about 10 minutes and is at nhtsa.gov/recalls under "Report a Safety Problem." Your complaint becomes part of the same public record that this page is built from. Owners filing detailed VOQs are how recalls get triggered.
Read more from our blog
Showing 35,035 complaints for SUBARU
Incident date: Dec 23, 2022
DRIVING APPROX 40 MPH ON CITY STREET WITH NO CARS IN FRONT OF ME. CAR DASH FLASHED RED ADVISING ENGAGING EMERGENCY BRAKING AND THEN DID. BRAKES APPLIED FOR A COUPLE OF SECONDS AND THEN STOPPED AND WARNING WENT AWAY.
Incident date: Jan 3, 2023
My car just dies on it's own while driving and it has trouble starting back up or somedays it just won't start up but after it dies while going down the road but after cranking it a few times it finally starts the check engine light comes on the traction control light starts flashing the brake light starts flashing and the cruise control light starts flashing I took it to a dealer and no codes wer... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2023
My car just dies on it's own while driving and it has trouble starting back up or somedays it just won't start up but after it dies while going down the road but after cranking it a few times it finally starts the check engine light comes on the traction control light starts flashing the brake light starts flashing and the cruise control light starts flashing I took it to a dealer and no codes wer... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2023
My car just dies on it's own while driving and it has trouble starting back up or somedays it just won't start up but after it dies while going down the road but after cranking it a few times it finally starts the check engine light comes on the traction control light starts flashing the brake light starts flashing and the cruise control light starts flashing I took it to a dealer and no codes wer... Read more
Incident date: Jan 2, 2023
DRIVING APPROX 40 MPH ON CITY STREET WITH NO CARS IN FRONT OF ME. CAR DASH FLASHED RED ADVISING ENGAGING EMERGENCY BRAKING AND THEN DID. BRAKES APPLIED FOR A COUPLE OF SECONDS AND THEN STOPPED AND WARNING WENT AWAY.
Incident date: Sep 19, 2022
With less than 7000 miles on the odometer, our Outback2019 radio system component started to malfunction and rotate thru channels. Sheehy Subaru of Springfield performed system update, but no change. The entire component was ordered but is now on back order. It is now almost 4 months and we don't trust other possible related components of the system (e.g., GPS) to function properly to feel saf... Read more
Incident date: Dec 27, 2022
Paddle shift levers--which are positioned on the steering wheel as opposed to the steering column--are too square-edged (shape), which is a design defect that can cause loss of steering control. Specifically, the sharp corner can catch on coat zippers. I was driving East, took a right turn, and intended to procced with driving South. When I attempted to straighten out the wheel, however, I was ... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Dec 20, 2022
Over the past year that I have had my vehicle, having bought it in April 2022, I have had my windshield crack 3 times. Each crack has occurred around the end he’s of the windshield. One was caused by a rock hitting the windshield while driving less then 20 miles per hour - resulting in two cracks up the windshield.
Incident date: Jan 2, 2023
In September 2021, the driver side headlight failed, creating a hazard driving at night. In January 2023, the passenger side headlight failed, creating the same hazard. The dealer reviewed both issues and confirmed the ENTIRE headlight assembly has failed in both cases, requiring a full replacement of the assembly (not just a single headlight bulb). There were no warning signals - the car warnin... Read more
Incident date: Jan 4, 2023
Around 8 am on 1/4/2022, driving the car on I85 in Durham County, NC, at a normal highway speed, the sunroof glass shattered suddenly and without warning. The sunroof was fully closed at the time, but the inside cover was open. Shards of glass were sprayed within the cabin. This was a dangerous distraction to the driver, and could have been much more serious if he had gotten glass in his eyes from... Read more
Incident date: Jan 5, 2023
The battery on numerous occasions goes dead. Some thing causes the charge to drain. This has occurred while the car is parked overnight as well as when the car is on a long drive and stops at a rest stop.
Incident date: Jan 5, 2023
I have a 2017 Subaru WRX that stalls while driving (including at highway speeds) 2 to 3 times every day on my commute to work through the mountains. This has led the vehicle to skid sideways and lose control. When I looked into this problem, I found that Subaru has a recall on its fuel pumps for 2018 to 2020 Subaru WRX vehicles but somehow my VIN does not appear to be considered AN affected vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Jan 6, 2023
Excessive use of RTV is finding its way into oil pan and clogging oil pick up. Will most likely cause oil starvation to the engine. This needs to be addressed by Subaru ASAP.
Incident date: Jan 6, 2023
Subaru's negligence strikes again with the SAME problem their other cars have had in previous years. The RTV silicone, a substance utilized to seal various components in the engine block was excessively applied in surplus. Therefore, this RTV ends up clogging essential components of the engine block, such as, however not limited to, the tube used to draw and release oil from the oil pan. There is... Read more
Incident date: Jan 6, 2023
Air bag Passenger light on and blinking .
Incident date: May 1, 2022
The motor for the wiper fluid dispenser went bad. I took the vehicle back to be repaired and while they had the vehicle apart, I was informed that my entire wiring harness needed to be replaced. Now, my vehicle has sporadic issues such as windows not going down, the door locks engaging on their own, my fuel economy will suddenly drop to 19mpg from 28 mpg. Subaru initially stayed this was all due t... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2022
The motor for the wiper fluid dispenser went bad. I took the vehicle back to be repaired and while they had the vehicle apart, I was informed that my entire wiring harness needed to be replaced. Now, my vehicle has sporadic issues such as windows not going down, the door locks engaging on their own, my fuel economy will suddenly drop to 19mpg from 28 mpg. Subaru initially stayed this was all due t... Read more
Incident date: Dec 15, 2022
Crack in the windshield with no apparent evidence of an object hitting the windshield. It started below the windshield wiper on the passenger side. Within days it spread several feet toward the middle of the windshield. The glass repair center noted that this is a common occurrence on Subaru Outbacks.
Incident date: Jan 4, 2023
Windshield cracked spontaneously at the middle base of the windshield in a perfect arch. Crack appears to be on the inside of the glass. No impacts or anything hit the windshield, no reason for this to happen. My car is parked in a garage. Called Subaru, they insist there is no recall.
Incident date: Nov 19, 2022
The contact owns a 2005 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that the hydraulic brake lines were leaking. The brake warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and the contact was informed that there was rust covering the subframe of the vehicle and fuel tank. The dealer declined to complete a recall repair under NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V311000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic... Read more
Incident date: Nov 19, 2022
The contact owns a 2005 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that the hydraulic brake lines were leaking. The brake warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and the contact was informed that there was rust covering the subframe of the vehicle and fuel tank. The dealer declined to complete a recall repair under NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V311000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic... Read more
Incident date: Dec 24, 2022
Multiple issues are with the electric system. The power windows will stop working up or down, the headunit/defroster/safety features will all lose power while driving before starting up again, the rear gate will sometimes not function. Some issues have occurred where some of the added safety features don't seem to always function as well. In the last month both passenger side windows have cracke... Read more
Incident date: Dec 24, 2022
Multiple issues are with the electric system. The power windows will stop working up or down, the headunit/defroster/safety features will all lose power while driving before starting up again, the rear gate will sometimes not function. Some issues have occurred where some of the added safety features don't seem to always function as well. In the last month both passenger side windows have cracke... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2022
The contact owns a 2023 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH with the cruise control activated, the vehicle made a sudden stop without warning. The contact stated that several minutes later the vehicle operated normally. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 800.
Incident date: Jan 2, 2023
Windshield obtained significant crack for seemingly for no reason (parked in driveway; no trees/debris around). Crack continued to grow to 2-3 feet while remained parked.
Incident date: Jan 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that after the vehicle had been parked for approximately 3-hours, the alarm sounded indicating that the locks were being tampered with. The contact stated that the doors were locking and unlocking independently. The contact stated that several electrical features had malfunctioned. The contact stated that on occasion, the brake pedal was ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that after the vehicle had been parked for approximately 3-hours, the alarm sounded indicating that the locks were being tampered with. The contact stated that the doors were locking and unlocking independently. The contact stated that several electrical features had malfunctioned. The contact stated that on occasion, the brake pedal was ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that after the vehicle had been parked for approximately 3-hours, the alarm sounded indicating that the locks were being tampered with. The contact stated that the doors were locking and unlocking independently. The contact stated that several electrical features had malfunctioned. The contact stated that on occasion, the brake pedal was ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Subaru Impreza. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V624000 (Exterior Lighting) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact ha... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Subaru Impreza. The contact stated that upon entering the vehicle, he noticed that a vertical crack had formed on the bottom passenger’s side windshield. The crack quickly extended approximately 30 inches. The contact stated that the crack obstructed his vision while driving at various speeds. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicl... Read more
Incident date: Aug 17, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 Subaru Impreza. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V624000 (Exterior Lighting) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts ... Read more
Incident date: Jan 4, 2023
There is a known issue with certain Subarus where it is phantom draining the battery. I replaced battery in 2021 with AutoZone after being stranded. It too doed in June of 2022. I replaced it again. In Dec 2022 it started to die and found out about the class action lawsuit. I went to Subaru and they said since I already replaced the OEM battery, they couldnt help me. This should be a recall. I cal... Read more
Incident date: Jan 4, 2023
My Legacy had been parked for 2 days in above freezing conditions 40-60 degrees. when i had parked the vehicle there was no cracks on my front windshield, however, when i got into the vehicle today i noticed a large crack starting from my a pillar about 1/2 way up to about 1-2 feet long extending towards the middle of my windshield. The crack has no chips or impact marks, based upon other complain... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2023
On Tuesday, January 3, I had a THIRD chip in my windshield. This just happened yesterday, so I have not had it evaluated yet. HOWEVER, this will be the THIRD chip that I will have to have repaired in the three short years I've owned this vehicle. The first chip happened within a month of owning the vehicle, and there is a current NHTSA complaint on file (11297348) for this chip. The second chi... Read more
Incident date: Dec 11, 2022
The contact owns a 2021 Subaru Ascent. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V9070000 (Electrical System) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and informed her that parts were available. The dealer was called back, ... Read more
Incident date: Nov 24, 2022
Battery drain when car isn’t in use for 2 days went through 3 high CCA AGM batteries since I purchased new. also the manufacturer OEM battery. I only have 16,400 miles on the car and went through 4 total batteries. I had to pay for all the batteries and now I need another one.
Incident date: Jan 4, 2023
The left rear door would not open from the inside when unlocked. In an emergency, my passenger would not be able to get out on their own.
Incident date: Dec 20, 2022
Passenger rear brake line corroded and burst causing loss of brake fluid. Due to the loss of brake fluid, I lost 95% of brake pressure making it very difficult to stop. Only reason I say 95% is because the brake system is designed to still function in limp mode, but still terrifying while driving. The problem was discovered by myself as I was a certified technician for over 10 years for this bra... Read more
Incident date: Dec 31, 2022
APRIL 2022 MY CAR STARTED TO MAKE NOISES WHEN ACCELARATING. I TOOK IT TO SEVERAL MECHANICS WHO COULD NOT DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM. DEC. 30, 2022 I TOOK IT TO ANOTHER MECHANIC WHO THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE THE BRAKES AND REPLACED THEM. HE THEN TEST DROVE THE VEHICLE AND THE NOISE REMAINED, SO HE STOPPED AT A TRANSMISSION SHOP AND THEY SAID POSSIBLE TRANSMISSION ISSUES, NOT SURE. NO WARNING LIGHT EVER CAME ON... Read more
Incident date: Dec 30, 2022
The Subaru starlink system has no controls around transfer of ownership. I only discovered this after receiving a $150 charge 2 months after I traded in the car to a Subaru dealer. Even after trading in the car I was able to unlock, lock, start the car, and track the cars location. This represents a significant safety risk to the consumer and must be addressed immediately.
Incident date: Dec 30, 2022
The Subaru starlink system has no controls around transfer of ownership. I only discovered this after receiving a $150 charge 2 months after I traded in the car to a Subaru dealer. Even after trading in the car I was able to unlock, lock, start the car, and track the cars location. This represents a significant safety risk to the consumer and must be addressed immediately.
Incident date: Dec 28, 2022
The problems I have had or currently have with my vehicle are as follows: 1. On or about November 17, 2022, multiple dash lights, including the check engine light, came on while idling in a parking lot. I turned the engine off for a few minutes and when I restarted the car the lights didn't come back on. I took no further action at that time 2. On November 17, 2022, when starting the eng... Read more
Incident date: Dec 28, 2022
The problems I have had or currently have with my vehicle are as follows: 1. On or about November 17, 2022, multiple dash lights, including the check engine light, came on while idling in a parking lot. I turned the engine off for a few minutes and when I restarted the car the lights didn't come back on. I took no further action at that time 2. On November 17, 2022, when starting the eng... Read more
Incident date: Dec 28, 2022
The problems I have had or currently have with my vehicle are as follows: 1. On or about November 17, 2022, multiple dash lights, including the check engine light, came on while idling in a parking lot. I turned the engine off for a few minutes and when I restarted the car the lights didn't come back on. I took no further action at that time 2. On November 17, 2022, when starting the eng... Read more
Incident date: Jan 3, 2023
Crack appeared when I entered car in parking lot. Large crack Originated from where the windshield needs the frame on the passenger side of the front window. Crack originates about in the middle of the windshield on the Passenger side and travels 5 inches horizontally and then travels north at a 90° angle for another 4 inches. When I inspected car there was no trauma no impact and no chips on th... Read more
Incident date: Dec 29, 2022
The windshield on out 2022 Subaru Outback cracked at 4200 miles. Car was traveling at 55 miles per hour and outside temperature was about 45 degrees. No other cars in sight. Nothing hit the windshield. Had been driving for about a half hour. Dealer would not replace window for no charge. Said they had never heard of this happening. However I looked on many Subaru forums and it appears to be a majo... Read more
Incident date: Sep 4, 2022
The windshield suddenly cracked at the very edge of the windshield obscuring visibility on the passenger side. As I awaited for my appointment for a windshield replacement, the crack became longer, affecting my right-side visibility.
Incident date: Jan 3, 2023
Oil pickup tube filled with bits of liquid gasket/RTV. Caused engine failure from oil starvation at under 4000 miles.
Incident date: Jan 3, 2023
Excessive silicone rtv at the oil pan is making its way into the oil pan and going up into the oil pickup and is starving the motor of oil. could be very dangerous if it happens on the road and it immediately needs to be looked at by subaru.
Incident date: Dec 23, 2022
Battery drainage issue: Battery failed in my 2016 Subaru legacy in 2019, replaced with a new battery and died again in 2020, 2021, and 2022. This should be a recall not a class action lawsuit. Leaving someone stranded is a safety issue. No warning was given when the battery died. It was fine one day and dead the next day. Had to tow the vehicle at my expense to the Subaru dealership and was told... Read more