What Subaru WRX owners have reported to NHTSA, the service bulletins the manufacturer sent dealers, and any federal defect investigations, by model year. See Subaru WRX safety recalls or check your VIN.
Complaints owners filed with NHTSA, by the model year of the vehicle. A high count can also mean a popular year, so compare it with how many were sold.
| Year | Complaints | Crashes | Fires | Injured | Deaths | TSBs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 |
| 2025 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48 |
| 2024 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 172 |
| 2023 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 204 |
| 2022 | 25 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 252 |
| 2021 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 209 |
| 2020 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 282 |
| 2019 | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 365 |
| 2018 | 44 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 342 |
| 2017 | 53 | 8 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 383 |
| 2016 | 34 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 400 |
| 2015 | 55 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 411 |
| 2014 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 214 |
| 2013 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 219 |
| 2012 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 205 |
| 2011 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 191 |
| 2010 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 179 |
The vehicle systems named most often in Subaru WRX complaints (one complaint can name several).
In the owners’ own words, as filed with NHTSA. Unverified reports; NHTSA removes personal details before publishing.
The failing component system is the drivers side impact airbags. Subaru of America did their own inspection and has listed their findings in an email (it can be forwarded to you if needed). The vehicle is currently at a collision center appointed by our insurance company but has not yet been inspected there. Our vehicle sat at NEW MOTORS dealership so that Subaru of America could do their investigation. They had our vehicle for 50 days to do this inspection (no repairs). Yes our safety could potentially be at risk as the airbag system deployed while the car was not moving/running in our driveway. We were standing outside of the vehicle both front doors were open when the back driver sid…
The car has randomly on multiple occasions failed to accelerate then jump forward hitting the rev limiter. This has happened while merging back into traffic including 55 mph roads creating concern for being rear ended and also concerns for hitting vehicles in front when the car jumps forward as there is no control over it. It has been to 2 separate dealerships totaling almost a year with no resolution and has been communicated with Subaru of America. The car was bought new and has never been modified or tuned, and the issues started with no warning lamps or messages. The issue started somewhere between 60,000 to 80,000 miles and the car currently has 126,000 miles.
Refused to change the rear catalyst due to a modification. I said I would return it back to the original factory tune and they said it was impossible and refused to do it. The tune physically wouldnât stop them from changing the catalytic converter. They said that the ecu would let them. I can put the factory CID on the vehicle for the work to be done. The catalyst threshold is below efficiency and itâs their mistake. This is now going to cost me out of pocket which is not fair. Again this tune can be ininstalled back to factory so they can reflash the ecu like they need to. They refused to answer my questions and sent me away. Now on this website they must have reported it being fixed…
The contact owns a 2019 Subaru WRX. The contact stated that the driver's-side rear rim spoke was cracked in two pieces. The contact stated that new tires were installed on the vehicle. The contact replaced the tire with the spare. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where the rim was replaced. The dealer indicated that the owner had damaged the rim. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 45,000.
Subaru Orange Coast and Ocean Subaru of Fullerton refused to work on my recall due to my car has aftermarket parts not related to the recall. The dealership is very keen in extorting money to the naïve customers instead of fixing the safety issue with my car.
I was driving normally, having started my car after leaving a store at the time, while backing up, I received an ad (depicted below) for the SiriusXM limited time offer. This advertisement completely blocked the entirety of the infotainment system, disabling the navigation components completely, disabling my ability to use the backup camera, and did not alert while backing up, nearly causing a serious collision while driving. This advertisement is not safe to be displayed while operating the vehicle, and you are unable to use anything on the infotainment system (backup camera, safety features and alerting) until you dismiss the ad. Dismissing the ad is additionally in a very unsafe position …
The cam carriers for my vehicle are leaking oil. This is an incredible common, seemingly almost guaranteed, issue with these vehicles from Subaru at the 75-90k mile mark. The carrier are dripping oil, so worse than seeping, but not pouring. This runs the risk of the engine bleeding oil fast and running dry without checking oil levels every week or so and carrying extra emergency oil. This is a huge safety risk and given the proliferation of this issue across subaru vehicles and the CVT it needs to be addressed by SOA. There are no warning lights for this issue and this would not have been caught if I hadn't gone to the dealership for a general car inspection as I suspected something may be …
Car battery keeps dying and is inadequately charged resulting in loss of electronics. The problem is a faulty DCM system.
Repair instructions and other communications the manufacturer sent dealers about known issues. A TSB is not a recall, and the repair is usually free only while the car is under warranty; ask your dealer for the bulletin number.
This bulletin announces design changes to the front seat bottom heat unit.
This Announcement provides diagnostic assistance for CVT issues.
This bulletin announces a design change to the cord assembly that connects the Center Infotainment Display (CID) to the CCU, addressing reports of CID screen flickering.
This service bulletin outlines the diagnostic and repair procedure for white smoke emitted from the exhaust after startup. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.
This Service Information Bulletin announces the release of a new diagnostic assistance application for TR690 and TR580 CVT-equipped vehicles. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.
This bulletin announces availability of new reprogramming files developed to address SYMPTOM 1: A jerk or judder sensation felt from the powertrain during braking with the air conditioning on. SYPMTOM 2: A shudder is felt from the powertrain along with a screeching type of sound. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.
This Service Information Bulletin outlines a systematic procedure for diagnosing parasitic draw (dark/standby current) in vehicles experiencing battery drain when the ignition is off, leading to no-start conditions or frequent jump-starts.This is an revised version of the original bulletin.
This bulletin announces a reprogramming file availability and provides a software update installation procedure to optimize the new Gen 4.5 Denso CP1.5 Audio and Navigation head units utilized in the models listed. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.
This Bulletin has been developed to outline the steps for gathering basic but essential information during diagnosis of Infotainment concerns. (This is an revised version of the original bulletin.)
Techtips newsletter locator index.
This bulletin contains illustrations of exchange components and their manufacturer as well as a description of the proper exchange procedure. This is an revised version of the original bulletin
This Bulletin outlines a new repair procedure to follow when replacing the trunk lock assembly.
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation public data (complaints, manufacturer communications, investigations), model years 2010 and later. Had a safety problem? Report it to NHTSA.
In complaints filed with NHTSA for model years 2010–2026, owners most often name: engine, electrical system, power train. 320 complaints are on record.
No. A complaint is an unverified report from an owner. A technical service bulletin (TSB) is the manufacturer telling dealers how to fix a known issue; it is not a safety recall and is usually covered only under warranty. A recall is a formal safety action, and its repair is free.
File a vehicle safety complaint at NHTSA.gov. NHTSA reads every report, and patterns of complaints are what open defect investigations and, eventually, recalls.
