The Used Car Index

2018 Subaru Legacy problems

NHTSA lists 117 complaints for the 2018 Subaru Legacy, 7 of them mention a crash and 1 mention a fire. 1 complaints mention an injury, with 1 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-08.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as SUBARU LEGACY.

At a glance

Complaints
117
With crash
7
With fire
1
With injury (complaints)
1
Injuries
1
Deaths
0
Recalls
3
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
228,648
Investigations
0
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
445

Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. No sales source is available for this record.

Where the complaints are

Top systems
SystemComplaintsShare of this vehicle's complaints
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM4034.2%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER2924.8%
VISIBILITY/WIPER2521.4%
ENGINE108.5%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM86.8%
VISIBILITY86.8%
SERVICE BRAKES54.3%
LANE DEPARTURE43.4%
STEERING43.4%
STRUCTURE43.4%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints
VISIBILITYWINDSHIELD5
STRUCTUREBODY4
BACK OVER PREVENTIONSENSING SYSTEM3
LANE DEPARTUREWARNING3
ELECTRICAL SYSTEMINSTRUMENT PANEL2
EQUIPMENTELECTRICAL2
TIRESSIDEWALL2
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM12V/24V/48V BATTERY1
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEAUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING1
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCEWARNINGS1

One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.

Model-generated complaint tags

These labels are model-generated, not NHTSA data.

Failure modes
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
electrical electronic5143.6%0.94
mechanical failure2117.9%0.68
structural or corrosion1815.4%0.54
loss of control1412.0%0.84
visibility or lighting86.8%0.63
restraint or airbag32.6%0.95
fire or overheating10.9%0.95
noise or comfort10.9%0.97
Severities
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
moderate6353.8%0.84
low4437.6%0.73
high108.5%0.90

Model: typesafe/jev-1.13-20260917; schema version: tag-v1. 117 tagged complaints of 117 complaints (100.0%).

Confidence is the model's own probability for the label it chose (0 to 1), not accuracy.

Model-generated labels on tagged complaints only. Model years 2013 and newer are tagged in full; 2012 in part (see tagged_share); earlier model years have no tags. NHTSA's own flags remain separate in the complaints block.

Recalls

See new recalls and investigations this week.

3 recalls.

21V587000

Date: 2021-07-29. Systems: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE.

Defect: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Ascent, 2018 Forester, 2018-2020 Impreza, Legacy, Outback, 2018-2019 BRZ, WRX, and Toyota 86 vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.

Consequence: Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the low-pressure fuel pump, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 24, 2021. Subaru and Toyota owners may call customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRG-21.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

18V935000

Date: 2018-12-31. Systems: VISIBILITY.

Defect: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2018 Legacy, Outback, and BRZ vehicles. In the affected vehicles, a software issue may cause the audio display system to not initialize, resulting in the camera display remaining blank. If this occurs, the rearview image will not display while backing up the vehicle. As a result, the vehicles fail to comply with requirements of Federal Motor (excerpt)

Consequence: Failure to display the rearview image while backing up increases the risk of crash. (excerpt)

Remedy: Subaru has notified owners, and dealers will reprogram the audio system display software, free of charge. The recall began on February 5, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WTZ-85. (excerpt)

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

18V773000

Date: 2018-11-01. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE.

Defect: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2018 Subaru Legacy and Outback vehicles. Due to a software error, the low fuel warning light may not illuminate at the intended remaining fuel level and the miles-to-empty display may incorrectly indicate a positive number despite the tank being empty.

Consequence: The inaccurate fuel display may cause a driver to unexpectedly run out of fuel and the vehicle to stall, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the combination meter software, free of charge. The recall began February 20, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WTW-82.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

Investigations

0 investigations; 0 open.

Manufacturer communications

445 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM255
EQUIPMENT190
POWER TRAIN51
EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY27
UNKNOWN OR OTHER27
ENGINE22
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING21
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE10

11037943

Date: 2026-10-05. Type: Other. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

This announcement provides information on a new software update for the Midtronics Dss and DCA machines.

11037942

Date: 2026-09-28. Type: Other. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN.

This announcement provides information on an enhancement of the TechShare CVT diagnostic assitance application.

11037938

Date: 2026-09-18. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

"This Bulletin announces additional troubleshooting steps for the following DTCs: DTC C1956: RH Actuator Circuit DTC C1957: LH Actuator Circuit"

11037940

Date: 2026-09-18. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

This bulletin provides paint code information for 2027 model year vehicles.

11037930

Date: 2026-09-15. Type: Other. Systems: UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

This announcement provides an update to all 2027 model year Subaru warranty coverages for wear items and adjustments.

11037927

Date: 2026-09-14. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

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.

11037929

Date: 2026-09-14. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

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.

11036804

Date: 2026-08-21. Type: Other. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN.

This Announcement provides diagnostic assistance for CVT issues.

11036810

Date: 2026-08-20. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

This bulletin announces a design change made to the CVT Control Valve Body. The updated valve body incorporates an enhanced valve sleeve to improve durability. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.

11036814

Date: 2026-08-20. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

This bulletin provides guidance when diagnosing chain slip, judder, shudder, and hesitation concerns on the TR580 model CVT transmissions used in the models listed.

Notes on this record

  • Complaints from the API and bulk file are merged and deduplicated by ODI number; the API alone misses records.
  • System and subsystem counts are numbers of distinct complaints, recalls or communications that name them. One record can name several systems, so shares across systems can add to more than 100 percent; a single share never exceeds 100 percent.
  • Recalls are counted once per campaign, investigations once per action and manufacturer communications once per NHTSA id, even when NHTSA lists several model names for the same record.
  • A sales denominator is a calendar-year proxy, not the population of vehicles still in use. Rates are copied from verified pipeline output.

Other names NHTSA uses

None listed.

Matched NHTSA models

Matched labels and complaints
NHTSA model labelComplaints
LEGACY117

Same model, other years

All model years | All Subaru models

Other Subaru models, 2018

Sources

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