NHTSA lists 813 complaints for the 2018 Subaru Outback, 27 of them mention a crash and 4 mention a fire. 10 complaints mention an injury, with 19 injuries and 0 deaths reported.
Data build 2026-10-07.
NHTSA lists this vehicle as SUBARU OUTBACK.
At a glance
Complaints
813
With crash
27
With fire
4
With injury (complaints)
10
Injuries
19
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
439
Complaints per 100k sold: 454.561. Units sold: 178,854; sales year: 2018; basis: calendar_year_us_sales_proxy_for_model_year. goodcarbadcar.net.
Where the complaints are
Top systems
System
Complaints
Share of this vehicle's complaints
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
267
32.8%
VISIBILITY/WIPER
234
28.8%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
160
19.7%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
43
5.3%
VISIBILITY
41
5.0%
ENGINE
37
4.6%
STEERING
35
4.3%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
21
2.6%
BACK OVER PREVENTION
19
2.3%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
18
2.2%
Top subsystems
System
Subsystem
Complaints
VISIBILITY
WINDSHIELD
36
STRUCTURE
BODY
15
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
11
BACK OVER PREVENTION
SENSING SYSTEM
9
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
INSTRUMENT PANEL
8
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
WARNINGS
7
BACK OVER PREVENTION
WARNINGS
5
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
5
LANE DEPARTURE
WARNING
3
BACK OVER PREVENTION
REARVIEW SYSTEM BRAKING
2
One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.
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.
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.
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)
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
439 manufacturer communications.
Communications by system
System
Count
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
254
EQUIPMENT
188
POWER TRAIN
50
EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY
28
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
27
ENGINE
22
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
22
SEATS
10
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.