NHTSA lists 89 complaints for the 2023 Subaru Outback, 8 of them mention a crash and 1 mention a fire. 2 complaints mention an injury, with 3 injuries and 0 deaths reported.
Data build 2026-10-07.
NHTSA lists this vehicle as SUBARU OUTBACK.
At a glance
Complaints
89
With crash
8
With fire
1
With injury (complaints)
2
Injuries
3
Deaths
0
Recalls
2
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
95,830
Investigations
0
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
334
Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. The available sales group does not match this vehicle variant.
Where the complaints are
Top systems
System
Complaints
Share of this vehicle's complaints
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
22
24.7%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
17
19.1%
VISIBILITY/WIPER
16
18.0%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
15
16.9%
SERVICE BRAKES
7
7.9%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
6
6.7%
POWER TRAIN
5
5.6%
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
3
3.4%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
3
3.4%
VISIBILITY
3
3.4%
Top subsystems
System
Subsystem
Complaints
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
17
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
10
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
WARNINGS
8
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
ACCELERATOR PEDAL
3
VISIBILITY
WINDSHIELD
3
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE
2
STRUCTURE
BODY
2
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
IGNITION
1
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
SENSING SYSTEM
1
LANE DEPARTURE
ASSIST
1
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. is recalling certain model year 2021 Crosstrek, 2022 Forester, 2021-2023 Legacy, and Outback vehicles. An insufficient weld may allow water to enter the inhibitor switch, causing it to fail.
Consequence: An inoperative inhibitor switch may prevent the reverse lights from illuminating and the rearview camera image from displaying, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the inhibitor switch, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 8, 2024. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-800-782-2783. Subaru's number for this recall is WRQ-23.
Defect: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2023 Outback, Legacy, Ascent, and Impreza vehicles. The center support bolts for the driveshaft may loosen, resulting in the disconnection of the front end of the driveshaft.
Consequence: Separation of the front end of the driveshaft increases the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will clean the bolt mounting surfaces of the center support brace and install new bolts, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 20, 2023. Owners may contact Subaru's customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRN-23.
Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.
Investigations
0 investigations; 0 open.
Manufacturer communications
334 manufacturer communications.
Communications by system
System
Count
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
216
EQUIPMENT
71
ENGINE
54
POWER TRAIN
42
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
27
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
18
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
14
STRUCTURE
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.
11036822
Date: 2026-08-31. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STRUCTURE.
This bulletin provides a procedure to address customer concerns of surface rust accumulating in the top center retaining nut area of the front strut mounts. 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.
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.