Subaru ownership costs & problem years

Subaru models ranked by owner data

17 Subaru nameplates carry enough federal data to score: 15,926 owner complaints and 294 recall campaigns in total. The strongest average across its model years is the Crosstrek Hybrid at 90/100; the weakest is the Outback at 68/100.

ModelAvg scoreVerdictYears scoredBest yearWorst yearComplaintsRecalls
Crosstrek Hybrid90BUY32019201913
Forester Hybrid89BUY12025202502
XV Crosstrek87BUY4201620153043
XV Crosstrek Hybrid87BUY2201420141960
WRX86BUY112020201728915
Solterra85BUY320252023438
BRZ83BUY11201520131016
Forester Wilderness83BUY320232024360
Outback Wilderness82BUY3202320251660
Crosstrek Wilderness78BUY2202520241170
Tribeca78BUY4201420111125
Crosstrek77BUY62020201980014
Legacy73BUY132023202099949
Forester72BUY15202220194,75658
Impreza72BUY82025201284630
Ascent70BUY7202220191,02924
Outback68CAUTION13202420206,23257

Average score is the mean across the model years we hold data for. Complaint counts are raw NHTSA totals and rise with how many cars were sold — the score itself corrects for that. Methodology.

Every Subaru model we hold data for

Subaru Ascent7 model years indexedSubaru Ascent Limited/Touring3 model years indexedSubaru Ascent Limited/Touring/Onyx4 model years indexedSubaru BRZ12 model years indexedSubaru BRZ tS2 model years indexedSubaru Crosstrek9 model years indexedSubaru Crosstrek Hybrid4 model years indexedSubaru Crosstrek Wilderness2 model years indexedSubaru Forester15 model years indexedSubaru Forester Hybrid1 model years indexedSubaru Forester Sport/Touring1 model years indexedSubaru Forester Wilderness4 model years indexedSubaru Impreza8 model years indexedSubaru Impreza 4-Door7 model years indexedSubaru Impreza 5-Door7 model years indexedSubaru Impreza Sport2 model years indexedSubaru Impreza Sport 4-Door7 model years indexedSubaru Impreza Sport 5-Door7 model years indexedSubaru Impreza Wagon/Outback Sport2 model years indexedSubaru Legacy15 model years indexedSubaru Outback15 model years indexedSubaru Outback Wilderness4 model years indexedSubaru Solterra3 model years indexedSubaru Solterra Limited/Touring3 model years indexedSubaru Tribeca4 model years indexedSubaru WRX11 model years indexedSubaru WRX STI Type RA1 model years indexedSubaru XV Crosstrek4 model years indexedSubaru XV Crosstrek Hybrid3 model years indexed

Sources: NHTSA complaints and recalls, EPA fuel economy · Methodology · Calculators · Updated 2026-10-04