Subaru Impreza vs Nissan Kicks: which is more reliable?
The Nissan Kicks is ahead of the Subaru Impreza on the federal record, 85/100 against 76/100 — a real but narrow gap that a bad model year on either side closes.
The record, side by side
Subaru Impreza
- 8 model years scored
- 846 owner complaints on record
- about 11 complaints per year on the road
- 30 recall campaigns, 25 safety-critical
- best year 2025 (89/100) · worst 2013 (44/100)
Nissan Kicks
- 6 model years scored
- 442 owner complaints on record
- about 14 complaints per year on the road
- 5 recall campaigns, 3 safety-critical
- best year 2022 (94/100) · worst 2019 (79/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Impreza against Kicks
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Subaru Impreza
- Air Bags — 254 complaints
- Engine — 160 complaints
- Electrical System — 123 complaints
Nissan Kicks
- Forward Collision Avoidance — 119 complaints
- Electrical System — 103 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 96 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Impreza's complaints concentrate in Air Bags, the Kicks's in Forward Collision Avoidance. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Subaru Impreza — avoid: 2012, 2013.
Nissan Kicks: no model year scores below 45; the strongest are 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Subaru Impreza prices at about $26,000 and a Nissan Kicks at about $22,100 — the Nissan Kicks is roughly $3,900 less, and they return 30.0 against 33.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Subaru Impreza or the Nissan Kicks more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Nissan Kicks scores 85/100 against the Subaru Impreza's 76/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Subaru Impreza and Nissan Kicks years should I avoid?
Subaru Impreza: 2012, 2013. Nissan Kicks: no year scores below 45. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Subaru Impreza and the Nissan Kicks?
The largest complaint group on the Subaru Impreza is Air Bags (254 complaints); on the Nissan Kicks it is Forward Collision Avoidance (119).
Is the Subaru Impreza or the Nissan Kicks cheaper to own?
A recent used Subaru Impreza prices at about $26,000 and a Nissan Kicks at about $22,100, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.