Subaru Outback vs Jeep Wrangler Unlimited: which is more reliable?
The Jeep Wrangler Unlimited is clearly ahead of the Subaru Outback on the federal record: 80/100 against 68/100 across every model year we score.
The record, side by side
Subaru Outback
- 13 model years scored
- 6,232 owner complaints on record
- about 72 complaints per year on the road
- 57 recall campaigns, 34 safety-critical
- best year 2024 (93/100) · worst 2020 (35/100)
Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
- 6 model years scored
- 3,516 owner complaints on record
- about 56 complaints per year on the road
- 0 recall campaigns, 0 safety-critical
- best year 2017 (90/100) · worst 2020 (58/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Outback against Wrangler Unlimited
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 Outback
- Electrical System — 1,898 complaints
- Visibility/Wiper — 1,659 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 1,128 complaints
Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
- Engine — 875 complaints
- Power Train — 747 complaints
- Electrical System — 629 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Outback's complaints concentrate in Electrical System, the Wrangler Unlimited's in Engine. 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 Outback — avoid: 2019, 2020.
Jeep Wrangler Unlimited: no model year scores below 45; the strongest are 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017.
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 Outback prices at about $44,100 and a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited at about $28,800 — the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited is roughly $15,300 less, and they return 28.0 against 20.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Subaru Outback or the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited scores 80/100 against the Subaru Outback's 68/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The Jeep Wrangler Unlimited carries about 56 complaints per year on the road against 72 for the Subaru Outback.
Which Subaru Outback and Jeep Wrangler Unlimited years should I avoid?
Subaru Outback: 2019, 2020. Jeep Wrangler Unlimited: 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 Outback and the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited?
The largest complaint group on the Subaru Outback is Electrical System (1,898 complaints); on the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited it is Engine (875).
Is the Subaru Outback or the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited cheaper to own?
A recent used Subaru Outback prices at about $44,100 and a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited at about $28,800, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.