Coscienzios

Model years to avoid

Subaru Outback

What it says about you

Opinion

There is a kayak. Maybe not right now, maybe not this year, but the roof bars are on and the possibility is being kept alive. You own at least one item of clothing designed for weather you have not yet encountered. The dog has a dedicated blanket and the dog knows it.

Not measured, not from the data, and offered in fun. Everything below this is not.

23 model years on record, 8,552 complaints filed.

The years to look at closely: 2020 (windshield), 2019 (screen), 2018 (camera), 2017 (key). Everything else drew a normal number of complaints for this model.

What owners report, and when

Faults that dominated the complaints of more than one model year. Not the same question as which year to avoid — a car can have an ordinary number of complaints every year and have most of them be about the same thing.

  • braking 2018, 2025 peak 35.2% of that year's complaints
  • headlights 2010, 2011 peak 13.5% of that year's complaints

Every year

  1. 2027 nothing on record 0 complaints
  2. 2026 0 recalls 12 complaints
  3. 2025 0 recalls 71 complaints
  4. 2024 0 recalls 2 complaints
  5. 2023 2 recalls 87 complaints
  6. 2022 4 recalls 460 complaints
  7. 2021 4 recalls 293 complaints
  8. 2020 windshield 895 complaints
  9. 2019 screen 1,032 complaints
  10. 2018 camera 807 complaints
  11. 2017 key 917 complaints
  12. 2016 4 recalls 640 complaints
  13. 2015 5 recalls 507 complaints
  14. 2014 10 recalls 208 complaints
  15. 2013 12 recalls 296 complaints
  16. 2012 16 recalls 291 complaints
  17. 2011 16 recalls 651 complaints
  18. 2010 18 recalls 360 complaints
  19. 2009 13 recalls 111 complaints
  20. 2008 8 recalls 230 complaints
  21. 2007 8 recalls 129 complaints
  22. 2006 7 recalls 280 complaints
  23. 2005 9 recalls 273 complaints

What does a Subaru Outback say about you?

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Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls and investigations, retrieved . A year is flagged when it drew at least 2.5× this model's median and at least 50 complaints — compared against itself rather than against other cars, so popularity and age do not decide the answer.