2020 Subaru Outback
Complaints about this year name windshield far more often than the other years of this generation — 49% of them, about 5× the usual rate of 9.9%.
First year of a new generation. The Subaru Outback was redesigned for 2020. A first year carries problems nobody has found yet, and they are found by the people who buy it — which is worth knowing before you become one of them.
NHTSA opened a defect investigation into this model year.
| Complaints filed | 895 |
|---|---|
| Median for this model | 291 |
| Involving a crash | 19 |
| Involving a fire | 7 |
| Recalls | 6 |
| NHTSA crash rating | 5/5 |
| EPA combined | 27.5 mpg |
Also unusual this year
- cracked — 26% of complaints, 9× usual
- windshield cracked — 16% of complaints, 40× usual
- crack — 33% of complaints, 5× usual
What owners wrote
Windshield cracked for no apparent reason. Car was in garage. No impact to windshield observed.
WINDSHIELD CRACKED FROM THE LOWER CENTER WHILE PARKING IN THE GARAGE. NO KNOWN IMPACT HAPPENED.
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint filings, with identifying details removed.
Recalls for this year
- 20V766000 BACK OVER PREVENTION Fixed free of charge.
- 21V955000 POWER TRAIN Fixed free of charge.
- 21V587000 FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE Fixed free of charge.
- 19V664000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC Fixed free of charge.
- 22V485000 POWER TRAIN Fixed free of charge.
- 24V227000 AIR BAGS Fixed free of charge.
How this was worked out
Every year of the Subaru Outback was compared against its own history rather than against other cars, which removes popularity and age from the answer — a common car draws more complaints at equal reliability, and an older one has had longer to accumulate them. A year is flagged when it drew at least 2.5× this model's median and at least 50 complaints.
This is a fault record, not a review. Nobody files a federal complaint to say the car was fine, so it shows what tends to go wrong — not whether owners liked it, and not whether it is a good car.
Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls and investigations, retrieved . Look this vehicle up directly on NHTSA's site to check anything here.
Own a 2020 Subaru Outback? What happened to yours?
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