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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2025 Subaru Outback — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 82 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

82
Complaints
filed with NHTSA
5
Involved a Crash
owner-reported
2
Involved Fire
owner-reported
1
Injuries
across all reports
Years to Avoid

Subaru Outback — Complaints by Model Year

Years flagged AVOID have at least twice this model's average complaint count — the strongest public-data signal of a bad year.

813 complaints

1,035 complaints

899 complaints

296 complaints

464 complaints

89 complaints

2 complaints

82 complaints

0 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Forward Collision Avoidance 20 reports
Unknown Or Other 18 reports
Lane Departure 14 reports
Electrical System 13 reports
Service Brakes 6 reports
Steering 6 reports
Power Train 5 reports
Engine 5 reports
In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Visibility/wiper ODI 11633284 12/31/2024

small chip / crack in windshield on driver side view

Unknown Or Other ODI 11707363 12/28/2025

The Driver Monitoring System option is not available on the screen. It appears that map responds to my mental questions only when I’m driving, which leads to distracted driving. I can not document this phenomenon. The Drive Monitoring System would prevent this distraction. The photo of manual documents the feature exists. The screen photo does not list the feature. I have re…

Unknown Or Other ODI 11704197 12/10/2025

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The infotainment system, which includes control of driving features, displayed pop-up ads for SiriusXM satellite radio while in motion, obscuring other information How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Unwanted and distracting information obscured control of…

Electrical System ODI 11703902 12/09/2025

I am submitting a safety complaint regarding my Subaru vehicle’s infotainment system. The system displays unsolicited, full-screen SiriusXM promotional pop-ups while the vehicle is in motion. These ads override the current display without warning. Most recently, a SiriusXM trial offer appeared and took over my entire screen while I was driving over 60 mph on the highway at ni…

Electrical System ODI 11703118 12/04/2025

unprompted intermittently while operating the vehicle pop up advertisements will appear on the infotainment system advertising sirius xm radio. this is very distracting as it requires focus to be taken off of the road to bypass the ad to return to normal radio screen functions

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2025 Subaru Outback, or check your exact car by VIN with the free VIN lookup.

Check Another Car

Problems Checker

Any year, make and model: open the Car Problems Checker. Data: NHTSA (US DOT, public domain), cached up to 7 days.

Questions

FAQ

Is the 2025 Subaru Outback reliable?
Owners have filed 82 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2025 Subaru Outback, most often about forward collision avoidance. Compare the complaint counts across model years above — a year with far more complaints than the model's average is the strongest 'avoid' signal in public data.
Which Subaru Outback years should I avoid?
The rule of thumb used by analysts: a model year whose complaint count is well above the model's own average (we flag 2× or more) usually had a real manufacturing or design problem — not just noisy reporting. Use the year-by-year strip on this page.
Where do these complaints come from?
Directly from NHTSA, the US government road-safety agency. Any owner can file a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire; NHTSA publishes them as public domain data. We cache each lookup for up to 7 days.
Do complaints mean a recall is coming?
Sometimes. NHTSA opens defect investigations when complaint patterns emerge, and investigations can end in recalls. Check the recalls page for this vehicle to see what has already been recalled.