Subaru electrical system problems
Across all Subaru models in NHTSA's complaint database, 4,524 complaints involve electrical system. The Outback accounts for the largest share (51%). The single worst model year is the 2017 Outback with 393 electrical system complaints.
At a glance
- Complaints
- 4,524 about electrical system, all Subaru models
- Most affected
- Outback 51% of these complaints
- Typical mileage
- 30,000 miles 2,050 complaints with mileage
- Crashes and fires
- 87 and 141
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Which Subaru models
| Model | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Outback | 2,302 | 51% |
| Forester | 802 | 18% |
| Legacy | 438 | 10% |
| Ascent | 293 | 7% |
| Impreza | 238 | 5% |
| Crosstrek | 199 | 4% |
| WRX | 71 | 2% |
| XV Crosstrek | 51 | 1% |
| Solterra | 31 | 1% |
| Trailseeker | 28 | 1% |
Worst model years for electrical system
- 2017 Subaru Outback393 complaints
- 2019 Subaru Outback367 complaints
- 2016 Subaru Outback310 complaints
- 2018 Subaru Outback269 complaints
- 2020 Subaru Outback261 complaints
Electrical system complaints by model year
View the numbers
| Model year | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 2 |
| 1991 | 5 |
| 1992 | 14 |
| 1993 | 9 |
| 1994 | 1 |
| 1995 | 28 |
| 1996 | 25 |
| 1997 | 25 |
| 1998 | 26 |
| 1999 | 16 |
| 2000 | 17 |
| 2001 | 7 |
| 2002 | 15 |
| 2003 | 19 |
| 2004 | 17 |
| 2005 | 58 |
| 2006 | 79 |
| 2007 | 45 |
| 2008 | 59 |
| 2009 | 60 |
| 2010 | 68 |
| 2011 | 107 |
| 2012 | 82 |
| 2013 | 88 |
| 2014 | 125 |
| 2015 | 291 |
| 2016 | 518 |
| 2017 | 583 |
| 2018 | 435 |
| 2019 | 784 |
| 2020 | 500 |
| 2021 | 151 |
| 2022 | 78 |
| 2023 | 54 |
| 2024 | 42 |
| 2025 | 33 |
| 2026 | 58 |
Among the 2,050 of these complaints that report mileage, the median is about 30,000 miles.
Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many vehicles each brand sells, so large brands naturally have more complaints.