2006 Subaru Outback problems
The 2006 Subaru Outback has 405 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (24%) concerns cruise control. Next are engine (12%) and electrical system (10%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 405 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Cruise control 24% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 12 and 4
- Injuries and deaths
- 4 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 95,000 miles 338 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 17 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 16 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 39 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 52 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 59 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 49 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 38 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 35 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 13 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 15 |
| 200k+ miles | 5 |
What the data shows
Of the 338 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 95,000 miles. For cruise control specifically, the median reported mileage is about 96,000 miles (93 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 12 complaints mention a crash; 4 complaints mention a fire; 4 injuries reported. Its complaints are less severe on average than those of 85% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2006 ranks 21st most-complained-about out of 31 model years of the Subaru Outback with enough data (98 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 7 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
As I pulled into my parking space at work, I put my foot on the brake but the car did not respond. Car stopped only after jumping curb and plowing into brick wall of my building.
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 subaru outback. She stated that her vehicle was rear-ended, which caused her to crash into the rear of another vehicle. The airbags did not deploy. The failure and current mileages were 26,000. Updated 02-01-08 the driver and passenger seats both went all the way down laying flat in the vehicle and because of this defect the passenger in the back seat was injured. Updated 02/01/08
I was driving on the interstate and when I got onto the exit ramp, the vehicle gas pedal stopped working and the check engine light came on along with flashing cruise control light. I coasted into a dealership with hazard lights on at about 10MPH. Diagnosis was a faulty accelerator pedal sensor. This could have been very dangerous if I was in heavy traffic or still on the interstate. Car only has 53,000 miles on it.
Throttle failure. While driving throttle completely fails. No acceleration, car will only move at automatic idle speed. Cruise control light flashes, check engine light on. Extremely dangerous -- very lucky it didn't happen in an intersection or while passing another car. Turns out to be common for this model -- and mine has only 93,000 miles. I am attaching a sample from an online complaint site. This requires a recall.