2013 Subaru Outback problems
The 2013 Subaru Outback has 409 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (17%) concerns engine. Next are drivetrain & axles (15%) and air bags (10%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 409 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Engine 17% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 36 and 7
- Injuries and deaths
- 24 and 2
- Typical mileage
- 40,000 miles 279 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 | 100 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 38 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 30 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 36 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 24 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 25 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 13 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 7 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 1 |
| 200k+ miles | 4 |
What the data shows
Of the 279 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 40,000 miles. For engine specifically, the median reported mileage is about 46,000 miles (46 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 36 complaints mention a crash; 7 complaints mention a fire; 24 injuries reported; 2 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2013 ranks 10th most-complained-about out of 31 model years of the Subaru Outback with enough data (229 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 12 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.
The headrest points at a harsh angle forward and may cause severe neck injury. Two seperate incidents: 1. Moving forward at a left turn angle, cars hitting each others rt front. Result brain stem hemorrhage and bilateral hematoma. April 3, 2018 2. Stopped in traffic hit from the rear. Result neck strain. May 10, 2018
My friends' son and wife had a crash on I 55 north near meadowbrook road on january 28, 2018. The car hit a highway barrier and spun around and resulted in an extreme fire after impact and the side airbag, nor the side curtain airbag did not deploy on drivers' side. The insurance company did not get consent from my friend to take it from the towed destination to another destination. She has yet to receive information regarding her claim status which she was informed of only when she initiated the call.
The passenger occupant detection system (ods) malfunctioned or shorted out for no apparent reason. As a result, the passenger airbag will not enable even when occupied by an adult passenger. The passenger airbag is constantly in off mode. In addition the ods apparently controls the seatbelt warning feature. Regardless of whether or not an adult passenger is occupying the seat the ods is constantly detecting a passenger and the passenger seatbelt warning light and chime continuously are on.
Excessive oil usage, regularly occurs within 6000 miles of oil change burns one quart of synthetic engine oil. Also note bushing in drivers side lower control arm has failed as of 50,000.