2026 Subaru Outback problems
The 2026 Subaru Outback has 30 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (20%) concerns electrical system. Next are forward collision avoidance (17%) and cruise control (7%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 30 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 20% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 3 and 0
- Injuries and deaths
- 6 and 0
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%.
What the data shows
Safety-related details: 3 complaints mention a crash; 6 injuries reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 83% 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 2026 ranks 30th most-complained-about out of 31 model years of the Subaru Outback with enough data (30 complaints in that window).
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.
Incident Summary: On August 23, 2026, a multi-occupant injury event occurred during routine city braking due to an inherent occupant packaging design defect in the vehicle’s front seating and sun visor layout. The vehicle exhibits a static seat-to-visor clearance of 79 cm versus a standard median adult sitting height of 95 cm, result of negative 16cm headroom clearance.
I am reporting a severe saftey and crash-compatibility defect on the front passenger side of the 2026 Subaru Outback Premium trim. This vehicle is equipped with a fixed-height passenger seat that is positioned unsafely high relative to the headliner and sun visor assembly. Because the seat height cannot be lowered, an adult passenger of average height sits with their head in immediate proximity to the sun visor.