What Owners Report NHTSA ODI · 2,175,102 complaints · MY1998–2026

2010 Subaru Outback

Early-defect pattern

25.2% of complaints about the 2010 Subaru Outback came in its first year of service — a higher share than 97% of the 203 2010 model-years on record. That points to problems present from new rather than wear. The most-reported system is power train (94 complaints), typically at 7.8 yr or about 94,000 miles.

Complaints
465
Median age at failure
6.8 yr
Median mileage
67,000 n=359
Crash / fire / tow
5.8% of reports
Safety recalls
10

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

System
0y2y4y6y8y10y12y14y
Power train
94 reports · 94,000 mi
7.8 yr
2.1%
Air bags
44 reports · 19,500 mi
6.8 yr
6.8%
Engine
44 reports · 112,000 mi
8.4 yr
4.5%
Steering
40 reports · 1,700 mi
7 mo
2.5%
Exterior lighting
35 reports · 50,000 mi
4.8 yr
0%
Service brakes
35 reports · 129,204 mi
11.1 yr
8.6%
Electrical system
33 reports · 100,000 mi
7.8 yr
3%
Suspension
26 reports · 2,000 mi
4.5 yr
0%
Engine cooling
23 reports · 3,800 mi
10 mo
0%
Other
19 reports · 105,000 mi
8.2 yr
10.5%

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

20V001000 2020-01-02
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (STI included), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same de

An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

20V003000 2020-01-02
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall us

An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

20V002000 2020-01-02
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior

An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

19V297000 2019-04-11
Electrical system:ignition:switch

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester vehicles, 2008-2011 Impreza vehicles, 2008-2014 WRX vehicles, 2005-2014 Legacy vehicles, 2005-2014 Outback vehicles and 2006-2008 Tribeca vehicles equipped with a mechanical key ignition switch installed as a replacement part. The ball spring inside the switch may break, reducing the strength of the ignition switch. If this occurs, the weight on the key ring and certain road conditions could cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position to the accessory position, turning off the engine.

The engine turning off unexpectedly can increase the risk of a crash. If a crash occurs under this condition, the air bag may not deploy, increasing the risk of injury.

19V007000 2019-01-09
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2013 Forester, 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Outback, Legacy, and 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating de

An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

19V009000 2019-01-09
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Legacy and Outback vehicles, 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles and 2010-2013 Forester vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipm

An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

19V008000 2019-01-09
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Outback, and Legacy vehicles, 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles and 2010-2013 Forester vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or rep

An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

18V626000 2018-09-13
Parking brake

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Subaru Legacy and Outback vehicles equipped with a manual transmission. The electronic parking brake (EPB) may not engage as intended, allowing the vehicle to rollaway if the transmission is not in the proper gear when parked.

A vehicle rollaway can increase the risk of a crash.

18V013000 2018-01-09
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2010 Tribeca, Impreza, Forester, WRX, Legacy, and Outback vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a cra

An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

18V012000 2018-01-09
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Legacy, Forester, Tribeca, WRX and Outback vehicles, and 2009-2011 Impreza vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating

An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

In owners’ own words

Power train 900 mi 8 mo in service
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 SUBARU OUTBACK. THE CONTACT STATED WHEN DOWNSHIFTING FROM SECOND TO THIRD GEAR, THE VEHICLE WOULD STALL AND LOSE ALL POWER. THE POWER STEERING AND BRAKES WOULD BECOME INOPERABLE WHEN THE FAILURE OCCURRED.THE VECHILE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE A DIAGNOSTIC TEST WAS PERFOMRED, DURING WHICH THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO FALL TO RPMS OF 300 UNTIL IT WOULD STALL. THE VEHICLE WAS LEFT IN THE DEALER'S POSSESSION FOR FURTHER DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 900.
Power train 5,000 mi 9 mo in service
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 SUBARU OUTBACK. THE CONTACT STATED WHEN BRAKING TO A COMPLETE STOP AND DEPRESSING THE CLUTCH, OR WHILE IN NEUTRAL, THE VEHICLE WOULD STALL WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT WOULD BE ABLE TO IMMEDIATELY RESTART THE VEHICLE BUT STATED THE FAILURE WOULD USUALLY OCCUR WHEN THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN OPERATED IN SOME TIME. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER TWICE BUT THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DUPLICATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WOULD NOT PROVIDE ANY ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 5,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 6,100.
Power train 7,000 mi 1.8 yr in service
ENGINE IDLE DROPS 200 RPM BELOW NORMAL UNDER BRAKING AT LOW SPEEDS. SOMETIMES THIS RESULTS IN AN ENGINE STALL IN TRAFFIC. SUBARU OF AMERICA SUGGESTED A TRANSMISSION "RETRAINING" WHICH SEEMS TO HAVE CURED THE ISSUE. *TT
Exterior lighting 5 mi 3 mo in service
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 SUBARU OUTBACK. THE HEADLIGHTS FAIL WHILE DRIVING WITHOUT WARNING. WHEN THE HE HEADLIGHTS ARE OPERATIVE, THEY POORLY PROJECT LIGHT ONTO THE ROAD-WAY. AS A CONSEQUENCE SHE CANNOT SEE SIGNS, PARKED VEHICLES AND PEDESTRIANS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR INSPECTION. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE LOW BEAMS WERE HITTING THE BULBS FOR THE HEADLIGHTS. THE VEHICLE WILL BE REPAIRED AT THE DEALERS EXPENSE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 5. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 396.

Other Outback model years

2025202420232022202120202019201820172016201520142013201220112010200920082007200620052004200320022001200019991998

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