2013 Subaru Impreza: owner complaints and recalls

Owners have filed 248 complaints about the 2013 Subaru Impreza and NHTSA has issued 4 recall campaigns. The most-reported system is air bags, named in 79 of them.

248
Complaints
4
Recalls
13
Crash reports
7
Fire reports
4
Injuries
50.8
Severity index

Severity index 50.8 - Medium. It weights crashes, fires, injuries and fatalities per 100 complaints, so a vehicle attracting serious reports scores above one attracting many trivial ones (how this is calculated).

Middle half of all tracked vehiclesThis vehicle: 50.8p25 35p75 96cleanestworst
Where the 2013 Subaru Impreza sits against the quartiles of every vehicle we track.

Among the 145 2013 vehicles we track with at least 40 complaints on file, the 2013 Subaru Impreza ranks 99 of 145 by severity, where 1 is the worst. Its severity is higher than 32% of its model-year peers. See the full 2013 ranking.

What actually fails

Air BagsAir Bags: 79 complaints (31.9%)79 32%EngineEngine: 74 complaints (29.8%)74 30%Electrical SystemElectrical System: 33 complaints (13.3%)33 13%Service BrakesService Brakes: 24 complaints (9.7%)24 10%Power TrainPower Train: 23 complaints (9.3%)23 9%Unknown Or OtherUnknown Or Other: 21 complaints (8.5%)21 8%SteeringSteering: 14 complaints (5.6%)14 6%Vehicle Speed ControlVehicle Speed Control: 13 complaints (5.2%)13 5%
Systems named in complaints. One complaint can name several, so shares overlap.
ComponentComplaintsShare of complaints citing it
AIR BAGS7931.9%
ENGINE7429.8%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM3313.3%
SERVICE BRAKES249.7%
POWER TRAIN239.3%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER218.5%
STEERING145.6%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL135.2%

Complaints filed per year

034682013: 112014: 92015: 122016: 132017: 192018: 272019: 682020: 292021: 252022: 112023: 122024: 52025: 62026: 1 (partial year)131415161718196820212223242526
Complaints filed per calendar year, not model year. The hatched bar is the current year and is still incomplete.
YearComplaints
201311
20149
201512
201613
201719
201827
201968
202029
202125
202211
202312
20245
20256
2026 (year to date)1
Complaint volume is declining, consistent with a defect that was addressed by recall or that affected early builds.

Recall campaigns

CampaignReportedComponentSummary
19V14900028/02/2019EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BRAKE LIGHTS:SWITCHSubaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2014-2016 Forester, 2008-2016 Impreza sedans, 2012-2016 Impreza station wagons, 2008-2014 WRX sedans (including STI), and 2013-2017 Crosstrek vehicles. Exposure to certain contaminants may cause the brake light switch to malf
16V73800013/10/2016ELECTRICAL SYSTEMSubaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2007-2009 model year Legacy and Outback vehicles, 2008-2014 Impreza vehicles and 2009-2013 Forester vehicles, all equipped with turbo-charged engines. The relay that controls the secondary air injection pump may fa
13V06100025/02/2013ELECTRICAL SYSTEMSubaru is recalling certain model year 2010-2012 Legacy and Outback vehicles equipped with an automatic or CVT transmission and an Audiovox remote engine starter (RES) accessory, certain model year 2012-2013 Impreza vehicles equipped with a CVT transmission and an Audiovox remote
18V77200001/11/2018ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINESubaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2012-2014 Subaru Impreza, 2012-2013 Impreza Stationwagon, 2013 Subaru BRZ, XV Crosstrek and Toyota Scion FR-S vehicles. The engine valve springs in these vehicles may fracture causing an engine malfunction or a possible engin
Source. US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration public complaint and recall APIs (api.nhtsa.gov), retrieved 2026-07-25. Complaints are unverified consumer reports; volume is influenced by how many units were sold and how long the vehicle has been on the road. Not affiliated with NHTSA or any manufacturer.