2018 Subaru Outback problems and recalls

Owners have filed 807 complaints on the 2018 Subaru Outback, and NHTSA has issued 3 recalls. The most cited component is the Electrical System (265 complaints).

807
Complaints
3
Recalls
27
Crash reports
4
Fire reports
19
Injuries
38.0
Severity index

Severity index 38.0 Low. The index weights crashes, fires, injuries and fatalities per 100 complaints. How it is calculated.

Middle half of all tracked vehiclesThis vehicle: 38.0p25 46p75 80cleanestworst
Severity index against the quartile range for all tracked vehicles.

Ranked 101 of 122 by severity index among 2018 vehicles with at least 40 complaints, highest first. 17% of those vehicles scored lower. Full 2018 ranking.

Components cited in complaints

Electrical SystemElectrical System: 265 complaints (32.8%)265 33%Visibility/WiperVisibility/Wiper: 233 complaints (28.9%)233 29%Unknown Or OtherUnknown Or Other: 159 complaints (19.7%)159 20%Fuel/Propulsion SystemFuel/Propulsion System: 43 complaints (5.3%)43 5%VisibilityVisibility: 41 complaints (5.1%)41 5%EngineEngine: 36 complaints (4.5%)36 4%SteeringSteering: 35 complaints (4.3%)35 4%Vehicle Speed ControlVehicle Speed Control: 21 complaints (2.6%)21 3%
A single complaint can cite more than one component, so shares total over 100%.
ComponentComplaintsShare of complaints citing it
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM26532.8%
VISIBILITY/WIPER23328.9%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER15919.7%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM435.3%
VISIBILITY415.1%
ENGINE364.5%
STEERING354.3%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL212.6%

Complaints filed per year

0901802017: 62018: 802019: 1562020: 1642021: 1742022: 662023: 482024: 472025: 362026: 30 (partial year)17181920211742223242526
Complaints by the calendar year they were filed. The hatched bar is the current year to date.
YearComplaints
20176
201880
2019156
2020164
2021174
202266
202348
202447
202536
2026 (year to date)30
Filings in 2023 to 2025 ran 0.3x those in 2020 to 2022 (131 against 404).

Recall campaigns

CampaignReportedComponentSummary
18V93500031/12/2018VISIBILITY:REARVIEW MIRRORS/DEVICESSubaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2018 Legacy, Outback, and BRZ vehicles. In the affected vehicles, a software issue may cause the audio display system to not initialize, resulting in the camera display remaining blank. If this occurs, the rearview image wil
18V77300001/11/2018ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:SOFTWARESubaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2018 Subaru Legacy and Outback vehicles. Due to a software error, the low fuel warning light may not illuminate at the intended remaining fuel level and the miles-to-empty display may incorrectly indicate a positive number de
21V58700029/07/2021FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMPSubaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Ascent, 2018 Forester, 2018-2020 Impreza, Legacy, Outback, 2018-2019 BRZ, WRX, and Toyota 86 vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.

Other Subaru Outback model years

Severity index for every other model year on file. Compare all 14 years side by side.

Source. NHTSA public complaint and recall APIs (api.nhtsa.gov), retrieved 2026-08-04. Complaints are unverified consumer reports. Totals vary with units sold and years on the road. Not affiliated with NHTSA or any manufacturer.