RoadVitals

2025 Subaru Outback

Recalls, owner-reported complaints, investigations and safety data

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
81
+6 complaints in 30 days
Safety recallsA safety recall is issued when a manufacturer or NHTSA determines that a vehicle has a safety-related defect or does not comply with a federal motor vehicle safety standard. Recall repairs are free. Whether a specific vehicle is covered depends on its VIN — a recall listed for a model year does not necessarily apply to every vehicle of that year.
0
InvestigationsNHTSA opens an investigation to examine whether a safety defect may exist. An open investigation is not a determination that a defect exists, and many investigations close without a recall. Investigations can, however, lead to one.
0
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
7
1 injuries, 0 deaths reported

Overview

Our database contains 81 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2025 Subaru Outback, most frequently naming the driver assistance, electrical and steering categories. 154 manufacturer communications are on file.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

What owners report

Complaints grouped by the component NHTSA recorded

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Safety recalls

No recalls in our database for this model year

That does not guarantee a specific vehicle is unaffected — recalls are issued against VINs, and new campaigns are announced regularly. Check a VIN on NHTSA.gov.

Recent owner complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA, shown in the owner's own words

View all 81
Driver assistanceElectricalPowertrain (other)
Filed Sep 21, 2026

July 4, 2025 car had about 4100 miles Severe dangerous phantom braking on highway CA 280 N just prior to foothill expressway exit at about 7:30 pm. Suddenly while traveling 60+ MPH on mid lanes of freeway car auto braking caused car to brake/slow to 1/2 speed with no visible obstacle seen by any of 4 adults in car. Multi[ple Dash lights up with eyesite failure and all red , green and yellow lights. Gas pedal ws unresponsive no power. Eminent crash danger. Driver responded trying to hit gas then brake to steer off freeway. After several seconds the car gas pedal eventually responded and I was able to exit freeway at next exit. Taken to dealer July 23, 2025 Reported to Subaru of Santa Cruz . Tech could not duplicate state"The cameras will pickup objects and may brake if the freeway or road turns sharply". Manager of Service also indicated that this can happen if sun is setting. Since that time had P1894 cv transmission code at 12,567 at regular maintenance, techs local and Subaru engineer unable to identify problem erased codes to see if it repeats. 16,034 miles Aug14,2026 Hi pitched engine noise. Dealer diagnosed head gaskets leaking, engine idler pulley failure, pct value and hose leaking. repaired. Lemon claim denied by Subaru 2x cases filed with manufacturer no repair of automatic braking forward or rear collision system or transmission. Engine repair at this mileage indicates defective vehicle. I was hoping to resolve this with the manufacturer . but the safety issues with phantom braking and power trains early failures are unacceptable.

NHTSA ID
11765887
Incident
Jul 4, 2025
Electrical
Filed Sep 16, 2026

See attached document for complaint.

NHTSA ID
11764747
Incident
Jul 1, 2026
BrakesDriver assistance
Filed Sep 16, 2026
Crash reported

The brakes failed and could be inspected upon request. My safety and the safety of two other passengers was put at risk because my vehicle rear ended an another vehicle at a red light. The problem has not yet been confirmed or reproduced by the dealership or inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representative of others. There were no warning messages, or symptoms of the problem prior to the failure.

NHTSA ID
11764693
Incident
Sep 8, 2026
Driver assistance
Filed Sep 14, 2026

While traveling along I-94E outside of Macomb County on September 10th at around 8:30AM, forward collision warning triggered twice while facing the direct sun. It triggered for around 6 seconds. Shortly after getting off the Shook Rd exit at around 8:45M and turning right, I had a full AEB activation while again facing the sun, almost causing the vehicle behind me to rear end me.

NHTSA ID
11764235
Incident
Sep 10, 2026
Electrical
Filed Sep 5, 2026

The large LCD screen infront the shifter just goes blank. Been to the dealer the reload the operating system to no avail.

NHTSA ID
11762374
Incident
Sep 5, 2026
Driver assistance
Filed Sep 3, 2026

Lane-keeping/lane-centering: The system repeatedly pulls the vehicle too far to the right. More seriously, while driving on the freeway, it has randomly and suddenly jerked the vehicle to the right with a rapid steering input. This is not simply a matter of the system being imperfect—it creates a serious safety concern because the vehicle can move abruptly toward the edge of the lane or toward an adjacent lane.

NHTSA ID
11761969
Incident
Aug 1, 2026
Electrical
Filed Aug 22, 2026

Car battery has been failing since June it will not stay charged it started out losing power over weekends now it is every day. It is so bad I purchased a portable battery charger from auto zone to jump my car.

NHTSA ID
11758694
Incident
Aug 22, 2026
Powertrain (other)
Filed Aug 17, 2026

Needed to move quickly out of way of oncoming traffic, but delay/hesitation in CVT made it almost impossible to avoid traffic.

NHTSA ID
11757337
Incident
Jul 14, 2026

Manufacturer communications

A bulletin sent by a manufacturer to its dealers. Not a recall, and repairs are not necessarily free.

15-342-26

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

This bulletin announces an inspection procedure for the Smart Rear View Mirror Assembly.

SubaruNet Announcement (C

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM; POWER TRAIN

This Announcement provides diagnostic assistance for CVT issues.

02-196-26R

ENGINE

This service bulletin outlines the diagnostic and repair procedure for white smoke emitted from the exhaust after startup. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.

15-305-22R

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

This bulletin announces a reprogramming file availability and provides a software update installation procedure to optimize the new Gen 4.5 Denso CP1.5 Audio and Navigation head units utilized in the models listed. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.

16-154-25R

POWER TRAIN

This Service Information Bulletin announces the release of a new diagnostic assistance application for TR690 and TR580 CVT-equipped vehicles. This is an revised version of the original bulletin.

15-308-23R

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

This Service Information Bulletin outlines a systematic procedure for diagnosing parasitic draw (dark/standby current) in vehicles experiencing battery drain when the ignition is off, leading to no-start conditions or frequent jump-starts.This is an revised version of the original bulletin.

Manufacturers file copies of the bulletins they send to dealers with NHTSA. These often describe diagnostic or repair procedures for a known condition. They are not recalls: repairs described in a bulletin are usually only free if the vehicle is still under warranty or the manufacturer has extended coverage.

Compare model years

Complaint and recall counts across every year of this model

Subaru Outback by model year
YearComplaintsRecallsInvestigationsIssue Index
2026160049.5
2025Viewing810047.3
20241020044.7
2023892051.9
20224634052.1
20212964049.2
20208976049.6
20191,0343047.6
20188113050.1
20179174154.8
20166434155.9
20155105156.9
201420810053.4
201329712053.9
201229216157.2
201165116050.4
201036018049.4
200910613055.0
20082268052.0
20071298050.7
20062777047.9
20052739257.0
20049011260.9
20039315257.1
20021435049.8
20011714053.1
20002072050.3
19991111044.8
19981272049.6
1997794052.9
1996462055.2
1995210—

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers. Older model years have had longer for reports to accumulate.