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NHTSA complaints per catalog listing run from 0.74 for 2014 (208 complaints across 281 listings) to 2.24 for 2011 (653 across 292), against a generation median of 1.03. The highest year, 2011, is 2.2 times that median. Flagged by our rule: 2010.
| Miles | Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| varies; coverage runs to 100K miles or 10 years where it applies | CVT shudder, overheating and premature failure | New or reman CVT $4,500-$7,000, independent rebuild $3,500-$5,000, used unit $2,000-$3,500 (Gearbox Insider); valve body or internal failure $0-$4,500 where the warranty extension applies (Au7o) | Subaru extended CVT coverage to 10 years or 100,000 miles on many 2010-2015 Legacy and Outback CVTs after a class-action settlement (Gearbox Insider). Coverage depends on the exact year and model, so confirm by VIN with Subaru before paying out of pocket. Rohnert Park Transmission says 2012 has the most CVT complaints. Test for shudder at low speed and slipping under load. |
| varies | 2013 2.5L FB engine oil consumption | Covered as an oil consumption repair under the settlement for 2013 Outbacks (Jalopnik; Apex Tech Nation); outside it, an engine replacement is the fix forum owners describe | The settlement covers the oil consumption repair, not a blanket powertrain warranty (Apex Tech Nation). Subaru TSB 02-157-14R covers 2013-14 Outback with the 2.5L FB engine and a piston ring change. One Reddit post claims more than a quart per 1,000 miles; that is one owner's claim. CoPilot and the Reddit thread both name 2013 as the year to avoid. Ask for the oil consumption test history. |
| any | Recalls on file: Takata passenger air bag inflators (19V007000, 19V008000, 19V009000, 20V001000, 20V002000, 20V003000), wiper motor (16V694000), manual transmission parking brake (18V626000), steering (13V194000), 3.6R automatic transmission (13V336000) | Free at a Subaru dealer when open | Subaru says the Takata recall relates only to the passenger-side front inflator. AGT Auto notes many 2010-2014 Outbacks were recalled for it. Confirm each by VIN. |
A year is flagged by our rule only when all three hold: (1) its NHTSA complaints per catalog listing is at least 2.0x the median for its generation, (2) the share of ads that mention a problem is above the generation median, and (3) we track at least 30 listings for that year. The cutoff was fixed before we looked. Ad mentions are not failures, and a flag is a reason to inspect harder, not a verdict on any one car. We also re-ran the ad test with the 'rust' flaw left out, because the ad reader counts phrases like 'no rust' as mentions, and publish a flag only if it passes both ways.
Complaints add up over a car's whole life, so older years in a generation can look worse here than they are. Read this flag next to the complaint details below.
| Year | Complaints | Top components | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 360 | Power Train, Air Bags, Exterior Lighting | |
| 2011 | 653 | Power Train, Exterior Lighting, Air Bags | |
| 2012 | 295 | Power Train, Air Bags, Service Brakes | |
| 2013 | 297 | Engine, Power Train, Air Bags | |
| 2014 | 208 | Air Bags, Engine, Power Train |
source: NHTSA complaints database (api.nhtsa.gov). Complaints are owner reports, not confirmed failures.
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We don't tell you to skip a year; we flag by a fixed rule, and it flags only 2010 (360 complaints across 162 listings, 2.22 per listing against a 2010-2014 median of 1.03). Third-party lists commonly name 2013 (CoPilot, a Reddit thread) for 2.5L oil consumption and 2018 (MotorTrend). 2013 has 0.90 per listing in our data and 2018 has 2.75, both short of the 2.0x cutoff for their generations.
Older EJ25 cars do. Vehicle Rides says signs often show around 150,000 miles and puts the repair at $1,500 to $2,000 or more; Allied Motor Parts says around $2,000; a forum member was quoted $3,700 on a 2008 H6 at 150,000 miles. Check for oil seepage at the heads and coolant loss. This is a model-wide pattern from repair sources, and our complaint data does not isolate it.
The Lineartronic CVT debuted on the 2010 generation. Sources describe shudder, overheating and premature failure, and Subaru extended CVT coverage to 10 years or 100,000 miles on many 2010-2015 Legacy and Outback cars (Gearbox Insider). A replacement runs $4,500 to $7,000 new or reman, $3,500 to $5,000 for a rebuild and $2,000 to $3,500 used. Confirm coverage by VIN.
Gearbox Insider gives $4,500 to $7,000 for a new or remanufactured CVT, $3,500 to $5,000 for an independent rebuild, $2,000 to $3,500 for a used unit, and $300 to $1,000 for early fluid or valve body work. One Reddit owner reports about $9,000 quoted for a 2019; that is a single report.
We don't rank generations. Our own numbers: the 2010-2014 generation has a median of 1.03 NHTSA complaints per catalog listing and the 2015-2019 generation has 2.75. Those rates are not directly comparable across generations, because newer cars have had less time and different ways of filing complaints.
Yes. NHTSA files it under OUTBACK WILDERNESS from 2023. We counted both names and each complaint once. The 2024 model year is almost entirely under the Wilderness name.