Subaru Problems

2013 subaru outback front wiper motor caught fire while vehicle was in motion. Just prior to fire, wipers had been activated but would not return to home or stop when turned to off position. Vehicle was purchased new in october 2012. Root cause of wiper motor as determined by subaru dealer shop. Subaru claims this is unrelated to prior recall for wiper motors wvw32 which had been extended to 2012 models

In early April 2026 I after washing the auto I noticed a chip in the windshield on the passenger side. I was shocked-normally if the windshield is hit hard enough to chip the drive notices it-I am the only drive and I was totally unaware of any such strike (auto had about 2000 miles on it). Then, May 30th as I exited a highway midway up the ramp going ~40-45 mph behind another auto going the same slow speed with 1-1.5 car length between us, something struck my windshield and immediately the strike had clearly broken the windshield just below the driver's direct line of sight and put a thorough 'star' the size of a nickel coin. There did not appear to be any debris on the road nor off or out of the auto in front of me. (There was not a vehicle ahead of that auto that would have generated this strike.) I feel I may be unsafe in this auto if its windshield cannot hold up under minor strikes such as this. When I called the auto repair center recommended by my automobile dealer they told me they’d already had 14 Subaru windshields call to schedule repairs this week (it was only Tuesday. This is a modest sized single location windshield repair shop)

For the second year in a row my windshield has cracked. Nothing hit it, or happened to make it crack. Both cracks were long and coming from the bottom of the windshield under the passenger wiper blade. I noticed it today, 4/28/26 and the same thing happened in the beginning of April last year with the same circumstances (or lack thereof)

The contact owned a 2019 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving approximately 75 MPH on the interstate, a deer jumped in front causing a crash. All the air bags deployed, and immediately soon after a fire was coming from the hood. The contact and two children in the rear passenger seat were able to exit the vehicle safely. The fire department arrived on the scene and extinguished the fire. There was a police report was filed. There were no injuries or medical reports. The vehicle was consumed by the fire and deemed destroyed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 30,000

The contact owned a 2014 subaru legacy. The contact stated that her son was driving and hit a deer that caused extensive front end damage. The vehicle was taken to an auto body repair facility for repairs. However, a week after the repairs were completed her son was driving again when he smelt smoke and looked out the driver side window and saw flames. The driver parked the vehicle and exited the vehicle safely with the front seat passenger. The fire department was called and extinguished the fire. Police and fire department reports were filed. The contact stated that the fire marshall stated that with the extent of the damage an electrical failure cause could not be ruled out. There were no injuries and the vehicle was completely totaled. The wreckage was towed to a salvage yard for the insurance company to examine with a third-party examiner to determine the cause of fire. The manufacturer was contacted and requested to examine the vehicle after the insurance company. The failure mileage was approximately 99,000

I was making a slow speed (~25 mph) left turn with my 2007 subaru impreza 2.5i station wagon on a dimly lit intersection at night during the rain. I misjudged the turn, and turned about 2 yards too early. I drove off the road and into a ditch, colliding headon with a concrete storm drain. The driver side airbag deployed at the moment of impact. After the impact, the electrical including the headlights, stereo system and cabin lights were functioning. I was able to exit the car, and spoke with a witness who was able to call the police department. While waiting for the officers, about 6 minutes after the collision the front of the car began to smoke. About a minute later, a fire began behind the right passenger side headlight. When the officers arrived on scene, the fire had progressed so that the entire engine compartment was on fire. By the time the fire department arrived, the heat of the fire had exploded the right front passenger tire. The car was deemed a total loss by my insurance company

Recently, my mother died in a car accident. A bystander reported that she was driving normally and then suddenly drove off the road. The police investigated and found that the conditions weren't likely to contribute to an accident. There was no immediate explanation for what happened. The car did catch fire as a result of the accident after it struck a tree. We just received a notice in the mail that states there's been a safety recall on the wheels of the 2025 Subaru Forrester that may contribute to accidents. We don't know for sure that it was related, but are concerned that it may be

I was driving on I-20 when a line of cars suddenly slammed on their brakes in front of me. I slammed on my brakes as well but was unable to stop before hitting the car in front of me. The front of the car was very damaged but the car I hit had minimal damage on the bumper only. My 15 year old daughter was in the backseat and had to injuries, I was driving and only suffered a burn from the airbag and a few bruises. We were both able to get out of the car and get safely to the side of the road. Within about 3 minutes the car caught on fire. My concern is that if Subaru is made with crunch zones shouldn’t there be more safety measures in place so that the car does not catch on fire. I feel like there may have been some type of malfunction that took place to cause the fire

2017 subaru brz limited with performance package was involved in an auto accident on 4-5-21. Subject vehicle had stopped and was slowly entering to cross an intersection of a divided highway with a 50 mph speed limit while being struck by an oncoming car at an approximate 90 degree angle which impacted the left front fender near the headlight and bumper area.. Upon impact, the front engine portion burst into flames. The left front door was not impacted and driver was able to escape as flames immediately engulfed the passenger section. What would likely have resulted in a repairable left frontal damage claim actually became a total loss due to the fire destruction. This automobile was purchased new from a subaru dealership on 10-9-17 and the check engine light came on at approximately 3,300 miles. The car was taken to jim karas subaru in memphis, tn for repairs. The engine was removed for repairs. According to mechanic's inspection and repair report 521894s dated 4-20-18, 'for p219a and p119f pulled valve covers and inspection valve clearance and found that all intake and exhaust valve are out of spec and to tight. Replaced valves, all valve shims to bring all intake and exhaust clearances into design spec. Replaced all gaskets and orings as well as high pressure fuel line'. It is noted that subaru may have had fire hazard issues with other repaired subaru brz model years with the fa 20 d boxer engine manufactured for years beginning in 2013. Manufacturer made no adas a

On Wednesday, May 6, the vehicle was rear-ended by another vehicle while traveling on I-270. After the impact, the vehicle continued down the highway lane and crashed into the highway divider. During the crash, the front hood opened and fumes/smoke came out from the front of the vehicle. Despite the severity of the collision and secondary impact with the highway divider, the airbags did not deploy. The failure of the airbags to deploy placed the driver at significant risk of injury during the crash. Law enforcement officers at the scene also expressed concern that the airbags did not activate given the magnitude of the accident. The vehicle and airbag system are available for inspection upon request

I was recently involved in a multi-car accident, where the vehicle rammed into my outback from behind, leading to a spin-up and hit again by the driver side, forcing me to collide into a vehicle that had side-lined on a highway. In this situation, I would expect the airbags to get deployed, but to my surprise and shock, none of the airbags were deployment (both frontal as well as side)

The contact owns a 2011 subaru legacy. The contact stated that while driving at an unknown speed, the vehicle crashed into the rear end of another vehicle and the air bags failed to deploy until 4 or 5 seconds later. Prior to the air bag deploying, burning fumes emitted into the vehicle. The contact did not indicate if a police report was filed or if any injuries were sustained. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The technician was not able to determine why the air bags deployed with a delay. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 63,000. Updated 4/30/15*cn the consumer stated the vehicle was repaired. Updated 10/23/15

I just recently had my car come out of park while running at the top of a steep hill. I had stepped out of my car to deliver paperwork to my client. I walked to and from my car approximately 75-80 ft. As I was approaching my car I heard a clicking or a release sound then it began to roll. I wasn’t close enough to stop it and it rolled down a neighbor of my clients driveway and eventually rolled over landing against a tree. When I arrived at my car it was still running. I have awd and I noticed the tires in the air were not turning as they should have if it was in drive. My car was obviously totaled. How do I have someone check my car to see if there was defect that caused it to come out of park? I must say I forgot to set my handbrake. But I feel the car should not have come out of park regardless. Could it have been the front axle shaft or anything else?

The contact owned a 2015 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at 10 MPH, in a residential parking lot, the contact stated while he was parking, the vehicle independently accelerated and crashed into a nearby tree. The contact stated before crashing into the nearby tree the vehicle also hit a nearby pole. The contact stated that the acceleration continued to get faster and faster. The contact also stated that none of the air bags deployed. A police report was filed. The contact's wife was transferred by ambulance to a hospital for medical attention. The contact's wife suffered a compression fractured vertebra and she had been experiencing severe pain. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard. The vehicle was condemned to total loss by the insurance company. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that after parked in the driveway, the vehicle suddenly accelerated into their home. No air bags had deployed. A police report was not filed. There were no injuries and no medical attention was needed. The home had been damaged. The vehicle was towed to the dealer who was not able to identify the cause of the failure at that time, however, they were going to run more diagnostic tests and inspections. The vehicle had not been repaired as of yet. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 54,400

I hit a deer on CA 395 north, my braking system worked and my air bags deployed, and then my engine immediately caught fire. I’m lucky i was able to get out of the car through a back door. Every police and fire who responded said they have never seen a car catch fire after hitting a deer and i should report a vehicle malfunction

Front end collision vs deer on interstate at approximately 75 mph. 4-5 minutes after the accident the engine caught on fire. The car is a total loss. No one was injured. We all were out of the car at the time the fire started

The contact owned a 2015 subaru legacy. While driving at an unspecified rate of speed, an animal went across the driver's path. The driver veered to the right and crashed into a tree. The vehicle erupted into flames. Weeks prior to the crash, the vehicle was taken to the dealer due to various warning lights randomly flashing on the instrument panel. The dealer repaired the vehicle according to a manufacturer's recall; however, the remedy may have been insufficient and caused the failure. A police report was filed. The driver side air bag deployed with force. The driver sustained extensive abrasions to the head, a fractured right femur, four lateral fractures in the arms, fractures to the left elbow with metal plates, and burns to the back. Medical attention was required. The vehicle was towed. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign numbers: 15V502000 (power train) and 15V366000 (exterior lighting, forward collision avoidance). The approximate failure mileage was 25,100

The contact owns a 2010 subaru outback. The contact stated that the windshield wiper motor caught fire after the headlights were activated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 60,000

The contact owns a 1994 subaru loyale. The contact stated that the sun visors were too small and as a result, were obstructing her view of the roadway. Due to the failure, the contact was involved in a crash where she sustained soft tissue damage to the left leg and minor bruising. The vehicle was destroyed and a police report was filed. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure and current mileage was 104,000

I was driving up the snow sierra nevadas and my windshield washer doesn't work. No visibility. I had it fix before but sometimes it doesn't work. I crash into the side of the road and hit the snow an chain link fence. I have a bumper damage but it is not big

I was driving up hill making a curve, suddenly the car went out of control slide all the way to the left. The car ended it up hitting some rocks, I was lucky that nobody got hurt, just my car was damage. I towed my car to a collision center, and I learned that THE REAR STABILIZER BRACKET WAS DAMAGE which was a recall WRD-21. This issue was address and suppostly was fixed by Subaru dealers but OVER TIME MAY LOOSEN AND INCREASE RISK OF A CRASH. Probably I will never find out if THE REAR STABILIZER BRACKET WAS MALFUNTION AND COUSE THE ACCIDENT. But I wanted to report it. Hopefully NHTSA looks into this issue

Problem was the undercarriage support, little or no protection from essentially a drop, car "leaped' off embankment bottoming out. The result was spinal trauma to the occupants. Very little shock absorption in the seat or suspension. The car rocked back and forth, front and rear but the sudden impact on the undercarriage wasn't absorbed

The contact owns a 2006 subaru outback. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 mph, a toxic odor emitted from outside the vehicle. The contact discovered that front passenger's side had caught on fire. The contact extinguished the fire and the vehicle was taken to the dealer. The technician diagnosed that the axle boot had failed. The vehicle had been repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 82,000