Owners have filed 1,085 complaints on the Subaru Crosstrek, covering 2014–2026. The system named most often is Visibility/wiper (264 reports). Worst years by volume: 2019, 2018, 2016; cleanest: 2026, 2015, 2014. 53 reports describe a crash, 13 a fire. On average the car was 2.2 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Subaru Crosstrek
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 1,085 Crosstrek complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Visibility/wiper 264 Read
On [XXX], at [XXX] , my sunroof spontaneously exploded outwards while driving at 65mph going north bound. There was not an object that struck the vehicle. The next vehicle ahead of me was nearly 1/4 mile ahead of me. I was driving down the road, heard a loud pop, followed by a wind whistling noise. I opened my sunroof…
Driver's side mirror wobbles/vibrates at highway speeds causing blurriness of objects and LED light trials. The dealer serviced it with a Subaru provided Service Bulletin #12-268-25 but still have the issue after that initial fix. This is a brand new car purchased in June 2025. My previous 2021 Subaru Crosstrek never…
I wanted to reach out to you about our new 2024 Crosstrek Wilderness. Subaru is having many issues with their thin windshields for 2023/2024 Crosstrek windshields. Our new vehicle has barely 2100 miles and the windshield has cracked in two places. Not from a rock chip and from normal highway driving. This is a safety…
Electrical System 153 Read
On the morning of 12/26/24 - I stepped inside my 2023 Subaru Crosstrek and turned on the engine. The vehicle was parked in a commuter parking lot near my home to begin with. When I turned on the vehicle - I noticed a loud roaring sound when the engine turned on which i thought was very strange. Additionally I did NOT…
Purchased vehicle 8/27/2025 within 1 day and 1 month of 2 separate class action lawsuits. Purchased from CarMax Wilmington. Car produced electrical shock to my hand first time I attempted to pair the vehicle. Parkway stated at that time I was under an additional warranty but the vehicle would require constant…
I was driving my 2021 Subaru Crosstrek slowly in a parking lot when it unexpectedly accelerated on its own without me pressing the gas pedal. I believe the Crosstrek was now going 40mph. I tried to shut off the engine and brake at the same time but neither one had any effect. I thought maybe I had two options. Either…
Power Train 96 Read
Drive train, transmission issue. Car was running, in park. I got out to pick up a flyer from yard. Car accelerated and drove through garage door, and crashed into the back wall of garage. No one has inspected the car, as it happened late yesterday. Will contact dealership today. No symptoms prior
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…
This vehicle is a plug-in-hybrid. It should not be able to move while plugged in. Problem is attempting to move the vehicle when the charge cable is still attached and the vehicle is on an incline. Subaru does not display a warning message - instead it displays "check engine" and an ambiguous symbol (a red steering…
Steering 55 Read
I noticed that when I am driving on the freeway/highway for extended periods of time (30+ minutes) the wheel will start locking up. It stiffens enough that I have to force the wheel in a different direction. When it occurs there is no warning lights or messages from the car, it just suddenly stiffens. Other than…
Suddenly lost power steering, almost impossible to steer car to shoulder lane and stop. The car was taken to Fitzgerald Subaru, where technician found fault code C2532. Failure in Steering Gearbox assembly. Per Subaru techline case 260518-1300094. Advised to replace assembly. Parts used/replaced: 34110FN03A Need…
Steering power assist deactivated suddenly with no advance warning while driving in traffic. Warning lamps on dash lit concurrently. Steering still functional with higher level of driver effort. Under the circumstances, no real danger. Curvy road at speed would be dangerous. Vehicle currently at the dealer awaiting…
Engine 51 Read
The contact owns a 2024 Subaru Crosstrek. The contact stated that after driving and parking the vehicle, the contact became aware that there was smoke coming from the vehicle. The contact exited the vehicle, and the vehicle suddenly caught on fire under the hood. The vehicle had received an oil change three days prior…
The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Crosstrek. The contact stated that while his wife was idled in inclement weather, and the brake pedal was depressed, however, the vehicle accelerated violently without warning. As a result, the vehicle crashed into a brick building. The air bags did not deploy. No injuries were reported.…
My brand new Subaru ignited in the engine compartment, burst into flames and exploded while I was driving it
Visibility 44 Read
Driver side mirror has a vibrating issue at high speed or bumpy road. The visibility is impacted and causing motion sickness. It can create a safety issue if the manufacturer or dealership is not able to fix or address the issue properly This issue has been confirmed by multiple people including delearship…
The contact owns a 2025 Subaru Crosstrek. The contact stated that while driving at night, the strip on the front windshield failed to function as intended. The contact stated that the strip was designed to keep the top section of the front windshield dark to avoid the glare from the headlights of oncoming vehicles,…
I bought my Subaru new from a dealer on Friday. Upon driving it off the lot, the driver side mirror vibrated so much that it made the mirror's image blurry. You can not accurately judge traffic behind you to tell if it is safe to merge. There is a technical service bulletin about this problem and the dealer tried to…
Vehicle Speed Control 30 Read
When slowing to park, with foot on brake, vehicle suddenly and unexpectedly surged forward going up an incline, side-swiping the parked car to the right of the driver, without any action taken by the driver. Safety at risk from uncontrolled car during sudden unexpected acceleration. Reported hours after event, police…
The contact owned a 2020 Subaru Crosstrek. The contact stated that as attempted to park her vehicle at 5 MPH, the vehicle independently accelerated without warning and drove onto a boulder. The air bags did not deploy upon impact. Three of the contact’s front teeth were knocked out as a result of the failure. The…
The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Crosstrek. The contact stated while pulling into a parking spot and depressing the brake pedal to come to a complete stop, the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated that upon depressing the brake pedal a second time, the vehicle jerked, unintendedly accelerated, drove up the…
Structure 28 Read
Car was pulled in to a parking spot in front of the store and stopped and suddenly moved forward over the curb, onto the sidewalk and then crashed into the doors and building
My 2024 Subaru Crosstrek was parked in front of my house for 3 weeks in extreme heat. We drove it today to get it driven & we kept hearing wind. I slid open the sunroof inside piece & the sunroof glass was shattered due the vehicle doors being closed for 3 weeks in Las Vegas summer heat. On average the outside heat…
The windshield keeps chipping easily. I have not had it inspected. I am not sure who inspects them. It is obviously a safety risk
Crosstrek years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Forward Collision Avoidance | — | — | |
| 2025 | Air Bags | 2 | — | |
| 2024 | Air Bags | 8 | 2 | |
| 2023 | Air Bags,seat Belts | 3 | — | |
| 2022 | Electrical System | 3 | — | |
| 2021 | Air Bags,seat Belts,seats | 7 | 2 | |
| 2020 | Electrical System | 6 | — | |
| 2019 | Air Bags,forward Collision Avoidance | 6 | 3 | |
| 2018 | Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness | 9 | 1 | |
| 2017 | Air Bags | 5 | 1 | |
| 2016 | Air Bags | 3 | 3 | |
| 2015 | Air Bags,seats | — | — | |
| 2014 | Electrical System | 1 | 1 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 621 |
| Average complaints per series | 1.7 |
| Worst single series | 10 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 2.2 years |
A model average of 1.7 hides a worst series at 10. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Crosstrek?
By complaint volume, 2019, 2018, 2016 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Crosstrek years are the cleanest?
2026, 2015, 2014 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Subaru Crosstrek have?
1,085 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2014–2026. Of those, 53 describe a crash and 13 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.