Complaint volume
1025 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
1025 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2019 Subaru Outback, grouped by component category.
Buyer interpretation
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
1025 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
The most common categories are electrical system, visibility/wiper, unknown or other. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Enriched records include 22 crash reports, 2 fire reports, 11 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage is available on 466 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 15,557 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
1,025 total complaints on record
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2022 | VISIBILITY | The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that his wife had parked the vehicle, and when she returned observed that the windshield had cracked in the middle of the windshield starting under the rearview mirror. The contact's wife drove the vehicle to a dealer where it was diagnosed that an impact had cracked the windshield. The contact said his wife observed that the crack had spread when she arrived at the dealer. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 55,000 |
| Apr 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | THE COMPONENT IS THE REMOTE AND THE BUTTON INSIDE THE CAR THAT CONTROLS THE HATCH. *WHEN THE CAR IS IN PARK BUT STILL RUNNING, THE RELEASE BUTTON WON'T OPEN THE GATE. *WHEN THE CAR IS TURNED OFF AND NO DOOR IS OPENED, THE GATE WILL NOT RELEASE.* SOMETIMES THE REMOTE WON'T RELEASE THE GATE. *THE SAFETY ISSUE IS IT REDUCES AN EMERGENCY EXIT. *I HAVE AN APPOINTMENT SET FOR WED. APRIL 27, 2022 FOR ANALYSIS AND REPAIR. THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM SINCE I FIRST PURCHASED THE CAR.* I MENTIONED IT WHEN I HAD IT IN FOR a separate REPAIR, BUT WAS TOLD THERE WASN'T A PROBLEM. *THERE WAS NO SIGN OR SIGNAL OF ANY ISSUE FOR THE CAR. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | The battery died for no apparent reason. I have since discovered that there are/has been class action lawsuits against Subaru for this very reason. This has the potential for putting family members at risk by stranding them. There were no signs or warnings before this occurred, and the dealer told us there was nothing wrong. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | The battery has gone dead 4 (four) times. The dealer checked it twice and said nothing was wrong with it. We have had to replace the battery ($178.07) but it also went dead. Three times, the car was in our garage, had been driven within a couple of days and the keys were not left in the car. Once it died when I had driven to the next town and had popped into a store for not more than 10 minutes and my husband had to leave work to come jump the car. We have found out that this is a persistent problem with some Subaru models and we feel the dealer did not disclose this. We now have to keep the car on a trickle charger ($74.18) and have to remember to disconnect when we leave and reconnect when we get back. Also, the passenger window cannot be lowered from the driver's side and the dealer didn't even look at it. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | My windshield cracked as I was driving,a pop type noise. The cracks are at the bottom area in the middle of the windshield in a T slight Y shape. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Battery keeps dying, replaced once already battery keeps draining, Simmons Rockwell Subaru of Elmira NY stated that the battery on the subaru won't last a week if the car isn't driven. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | My 2019 Subaru Outback has electrical battery and key fob issues. Generally I drive this vehicle daily and the car battery is alright. We go to visit our children and I park in a airport parking lot for about a week and when we return the battery is either dead or indicates needs charge. The key fob does not operate and have to resort to actual key. Vehicle indicates key fob battery needs replacement. Went to dealer and key fob batteries replaced under warranty. Just a few months later key fob not working and got message to replace batteries. Have Subaru Starlink and would not open vehicle doors. I am 77 years old and find this to be difficult to manage. Have replaced key fob batteries multiple times. Vehicle battery not holding charge if vehicle not driven for a week or more to say the least is frustrating. These problems having been occurring from the time we purchased this vehicle. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | The windshield cracked without any reason | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VISIBILITY/WIPER | The battery has continued to discharge and today it was dead. Accepted a jump to start however I'm not sure it will hold a charge. I understand that battery drain is a common problem. I am also on my third windshield and this seems strange, unon investigating a see where other owners have reported windshield problems. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Car windshield cracked with no reasons on a high way. The dealer has inspected the vehicle and confirmed the issue. Safety of the passengers at the front is at risk. Car is within three years. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | POWER TRAIN | Chain slippage according to Subaru Repair Service. They can't really give an reasonings as to why the slippage has occured. Says transmission is slipping as a result. Car isn't safe to drive and wheels do not turn properly. Haven't drove car in months because of this issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Purchased new 2019 outback in 4/09/19 then on 12/31/2020 the battery died and a new battery had to be installed/ mileage:14135 then on 2/22/22 the battery died and a new battery had to be installed/ mileage: 22710 Dealer verified and installed new battery each time. No warning beforehand. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | While driving on a smooth city street the windshield cracked out of nowhere. No bumps or pot holes were hit or run over when it happened and nothing landed on the windshield. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | VISIBILITY | The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that she noticed that there were cracks on the windshield after a rock had struck the windshield. The windshield had previously been replaced twice by an auto glass company for the same issue. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 80,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 80,000 |
| Mar 2022 | STRUCTURE | Windshield cracked spontaneously without impact. Upon further investigation, this is a common issue observed with Subaru on multiple models from previous and current years. There has been a couple of class action lawsuits against Subaru in other states for the same issue, and both cases were ruled in favor of the plaintiff and the court deemed these windshield defective. My concern and question is, why is Subaru still using parts/models that aren’t safe and getting away with this? | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,VISIBILITY/WIPER | I own a Subaru Outback 2019, and am based out of Chicago. The car was parked outside during a snowfall. After snowfall I went out to clear the snow off my car, and turned on the defoggers of the car to help clear out the snow on the windshield. After brushing off the snow I noticed a huge crack on the lower part of the windshield across the windshield wiper deicer. There was no other probable cause for the crack. I believe it is the change in temperature when from using the defogger which has caused the windshield to crack. Subaru dealership denies that it is possible, and claims that I was somehow responsible for the crack. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | I was driving on paved road, clear conditions, no other traffic, sunny, temperature around 10 F. Without warning, my front windshield cracked. There was no impact of any kind. The crack starts about 6 inches to the right of the driver's side A-post, about 6 inches above the dashboard. It extends horizontally about 2 feet and then curves down to the dashboard. There is no immediate hazard, but clearly any compromise to the front windshield represents a potential hazard. I am currently working with the dealership to resolve the issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | We purchased our 2019 Subaru in 2018, before the New Year from the showroom floor. We will now have had to replace the windshield twice. Once in October 30, 2019 in which the dealership said that it was too no fault of Subaru, and now today February 22, 2022, the windshield is cracked again from the passenger side towards the middle. This has been a costly expense for us as we are retired. The little round spot you see is from the light of the flash. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2022 | STRUCTURE | I purchased this car in July 2019. Three times the windshield has cracked without any explanation or cause. Three weeks ago, I replaced the second cracked windshield at my own expense. Three weeks later -- just yesterday, Feb. 17, 2022 -- the brand new windshield simply cracked. All three times the crack has appeared in roughly the same place. There was no road debris or anything else that came into contact with the windshield. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Came out of Home Depot on Sunday February 13, 2022 to find large crack in our 2019 Subaru Outback windshield on drivers side for no reason. This spontaneous cracking happened on this same vehicle on Feb.20, 2021 on the previous windshield but on the passengers side and I reported it to NHTSA ID # 11397305. Had it replaced last year and now same issue with spontaneous cracking. Clearly these Subaru OEM windshields are defective and they are very expensive not to mention extra cost of eyesight recalibration on them. I am attaching photos but hard to get whole crack accurately as it originates from the very edge of the windshield and radiates across. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | I purchased this car in 2019 and I have brought into into the dealership because it keeps dying and I have to jump it. It will die several times a day and this has been a consistent problem since I purchased the car. I have made the dealership aware and they have inspected the car 4 times and I am always told that there is no issue that they can find with the car. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2022 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | The windshield has cracked from the outer edge while sitting in the driveway. There was no initiating damage from where the crack started. I see online that there are concers with the integrity of the windshield and am concerned. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Once in a while when I back up out of my driveway the brakes slam on but there is nothing behind me. My windshield cracked and I have to get a new one. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | The battery dies often. Liftgate opens spontaneously. Dealer replaced battery, issue persists. Vehicle is available for inspection; it isn't going anywhere right now! Battery failed 3 times in 2 weeks, and is dead right now. The vehicle is useless. No warnings. This has been a problem for the last year. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Bought car November 2019. New battery April 2020. Losing charge February 2021 got another battery. Reliable Subaru, Springfield, MO recommended trickle charge every night. Car losing charge June 2021. Reliable Subaru put in new battery. Again recommended trickle charge every night. August 2021 car dead and would not start. Reliable Subaru towed in and put in another new battery. December 2021 car was not started in four days and was dead, had to be jumped. 1/17/22 within four hours of drop off, Auto Nation West, Golden, CO determines the DCM unit which is connected to the Starlink system was,in fact, a parasitic drain. It is drawing more than it should. Fixed 1/20/2022 2/1/22 parked car n garage at 8:33 pm. Returned to vehicle at approximately 7:30 pm on 2/4/22. The key fob produced no response from the car. The car was dead— no lights, nothing. Called roadside assistance. The car was jumped the following morning. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |