Complaint volume
1029 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
2019 Subaru Outback Complaints
1029 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2019 Subaru Outback, grouped by component category.
1029 Total complaints
23 Crash reports
2 Fire reports
12 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
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.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 23 crash reports, 2 fire reports, 12 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 468 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 15,653 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to electrical system, visibility/wiper, unknown or other?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2019 Subaru Outback?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2019 Subaru Outback
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2019 Subaru Outback complaints?
23 Crash
2 Fire
12 Injury
0 Fatality
23 Towed
8 Medical attention
What are the most common 2019 Subaru Outback complaint categories?
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 281
VISIBILITY/WIPER 271
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 125
VISIBILITY 55
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 27
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,VISIBILITY/WIPER 23
STEERING 22
ENGINE 14
STRUCTURE 14
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 11
1,029 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 2021 | STEERING | The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the steering wheel would tighten and oversteer while switching lanes without warning. The contact stated that excessive force was needed to regain complete control of the vehicle after the failure. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. Neither the manufacturer nor the dealer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle had to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 9,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 9,000 |
| Aug 2021 | STEERING,SUSPENSION,WHEELS | Under the following three conditions the front tires appear to become airborne and the tires skip making the vehicle seem to be out-of-control; When traveling at speeds >35 MPH, Wheels are turned >10 degrees, Any long bump (such as a rough transition "bump" from asphalt to concrete). This has been worsening over the last year and is now unsafe for my children to be in the car. My local Subaru dealership spent nearly 2 days inspecting all aspects of the car to include the alignment, bushings, and shocks. A senior technician was taken for a test-drive in the car and I was able to recreate the "skip". The technician was alarmed and surprised by the skip and thus held the car for a 2nd day to further investigate the reason for the "skip". They were unable to diagnose any defect. There has been no inspection by the police or insurance company. There have been no alarms or warning. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2021 | SERVICE BRAKES,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | My 2019 Subaru Outback unintentionally accelerated. I was sitting in my SUV waiting for an electronic gate to open at my storage unit. I was about 10-15 feet in front of the gate. My foot was firmly on the brake and the car was in drive. I have been at this gate many times. This time, before the gate could fully open, the car raced forward at top speed into the gate. Damaging my bumper and terrifying me! The gate did stop the car. I felt like a ghost had slammed a foot on the gas pedal!!! The breaks did nothing. The Subaru floor mat was attached with 2 pegs and sticks like velcro to the carpet. Thank God I was not at a crosswalk or in front of a building - I would have killed myself or someone else! I reported this to my local dealer and they referred me to Subaru of America. The dealer had my car for 6 weeks and S.O.A. sent a team to inspect the car for 6 hours. Customer service after 6 weeks said my car was fine. That no issues were found! They will not provide me with a list of tests completed or what was reported by the "Black Box" on board. All I have is a email from Peter at Customer Service (that was my 3rd and final rep.) that that is all the information that he has or can get and the care is fine to drive! If that is so, why is there a CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT against them! | Crash: Yes Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Have had 2 batteries fail in 2 1/2 years. New battery installed and my electrical system is failing. Can't lock my car unless fob is in an RFID bag, has not started several times, and has refued to open several times for about a minute. Will be taking car back to dealer to see if they can fix the problem. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | I received a 2019 Subaru Outback on 15 July 2021. The vehicle was sold by a dealer, and gone through the Subaru vehicle certification process, which includes checking the electrical system. I kept the vehicle off the road while I got the vehicle registered and insured, running it for a few minutes every three days. I planned to take the first road trip on 26 July 2021, after the paperwork had been completed. The vehicle would not start, and no power was available for electrical components. Checking the battery with a multimeter indicated voltage had dropped to 4V. I contacted the selling dealership, and they indicated they would pay to replace the discharged battery. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | VISIBILITY/WIPER,BACK OVER PREVENTION,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | On June 20th my front windshield began spontaneously cracking while sitting in driveway. A day later while driving on the interstate, the rearview mirror fell off windshield. Since the rearview mirror is essential for several electronic safety mechanisms to function properly, this means they were disabled and/or malfunctioning as well. After having the windshield replaced, the same thing happened about a month later (July 24, 2021) so now I have to replace it again. In both cases, the Subaru Service Manager determined that there was no chipping or other external damage to the windshield. Looking at customer forums & complaints, this appears to be a defective windshield problem that Subaru is attempting to cover up. It has been going on since at least the 2015 model year. Please help. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Electrical system problems causing battery drain. After jumping the battery observed flickering, eyesight system turning on and off while driving. Rear lift gate won’t open | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Car would not start or turn over. Battery was dead. I called Subaru and a person came over to jump my vehicle. I left it running for 30 minutes to recharge the battery. This happened two times in the last few years but I never reported it to Subaru, and had my neighbor hook his car up for a jump. Also note the GPS has locked up several times in the past and not worked until I shut the car off and restarted everything. I just kept getting the arrow going in the circle. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | The windshield all of the sudden cracked. There was no impact, nothing hit the window, it just suddenly cracked and keeps getting larger. Started on the very edge of the window on the passenger side and Crack is now grown to the middle of the windshield | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | My 2019 Outback has had 2 incidents where the battery was dead without an explanation. There are 24000 miles on it. The most recent incident occurred less than a week after the dealer serviced the vehicle. The service included a battery test and I was told it tested good. The car was parked in my home garage, and from all indications, no lights were left on, doors/tailgates open etc. This was confirmed when the Subaru STARLINK roadside assistance provider came to jump the vehicle. Immediately after the vehicle was started, I took it to the dealer and requested a battery check. They showed the battery was good but deeply discharged, so left it on a charger for over an hour while I waited. In speaking to the service representative at the Subaru dealer, I was told that on new cars, alternators no longer charge a battery, but simply maintain the existing charge level. They claimed that a light or something of that nature was left on, a door left open, etc. I am certain this was not the case, as I keep all interior light switches in the off position, and once the vehicle was charged, no lights were on. Also, no doors were open or ajar when this happened. I requested they check the electrical system to diagnose the cause of the battery drain, but they explained this would not be covered under warranty since the battery had tested ok. The dealer recommended that I keep a trickle charger on it when parked at home to prevent recurrences. I don’t feel this is an acceptable solution for a vehicle that is merely two years old with minimal miles and fully under warranty. While I was inconvenienced by this and had to arrange a ride to an appointment as a result, it did not create an immediate safety issue (this time). A similar set of circumstances occurred in late March of 2021 when I was out of town visiting a family member. At that time, I also was not able to determine a cause. Since that was the first occurrence, it didn’t create the same level of concern. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Had to charge battery 3 times in order to start the vehicle. Took to dealer and they put in a new battery at no charge. Concerned the battery will need to be replaced in the future. Appears to be an electrical drain especially using the tailgate. Dealer said they did a hard reset whatever that means. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Front windshield cracked overnight while in garage. No visible impact on windshield. Subaru service manager said there was an impact after he pushed his pin into crack. Still no impact. I previously attempted to send you a photo but it failed. Send me an email address and I will resend it direct, rather than keep rewriting this missive. The windshield is thin and appears defective and dangerous to driver and passengers. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | I experienced sudden and unintended acceleration as I sat outside my garage idling with my foot on the brake waiting for the garage door to open. My car accelerated forward through my garage door and into the garage. It swept aside a refrigerator, freezer and a 700 pound safe that was bolted to the concrete floor. It finally stopped upon pushing several things against one of the I beams that hold the steel building up. The car also tore out the I beam support the side of the garage door upon entering. The tires continued to rotate until I turned off the engine. | Crash: Yes Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE | The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while driving 35 mph, the vehicle failed to perform as designed. The contact was able to move the vehicle onto the road shoulder. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the fuel pump failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted. The contact was informed that the Vin was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 20V218000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The failure mileage was 9,800. | Crash: No Fire: No Towed | 9,800 |
| Jul 2021 | VISIBILITY/WIPER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Driving down a smooth road with no vehicles in front of me on July 13, 2021. Windshield spontaneously cracked at the base in the center. Not a rock chip. Crack spread up 6 inches, left another 6 inches within the 15 minutes it took to drive home. Cracks in the windshield have continued to spread in the days following. Vehicle has total 25,300 miles on odometer. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Bought with 11,258 mi. Battery already replaced, receipt in glove compartment. Hard to start, keeping on battery charger now when parked in garage. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,LANE DEPARTURE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Unknown... My battery has need a jump several time without any electricals left on. The dealer did check it out and found nothing wrong. I also have lights that go on intermittently n the dash saying that certain things are not working. ie front crash detection, blind spot warning and lane departure. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Battery failed at 2 years and 30000 miles. No notification. Leaving me and my dog in a parking lot for 2 hours in 94 degree heat. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | 2019 Subaru Outback the mileage running 22k has cracked the windshield, there's no mark rock chips. Just I found the cracked window while driving. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | UNKNOWN Three times in five months when the car has been running and then turned off it won't start again for 15-30 minutes. Everything regarding the engine is locked. Can't even put in neutral to move vehicle if in traffic. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2021 | VISIBILITY | The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 mph, the front windshield cracked when a stone hit the upper right corner of the windshield. There were no reported injuries. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and diagnosed that the windshield needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Additionally, the contact was provided a 2021 Subaru Outback loaner and while driving, the windshield cracked when a stone struck the front windshield. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 13,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 13,000 |
| Jul 2021 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Windshield spontaneously fractures from drivers side edge in the shape of a curly bracket. First windshield was replaced Nov 2019 due to stone facture - legit breakage. Second windshield March 2020 suddenly cracked from drivers side midway up the window from drivers edge across drivers view while sitting still on a freeway in rush hour as the temperature changed (micro storm in Phoenix) a loud bang and the windshield split from the drivers edge across. Third time July 2021 sitting in the garage window spontaneously cracked over night from same area driver side midway up forming the same partial bracket like shape. Crack also appears to be the same height up from the bottom of the windshield. Never had so many broken windshields on one vehicle in my 35 years of driving. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Battery will not hold a charge even after replaced 3 times by the factory | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2021 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | We have had to replace 2 windshields on our vehicle and 1 on a loaner while ours was in shop for window replacement. Also while our car was in shop having 2nd windshield replaced, they had to delay giving us our car back stating the windshield shattered while being installed. That is 4 windshields in 30,000 miles. The smallest ding in these windshields cause an immediate crack from side to side obscuring visibility making them dangerous to drive. On these cracks you can see the windshields are incredibly thin. There is clearly an issue with how these are made and immediate safety hazard. I also believed the cost of these replacements should be made clear to consumers at purchase due to the extremely high cost associated with replacement. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2021 | VISIBILITY | The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Outback. The contact stated after exiting a car wash drive-thru, while drying the windshield he noticed and small 1-inch crack located on the lower driver side. The contact stated while driving 30 mph, the windshield crack started to expand across the center of the windshield. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer where it was diagnosed with needing the windshield to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 26,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 26,000 |