2026 Subaru Outback Recalls, Ratings & Complaints

Incident: June 9, 2026 · Filed: October 23, 2026

I experienced a serious loss of vehicle stability while driving a redesigned 2026 Subaru Outback provided as a loaner by Subaru of Port Richey, Florida. I was traveling approximately 70 mph on the highway in windy conditions. The pavement was completely dry. While making a necessary evasive lane change to avoid a road hazard, the rear of the vehicle began swinging from side to side uncontrollably. The maneuver was not unusually aggressive, yet the vehicle exhibited severe fishtailing, similar to the behavior of an improperly loaded trailer. I was forced to countersteer aggressively multiple times to regain control. The rear continued oscillating through several corrections before the vehicle finally stabilized. I have extensive experience driving different vehicles, including trucks, SUVs, and performance cars. I have never experienced this degree of instability from a modern vehicle during a comparable maneuver. I believe a less experienced driver could have lost control entirely, potentially resulting in a serious or fatal crash. Afterward, I discovered reports from other 2026 Subaru Outback owners describing similar rear-end instability, swaying, and fishtailing at highway speeds, particularly in windy conditions. I am concerned that the redesigned Outback may have a handling or directional-stability issue that warrants further investigation. IMPORTANT VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NOTE: This was a dealership loaner, not my personal vehicle. The VIN associated with this report is a possible match identified through dealership inventory, but I cannot confirm that it belongs to the exact vehicle I drove. The correct VIN should be verified through Subaru of Port Richey's loaner records.

Incident: October 21, 2026 · Filed: October 21, 2026

I am requesting that NHTSA investigate the potential safety implications of Subaru of America’s decision to disable connected safety services for [XXX] residents. My 2026 Subaru Outback, purchased outside [XXX], where its connected services were available and functional. After relocating to [XXX] as part of a military family, I lost access to these services due to Subaru’s restrictions related to the state’s Right to Repair law. My primary concern is the potential loss of critical safety features, including Automatic Collision Notification and SOS Emergency Assistance. These services are designed to connect vehicle occupants with emergency assistance following a serious collision or other emergency, particularly when a driver is injured or unable to call for help. I am concerned that disabling these capabilities based solely on a customer’s state of residence could create an unnecessary safety risk and delay emergency response. I understand this is a regulatory dispute, but I believe the safety implications deserve independent review. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate whether Subaru’s deactivation of these services creates an unreasonable risk to vehicle occupants and determine whether corrective action is warranted. Vehicle occupants should not lose access to emergency-response capabilities because of a disagreement over state regulations. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Incident: October 17, 2026 · Filed: October 20, 2026

The blue EyeSight Assist Monitor indicator lights on my 2026 Subaru Outback Touring XT do not illuminate as described in the owner’s manual. According to the 2026 Subaru Outback EyeSight Owner’s Manual (page 251), the EyeSight Assist Monitor LEDs should illuminate in the sequence Blue → Yellow → Red → Green during the startup self-check. However, the blue indicators consistently fail to illuminate, while the other indicator colors illuminate. The blue indicators also do not provide the expected visual status information during operation of the Hands-Free Assist system. This creates a safety concern because I cannot reliably see the intended visual indication of the driver-assistance system’s status. I experienced a near-miss situation in which the absence of the expected blue visual indication contributed to confusion about the system’s status. The problem has been repeatedly observed, including during a check conducted with dealership personnel. I have brought this nearly new vehicle to an authorized Subaru dealership twice for the same issue. Despite my specific report that the blue indicators do not illuminate, the dealership initially stated that the vehicle was operating as designed, relying in part on an assessment of Hands-Free Assist functionality rather than providing a documented diagnosis addressing the blue indicators themselves. The dealership subsequently agreed to arrange further inspection by its shop foreman after I escalated the concern to the manufacturer. However, I have not received a satisfactory technical explanation or confirmation that the blue indicators are functioning as specified. The vehicle remains available for inspection. I have videos and photographs documenting the indicator issue, as well as communications with the dealership and service records. I am concerned that the failure of these visual indicators could prevent drivers from recognizing important changes in driver-assistance system status. I request that NHTSA investiga

Incident: October 8, 2026 · Filed: October 13, 2026

The read passenger tire Dunlop 255/60R18 100H exploded while driving at approx. 30miles/hour. The tire did not have any punctures and did not hit any board walk. No previous warning whatsoever. A portion of the tire side broke apart, resulting in a kind of rubber tongue. The vehicle is new Subaru Outback with approx. 600 miles, one month old. The tire was changed for the spare tire and brought to the Dealership (Gerard in Naperville, IL). Issued reported in writing to Dealership and later to the Subaru Customer Advocacy Department, which opened an internal case (#XXX). Two pictures were attached to the report. I do not know, if the tire was subjected to any inspection by the dealership or the manufacturer. It was manufactured in [XXX]. The tire did not have Warranty from Subaru and I had to pay $241.02 for a new tire, incl. balance and mount. There were no symptoms or warnings prior to the event. It just exploded. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Incident: October 10, 2026 · Filed: October 11, 2026

Brand new 2026 Outback experienced a "Sudden Unintended Acceleration / Brake Ineffectiveness. This occurred 3 times this week after the car had been driven over 90 miles or over 90 minutes. Engine and components were warmed up. Car was initially reported to dealer 10/6, car was examined by dealer and returned to me later that day.could not be replicated. Car sat at my home until today when it was driven over 90 minutes or 90 miles. Replicated failure by me same as earlier in the week . Car drivetrain felt surged. CVT fighting brake system when trying to turn car at street corner. Would not stop until on straight away ( seems to be triggered when turning and car was hot and when no power applied to engine. Only stops on straight away.. Could be related to cvt torque converter? Software glitch? Force of turning wheel?

Incident: September 12, 2026 · Filed: September 15, 2026

I have owned this vehicle since January 2026. It's the first vehicle I have owned with a forward collision warning system and active emergency braking. And this is the first time this "failure" has happened, so far... On a 60mph 2 lane rural road with traffic behind me the forward collision warning system and active braking triggered of off a disabled vehicle parked safely on the side of the road on a sweeping left hand curve at 60 mph. There was nothing I could do as the vehicle actively emergency braked for no reason and unexpectedly, and the traffic behind me had to swerve into oncoming traffic to avoid colliding with me. With no automatic collision avoidance system, this situation would have NEVER occurred. In 45 years of driving I have never collided with anything in front of me and the closest to an accident I have been is due to the automatic "safety" system included in my new car. I am actively considering looking for a 10 year old replacement vehicle as these new safety systems appear to be VERY dangerous... So now I have a solution to a problem I have never had, and it has created problems I never expected and I have NO control over.

Incident: September 9, 2026 · Filed: September 9, 2026

New car with only 965 miles. At 580 miles the car when I started it said safety eyesight system not working. I shut off car and restarted it and system connected itself. Today I was on highway doing 62mph and the entire dashboard, information and safety features displays went completely black without any warning. I was able to control car and system rebooted itself after a minute or so. I Contact Subaru and have a case number #260909-1500526. Called dealer and was told not to drive car and have it towed to dealership. Since I need a rental car the dealership will notify me when a rental car is available. It scared the hell out of me when it happened. I went online and see now that this is an issue Subaru is having with 2026 Outbacks (many reported) even though Subaru of America and dealership said they had not heard of any complaints.

Incident: August 23, 2026 · Filed: September 7, 2026

Incident Summary: On August 23, 2026, a multi-occupant injury event occurred during routine city braking due to an inherent occupant packaging design defect in the vehicle’s front seating and sun visor layout. The vehicle exhibits a static seat-to-visor clearance of 79 cm versus a standard median adult sitting height of 95 cm, result of negative 16cm headroom clearance. During normal city deceleration (0.2g–0.4g), seatbelt inertia reels remain unlatched under FMVSS 209 tolerances, allowing normal forward upper-torso pitch. This causes adult occupants' foreheads to strike the lower edge of the stowed sun visor, resulting in head impacts, neck strain, and concussion symptoms. A service representative at Capitol Subaru personally observed the hazard during intake. Subaru Quality Assurance inspected the vehicle but closed the file by relate it to quality issue as claiming no "part manufacturing defects" exist, while ignoring the negative physical clearance envelope as saftey issue. Subaru's recommended workaround—sliding the seat back and make seat lean backward—does not eliminate visor contact during forward torso pitch and severely compromises rear-cabin legroom, causing physical leg entrapment and impact injuries to rear passengers during this same deceleration event. On the driver side, sliding rearward prevents safe operational reach to the brake and accelerator pedals, even with these saftey issue highlighted to Subaru, they keep insist to slide seat back to clear the sunvisor even with been notified multiple times that doing so, the driver cannot press the pedal and sterring wheel or reach to the control panel.

Incident: July 11, 2026 · Filed: August 17, 2026

I'm new to this automotive technology. When I was introduced to the car, one of the "features" indicated was the ability to sense and slow down for curves, if the system sensed the need, when operating under the cruise control option. In testing my different options of my new car, I was using the cruise control on a 65 mph road in TX set to 60 mph. As I entered the curve the car did not slow down. This was a surprise to me. I contacted a Subaru dealer about this. I was told that my trim level did not have this "option". Before I contacted the dealer I did look in the Subaru EyeSight Drivers Assist Technology Owners Manual. On pages 280 and 281 of this manual in the Cruise Control, Pre-curve Speed Control*, ON/OFF. The *note is "if equipped". My car is not equipped. I was not informed or cautioned about this when I went through the delivery process. I did not know I did not have this feature. My complaint is this. If the car is equipped to assist steering when in cruise control, for safety, all models should come standard with the Pre-curve Speed Control. It only takes one instant for a new driver to loose control if expecting this feature to be present. I am an experienced driver. I was able to take corrective action to avoid trouble. But, I did anticipate the car to slow and was startled when it did not.

Incident: May 20, 2026 · Filed: August 9, 2026

The driver’s side mirror vibrates excessively at speeds above 20 mph, causing the reflected image to become blurry and difficult to focus. This creates a safety hazard during lane changes and especially at night, when blurred headlight/taillight reflections make it hard to judge the distance and speed of approaching vehicles. I brought this to the dealership’s attention and was told the vibration is normal, but I believe this significantly impairs the mirror’s intended safety function under real driving conditions.