2021 Subaru Outback Problems and Recalls (296 Complaints)
The most-reported problem on the 2021 Subaru Outback is Glass / wipers / cameras (34% of 296 owner reports). There are 4 safety recalls. Check the VIN and inspect Glass / wipers / cameras — this is the NHTSA file, not a score.
101 of 296 filings named Glass / wipers / cameras (34% of the file). That is what owners wrote, not a shop diagnosis of the vehicle in the driveway.
Second is Electrical (54 reports).
There are 4 official safety recalls on this year. They were filed about Transmission / driveline and Airbags. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov — a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific truck.
The 2020 has 894 reports on file; this year has 296. A smaller lifetime total is not a clean bill of health. If you need a fairer comparison, use the equal-time view.
What to check before you buy a 2021 Subaru Outback
A useful visit to this page takes five minutes. YearTell does not score years and cannot see the vehicle in front of you.
Look up the VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov. This year has 4 campaigns on file below.
Glass / wipers / cameras. Check windshield, wipers and any camera or sensor the listing claims is there.
Electrical. Have a shop scan for stored codes and check battery, charging and any warning lights that stay on.
Automatic braking / collision warning. Ask whether the warning lights stay off and whether related recalls were done.
Skim a few owner reports below for Glass / wipers / cameras. Look for the same symptom repeating.
Take that list to a mechanic. Do not turn the complaint total into a score.
What owners reported
System named most often:Glass / wipers / cameras 101 complaints · 34.1% of the file
Crashes, fires, injuries and deaths in those filings:
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Which systems owners named
Share of owner complaints filed against each vehicle system. These shares are not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold.
“Unclassified NHTSA leftover” is not a car part. It is a filing bucket and always sits last.
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations · Snapshot 2026-09-07 · Open source record
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
When reports and recalls showed up
When owners filed reports, and when recall campaigns showed up.
Campaign 22V485000 was reported 298 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
Campaign 23V755000 was reported 787 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
Campaign 24V227000 was reported 805 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
Official campaigns. Each one says what could go wrong and what the dealer was told to fix.
In short, these campaigns were filed about Transmission / driveline and Airbags.
Recall campaign 21V024000
Transmission / driveline
Report date
Component:
Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN)
Consequence:
A loose nut can lead to a lost of retention in the CVT select lever cable and the gear selector not functioning properly, increasing risk of crash.
Remedy:
Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect, and, if necessary, tighten the nut, free of charge. The recall began February 12, 2021. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRA-21.
An improperly secured drive chain may slip and break, causing a loss of drive power and increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy:
Dealers will reprogram the TCU, inspect TCU data for chain slip, and visually inspect the chain guide. If evidence of chain slippage or damage is found, the transmission will be replaced. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed August 24, 2022. Owners may contact Subaru's customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRK-22. This recall is an expansion of previous recall number 21V-955.
An inoperative inhibitor switch may prevent the reverse lights from illuminating and the rearview camera image from displaying, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy:
Dealers will replace the inhibitor switch, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 8, 2024. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-800-782-2783. Subaru's number for this recall is WRQ-23.
An air bag that does not deploy during a crash can increase the risk of injury.
Remedy:
Dealers will replace the ODS sensors on the front passenger seat, free of charge. Owner notifications were mailed February 3, 2025. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRA-24.
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
What owners actually wrote
Short excerpts from the public NHTSA file. Look for the same symptom repeating.
Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-09-07
Vehicle's Auto Start-Stop system shut the engine off while stopped at a red light in [XXX], in rainy conditions in late XXX at approximately 29,000 miles. When the brake was released after the light turned green, the engine did not restart, leaving it stopped in the travel lane in live traffic. The driver had to use a portable jump starter to get it running again. This was not isolated — repeated failure-to-start incidents in prior weeks had already prompted carrying a portable jump starter in the vehicle. At the time we believed this was a failing 12V battery. The original battery was replaced XXX with a new aftermarket AGM battery. Despite that replacement, the vehicle has continued to have multiple complete battery drain if left parked for multiple days (but less than a week), indicating the restart failures were likely caused by an underlying parasitic electrical draw rather than a simple worn-out battery. Subaru's own Technical Service Bulletin 07-199-21R, "Measurement of Dark Current (Standby Current Draw)," describes this exact failure pattern (batteries/vehicles going dead over time due to standby current traced to the VDC module and/or Power Rear Gate control module) for this model and model-year range. A pending federal class-action lawsuit, [XXX] v. Subaru of America, Inc., Case No. XXX (D.N.J., filed XXX), alleges an electrical-system defect preventing one or more control modules from entering a proper low-power sleep state, causing parasitic battery drain, and specifically names 2021-2022 Outback vehicles. We are concerned this defect can cause the Auto Start-Stop system to fail to restart the engine at a stop in live traffic, creating a real risk of being rear-ended or blocking an intersection, as happened in the incident described above. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Good Day! I bought my 2021 Subaru Outback XT Onyx in Jan 2021. I had waiting 6 yrs for Subaru to use the Turbo Motor in the Outback again. I've had this car for 5 years with my warranty running out Jan 2026, but I only drive 5000-7000 miles per/yr. Current odometer is 29,901 miles. At my most recent oil change service at the Dealer, they showed me a video of my cars drivetrain from underneath. There were two bad seal leaks. One at the transmission pump housing and the other at the Upper Oil Pan. I had been there for an oil change a year earlier for the same service and there was no mention of these issues! After speaking with the service advisor, he said to call Subaru Customer Advocates. They listened to my situation and a few days later offered a $1400 credit for a $4000 job that involves the removal of my cars engine (upper oil pan) to replace it because it's bolted to the frame there. The other leak seal involves dropping the transmission. These are major repairs that following will dampen my ownership experience after decades of Subaru praise by Americans. I researched this issue online and found out there was a manufacturing defective regarding the silicone liquid seals they used for 2020-2022 Outback, Ascent, & WRX! This procedure was used throughout the driveline with the Turbo Motor & CTV Trans. There are 1000s of accounts of this defect placing burden on the owners of these cars who bought them in good faith. I did the research, called the dealer & Subaru with the discovery & overall complaint! I asked for 80% to 100% help with these repairs because how many more will I have to deal with after these two are repaired??? I have received zero responses from either after expressing that this was a known defect, Bullitens went to all the dealers, nothing was mentioned to the owners, and they've just covered those cars still under warranty. Since I didn't drive enough, the seal issues on my car took longer to start leaking, and then out of warranty. HELP!
I am reporting a serious and intermittent steering safety issue with my 2021 Subaru Outback. On two separate occasions, the vehicle suddenly lost what appeared to be power-steering assistance while the vehicle was in motion, causing the steering wheel to become extremely difficult to turn. The first incident occurred while I was driving on the highway and going down a ramp. The steering suddenly became extremely difficult to operate and a warning symbol illuminated on the dashboard. I was able to maintain enough control of the vehicle to safely pull over to the side of the road. I turned the vehicle off and restarted it, and the warning light disappeared and normal steering operation returned. The second incident occurred while I was making a turn into a neighbor. The same problem occurred: the steering suddenly became extremely difficult to turn and a warning light appeared on the dashboard. After turning the vehicle off and restarting it, the steering returned to normal. The intermittent nature of this problem is concerning because restarting the vehicle temporarily restores normal steering, but the failure has now occurred more than once without warning. One of the incidents occurred while traveling on the highway, creating a significant risk of loss of vehicle control and a collision. I am concerned that this may involve the vehicle’s electric power-steering system or related electrical components. I am reporting this to NHTSA because a sudden loss of steering assistance while a vehicle is moving presents a serious safety risk, particularly while turning or traveling at highway speeds. I am requesting that NHTSA document this complaint and evaluate whether similar steering failures have been reported by other owners of 2021 Subaru Outback vehicles.
What are the most common problems on the 2021 Subaru Outback?
Owners named Glass / wipers / cameras most often — 101 of 296 reports (34%). That is the NHTSA file, not a diagnosis of every vehicle.
Are there recalls for the 2021 Subaru Outback?
NHTSA lists 4 safety recall campaigns. They were filed about Transmission / driveline and Airbags. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov; a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific vehicle.
What should I inspect before buying a 2021 Subaru Outback?
Look up the VIN for open recalls. Check windshield, wipers and any camera or sensor the listing claims is there. Then skim owner filings for the same symptom and take that list to a mechanic.
Does a high complaint count mean I should skip this year?
No. Counts are reports people chose to file and they are not adjusted for sales volume. YearTell does not publish scores or a list of years to skip. Inspect the vehicle.
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Methodology & Data Integrity
Source: NHTSA ODI / recalls, snapshot 2026-09-07. YearTell is not a government agency.