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2023 Subaru Outback

Gas Compact SUV

2027202620252024202320222021202020192018
Specs & fuel economyRecallsComplaintsCrash ratings
B
Safety Signal
84 / 100
BSafety Signal · 84 / 100
2Recalls · NHTSA campaigns
89Complaints · owner reports
5★Crash rating · NHTSA overall
28 mpgFuel economy · best combined

The 2023 Subaru Outback is sold in the U.S. as a gas compact SUV with 3 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the Outback AWD, is EPA-rated at 28 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 2 recall campaigns for this model year, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of B. Owners have filed 89 complaints, most often about forward collision avoidance. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy (EPA)

ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombAnnual fuel*
Outback AWDGasAWD2.5L 4-cyl263228$2,250
Outback AWDGasAWD2.4L 4-cyl turbo222925$2,500
Outback Wilderness AWDGasAWD2.4L 4-cyl turbo212623$2,700

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year and EPA reference fuel/electricity prices. Source: fueleconomy.gov vehicle records.

Out of factory warranty soon?

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Recalls (2)

Power Train

high
95,830 vehicles

Problem: Subaru of America, Inc. is recalling certain model year 2021 Crosstrek, 2022 Forester, 2021-2023 Legacy, and Outback vehicles. An insufficient weld may allow water to enter the inhibitor switch, causing it to fail.

Risk: An inoperative inhibitor switch may prevent the reverse lights from illuminating and the rearview camera image from displaying, increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: 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.

NHTSA campaign 23V755000 · reported Nov 9, 2023 · Subaru of America, Inc.

Power Train

high
4,311 vehicles

Problem: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2023 Outback, Legacy, Ascent, and Impreza vehicles. The center support bolts for the driveshaft may loosen, resulting in the disconnection of the front end of the driveshaft.

Risk: Separation of the front end of the driveshaft increases the risk of a crash.

Fix: Dealers will clean the bolt mounting surfaces of the center support brace and install new bolts, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 20, 2023. Owners may contact Subaru's customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRN-23.

NHTSA campaign 23V647000 · reported Sep 21, 2023 · Subaru of America, Inc.

Owner complaints

89 complaints filed

8 involved a crash, 1 a fire, 3 injuries, 0 deaths reported by owners.

Filed by year — 2022: 5 · 2023: 47 · 2024: 20 · 2025: 11 · 2026: 6

Most-cited components

  • Forward Collision Avoidance — 36
  • Electrical System — 18
  • Visibility/Wiper — 16
  • Unknown Or Other — 15
  • Service Brakes — 7
“They EyeSight continuously disables. Dealership cannot find any codes or issues with it. They say it is the weather, dirty windshield, clouds. It has been happening since week 3 of ownership. I clean the windshield all the time, there is no clouds. I have another Subaru with EyeSight and it doesn’t disable like this …”Mar 9, 2023 · Forward Collision Avoidance · NHTSA owner report
“The contact owns a 2023 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the liftgate would independently open without assistance. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approxim…”Feb 28, 2023 · Latches/Locks/Linkages · NHTSA owner report
“The contact owns a 2023 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while parked with the brake pedal depressed when the vehicle suddenly lunged forward and jumped the curb onto the sidewalk. The vehicle ended up in the glass of the store in front of the parking space. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was towed to …”Feb 23, 2023 · Service Brakes · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
SW AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆18%
SW AWDnot rated★★★★★★★★★★not rated18%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program. Standard driver-assist: forward collision warning, lane departure warning, automatic emergency braking.

Other Outback model years

A

2027 Outback

0 recalls · 0 complaints

A

2026 Outback

0 recalls · 14 complaints

A

2025 Outback

0 recalls · 77 complaints

A

2024 Outback

0 recalls · 98 complaints

D

2022 Outback

4 recalls · 462 complaints

D

2021 Outback

4 recalls · 296 complaints

F

2020 Outback

6 recalls · 896 complaints

C

2019 Outback

3 recalls · 1,033 complaints

C

2018 Outback

3 recalls · 808 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records (ids 45408, 45409, 45410). Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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