Subaru Impreza Reliability by Year
Based on 2M+ real complaints filed with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
3,425 NHTSA complaints (1990–2025).Complaint rate: 77.5 per 1,000 vehicles.
Should I buy a Subaru Impreza?
Quick answer from 3,425 NHTSA complaints · 1990–2025
Subaru Impreza reliability depends heavily on the model year. Several years show complaint spikes well above the model's own average, while others are meaningfully cleaner. The most commonly reported issue across all years is airbags. Pick the right year and this Impreza can be a reasonable used buy; pick the wrong one and you're inheriting known problems.
- 2023 Subaru Impreza· 6 complaints
- 2022 Subaru Impreza· 15 complaints
- 2021 Subaru Impreza· 19 complaints
- 2013 Subaru Impreza· 343 complaints
- 2002 Subaru Impreza· 339 complaints
- 2012 Subaru Impreza· 336 complaints
Keep scrolling for year-by-year complaint trends, recall campaigns, and component breakdowns — or click any year above for a full report.
Why these years are worse
The most common issues driving the complaint spikes:
- airbags — 397 complaints (14.9% involved a crash)
- engine problems — 260 complaints (3.1% involved a crash)
- transmission / drivetrain — 208 complaints (2.4% involved a crash)
- electrical faults — 203 complaints (3.4% involved a crash)
- wipers & visibility — 199 complaints (0.5% involved a crash)
What Happened to 44,183 Subaru Imprezas On the Road
Complaints record what owners reported. These are the outcomes actually recorded against 44,183 Subaru Impreza VINs built 1993–2025 — accidents, title brands and odometer flags from our vehicle-history database, not from the NHTSA complaint file.
Do the complaint spikes show up in real accident history?
The Subaru Impreza averages 34.8% accident history across all model years. Here is how the years flagged above compare on real records:
- 2013 — 49.2% of 3,138 VINs on record show accident history, above the 34.8% model average. The complaint spike is backed by real damage records.
- 2012 — 48.9% of 1,848 VINs on record show accident history, above the 34.8% model average. The complaint spike is backed by real damage records.
Typical Subaru Impreza on record: 1.8 owners on average, 64,303 average miles.
Which Years to Buy & Avoid
Years auto-clustered by complaint volume relative to this model's median.
Rankings based on raw NHTSA complaint counts. Sales volume data not yet available for this model.
Bottom line: Avoid the 2012–2014 Subaru Impreza (66 crash-related complaints). The 2021–2023 models had significantly fewer reported issues. Most common issue across all years: Airbags.
Avoid These Years
Average
Better Years
Too New
Need 3+ years on the road for reliable complaint data.
A model's reputation is just the start.
Even within the “good” years, individual cars can have hidden accidents, title issues, or odometer rollbacks. Check the actual VIN before you buy — full history report for $8.99 (vs. Carfax $44.99).
Complaints by Model Year
NHTSA complaint count per model year
Common Subaru Impreza Problems
Most reported component complaints to NHTSA. Bar length = volume; color = crash-involvement rate.
Show full table
| Component | Complaints | Crash % |
|---|---|---|
| Airbags | 397 | 14.9% |
| Engine Problems | 260 | 3.1% |
| Transmission / Drivetrain | 208 | 2.4% |
| Electrical Faults | 203 | 3.4% |
| Wipers & Visibility | 199 | 0.5% |
| Headlight/Taillight Failures | 188 | 2.1% |
| Brakes | 127 | 15.0% |
| Fuel System | 104 | 3.8% |
| Suspension Failures | 98 | 6.1% |
| Body Structure | 95 | 12.6% |
When Each Problem Spiked
Year × component heatmap. Darker cells = more complaints that year. Reveals which model years a specific defect concentrated in — useful for spotting redesign-cycle quality dips.
Year-by-Year Breakdown
NHTSA complaint count per model year — click any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
| Year | Generation | Complaints | Crashes | Fires | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990NO DATA | — | 2 | 0 | — | View → |
| 1993NO DATA | — | 48 | 9 | — | View → |
| 1994NO DATA | — | 8 | 1 | — | View → |
| 1995 | — | 69 | 14 | 2 | View → |
| 1996GOOD | — | 25 | 6 | 1 | View → |
| 1997GOOD | — | 38 | 8 | 1 | View → |
| 1998 | — | 55 | 2 | — | View → |
| 1999GOOD | — | 27 | 2 | — | View → |
| 2000 | — | 54 | 8 | 3 | View → |
| 2001GOOD | — | 13 | 6 | — | View → |
| 2002AVOID | — | 339 | 11 | 3 | View → |
| 2003 | — | 64 | 9 | 1 | View → |
| 2004 | — | 113 | 9 | 4 | View → |
| 2005 | — | 95 | 17 | 1 | View → |
| 2006 | — | 68 | 5 | — | View → |
| 2007 | — | 84 | 6 | 2 | View → |
| 2008AVOID | — | 249 | 11 | 6 | View → |
| 2009AVOID | — | 149 | 6 | 3 | View → |
| 2010 | — | 61 | 3 | 1 | View → |
| 2011 | — | 75 | 6 | 5 | View → |
| 2012AVOID | — | 336 | 19 | 6 | View → |
| 2013AVOID | — | 343 | 23 | 10 | View → |
| 2014AVOID | — | 156 | 24 | — | View → |
| 2015 | — | 99 | 6 | — | View → |
| 2016 | — | 108 | 14 | — | View → |
| 2017AVOID | — | 162 | 15 | 5 | View → |
| 2018AVOID | — | 180 | 13 | 1 | View → |
| 2019AVOID | — | 214 | 6 | 1 | View → |
| 2020 | — | 97 | 3 | 1 | View → |
| 2021GOOD | — | 19 | 1 | — | View → |
| 2022GOOD | — | 15 | 0 | 2 | View → |
| 2023NO DATA | — | 6 | 0 | — | View → |
| 2024TOO NEW | — | 49 | 3 | 5 | View → |
| 2025TOO NEW | — | 5 | 0 | — | View → |
Year-by-Year Breakdown
Tap any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
Data Sources & Methodology
Complaints: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation consumer complaint database (3,425 records for this model). Public domain data, updated monthly.
Sales data: Not yet available for this model. Complaint counts are shown as raw numbers.
On-road outcomes: Accident, title-brand, theft and odometer records for 44,183 Subaru Impreza VINs in our vehicle-history database. Independent of the NHTSA complaint file — a complaint is what an owner reported, these are what was recorded against the vehicle. Year-level figures are shown only for model years with at least 200 VINs on record.
Rate calculation: Complaints per 10,000 vehicles sold = (complaint count / US annual sales) x 10,000. This normalizes for sales volume so high-volume models like Civic or Camry aren't unfairly penalized.
Year classifications: AVOID = 1.5x+ the model's median complaint count. GOOD = 0.6x or below. Years less than 3 years old are marked TOO NEW (insufficient data).
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