Skip to content

Free public service · Official NHTSA & EPA data

2015 Subaru Outback

Verified July 23, 2026Sources: NHTSA · EPA · vPIC

Compare
Safety
5
of 5 stars
Recalls
5
on record
MPG
combined

Do not drive until repaired

1 active "park it" recall — NHTSA advises against driving this vehicle until the remedy is complete.

Vehicle Summary

2015 Subaru Outback

5 recalls
506 complaints
5/5 safety rating

Before You Buy

Check all recalls are completed
Review consumer complaints
Verify no crash-related complaints
Get a pre-purchase inspection
Check vehicle history report
Verify title is clean

Safety record at a glance

Recall campaigns
5
Owner complaints
506
Complaints citing a crash
19

These are raw counts from NHTSA records. They are not normalised by how many of these vehicles are on the road, so a model that sold in large numbers will tend to show more of everything. We do not publish a composite safety or reliability score.

5 Recalls on Record

1 of these is high-severity. Some may require you to stop driving the vehicle until repaired.

Enter your VIN to check if specific recalls apply to your vehicle.

Safety recalls

5 NHTSA campaigns affecting this model year.

  • 16V251000high

    Electronic stability control (esc)

    ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2015 Legacy and Outback vehicles manufactured on July 20, 2015. The brake fluid used in these vehicles may contain excess moisture which may adversely affect the performance of the electronic stability control system. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 126, "Electronic Stability Control Systems."

  • 14V577000high

    Trailer hitches

    TRAILER HITCHES

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2015 Outback vehicles manufactured January 22, 2014, to August 18, 2014, and equipped with a Subaru accessory trailer hitch assembly. During installation, the trailer hitch mounting nuts may have been overtightened, potentially resulting in failure of the trailer hitch mounting studs.

  • 15V502000high

    Driveshaft bolt issue

    POWER TRAIN:DRIVELINE:DRIVESHAFT

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2015 and 2016 model year Subaru Legacy 4-Door and Outback vehicles manufactured July 3, 2015, to July 27, 2015. Transmission oil may leak from a deformed seal cap on the propeller shaft yoke.

  • 16V292000critical Do not drive

    Steering issue

    STEERING:COLUMN

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Legacy and Outback vehicles manufactured February 29, 2016, to May 6, 2016. The steering column on the affected vehicles may have been improperly machined, and as a result, turning the steering wheel may have no effect on the direction of the wheels.

  • 15V366000high

    Forward collision avoidance · crash imminent braking

    FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: CRASH IMMINENT BRAKING

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2015 Legacy vehicles manufactured March 10, 2014, to April 16, 2015, Outback vehicles manufactured February 24, 2014, to April 16, 2015, Impreza vehicles manufactured September 9, 2014, to April 14, 2015, XV Crosstrek vehicles manufactured October 16, 2014, to April 15, 2015, and 2016 WRX vehicles manufactured March 23, 2015, and equipped with the Eyesight Driver Assist System. If the switch that activates the brake lights fails, the automatic pre-collision braking component of the driver assist system will not function.

Consumer complaints

506 owner reports filed with NHTSA.

506
Total
19
Crashes
5
Fires
16
Injuries

Most reported components

  • VISIBILITY131
  • ELECTRICAL110
  • OTHER86
  • ENGINE74
  • STRUCTURE28

Notable Issues

506 consumer complaints filed with NHTSA. 16 reports involve injuries. 19 reports involve a crash.

Most reported problems

visibility issues (wipers, defrost, mirrors)131
electrical issues (battery, wiring, infotainment)110
miscellaneous issues86

Specifications & ratings

Specifications

Body class
Unknown
Drive type
Unknown
Engine
0L 0-cyl
Fuel type
Unknown
Transmission
Unknown
Seats
0

NHTSA crash ratings

Overall
Frontal
Side
Rollover

Explore related

Safety timeline

Full timeline
  1. Investigation opened

    NHTSA opened investigation EA21002

    Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture

  2. Do not drive

    Do-not-drive recall 16V292000

    The loss of steering ability would increase the risk of a crash.

  3. Recall

    Recall 16V251000

    Poor performance of the electronic stability control system when it is activated may result in a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.

  4. Recall

    Recall 15V502000

    If the transmission oil leaks onto the exhaust pipe, there is a possible risk of fire.

  5. Recall

    Recall 15V366000

    If the automatic pre-collision braking system does not function as intended, the vehicle will not react to an obstacle in its path, increasing the risk of a crash.