2005 Subaru Legacy Problems, Recalls & Reliability
250 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2005 Subaru Legacy, alongside 9 recall campaigns and 2 defect investigations. It scores 81/100 on the trouble index — one of the years to avoid for this model. Electrical leads the reports, typically around 90,105 miles.
Avoid this year if you can. The 2005 Subaru Legacy sits at the top of this model's complaint rankings. Quieter picks in the same family: 2004, 2007, 2021–2022.
Avoid
Where 2005 sits among all Legacy years
What owners report
“Wires that go to the rear hatch for the wiper and third brake light are severed after repeated opening/closing of rear hatch and affect the functionality.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Legacy
“Vehicle 'stutters' on partial acceleration between 2000 and 3000 rpm. Vehicle has done this consistantly from the first day i purchased it. There is currently nothing the dealer can do to fix the problem.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Legacy
“Excessive rear brake line rust even after nhtsa recall #14v311 (subaru recall id wqk-47) . The cleaning and and wax spray didn't stop the brake lines from deteriorating more and will soon fail.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Legacy
“The car is creating a gas leak and smell after cold start ups. The car also fills up with smoke after warming up the car 5-10 min.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Legacy
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 198 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 80,500 miles. Half of those reports fall between 38,000 and 110,000 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
Recalls (9)
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of…
Fix: Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020. Subaru owners may…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of…
Fix: Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020. Subaru owners may…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (STI included), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of…
Fix: Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators with alternate inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7,…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester vehicles, 2008-2011 Impreza vehicles, 2008-2014 WRX vehicles, 2005-2014 Legacy vehicles, 2005-2014 Outback vehicles and 2006-2008 Tribeca vehicles equipped with a mechanical key ignition…
Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ignition switch, replacing the ignition switch, if necessary, free of charge. The recall began May 10, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2003-2004 Subaru Baja vehicles manufactured January 22, 2003, to July 21, 2004, 2004-2005 Impreza vehicles manufactured January 28, 2003, to May 31, 2005, 2003-2008 Subaru Legacy vehicles…
Fix: Subaru will notify their owners and General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The Subaru recall began on June 17, 2015. Owners…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2003-2004 Legacy and Outback vehicles, and 2003-2005 Baja vehicles sold, or ever registered, in geographic locations associated with high absolute humidity. Specifically, vehicles sold, or ever…
Fix: Subaru will notify their owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on January 15, 2015. Owners may contact Subaru at 1-800-782-2783. Subaru's…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Outback and Legacy, 2008-2011 Impreza and 2008-2014 Impreza WRX/STI, and 2009-2013 Forester vehicles, currently, or formerly, registered in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana,…
Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will test the brake system by depressing the brake pedal and inspecting for brake fluid leaks. If no brake fluid seepage is observed, the affected areas will…
Subaru is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Outback and Legacy vehicles manufactured from December 2003, through April 2009 and currently, or formerly, registered in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts,…
Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicles. If no brake fluid seepage is observed, the affected area will be rustproofed with anti-corrosion wax. If brake fluid seepage is…
THE LEFT AND RIGHT SIDE CURTAIN AIR BAGS IN CERTAIN VEHICLES INVOLVED IN THIS CAMPAIGN MAY NOT FULLY DEPLOY RAPIDLY ENOUGH WHEN ACTIVATED IN A SIDE IMPACT COLLISION. DURING A SIDE IMPACT TEST CONDUCTED BY THE INSURANCE INSTITUTE FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY (IIHS),…
Fix: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE LEFT AND RIGHT SIDE CURTAIN AIR BAG MODULES. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 11, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT SUBARU AT 1-800-782-2783. .
Federal defect investigations
Still open as of the last data refresh. An investigation is not a recall; it may close with no action. All open investigations →
Component: AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-016 in June 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.All six vehicles were operated in Florida or Puerto Rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their…
Led to recall campaign 13V172000.
Technical service bulletins
261 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on electrical and airbags — are on file for the 2005 Subaru Legacy. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
See the 2005 Legacy TSB list →
Complaint history for this model year
When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.
Questions buyers ask
Is the 2005 Subaru Legacy reliable?
The 2005 Subaru Legacy drew 250 complaints in federal safety records — one of the years to avoid for this model. Its trouble index is 81/100, scored against the model's worst year (1995).
What are the most common 2005 Subaru Legacy problems?
The top reported problems for the 2005 Subaru Legacy are electrical (40 complaints), engine (34), and brakes & stability (32).
At what mileage do 2005 Subaru Legacy problems show up?
Owners most often report 2005 Subaru Legacy problems around 80,500 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 38,000 and 110,000 miles.
Does the 2005 Subaru Legacy have recalls?
9 recall campaigns apply to the 2005 Subaru Legacy. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.