2013 Subaru Outback Problems, Recalls & Reliability
408 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2013 Subaru Outback, alongside 12 recall campaigns and 0 defect investigations. It scores 40/100 on the trouble index — a below-average year for this model. Engine leads the reports, typically around 50,000 miles.
Below average
Where 2013 sits among all Outback years
What owners report
“For the last 50k miles, oil consumption has gotten worse and worse. Now it needs a qt of oil every 600 miles.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2013 Outback
“At 107k miles my transmission failed. Only certain vin #'s are recalled. Mine not being one of them. Although there is a known transmission problem with 2013 subaru outbacks. I have to replace the transmission.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2013 Outback
“Takata recall. Recall notice received 3/15/2019. On 3/18/2019 told first appointment available to perform recall repair not until week of 6/8/2019. 3 months and cannot use front passenger seat! Called 3 other regional dealships and ciukd not get a return phone call.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2013 Outback
“From the day we bought it, the car wanders left and right, noticeably at speeds above 40 mph, requiring constant steering wheel corrections in both directions.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2013 Outback
“Have replaced the low beam h7 bulb 5 times this year and has even blow less than 1 hour after fixed by a subaru dealership. Tail lights have been replaced 3 times in 8 month. High beam lights 3 times in the past 12 months. Fixtures twice. Charred from extreme amp spikes in wires. Now to top it all…”— owner report to NHTSA, 2013 Outback
“The brakes are spongy and the car doesn't stop properly. We've had repairs done and took it to the dealership and they tell us nothing is wrong.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2013 Outback
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 257 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 45,000 miles. Half of those reports fall between 9,000 and 89,967 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
Recalls (12)
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 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Outback, and Legacy vehicles, 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles and 2010-2013 Forester vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of…
Fix: Subaru is notifying owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2013 Forester, 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Outback, Legacy, and 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi,…
Fix: Subaru has notified owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Legacy and Outback vehicles, 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles and 2010-2013 Forester vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine,…
Fix: Subaru is notifying owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Subaru Legacy and Outback vehicles equipped with a manual transmission. The electronic parking brake (EPB) may not engage as intended, allowing the vehicle to rollaway if the transmission is not…
Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the EPB actuator assembly, free of charge. The recall began July 19, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614.…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Legacy, Forester, Tribeca, WRX and Outback vehicles, and 2009-2011 Impreza vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana,…
Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on February 9, 2018. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at…
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2010-2014 Legacy vehicles manufactured November 26, 2008, to June 7, 2013, and 2010-2014 Outback vehicles manufactured January 9, 2009 to June 7, 2013. Due to contamination, components within…
Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the windshield wiper motor bottom cover assembly, free of charge. The recall began October 2016. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at…
Subaru is recalling certain model year 2013 Outback and Legacy vehicles manufactured from February 15, 2012, through June 15, 2012. In the affected vehicles, the inner and outer shafts of the steering column assembly may become disengaged from one another.
Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering column assembly with a new one, free of charge. The recall began on May 14, 2013. Owners may contact Subaru at 1-800-782-2783.…
Subaru is recalling certain model year 2010-2012 Legacy and Outback vehicles equipped with an automatic or CVT transmission and an Audiovox remote engine starter (RES) accessory, certain model year 2012-2013 Impreza vehicles equipped with a CVT transmission…
Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the RES key fobs, free of charge. The recall began on April 22, 2013. Owners may contact Subaru at 1-800-782-2783 for more information.
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 2013 Subaru Outback reliable?
The 2013 Subaru Outback drew 408 complaints in federal safety records — a below-average year for this model. Its trouble index is 40/100, scored against the model's worst year (2019).
What are the most common 2013 Subaru Outback problems?
The top reported problems for the 2013 Subaru Outback are engine (68 complaints), transmission & drivetrain (59), and airbags (42).
At what mileage do 2013 Subaru Outback problems show up?
Owners most often report 2013 Subaru Outback problems around 45,000 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 9,000 and 89,967 miles.
Does the 2013 Subaru Outback have recalls?
12 recall campaigns apply to the 2013 Subaru Outback. 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.