What 504 owners told NHTSA about the 2015 Subaru Outback

January 25th, 2026 13:30 I was coming to a stop at an intersection with my foot on the brake pedal when suddenly my vehicle lurched forward potentially causing rear end collision with the truck in front of me that was stopped at the red light. My vehicle finally came to a stop when I pressed hard on the brake pedal. This problem happened today, so I have not reproduced it. I have not had it checked by a dealer (today is Sunday) I have a Low Tire Pressure light that came on two days ago when the temperatures suddenly dropped here in Tulsa, OK.

NHTSA ODI 11713284

A particular corner where the arterial has a y turn. With cruise engaged the vehicle will do the emergency braking even though the lane is clear. Has occurred several times at this same location.

NHTSA ODI 11704294

I was within the town limits so I was driving slowly. When I approached the first stop light in town I saw that it was red. There were of three or four vehicles stopped at that light. At that point I was probably only going 5mph. I took my foot off of the gas pedal and put my foot on the brake to make a slow stop. Instead, the car accelerated rather quickly. I continued to brake but the car seemed to speed up. I was able to avoid hitting the truck in front of me by going around it. No vehicles were coming towards me but there were some stopped at the other side of the light. I drove up on the sidewalk to avoid hitting anyone. At that point the front passenger side of the car hit & snapped a pole. The car did not stop immediately upon impact. It stopped acclerating and came to a stop about 10 feet past the pole. I am not sure how fast the car was moving when it hit the pole but I was only going about 5 mph when I put my foot on the break. I would estimate the distance my car traveled from the moment I put my foot on the break until the car stopped was approximately 100-120 feet. It felt like the car went into the cruise resume mode and was trying to accelerate to a predetermined speed. I had not been using the cruise control that day but that is exactly what it felt like. There was one other time this year that the car lunged forward without using the gas pedal. It stopped quickly for me and I just assumed that I had hit the cruise resume button, although I also hadn't been using the cruise that day. The insurance company took the car to an impound lot two hours away. I am sure there has been no inspection and my insurance has not informed me of the status of having my car totaled or repaired. Because of the age of the car, and damage, they think it will be totaled. Yes, my safety and the safety of anyone near me was at risk. The car malfunctioned and the fact no one was hurt was miraculous. There were no warning messages before this accident.

NHTSA ODI 11689049

When braking the car shuts down!!!

NHTSA ODI 11662405

My HORN only works if car is stopped steering wheel turned to the left. Subaru Dealer says it’s in the steering column mechanism that affects airbag and cruise control also. Says it will cost over $600 to repair. If it preventsthe airbag working, wouldn’t it be a car defect and considered dangerous?

NHTSA ODI 11641047

The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while making a right turn into a parking space, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration and lunged forward. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on several occasions. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 70,000.

NHTSA ODI 11609991

while attempting to come to a complete stop, depressing the brakes, the vehicle continued to accelerate even though the brake was depressed to the floor. At no time was the driver's foot on the accelerator. This is one of 2 incidents with the vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11496422

While parking car in garage, car suddenly surged forward although my foot was off gas and nearly hit end of garage. Engine Temp was relatively cold as it had just been started. This has happened several times before. Reported to dealer service the first time it happened and they did not fix.

NHTSA ODI 11457438

MY 2015 SUBARU OUTBACK -- HAVE EXPERIENCED SUDDEN AND UNINTENDED ACCELERATION. I'VE MENTIONED THIS TO THE STEVENS CREEK SAN JOSE DEALERSHIP WHEN TAKING MY CAR FOR MAINTENANCE, BUT THEY SAID THE BEHAVIOR IS AS INTENDED.

NHTSA ODI 11361103

VEHICLE IS EQUIPPED WITH SUBARU'S "EYE SIGHT" SYSTEM, WHICH PROVIDES PRE-COLLISION BRAKING AND IS INVOLVED WITH LANE DEPARTURE WARNING. THE EYE SIGHT SYSTEM IN MY CAR IS INTERMITTENTLY INOPERATIVE WHILE THE CAR IS IN MOTION. SOMETIMES, THE SYSTEM BEGINS WORKING AGAIN, THEN TURNS OFF, TURNS ON, ETC. IF EYE SIGHT IS INOPERATIVE AS THE CAR COMES TO A FULL STOP, THE INOPERATIVE WARNING MESSAGE USUALLY DISAPPEARS, BUT THE MESSAGE RETURNS SHORTLY AFTER THE CAR BEGINS MOVING AGAIN. THIS HAS BEEN HAPPENING EVERY TIME THE CAR IS IN MOTION FOR THREE WEEKS.

NHTSA ODI 11350346

ON FEBRUARY 25 I WAS DRIVING MY SUBARU ON A CITY STREET AND TRAVELING ABOUT 40 MPH. I NOTICED THAT A TRAFFIC LIGHT AHEAD OF ME WOULD BE TURNING RED SO I TRIED TO SLOW DOWN. THE POWER BRAKES DID NOT WORK AT ALL. NOT ONLY DID THE POWER BRAKES GO OUT BUT THE CAR BEGAN TO ACCELERATE ON IT'S OWN. I LOOKED AROUND FOR OPTIONS AND DECIDED I COULD TURN OFF INTO A PARKING LOT. THE BRAKES (NOT THE POWER BRAKES BUT THE BACK UP SYSTEM BRAKES) GRABBED JUST ENOUGH TO SLOW ME DOWN SO THAT I WAS ABLE TO PULL OFF SAFELY INTO THE PARKING LOT. I DROVE THROUGH THE PARKING LOT TO A PLACE WITH NO CARS AND WAS FINALLY ABLE TO GET THE CAR TO STOP. AS I PUT THE CAR IN PARK THE ENGINE RPMS REVVED UP TO 4000 SO THE CAR ENGINE WAS OBVIOUSLY STILL TRYING TO PROPEL THE CAR. I TURNED OFF THE CAR AND CALLED MY HUSBAND. WHEN HE CAME, HE GOT INTO THE CAR AND CHECKED THINGS LIKE THE CAR MAT POSITION WHICH WAS IN THE CORRECT PLACE. HE STARTED THE CAR AND IT WAS AS IF THE CAR HAD GOT IT'S BRAIN BACK. HE DROVE IT IMMEDIATELY TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG BUT DID UPDATE OUR COMPUTER SYSTEM. WE HAVE NOT HAD ANY PROBLEMS SINCE THEN.

NHTSA ODI 11316723

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 SUBARU OUTBACK. WHILE PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE AT LOW SPEEDS WITH THE BRAKE PEDAL DEPRESSED, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED, JUMPED THE CURB, AND CRASHED INTO A HOUSE. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ARRIVED AT THE SCENE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC. THE CONTACT CALLED STOHLMAN SUBARU OF STERLING (21736 AUTO WORLD CIR, STERLING, VA 20166, (888) 811-7714) AND INFORMED THEM OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 15,000. THE VIN WAS INVALID.

NHTSA ODI 11288897

TAKATA INFLATORS. WHILE DRIVING WE NOTICED THE SPEED CONTROL SYSTEM STOPPED FUNCTIONING, IT WOULD NOT ACTIVATE OR ENGAGE. WE PULLED OVER AND TURNED OFF THE ENGINE, AFTER ABOUT 1 MINUTE WE STARTED UP AND ONCE ON THE ROAD IT WAS WORKING FINE FOR ABOUT 5 MILES OR SO THEN STOPPED AGAIN. THEN THE ABS LIGHT ALONG WITH OTHER INSTRUMENT LIGHTS WOULD COME ON. WHEN WE GOT HOME WE CALLED A MECHANIC AND ADVISED WE BRING IT IN, WHICH WE DID. HE SAID THE SPEED SENSOR IS BAD (PART #27540AL11B) WHICH CAUSED OTHER LIGHTS TO COME ON AND SAID IT WAS NOT SAFE TO OPERATE THE VEHICLE ESPECIALLY WHERE WE DRIVE WHICH IS IN THE SIERRA NEVADA MOUNTAINS. HE ORDERED PART BUT WAS TOLD THIS PART IS ON NATIONAL BACKORDER AND MAY BE AVAILABLE ON APRIL 2, 2019. OUR CAR HAS NOW BEEN IN THE SHOP SINCE MARCH 8TH, THIS IS SUCH AN INCONVENIENCE. THE CAR HAS APPROX 58K MILES ON IT. WOULD THIS NOT BE UNDER WARRANTY.

NHTSA ODI 11192142

THE EYESIGHT SYSTEM TURNS ON AND OFF INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE IS TRAVELING AT SPEED AND ALL OF SUDDEN IT IS NOT. THE WINDSHIELD WAS CLEAR AND IT WAS NOT RAINING. THE VEHICLE WAS TRAVELING IN A STRAIGHT LINE. THIS HAS BEEN AN ONGOING ISSUE WHICH THE DEALER IS UNABLE TO RESOLVE.

NHTSA ODI 11062145

THIS CONCERNS A 2015 SUBARU OUTBACK LIMITED 6 CYLINDER. AT APPROX 21,000 MI I WAS SLOWING TO SPEED TO PARK IN A PUBLIC PARKING SPACE ON A CITY STREET AND THE OUTBACK SUDDEN ACCELERATION. THE OUTBACK HIT A CITY METAL POST/SIGN, JUMPED THE CURB AND COLLIDED WITH A BUILDING AND DAMAGING A STORE FRONT WITH GREAT FORCE. THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY AND THE AUTOMATIC COLLISION PREVENTION FAILED TO WORK. ONCE BEFORE THE CAR HAD AN ACCELERATION SURGE WHILE DRIVING A PUBLIC CITY STREET AT LOW SPEED BUT DID NOT HIT ANYTHING. PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT I'VE ALSO EXPERIENCED SLIGHT HESITATION IN ACCELERATION WHEN I FIRST ACCELERATE FROM A STATIONARY POSITION AND PROBABLY UNRELATED, THE GEAR SHIFT OFTEN GETS STUCK IN PARK AND I HAVE TO USE FORCE THE GEAR SHIFT TO REVERSE. HAVING TROUBLE WITH TURNING NECK FROM SIDE TO SIDE AND NEED TO SEE DOCTOR FOR EVALUATION SO, NOT SURE IF THIS IS CONSIDERED INJURY?

NHTSA ODI 11051133

I DRIOVE OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY ONE BLOCK TO STOP SIGN. ONLY GOING 10 OR SO MPH WHEN I DEPRESSED BRAKE TO STOP AT STOP SIGN . POWER BRAKES DID NOT RESPOND UNTIL PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED HARD TO FLOOR. THEN WHEN STOPPED THE ENGINE REVED UP AND I DID NOT TAKE MY FOOT OFF BRAKE. THE ENGINE SEEMED TO ROAR LIKE IN A VERY LOW GEAR. I CHECKED GEARS AND PUT IT IN NEUTRAL, THEN PARK AND REVERSE, ENGINE STILL ROARING. BUT AS MY FOOT WAS HARD ON BRAKE, IT DID NOT GO INTO FOUR LANE TRAFFIC AHEAD. I TURNED OFF ENGINE WITH KEY AND THE ENGINE REVING STOPPED..WHEN I TURNED THE CAR ON AGAIN THE BRAKES WORKED NORMALLY AND ACCELERATION WAS NORMAL .IT SEEMED TO RESET AND I WAS ABLE TO DRIVE IT TO SUBARU DEALER FOR REPAIRS ALBEIT VERY SLOWLY. I PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE HAD IT TOWED. THERE ARE NO FLOOR MATS IN THE CAR. DRIVER NOT IMPAIRED. THIS OCCURRED AROUND 10 AM ON A CLEAR AUGUST DAY TEMPERATURE AROUND 75 DEGREES .

NHTSA ODI 11015626

WHILE PULLING MY FATHER-IN-LAWS SUBARU OUTBACK INTO MY GARAGE I PLACE THE VEHICLE INTO DRIVE WHILE APPLYING THE BRAKE. THE CAR IMMEDIATELY ACCELERATED WHILE MY FOOT WAS ON THE BRAKE. THE CAR PROCEEDED INTO GARAGE FIRST HITTING THE SIDE OF THE GARAGE DOOR FRAME AND THEN INTO THE BACK OF MY OTHER CAR WHICH WAS PARKED INSIDE THE GARAGE. I INSTINCTIVELY APPLIED GREATER PRESSURE ON THE BRAKE BUT THIS DID NOT STOP THE CAR. WHEN THE CAR WEDGED AGAINST THE RIGHT SIDE COLUMN OF THE GARAGE I RELEASED THE BRAKE AND REAPPLIED IMMEDIATELY. THIS ACTION CAUSED THE CAR TO DECELERATE TO AN IDLE MODE. I'VE BEEN DRIVING A LONG TIME AND HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED AN ISSUE LIKE THIS BEFORE. I NOTICED OTHERS HAVE ALSO EXPERIENCED SIMILAR SUDDEN ACCELERATION PROBLEMS AS REPORTED ON THIS SITE. THERE WAS NO FLOOR MAT OBSTRUCTION SO I CAN ONLY CONCLUDE THERE IS A POSSIBLE SOFTWARE ISSUE. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10950390

WHILE BRAKING TO TURN INTO A PARKING LOT FROM A HIGHWAY, THE CAR SUDDENLY ACCELERATED AND THE BRAKES WOULD NOT HOLD THE CAR. ACCIDENT WAS AVOIDED. SYMPTOM ONLY LASTED 2-3 SECONDS.

NHTSA ODI 10935607

FILE UPLOADED BELOW PICTURES #4 AND #5 WERE NOT ABLE TO BE DOWNLOADED WHICH SHOW CLOSEUPS OF THE TIRE MARKS IN THE BARK CHIPS. #3 SHOWS THE COMPLETE TIRE MARK IN THE BARK CHIPS.

NHTSA ODI 10914028

MY 2015 SUBARU OUTBACK 2.5LIMITED HAS HAD SIGNIFICANT ISSUES WITH SUDDEN-ACCELERATION.IT WILL SURGE WHILE FOOT IS ON BRAKE USUALLY AT STOP SIGNS,RED LIGHTS.IT IS BECOMING WORSE AND MORE FREQUENT.I AM 100% SURE THAT MY FOOT IS ON THE BRAKE AND THE FLOOR MAT IS NOT INVOLVED EITHER.IT IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY DANGEROUS AND WE HAVE HAD NO RESULTS AFTER TAKING IT TO THE DEALER ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS AS THEY STATE THEY CAN NOT REPRODUCE THE ISSUE..IT BEGAN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE CAR WAS PURCHASED AND IS STILL HAPPENING A YEAR LATER

NHTSA ODI 10897359

CRUISE CONTROL (CC) CAUSED WHAT I THOUGHT AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT WAS UNINTENDED ACCELERATION. OPERATION OF CC IS DIFFERENT FROM ANY CC I USED IN THE PAST. THE CC WAS ALREADY ENGAGED AND I WAS GOING ABOUT 40 MPH ON A HIGHWAY. I DECIDED TO INCREASE MY SPEED, SO I PRESSED THE 'SET +' BUTTON. AFTER A COUPLE OF SECONDS WHEN I REACHED 43 MPH, I RELEASED THE BUTTON. THE CAR CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE TO 70 MPH. LUCKILY THE HIGHWAY WAS EMPTY AND I WAS ABLE TO DISENGAGE THE CC. THE PROBLEM IS THAT THE CC 'SET +' (AND 'SET -') HAS 2 POSITIONS - PUSHING IT HALF WAY INCREASES YOUR SPEED LIKE A TRADITIONAL CC, AND PUSHING IT ALL THE WAY ACTUALLY INCREASES THE SET SPEED OF YOUR CC BY 5 MPH INCREMENTS. HENCE WHEN I THOUGHT I WAS JUST ACCELERATING TO 43 MPH, I WAS ACTUALLY SETTING THE CC SPEED TO 70 MPH. ONE OF THE OPTION PACKAGES WITH THE CAR ADDS THIS 5 MPH INCREMENT 'FEATURE'. THE QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE AND THE REGULAR MANUAL DO NOT MENTION THIS 'FEATURE' - IT IS ONLY MENTIONED IN ONE OF THE AUXILIARY MANUALS FOR THE OPTION PACKAGE. I THINK UNDER DIFFERENT CIRCUMSTANCES THAT THIS INCIDENT COULD HAVE TURNED OUT MUCH WORSE THAN IT DID. THE CC DOES NOT WORK LIKE TRADITIONAL CC, AND THE CONTROLS LOOK LIKE A TRADITIONAL CC.

NHTSA ODI 10825212

UNINTENDED ACCELERATION. WHEN DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS--WHAT WOULD TRADITIONALLY BE 1ST AND 2ND GEAR (THE CAR HAS A CONTINUALLY VARIABLE TRANSMISSION)--AND WHILE KEEPING CONSTANT PRESSURE ON THE GAS PEDAL, THE TRANSMISSION CHANGES THE ACCELERATION OF THE VEHICLE ON ITS OWN IN A PROCESS THAT FEELS LIKE IT CAN'T FIND THE RIGHT "GEAR", AND IT PROVIDES A "JERKING" FEELING (USUALLY ONLY A COUPLE OF "JERKS"). YET THE TRANSMISSION IS NOT JUST FINDING THE RIGHT GEAR FOR A SPECIFIC CONSTANT SPEED; AS IT SHIFTS AROUND, THE ACCELERATION CHANGES AND HAS, WITH CONSTANT PRESSURE ON THE PEDAL, ACCELERATED FASTER ON ITS OWN. I HAVE NEVER FELT LESS CONTROL OF A VEHICLE AS I HAVE WITH THIS ONE.

NHTSA ODI 10723607

I WAS SLOWING PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE AND JUST STRAIGHTENING OUT THE CAR WHEN I HEARD A STRANGE SOUND COMING FROM THE ENGINE. IMMEDIATELY AFTER THAT I HEARD A VERY LOUD ENGINE REVVING SOUND AND THEN SUDDENLY THE VEHICLE SHOT FORWARD LIKE A ROCKET, WENT OVER THE CEMENT BARRIER AND INTO THE WALL OF A BUILDING. IT SEEMED LIKE A VERY HIGH RATE OF SPEED, THOUGH THE DISTANCE WAS ONLY ABOUT 8 FEET. THE SEAT BELT DID NOT RESTRAIN ME AND MY CHEST SLAMMED INTO THE STEERING WHEEL. IT WAS DETERMINED LATER AT THE HOSPITAL THAT I HAD A CRACKED STERNUM AND SEVERAL BROKEN RIBS. I BELIEVE THERE WAS SOME SORT OF MECHANICAL, ELECTRICAL OR SOFTWARE PROBLEM THAT CAUSED THIS UNINTENDED ACCELERATION, AND THE SEAT BELT ALSO WAS DID NOT FUNCTIONING AS INTENDED. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10713619

CRUISE CONTROL: WHEN THE CRUISE CONTROL (+/-) TOGGLE SWITCH ON THE STEERING WHEEL , WHICH IS USED TO SET OR CHANGE THE SPEED SETTING OF THE CRUISE CONTROL, IS PRESSED DOWN TO THE MINUS OR SET SIDE, IT INTERMITTENTLY AND IN VARIABLE CONDITIONS EITHER DOES NOT REACT AT ALL (I.E. NO CHANGE TO THE SPEED SETTING), FLASHES THE SPEED SETTING ON THE SCREEN DISPLAY, BUT DOES NOT CHANGE IT OR MORE IMPORTANTLY IT INCREASES THE SPEED SETTING AND IN SOME CASES HAS CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO ACCELERATE WHILE THE DRIVER IS ATTEMPTING TO DECREASE THE SPEED SETTING OF THE CRUISE CONTROL. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10701761

I HAVE 2015 SUBARU OUTBACK WITH EYESIGHT AND BLIND SPOT DETECTION. I HAD STOPPED THE VEHICLE IN THE DRIVEWAY, ABOUT 10 FT FROM THE GARAGE, WAITING FOR MY HUSBAND TO CLEAN THE FLOOR. THE ENGINE WAS RUNNING. WHEN MY HUSBAND CAME OUT OF THE GARAGE AND SIGNALED ME TO PARK THE VEHICLE INSIDE, I WAS ABOUT TO MOVE THE VEHICLE SLOWLY IN THE GARAGE. HOWEVER, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY STARTED LIKE A BULLET, AS IF IT WAS TRYING TO ACCELERATE TO THAT SET SPEED, QUICKLY. MY HUSBAND HEARD THE WHEELS SCREECHING AND THE VEHICLE ACCELERATING. HE JUMPED ON THE SIDE AND SURVIVED BY AN INCH OR SO. WITHIN A FRACTION OF A SECOND, THE VEHICLE HIT THE CENTER SUPPORT WHICH SUPPORTS THE GARAGE DOORS, THEN THE SNOW BLOWER AND FURTHER STRUCK THE ITEMS KEPT AGAINST THE WALL BETWEEN THE HOUSE AND THE GARAGE, BEFORE COMING TO A STOP. IT APPEARS THAT, IN ADDITION TO THE BRAKE I APPLIED, EYESIGHT MAY HAVE HELPED STOP THE VEHICLE. I HAVE BEEN DRIVING IN THE US FOR OVER 18 YEARS WITHOUT A SINGLE INCIDENT. PARKING IN THE GARAGE IS THE SIMPLEST OF ALL THE TASKS. I STRONGLY BELIEVE THAT THE VEHICLE MAY HAVE ACCELERATED ON IT'S OWN DUE TO SOME MALFUNCTION.

NHTSA ODI 10690859