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What 279 owners told NHTSA about the 2019 Subaru Crosstrek

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (279)Crash / fire / injury (10)Visibility & wipers (123)Electrical system (51)Engine (33)Transmission & drivetrain (23)Steering (15)Fuel system (12)Speed control (8)Body & structure (7)Brakes (6)Suspension (4)

3 of 279 complaints match · Transmission & drivetrain · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Nov 12, 2024Transmission & drivetrainElectrical systemEngineFire

I sent my Crosstrek to the dealer for the WRE21 recall. After retrieving the car from the dealership with the recall fix in place, the engine stalled while I was at a red light and I could see smoke coming out from the hood. This occurred after driving less than 4 miles from the dealership. I opened the hood and could see that one of the coil packs on the driver side cylinder bank was on fire. I called 911 and the Fire Department had to extinguish the fire. The fire has rendered the vehicle inoperable and smoke damaged.

NHTSA ODI 11624885

Aug 25, 2021Transmission & drivetrainBrakesEngineCrash1 injury

My daughter was in process of pulling her car into the garage when it experienced sudden acceleration and crashed into the garage. My daughter was unable to stop the car as the brake system failed during the incident. She is now too terrified to drive the car. Subaru claims that the car is and has been operating as intended. The Subaru Eyesight, Anti-Lock Braking, Vehicle Dynamic Control systems all failed during the sudden acceleration event. It's fortunate that this incident did not happen at a stoplight (intersection).

NHTSA ODI 11430534

Mar 19, 2020Transmission & drivetrainCrash

PULLED INTO A PARKING SPACE AND PLACED THE VEHICLE IN PARK,TURNED THE VEHICLE OFF, REMOVED THE KEY AND EXITED THE VEHICLE. WHEN RETURNING TO THE VEHICLE WITHIN 5 MINUTES, THE VEHICLE HAD ROLLED BACKWARDS 25 FEET AND HIT 2 PARKED CARS. I UNLOCKED THE VEHICLE, ENTERED IT AND STARTED THE CAR TO RETURN TO MY ORIGINAL PARKING SPACE SO I COULD CALL THE POLICE TO REPORT A FENDER BENDER. I WILL BE CALLING MY DEALERSHIP IN THE MORNING TO HAVE THE VEHICLE INSPECTED FOR SAFETY. IN THE MEANTIME I PARKED THE VEHICLE AND APPLIED THE EMERGENCY BRAKE AS AN ADDED PRECAUTION.

NHTSA ODI 11318753

Working with the data? Download all 279 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 12, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2019 Subaru Crosstrek verdict →