Subaru WRX
Owners filed 980 complaints across 25 model years of the Subaru WRX. The 2002 drew the most (427).
Which Subaru WRX years should you avoid?
Going by 980 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the Subaru WRX years to avoid are 2002.
- 2002427 complaints, 9.9× a typical WRX year, most often about the fuel system.
Better bets: among years old enough for a low count to mean something, the 2019 drew the fewest complaints without an unusual share of serious ones.
Too new to judge: 2025 and 2026. Complaints take a few years to arrive, so a new model year looks better than it is.
How this is worked out: each year is compared with a typical year of the same model, which takes most of the difference in sales out of it, and its share of serious failures is compared with every other car of the same model year, because older cars were complained about differently. A year needs 25 complaints to be judged at all. Complaints are unverified owner reports. Full method →
Every Subaru WRX model year compared
Complaints per year| Year | Complaints | Relative volume | Recalls | Fires | Crashes | Most reported | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026Too new | 1 | 0 | — | — | Engine | Routine | |
| 2025Too new | 3 | 0 | — | — | Electrical System | Routine | |
| 2024 | 14 | 0 | — | — | Unknown or Other | Routine | |
| 2023 | 9 | 1 | — | 2 | Engine | Routine | |
| 2022 | 25 | 1 | 1 | 3 | Engine | Routine | |
| 2021 | 13 | 1 | — | — | Power Train | Routine | |
| 2020 | 18 | 1 | — | 1 | Electrical System | Routine | |
| 2019 | 30 | 2 | — | — | Electrical System | Routine | |
| 2018 | 43 | 2 | 1 | 5 | Engine | Routine | |
| 2017 | 53 | 1 | 2 | 8 | Electrical System | Routine | |
| 2016 | 31 | 3 | 2 | 1 | Electrical System | Routine | |
| 2015 | 52 | 3 | 1 | 2 | Power Train | Routine | |
| 2014 | 6 | 10 | — | — | Service Brakes | Routine | |
| 2013 | 7 | 11 | — | 1 | Power Train | Routine | |
| 2012 | 2 | 12 | — | — | Vehicle Speed Control | Routine | |
| 2011 | 4 | 11 | — | — | Service Brakes | Routine | |
| 2010 | 1 | 12 | — | — | Structure › Body | Routine | |
| 2009 | 41 | 10 | — | — | Power Train | Routine | |
| 2008 | 65 | 7 | 1 | — | Power Train | Routine | |
| 2007 | 0 | 3 | — | — | — | Routine | |
| 2006 | 14 | 4 | — | — | Fuel/Propulsion System | Routine | |
| 2005 | 19 | 5 | — | — | Fuel System, Gasoline | Routine | |
| 2004 | 42 | 5 | — | 1 | Fuel System, Gasoline | Fatalities reported | |
| 2003 | 60 | 2 | 2 | 13 | Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip | Routine | |
| 2002Avoid | 427 | 2 | 2 | 17 | Fuel System, Gasoline › Delivery › Hoses, Lines/Piping, and Fittings | Above average |
Data: NHTSA complaint and recall files, October 2026. Complaints are unverified owner reports.