What breaks most · 2023 to 2026 model years
Subaru Solterra problems by year
Owners have filed 76 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Subaru Solterra across model years 2023 to 2026. Three years stand out: 2023 for electrical system complaints, 2026 for electrical system complaints and 2024 for forward collision system complaints.
- Years to check closely: 2023, 2026, 2024
- Complaints on file
- 762023 to 2026, all trims
- Worst year
- 202341 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 70 fires · 1 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 16kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 9Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 41 | 5 | 4 | Electrical system (15) | |
| 14 | 2 | 2 | Forward collision system (5) | |
| 4 | 0 | 2 | Electrical system (1) | |
| 17 | 0 | 1 | Electrical system (9) |
What fails on the 2023 Subaru Solterra
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 37% |
15 | 2 | Shop all electrical system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Unknown or other | 32% |
13 | 0 | — |
| Forward collision systemRadar and camera sensors | 24% |
10 | 2 | Shop all forward collision system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| BrakesBrake pads, rotors and calipers | 15% |
6 | 1 | Shop brakes parts for the 2023 Subaru Solterra |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 15% |
6 | 0 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Speed control and throttleThrottle and pedal sensors | 15% |
6 | 3 | Shop all speed control and throttle parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Wipers and visibilityWiper motors and blades | 10% |
4 | 0 | Shop all wipers and visibility parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 10% |
4 | 0 | Shop all body and structure parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
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In light snow, the car automatically braked at speed causing the car to veer off the road after skidding, multiple times. The "safety" features of this car make it dangerous to operate.
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Phone calls constantly get dropped using hands free CarPlay, requiring me to switch to using my phone manually on the call. Big safety issue. I see online in numerous forums that this is an issue with Subaru use of CarPlay. It is not the phone, and I have tried every fix suggested.
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Lane departure feature is overly sensitive, often adjusts the car when not needed and has made car swerve inadvertently
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Subaru Solterra years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2023, 2026, 2024 carry the most filings on the Subaru Solterra. The 2023 alone has 41 complaints, led by electrical system.
What is the most common Subaru Solterra problem?
On the 2023 model year, the most-reported component is electrical system with 15 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Subaru Solterra problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Subaru Solterra complaints that include mileage is about 16,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.