What breaks most · 2002 to 2025 model years
Subaru WRX problems by year
Owners have filed 974 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Subaru WRX across model years 2002 to 2025. One year stands out: 2002 for fuel system complaints. The quietest years are 2010, 2012 and 2011.
- Years to check closely: 2002
- Fewest complaints: 2010, 2012, 2011
- Complaints on file
- 9742002 to 2025, all trims
- Worst year
- 2002427 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 5412 fires · 31 injuries · 1 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 46kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 106Across 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 427 | 17 | 2 | Fuel system (266) | |
| 60 | 13 | 2 | Brakes (hydraulic) (20) | |
| 42 | 1 | 5 | Fuel system (27) | |
| 19 | 0 | 5 | Fuel system (6) | |
| 14 | 0 | 4 | Powertrain and transmission (4) | |
| 65 | 0 | 7 | Powertrain and transmission (48) | |
| 41 | 0 | 10 | Powertrain and transmission (33) | |
| 1 | 0 | 12 | Brakes (1) | |
| 4 | 0 | 11 | Unknown or other (1) | |
| 2 | 0 | 12 | Engine (1) | |
| 7 | 1 | 11 | Powertrain and transmission (6) | |
| 6 | 0 | 10 | Brakes (3) | |
| 52 | 2 | 3 | Powertrain and transmission (18) | |
| 31 | 1 | 3 | Electrical system (10) | |
| 53 | 8 | 1 | Electrical system (14) | |
| 42 | 5 | 2 | Engine (11) | |
| 30 | 0 | 2 | Electrical system (14) | |
| 17 | 1 | 1 | Electrical system (5) | |
| 13 | 0 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (6) | |
| 25 | 3 | 1 | Engine (15) | |
| 8 | 2 | 1 | Suspension (2) | |
| 13 | 0 | 0 | Unknown or other (6) | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | Backup camera and sensors (1) |
What fails on the 2002 Subaru WRX
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 62% |
266 | 0 | Shop all fuel system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 15% |
64 | 10 | Shop all brakes (hydraulic) parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Fuel System, Other | 6% |
25 | 0 | — |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 4% |
16 | 1 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 4% |
16 | 0 | Shop all engine and cooling parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Service Brakes, AIR | 4% |
15 | 3 | — |
| VisibilityMirrors and glass | 2% |
8 | 0 | Shop all visibility parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 1% |
6 | 0 | Shop all fuel system 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.
-
When it is cold outside my car smells like raw fuel very strongly in the cabin resulting in headaches and dizziness. This is a common problem among-st these cars and subaru knows about it because they had an extended recall but does not cover the problem now.
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 WRX years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2002 carries the most filings on the Subaru WRX. The 2002 alone has 427 complaints, led by fuel system.
What is the most common Subaru WRX problem?
On the 2002 model year, the most-reported component is fuel system with 266 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Subaru WRX problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Subaru WRX complaints that include mileage is about 46,000 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.