Problems · by component

2015 Subaru Outback structure problems

33 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2015 Subaru Outback cite structure, 6% of all 509 complaints for this model year.

Complaints
33
6% of all complaints
Crashes
1
Reported by owners
Fires
1
Reported by owners
Injuries
0
Reported by owners
01 —Owner reports

What owners say about the structure

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while the vehicle was at the dealer for an oil change and snow tire replacement, the contact was informed that the sub frame and the brake lines were severely corroded and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was taken to a second dealer, 802 Toyota (30 Berlin Mall Rd, Berlin, VT 05602) for a Trade-In, and it was confirmed that the sub frame was corroded during the appraisal inspection. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that the failure was caused by salt damage; however, the contact stated that the vehicle was used for leisure rather than commute since the contact was retired. The failure mileage was 86,801.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Nov 21, 2025Service brakes, hydraulic, StructureODI 11700816
“The front subframe on my 2015 subaru 3.6r has rapidly rusted in a few years to the point of a safety concern. The vehicle is lightly driven, with 91,000 miles on it after almost 10 years. We live in the Northeast. I take this car in for regular inspections and service every six months and the service center I work with has not alerted me of any issues until this past march when they found the subframe almost completely rotted in the middle. Subaru has had similar issues subject to recalls for the rear subframe. Notably, my rear subframe does not have this issue. Evidence is available that this is exact issue is happening to many cars in this generation, found upon scanning forums such as reddit [XXX] and the subaruoutback.org owners forum [XXX]”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Apr 1, 2025Suspension, StructureODI 11652007
“My sunroof glass just shattered spontaneously while I was driving. Thankfully the door was closed or me and my daughter would have been showered by glass while in the road. Nothing hit the car , I just heard a loud bang over my heard and when I stopped to see what happened my sunroof was in pieces!”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jan 20, 2025Structure, Unknown or otherODI 11637190
“2015 Subaru Outback Premium. Took in to a very helpful local Subaru Dealer and they discovered that the front subframe has rusted out seemingly prematurely. The vehicle just turned 10 years old with and upon doing research it seems to be a widely known commonly occurring problem. Would be handy if Subaru of America could do a recall on the front subframe as it is a very high cost repair to have it done correctly with the safest outcome.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jan 4, 2025StructureODI 11634024
“The dealer found significant rusting on the front subframe and some on the rear subframe. The front was enough there's a hole in it. I was told it was not safe to drive as it would not hold in an accident.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 14, 2024StructureODI 11619608
“While driving on 55mph road, sunroof suddenly shattered for no apparent reason (no sudden impact from rock or other debris), producing a loud bang, startling driver. Driver momentarily swerved due to being startled by noise from next to head before correcting. No other cars were around on the road at the time and driver is sure no rocks or other objects fell onto sunroof (covered by rooftop cargo box, no trees near street to drop debris). Pieces of glass went upwards and ended up on roof of vehicle.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 23, 2022Structure, Unknown or otherODI 11490479

Showing 6 of 33 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 3, 2026NHTSA vehicle page

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.