Problems · NHTSA complaints
2009 Subaru Tribeca problems
Owners filed 14 complaints about the 2009 Subaru Tribeca with NHTSA between May 2010 and Dec 2024. The most-cited component is power train (3).
Complaints
14
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
2
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
Complaints by component
One complaint can cite several components
- Power train3
- Electrical system2
- Engine2
- Service brakes2
- Air bags1
- Exterior lighting1
- Vehicle speed control1
- Fuel/propulsion system1
- Electronic stability control (esc)1
- Structure1
- Visibility/wiper1
- Service brakes, hydraulic1
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Oct 29, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
When complaints were filed
Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
1
0
3
0
2
3
0
1
3
0
0
0
0
0
1
View as table
| Model year | Complaints filed per calendar year |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 1 |
| 2011 | 0 |
| 2012 | 3 |
| 2013 | 0 |
| 2014 | 2 |
| 2015 | 3 |
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 1 |
| 2018 | 3 |
| 2019 | 0 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 0 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 1 |
Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.
Top problems in owners’ words
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
Power train
3 reports
“THERE IS A LARGE SHUDDER AT SLOW ACCELERATION. THE PROBLEM WAS SLIGHT TO BEGIN WITH HOWEVER, THE PROBLEM CONTINUES TO GET WORSE. DEALER HAS CONFIRMED THAT THE TORQUE CONVERTER IS NO GOOD, HOWEVER THEY WILL NOT REPLACE FOR FREE SINCE THE VEHICLE IS OUT OF WARRANTY. THROUGH MY INVESTIGATION, I FOUND THAT SUBARU DID A DESIGN CHANGE IN EARLY 2009 TO CORRECT THIS PROBLEM. UNFORTUNATELY, SUBARU HAS NOT ISSUED A RECALL FOR ALL DEFECTIVE TORQUE CONVERTERS IT HAS INSTALLED. *TR”
Electrical system
2 reports
“PROBLEM 1. WHILE DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE HIGHWAY CAR LOST POWER, STALLED AND SHUT OFF. THE GAS GUAGE WAS ON A 1/4 OF TAN OF GASOLINE, MILES GUAGE READ 100 MILES. I WAS ABLE TO COAST TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THANKS GOD, I NEAR THE NEXT EXIT. I WAS ABLE TO RESTART MY CAR AFTER ABOUT TEN MINUTE AND WENT TO THE NEAREST GAS STATION. THIS HAVE HAPPEN TO ME TWICE ON THE INTERSTATE HIGHWAY SO I TRY NOT LET THE GAS GUAGE FALL BELOW 1/4 TANK BECAUSE THE SENSOR ARE NOT REGISTER CORRECT. I HAVE TAKE MY CAR TO SUBARU DEALER IN JACKSON, MS 3 TIMES THEY CAN FIND THE PROBLEM. I TRAVEL THE INTERSTATE HIGHWAY DAILY TO WORK, USUALLY DRIVE IN THE OUTER LEFT OR RIGHT LANE SO IF MY CAR CUT OFF I WILL BE ABLE TO COAST OFF TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD NOT AT RAN OVER. I TOOK VIDEO PICTURE OF THE GUAGE READING TO SHOW TO THE SUBARU DEALER ON MY CELL PHONE. PROBLEM 2. TEMPERATURE GAUGE READ THE CAR IS RUNNING HOT WHILE DRIVING AND SITTING AT STOP LIGHT. THE GAUGE RANDOMLY MOVES UP AND DOWN WHILE DRIVING. I HAD TAKE MY CAR TO SUBARU OF JACKSON TWICE ABOUT THIS PROBLEM. THEY KEEP MAY CAR FOR ABOUT A WEEK COULD NOT GET IT TO REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. I HAVE REPLACE MY RADIATOR AND THERMOSTAT BUT…”
Engine
2 reports
“I AM IN THE MILITARY CURRENTLY STATIONED OVERSEAS, IN ITALY, AND WE NOTICED THAT THE CAR I BOUGHT IN 2015 HAS BEEN RELEASING GAS FUMES ON COLD MORNING, THAT WILL LAST NO MORE THAN 3 MINUTES, NOTICEABLY WHEN THE ENGINE IS WARMED UP. WE NEVER NOTICED THIS HAPPENING ON WARM SEASON. STRONG GAS SMELL COMES IN THROUGH THE AC VENTS WHEN THE CIRCULATION IS OPEN AND/OR IN DEFOGGER MODE. NO GAS SMELL IN ENGINE BAY BUT RATHER THE GAS SMELL IS STRONG ON THE EXHAUST PIPES.”
Service brakes
2 reports1 crash
“THE CAR WAS STARTED IN THE DRIVEWAY ON A VERY COLD DAY. THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS INITIALLY ABLE TO BE PRESSED, BUT THEN BECAME ROCK HARD AND COULD NOT BE PUSHED DOWN. AFTER 10 MINUTES OF LETTING THE CAR WARM UP, THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS ABLE TO BE PRESSED, BUT THEN SEIZED UP AGAIN 1 MINUTE LATER. THIS COULD CAUSE A CRASH IF IT OCCURRED ON THE HIGHWAY. *TR”
Air bags
1 report1 crash6 related recalls
“The contact owned a 2009 Subaru B9 Tribeca. The contact stated while driving on ice, at a low speed, the contact's vehicle slid and rolled before slamming into a culvert. The contact stated that the driver's door air bag was deployed, however, no other air bags deployed. In addition, the contact stated that an unknown air bag recall repair was performed on the vehicle in 2023. The vehicle was towed to a local tow yard. The Police and paramedics were at the scene. A Police report was filed, however, some of the information was unavailable. The contact was transported to the local hospital. The contact sustained bruises, scratches, and body pain. The vehicle was condemned to total loss by the insurance company. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 200,000.”
Exterior lighting
1 report1 related recall
“HEADLAMPS BURN OUT AND CAUSE SHORTING ON OTHER ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS LIKE BLOWER FAN, WINDOWS AND ETC. I CHANGE HEADLAMPS EVERY 1-2 MONTHS SOMETIMES SOONER, AND NOW I'M FORCED TO CHANGE THE ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS THAT ARE EFFECTED BY THIS SHORTING ISSUE!!!!!! I'M TOLD THAT SUBARU HAD AN DEFECT WITH THIS ISSUE FROM OTHER COUNTRIES!!!”
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 29, 2026
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.