2013 Subaru IMPREZA

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Avoid This Year

Quick Summary

The 2013 Subaru IMPREZA has 343 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 4.3x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is air bags problems (28% of all complaints), specifically: i was involved in an accident while driving my recently acquired 2013 subaru impreza, where another driver hit my vehicle in a side impact on the driver side front wheel and driver door (i can send the pictures via email). the good news is that i was able to get out on the other side of the vehic. ⚠️ 9 fire reports filed.

9 fire reports 13 crash reports 5 injuries

343

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

4.3x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

AIR BAGS

96 complaints

28%

• I WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WHILE DRIVING MY RECENTLY ACQUIRED 2013 SUBARU IMPREZA, WHERE ANOTHER DRIVER HIT MY VEHICLE IN A SIDE IMPACT ON THE DRIVER SIDE FRONT WHEEL AND DRIVER DOOR (I CAN SEND THE PICTURES VIA EMAIL). THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT I WAS ABLE TO GET OUT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE VEHIC
• THE PASSENGER AIR BAG ILLUMINATED WITH AN OFF. IT SHOULD ALWAYS BE ON. THE BOUGHT THE CAR NEW WITH LESS THAN A YEAR DRIVING IT AND THE PASSENGER AIR BAG ILLUMINATION LIGHT TURNS TO OFF. ITS REALLY SCARY TO THINK OF WHAT MIGHT HAVE HAPPEN IF THERE WAS AN ACCIDENT DURING THE MALFUNCTION. *TR
• THERE IS AN INTERMITTENT ISSUE WHERE THE "PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF" LIGHT ERRATICALLY COMES ON WHEN AN OCCUPANT IS SEATED IN THE PASSENGER SEAT, AND THEN THE RED DASH LIGHT LOOKING LIKE A BALLOON WILL COME ON. NEITHER THE WEIGHT/POSITIONING OF THE OCCUPANT NOR RESTARTING THE VEHICLE CHANGE WHETHER THE

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 4 crashes

“I WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WHILE DRIVING MY RECENTLY ACQUIRED 2013 SUBARU IMPREZA, WHERE ANOTHER DRIVER HIT MY VEHICLE IN A SIDE IMPACT ON THE DRIVER SIDE FRONT WHEEL AND DRIVER DOOR (I CAN SEND THE PICTURES VIA EMAIL). THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT I WAS ABLE TO GET OUT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE VEHIC”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ENGINE

76 complaints

22%

• VEHICLE WILL NOT START AFTER AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF ATTEMPTS. APPEARS TO HAPPEN MOST OFTEN WHEN VEHICLE IS PARKED (EITHER INDOORS OR OUTSIDE) FOR MORE THAN SEVERAL HOURS. CAR WILL CRANK OVER FOR 10+ SECONDS AND WILL NOT START. AFTER MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS, CAR HAS STARTED EVENTUALLY. HAVE COMMUNICAT
• I BOUGHT MY 2013 SUBARU IMPREZA AND WITH APPROX 10,000 MILES I GOT A LOW OIL LIGHT ON. I FOUND OUT MY SUBARU BURNS A QUART OF OIL EVERY 2500-3000 MILES. THAT IS UNACCEPTABLE FOR A BRAND NEW CAR. SUBARU IS SELLING A LEMON. *TR
• I WAS DRIVING INTO WORK IN THE MORNING AND AS I ENTERED THE PARKING AREA I NOTICED MY OIL LIGHT COME ON. I PARKED THE CAR AND CHECKED THE OIL, AND TO MY SURPRISE THERE WAS NOTHING ON THE STICK. I HAD JUST CHANGED THE OIL LESS THAN 2000 MILES PRIOR TO THIS AND I WAS CONCERNED. I PROCEEDED TO CHECK FO

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 5 fire reports💥 1 crashes

“VEHICLE WILL NOT START AFTER AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF ATTEMPTS. APPEARS TO HAPPEN MOST OFTEN WHEN VEHICLE IS PARKED (EITHER INDOORS OR OUTSIDE) FOR MORE THAN SEVERAL HOURS. CAR WILL CRANK OVER FOR 10+ SECONDS AND WILL NOT START. AFTER MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS, CAR HAS STARTED EVENTUALLY. HAVE COMMUNICAT”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRICAL

33 complaints

10%

• DECEMBER 19, 2013, I PURCHASED A SUBARU IMPREZA FROM KOEPPEL SUBARU IN LONG ISLAND CITY, N.Y. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THE CAR WAS "BRAND NEW" AND USED ONLY FOR TEST DRIVES. AFTER 5 MONTHS OF DRIVING THE CAR, THE CAR BEGAN TO HAVE PROBLEMS TO START. PUTTING THE KEY IN THE IGNITION, THERE WAS NO RESPON
• MY CAR IS HAVING THE SAME EXACT BEHAVIOR DESCRIBED IN A RECALL FOR THE 2012 MODEL YEAR (NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER 15V419000, SUBARU RECALL NUMBER WQT-55). MY CAR IS NOT COVERED BY THE RECALL, BUT IT SEEMS LIKE IT SHOULD BE SINCE MY PROBLEM APPEARS TO BE IDENTICAL TO THAT WHICH IS DESCRIBED.
• TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 SUBARU IMPREZA. WHEN ATTEMPTING TO REMOVE THE VEHICLE FROM THE IGNITION, THE CONTACT HAD TO USE MORE FORCE THAN NORMAL. THE FAILURE CAUSED THE KEY TO BEND. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE IGNITION FAILED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 2 fire reports

“DECEMBER 19, 2013, I PURCHASED A SUBARU IMPREZA FROM KOEPPEL SUBARU IN LONG ISLAND CITY, N.Y. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THE CAR WAS "BRAND NEW" AND USED ONLY FOR TEST DRIVES. AFTER 5 MONTHS OF DRIVING THE CAR, THE CAR BEGAN TO HAVE PROBLEMS TO START. PUTTING THE KEY IN THE IGNITION, THERE WAS NO RESPON”

— NHTSA complaint filing

BRAKES

24 complaints

• 2013 SUBARU IMPREZA. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO BRAKE ASSIST SYSTEM. *SMD ACCORDING TO THE SUBARU MANUAL, THE BRAKE ASSIST SYSTEM ASSISTED THE BRAKE POWER WHEN THE DRIVER CANNOT DEPRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL STRONGLY AND THE BRAKE POWER WAS INSUFFICIENT. BRAKE ASSIST GENERATED THE BRAKE POWER ACCORD
• IN AN OUTSIDE PARKING LOT WITH PARKING BLOCKS STARTED THE CAR AND MOVED FORWARD TOWARD AND OVER THE PARKING BLOCK AT STARTING SPEED. THE CAR LEAPED FORWARD AND LOST BRAKING POWER, WITH THE BRAKE PEDAL GOING TO THE FLOOR. CAR LEAPED AHEAD ACROSS THE ASPHALT ROAD TO NEXT PARKING ROW ON GRAVEL WITH DRI
• BRAKE FAILURE AT LOW SPEED COMING TO STOP AT TRAFFIC LIGHT, TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT CAME ON,BRAKE LIGHT CAME ON AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON. RETURNED TO DEALER TO REPAIR. DEALER TOOK 2 DAYS TO REPAIR . AT WITCH IT LASTED TILL TODAY(12/30/2013). THE SAME THING HAS HAPPENED AGAIN. VERY SCARY YOU WONDER

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports💥 6 crashes

“2013 SUBARU IMPREZA. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO BRAKE ASSIST SYSTEM. *SMD ACCORDING TO THE SUBARU MANUAL, THE BRAKE ASSIST SYSTEM ASSISTED THE BRAKE POWER WHEN THE DRIVER CANNOT DEPRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL STRONGLY AND THE BRAKE POWER WAS INSUFFICIENT. BRAKE ASSIST GENERATED THE BRAKE POWER ACCORD”

— NHTSA complaint filing

TRANSMISSION

23 complaints

• WAS AT A RED LIGHT, STOPPED. LIGHT TURNED GREEN STARTED TO GO, WENT TO SHIFT INTO 2ND GEAR AND HEARD A LOUD POP AND THE CAR WOULDN'T GO ANY MORE. HAD IT TOWED TO GERALD JONES SUBARU DEALER, WHERE I BOUGHT IT. WAS TOLD IT WAS DRIVER ERROR AND THE CLUTCH WENT OUT. AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC SAID HE'S
• FAINT WHIRRING NOISE NOTED, NO OTHER PROBLEMS- NO CHANGE TO PERFORMANCE, NO WARNING LIGHTS INDICATING PROBLEM BUT WHEN BROUGHT TO DEALERSHIP FOR A CHECK TOLD TRANSMISSION NEEDED REPLACEMENT $ 7902.88 NEVER HAD ANY PROBLEMS WITH THIS CAR PREVIOUSLY, HAD ROUTINE OIL CHANGES (ALTHOUGH ONE TIME WITHIN
• YOU CAN GOOGLE THE THOUSANDS OF CASES OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE SAME ISSUE I'M DESCRIBING. SEEMS TO BE ALL MODELS OF IMPREZA WRX 08+. I HAVE A GRADUATE POPING FROM MY CLUTCH PEDAL THAT GRADUALLY GOT LOADER AND LOUDER AND LOUDER. NOW I CAN HEAR SQUEAKING OR CREEKING OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE WHEN THE CLUTCH I

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 1 crashes

“WAS AT A RED LIGHT, STOPPED. LIGHT TURNED GREEN STARTED TO GO, WENT TO SHIFT INTO 2ND GEAR AND HEARD A LOUD POP AND THE CAR WOULDN'T GO ANY MORE. HAD IT TOWED TO GERALD JONES SUBARU DEALER, WHERE I BOUGHT IT. WAS TOLD IT WAS DRIVER ERROR AND THE CLUTCH WENT OUT. AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC SAID HE'S ”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

AIR BAGS(~50K mi)

$500

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

BRAKES(~50K mi)

$500

TRANSMISSION(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 343 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
AIR BAGS: I WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WHILE DRIVING MY RECENTLY ACQUIRED 2013 SUBARU IMPREZA, WHERE ANOTHER DRIVER HIT MY VEHICLE IN A SIDE IMPACT ON THE DRIVER SIDE FRONT WHEEL AND DRIVER DOOR (I CAN SEND THE PICTURES VIA EMAIL). THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT I WAS ABLE TO GET OUT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE VEHIC
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ENGINE: VEHICLE WILL NOT START AFTER AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF ATTEMPTS. APPEARS TO HAPPEN MOST OFTEN WHEN VEHICLE IS PARKED (EITHER INDOORS OR OUTSIDE) FOR MORE THAN SEVERAL HOURS. CAR WILL CRANK OVER FOR 10+ SECONDS AND WILL NOT START. AFTER MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS, CAR HAS STARTED EVENTUALLY. HAVE COMMUNICAT
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRICAL: DECEMBER 19, 2013, I PURCHASED A SUBARU IMPREZA FROM KOEPPEL SUBARU IN LONG ISLAND CITY, N.Y. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THE CAR WAS "BRAND NEW" AND USED ONLY FOR TEST DRIVES. AFTER 5 MONTHS OF DRIVING THE CAR, THE CAR BEGAN TO HAVE PROBLEMS TO START. PUTTING THE KEY IN THE IGNITION, THERE WAS NO RESPON
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
BRAKES: 2013 SUBARU IMPREZA. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO BRAKE ASSIST SYSTEM. *SMD ACCORDING TO THE SUBARU MANUAL, THE BRAKE ASSIST SYSTEM ASSISTED THE BRAKE POWER WHEN THE DRIVER CANNOT DEPRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL STRONGLY AND THE BRAKE POWER WAS INSUFFICIENT. BRAKE ASSIST GENERATED THE BRAKE POWER ACCORD
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)