On February 3, 2026, while driving approximately 80 mph on Interstate 10, the manual transmission shifter bypassed the 6th gear detent entirely and moved toward the reverse gear position, creating an immediate and severe safety hazard. I prevented full reverse engagement only through physical intervention. Had the transmission engaged reverse at 80 mph, catastrophic drivetrain damage and loss of vehicle control would have resulted. The vehicle was taken to El Paso Subaru for a Subaru-authorized inspection on February 9, 2026. As of March 18, 2026 (37+ days), the transmission remains disassembled. A Subaru corporate engineer inspected the vehicle but the report has not been shared with me. The vehicle maintenance app confirms the car was last moved March 12 and has been sitting idle since. Subaru is pursuing a warranty denial based on aftermarket modifications without demonstrating specific causation as required under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. Subaru Case #260204-2202126.

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11725305 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

On 12/3/2025 at approximately 9:46 am, I was driving at about 30 mph when a SiriusXM advertisement suddenly appeared on the infotainment screen. The pop-up took over the entire display and required manual dismissal to regain access to navigation and audio controls. This interruption forced me to divert my eyes and hand from the road. I have video evidence showing the ad appearing while the car was actively moving but can only attach a screenshot in this report. This poses a significant safety risk, especially at highway speeds or in poor weather conditions. Other Subaru owners have reported similar issues, indicating this may be a widespread software or UX defect. I am submitting this complaint to request investigation into whether Subaru’s infotainment system violates safety-critical UI standards by permitting advertisements to display while the vehicle is in motion.

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11703861 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

I understand that every manufacturer is racing to get these vehicles autonomous or something similar to it and I can fully appreciate a world that would be as I'm sick of distracted drivers as it is these days and the police's complicity or the lack of enforcement doesn't help. That said, the pre-collision system in Subaru needs a bit of an overhaul or an option to shut it off permanently and not every single time we start the vehicle. There were two separate instances where the collision warning picked up "something" that caused it to brake unexpectedly and hard causing ABS to trigger and everything getting thrown off the seats. I have no idea what even caused it. One other instance is when the vehicle in front of me suddenly braked unexpectedly. Seeing as I do not tailgate, I had plenty of time to move over to the other lane. In the process of this, the car detected the braking vehicle in front and just slammed the pre-collision brakes on me causing all sorts of panic for myself and every driver around me. The car tried to stop on the parkway at 55 mph because I wanted to merge left (and had plenty of space to do so) whereas the car just wanted to stop. The lane I was merging to didn't have anyone so it was fine but the person behind me probably freaked out a bit. Subaru needs to give us the ability to adjust the sensativity of these systems or just the ability to turn them off permanently. I love this car and love the brand but I feel they could do better. I'd like to say these manufacturers need to stop trying to baby and coddle us but when I see the drivers these days, I can understand where they are coming from.

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11691100 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

The component failing is the side skirts or, as officially described in the Subaru parts diagram, the „Side Spoiler“. It can also be found as part numbers 96051, and 96051A. It can be easily visually inspected. This puts others at risk because it may end up dragging on the road, or falling off entirely which poses a major safety risk to other drivers because it is a piece of plastic nearly the length of the entire wheelbase. After talking with other owners, they have had the same issue, and in my case I had the issue a few months after purchasing the car. Then when the rear of the car was replaced and fixed due to an accident, they fixed this issue, but it came back a month after being repaired. I do not know if it has been inspected by Subaru or police or insurance, but they may see it as a recurring issue. There were know warning lamps or messages. I only noticed when inspecting my car before use or while washing it.

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11705637 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov