2009 Subaru Outback: Best bet

Owners filed 20 complaints with NHTSA about the 2009 Subaru Outback in its first five years on the road, about 38 for every 100,000 sold: 0.3× the rate of a typical Outback year. That's among the fewest of any Outback year.

The biggest problem area, counting serious complaints more, is speed control (10% of complaints).

Complaint index
0.3×
per vehicle sold, vs. a typical Outback year
Rank
1st of 14
1st = fewest complaints
Complaints
20
first five years; 38 per 100,000 sold
Recalls
13
campaigns
3rd generation, 2005–2009 · Updated September 24, 2026 · How we rate
2008–2009 Subaru Outback

Photo: 2008–2009 Subaru Outback · IFCAR, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Problem areas

Ranked by severity-weighted complaints · share · median miles
  1. Speed control10% · 2 complaints
  2. Air bags5% · 1 complaints
  3. Powertrain25% · 5 complaints
  4. Suspension20% · 4 complaints
  5. Engine15% · 3 complaints
  6. Wheels and tires15% · 3 complaints
  7. Lights10% · 2 complaints
  8. Brakes5% · 1 complaints
  9. Steering5% · 1 complaints
  10. Electrical5% · 1 complaints

Bars rank problem areas by complaints weighted for severity (crashes, fires, injuries and deaths count more). A complaint can name more than one area. Mileage is reported on about half of complaints.

What owners describe

Air bags

Owners describe the air bag warning light coming on intermittently, often linked to a passenger seat belt sensor or overhead console module, sometimes worsening in cold or hot weather. Many also report long waits for Takata recall repairs due to backordered parts, leaving them uneasy about air bag function.

Warning signs:
Many report the air bag or seat belt warning light turning on and off, sometimes tied to cold or hot weather, before staying on constantly.
What shops did:
Dealers often diagnosed a code related to the passenger seat belt or overhead map light assembly, replacing that module; some owners were told the part wasn't covered under warranty or was on backorder for months.
Mileage:
most between 45,000 and 110,000 miles, among 18 complaints that give it

“The airbag light on the dash would intermittently turn on. If I turned the car off and then right back on the light would go out.”

“They scanned the system and found code 26. Apparently the airbag sensor runs through that assembly and there is a connection that wears out”

Summaries are written with AI from the owner complaints shown on NHTSA's site and checked against them; quotes are word for word.

  • NHTSA 20V001000January 2020258,813 vehicles

    Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (STI included), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

    Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Fix: Subaru will notify their owners.

  • NHTSA 20V002000January 2020127,547 vehicles

    Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

    Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Fix: Subaru will notify their owners.

  • NHTSA 20V003000January 2020111,562 vehicles

    Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

    Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Fix: Subaru will notify their owners.

  • NHTSA 19V297000April 2019511 vehicles

    Electrical system: ignition: switch

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester vehicles, 2008-2011 Impreza vehicles, 2008-2014 WRX vehicles, 2005-2014 Legacy vehicles, 2005-2014 Outback vehicles and 2006-2008 Tribeca vehicles equipped with a mechanical key ignition switch installed as a replacement part. The ball spring inside the switch may break, reducing the strength of the ignition switch. If this occurs, the weight on the key ring and certain road conditions could cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position to the accessory position, turning off the engine.

    Risk: The engine turning off unexpectedly can increase the risk of a crash. If a crash occurs under this condition, the air bag may not deploy, increasing the risk of injury.

    Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ignition switch, replacing the ignition switch, if necessary, free of charge.

  • NHTSA 18V012000January 201864,179 vehicles

    Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Legacy, Forester, Tribeca, WRX and Outback vehicles, and 2009-2011 Impreza vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

    Risk: An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge.

  • NHTSA 18V013000January 201893,209 vehicles

    Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2010 Tribeca, Impreza, Forester, WRX, Legacy, and Outback vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

    Risk: An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge.

  • NHTSA 18V014000January 201872,150 vehicles

    Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009 Tribeca, Impreza, Forester, WRX, Legacy, and Outback vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

    Risk: An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflators, free of charge.

  • NHTSA 17V026000January 201769,529 vehicles

    Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2005-2006 Baja, 2009 Forester, Legacy and Outback and 2006-2009 Impreza (including WRX and STI models) and Tribeca vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

    Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger front air bag inflator, free of charge.

  • NHTSA 17V014000January 201753,480 vehicles

    Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2005-2006 Subaru Baja, 2006-2011 Impreza (including WRX and STI models), 2006-2012 Tribeca, 2009-2012 Forester, Legacy, Outback, and 2012 WRX vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

    Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge.

  • NHTSA 16V738000October 2016100,127 vehicles

    Electrical system

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2007-2009 model year Legacy and Outback vehicles, 2008-2014 Impreza vehicles and 2009-2013 Forester vehicles, all equipped with turbo-charged engines. The relay that controls the secondary air injection pump may fail, causing the pump to continuously operate and overheat.

    Risk: If the air injection pump overheats, it may melt and increase the risk of a fire.

    Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the secondary air injection pump relay, free of charge.

  • NHTSA 16V358000May 2016302,127 vehicles

    Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2003-2004 Legacy, Outback, 2009-2011 Legacy, Outback, Forester, 2006-2011 Impreza, Tribeca, 2003-2006 Baja, and 2006 Saab 9-2x vehicles originally sold or that have ever been registered in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." These vehicles may be equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

    Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

    Fix: Subaru will notify their owners.

  • NHTSA 14V311000June 2014461,338 vehicles

    Service brakes, hydraulic: foundation components: hoses, lines/piping, and fittings

    Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Outback and Legacy, 2008-2011 Impreza and 2008-2014 Impreza WRX/STI, and 2009-2013 Forester vehicles, currently, or formerly, registered in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. Salt water could splash on the brake lines through a gap in the fuel tank protector, resulting in excessive corrosion of the brake lines. Note that affected vehicles not currently, or formerly registered, in the salt belt states identified above are eligible for repair, at no cost to the customer, upon request.

    Risk: Brake line corrosion may result in brake fluid leakage. Fluid leakage may result in longer distances being required to slow or stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

    Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will test the brake system by depressing the brake pedal and inspecting for brake fluid leaks.

  • NHTSA 13V110000March 2013274,402 vehicles

    Service brakes, hydraulic: foundation components: hoses, lines/piping, and fittings

    Subaru is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Outback and Legacy vehicles manufactured from December 2003, through April 2009 and currently, or formerly, registered in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. Salt water could splash on the brake lines through a gap in the fuel tank protector, resulting in excessive corrosion of the brake lines.

    Risk: Brake line corrosion may result in brake fluid leakage. Fluid leakage may result in longer distances being required to slow or stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

    Fix: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicles.

A recall only helps if the repair was done. Enter the vehicle's 17-character VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup before you buy.

Service bulletins

Subaru sent NHTSA 190 service bulletins and other notices to dealers covering the 2009 Outback. These are repair instructions, not recalls. Warranty extensions and bulletins about its top problem areas:

  • SubaruNet Announcement (R · May 2026This announcement provides information on the remanufactured CVT transmission program.
  • 03-97-26 · April 2026This bulletin announces the service manual correction regarding clutch master cylinder reservoir service procedures.
  • Subaru Service Technical · August 2025Subaru Service Technical Support Newsletter special edition.
  • Subarunet Announcement · July 2024This annoucement provides parts personnel information about remanufactured transmissions that will no longer be available.
  • TKA-20R, TKB-20R · December 2023SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.
  • TKA-17R, TKB-17R · December 2023SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.
  • TKA-20R/TKB-30R/ · October 2023SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.
  • TKA-20R,TKB-20R, · May 2023Takata Front Passenger Airbag Module / Inflator “Like for Like” Recall

All 2009 Outback bulletins on NHTSA ›

Questions owners ask

Is the 2009 Subaru Outback reliable?
Owners filed 20 complaints with NHTSA about the 2009 Subaru Outback in its first five years on the road, about 38 for every 100,000 sold: 0.3× the rate of a typical Outback year. That's among the fewest of any Outback year. Ratings compare Outback years with each other using complaints filed with NHTSA; they don't measure every problem owners have.
What are the most common 2009 Outback problems?
Owners' complaints most often involve speed control (10%), the air bags (5%) and the powertrain (transmission and drivetrain) (25%). A complaint can name more than one area.
Has the 2009 Subaru Outback been recalled?
Yes. NHTSA lists 13 recall campaigns for the 2009 Subaru Outback, the most recent in January 2020 (air bags). Enter the vehicle's VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to see whether the repairs were done.

Sources

Owner complaints, recalls and manufacturer communications from NHTSA's public data files, as of September 24, 2026. Complaints are counted once each, over the model year's first 60 months on the road. UsedScore is not affiliated with NHTSA or Subaru. The 2009 Subaru Outback on NHTSA.gov · How we rate