2012 Subaru Impreza Transmission and drivetrain Problems
- Complaints
- 26about this part
- Share
- 11%of 243 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 71,000miles
- Trend
- FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.
NHTSA recorded 26 complaints about the transmission and drivetrain of the 2012 Subaru Impreza, 11% of the 243 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 71,000 miles.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“Hit a bump and dashboard lit up with sensor lights. Subaru repair shop inspected with codes and said I need a new valve body for $1700. The warranty extension for this ended july 2018, but I never received a notification from Subaru or from my Subaru dealer regarding this known problem with the CVT.”
NHTSA complaint #11193666, filed 2019-04, 141,000 miles“Driving on highway and the car stopped/stalled suddenly while in motion, this was a dangerous situation, drivers behind me had to react to my sudden/full stop. I was told it was a transmission problem.”
NHTSA complaint #11218302, filed 2019-06, 129,000 miles“My son's 2012 Subaru Impreza, was bought used, with 59,000. Miles, with hope of owning a reliable, safe vehicle on 2/11/16. On 6/26/16 he went for a routine oil change and within one week the car was completely seized. He was driving home, no warning lights, or anything just made a loud sound then he was just barely able to make it to the side of a busy 3 lane road to call for a tow truck. At the time, we worried that the oil change may have been done improperly and caused the issue. …”
NHTSA complaint #10903535, filed 2016-09, 67,000 miles“Two instances of CVT Transmission failure. First: Occurred at 102,926 miles, car only 8 years old. While driving, suddenly many warning lights came on and the car started shuddering. The lights were Check Engine, Oil Temp, Cruise Control, vehicle dynamics, and ABS. I drove my car to a transmission shop, who read the codes 2764 and and 0700. He replaced the TCC Solenoid and valve body on 11/18/2020. I drove the car for 6 more months to ~106,000 miles successfully, until... The Second Issue: On 6/6/21 while driving my car, it stopped accelerating. I couldn't go above 18 mph! …”
NHTSA complaint #11421581, filed 2021-06, 102,926 miles“I was driving my vehicle in rush hour traffic at 65 MPH and all of a sudden my vehicle acted as if I had shifted into neutral. It started to decelerate and when I pressed down on the accelerator, it only revved the RPM's higher. It did not speed up to allow me to safely get out of traffic. I tried manually shifting the automatic CVT transmission, but this made no difference. The cruise control was not on at the time. I turned on my flashers and was able to go from the left lane to the shoulder. I put the car in park, shut off the ignition and let it set for a minute. …”
NHTSA complaint #10456151, filed 2012-04, 1,940 milesRelated service bulletins
- 11036810Aug 20, 2026This bulletin announces a design change made to the CVT Control Valve Body. The updated valve body incorporates an enhanced valve sleeve to improve durability. This is an revised…
- 11034242Jun 2, 2026This bulletin announces a design change made to the CVT Control Valve Body which incorporates an enhanced valve sleeve to improve durability. (This is an revised version of the…
- 11033063May 13, 2026This bulletin announces a design change made to the CVT Control Valve Body which incorporates an enhanced valve sleeve to improve durability.
- 11033056May 4, 2026This announcement provides information on the remanufactured CVT transmission program.
- 11032040Apr 24, 2026This bulletin announces the service manual correction regarding clutch master cylinder reservoir service procedures.
- 11024861Nov 4, 2025This bulletin announces a design change made to the CVT Control Valve Body which enhancement was implemented to prevent abnormal operations. The updated valve body incorporates…
- 11023523Sep 30, 2025This bulletin announces a design change made to the CVT Control Valve Body. The updated valve body incorporates an enhanced valve sleeve to improve durability.
- 11022305Aug 11, 2025Subaru Service Technical Support Newsletter special edition.
- 11014872Feb 18, 2025This bulletin has been developed in response to a small number of customer concerns regarding fluid seepage found coming from the CVT assembly.
- 11005624Jul 24, 2024This annoucement provides parts personnel information about remanufactured transmissions that will no longer be available.
Transmission and drivetrain: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 | 40% |
| 2024 | 2 | 6% |
| 2022 | 4 | 29% |
| 2021 | 1 | 7% |
| 2019 | 4 | 2% |
| 2018 | 5 | 3% |
| 2017 | 5 | 4% |
| 2016 | 13 | 17% |
| 2015 | 11 | 14% |
| 2014 | 9 | 8% |
| 2013 | 23 | 9% |
| 2012 | 26 | 11% |
| 2011 | 6 | 10% |
| 2010 | 5 | 11% |
| 2009 | 30 | 29% |
| 2008 | 59 | 34% |
| 2007 | 8 | 12% |
| 2006 | 7 | 13% |
| 2005 | 5 | 7% |
| 2004 | 9 | 9% |
| 2003 | 1 | 2% |
| 2002 | 25 | 9% |
| 2000 | 10 | 24% |
| 1999 | 4 | 18% |
| 1998 | 9 | 30% |
| 1997 | 5 | 17% |
| 1995 | 1 | 2% |
| 1994 | 3 | 38% |
| 1993 | 3 | 9% |
Other parts of the 2012 Subaru Impreza
105 complaintsEngine
55 complaintsElectrical system
30 complaintsBrakes
15 complaintsSeats
15 complaintsOther or unknown
13 complaintsVehicle speed control
11 complaintsSteering
10 complaintsFuel system
7 complaintsWheels
7 complaintsBody and structure
6 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
6 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2012 Subaru Impreza
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 29, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology