2018 Subaru Legacy Problems

What owners report

Owners of this model year most often describe windshield glass that cracks or chips, sometimes while the car is parked and cold, and infotainment touch screens that blank out, stop responding, or register inputs on their own. Those two themes dominate the sampled complaints and often appear at fairly low mileage; a smaller group covers fuel gauge and fuel pump behavior, battery and starting problems, and hesitation or surges during acceleration.

1. 1
   Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)

   Windshield cracks or chips without a clear impact

   • 27 complaints (23%)
   • median 25,000 mi at 2.5 yrs old (23 state mileage)
   • filed 2019–2025

   Owners describe cracks appearing in the front windshield with no obvious stone strike, often starting at the lower corners, along the edge, or near the wiper and defroster area, and then spreading. Several say the car was parked, sometimes overnight or in cold weather, when the glass cracked. Some had the windshield replaced and report it cracked again in the same area, and dealers typically referred them to a glass shop rather than covering it. Reported from near-new up to roughly 65,000 miles in the sample, with many cases under 40,000 miles, including parked overnight and in cold mornings.

   Recall 18V935000

   What to check: Inspect the windshield edges and the area around the rearview mirror and wiper base for chips or hairline cracks, and ask whether the glass has ever been replaced. Note that the rear camera display recall concerns the infotainment software, not the glass.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Windshield: the oem windshield cracks easily and manufacture will say not responsible because it's not a defect , but they used inferior glass. Currently, I have over 6 cracks and every time the smallest item hits it, the windshield cracks. I've been with new car dealership for over 30years and owned many cars and never had a windshield crack so easily. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11387060, filed 2021-01, 5,000 miles

   “I work as a home health nurse and I just finished a patient visit. After I got back inside my car I found a huge crack along the right side of my front windshield. While I was completing my patient visit my car was parked out front of the house the entire time and was not in motion. The car was not parked under any trees, or anything that could of done this.”

   NHTSA complaint #11324896, filed 2020-05, 28,630 miles
2. 2
   Electrical system

   Infotainment screen blank, frozen or ghost-touching

   • 29 complaints (25%)
   • median 23,191 mi at 1.6 yrs old (7 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2018–2026

   Complaints describe the Starlink touch screen going black, freezing, or registering touches nobody made, which also takes out the rearview camera, radio, navigation and some driver-assist settings. Owners report the dealer diagnosing a faulty head unit or calling for a software update, sometimes with the replacement part on backorder, and one mentions a screen cover that developed bubbles. Appears from a few thousand miles to well over 50,000, with several reports in the first year of ownership.

   Recall 18V9350003 related service bulletins

   What to check: With the car running, test the touch screen across its full surface, check the backup camera image in reverse, and ask the dealer whether the head unit software was updated or the unit replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My Subaru starlink infotainment system has experienced 5 events of total blackout to the infotainment screen over the 9-month period since purchasing. This has resulted in loss of functionality to the phone, bluetooth, radio and backup camera capabilities. Safety was the number one reason why I chose this car (backup camera, lane departure assist, adaptive cruise control). To know that roughly 30% of all minor vehicle accidents occur due to backup-related issues, it scares me that my car is not protecting me from this potential risk. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11191566, filed 2019-03, 36,200 miles

   “Aug 2025: 2018 Subaru Legacy, 55,500 miles. ISSUE: Rearview camera froze with high-pitch sound for about 10-seconds, then shut off, while in Reverse. I was not aware immediately of this. Did not hit the cars behind me but definitely could have. Unknown if reverse lights affected. Based on online searches, rearview cameras not working is criteria for a recall. BACKGROUND: My main screen is affected by Subaru Screen Delamination (can't use touch at all). …”

   NHTSA complaint #11680112, filed 2025-08
3. 3
   Engine

   Hesitation, surging or unintended acceleration reports

   Mentioned in 8 of 60 sampled complaints

   A set of complaints describes stuttering or hesitation during gentle acceleration from a stop, unintended lurching or acceleration while braking, and in a few cases a sudden stop or acceleration event the driver could not reproduce for a dealer. Others mention an unexpected engine shutdown or a drivetrain failure at speed, and some were not diagnosed. Spread across the sample from a few thousand miles to about 50,000, with no single mileage pattern.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Test the car from a stop and at light throttle on a test drive, ask whether any engine or transmission software updates were applied, and have a mechanic check for stored codes.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Car was at a turning intersection. Car was completely stopped, foot was applied to brake with normal pressure. Within a few seconds, car started to progress forward, I lifted foot off brake and reapplied. The brake did not sense pressure, I put the car in park. These actions did not stop the car. Last effort attempt was to lift the emergency brake applied. This stopped the car. I turn off the engine and restarted the car.”

   NHTSA complaint #11221454, filed 2019-06, 3,800 miles

   “P014a error code. Started car and was about 1/8 mile away from home driving at 40 MPH on country road, and all the lights came on the dash (check engine, eyesight off warning light, battery, oil, etc...). Immediately turned around and went home. My obdii scanner said p014a error. I reset the code. Called dealer to see if it was safe to drive and drop off (30 miles away) and they said yes. They then said if they cannot read the code they cannot do anything about it (because I reset it and it is not historically saved in the car). …”

   NHTSA complaint #11360391, filed 2020-09, 29,000 miles
4. 4
   Fuel system

   Fuel gauge reads wrong or miles-to-empty drops to zero

   Mentioned in 7 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners report the fuel gauge showing more fuel than the tank holds, the indicator not moving after a fill, or the miles-to-empty estimate dropping suddenly and the car running out of gas while it still showed a positive range. Some complaints were filed after a fuel-gauge recall was performed, and a few describe the fuel door sticking and needing to be pried open. Mostly reported under about 10,000 miles, often soon after purchase or shortly after a fill-up.

   Recall 18V773000Recall 21V587000

   What to check: Fill the tank and confirm the gauge reads full and the range estimate looks plausible, and verify with a dealer that the fuel-light software recall (18V773000) and the low-pressure fuel pump recall (21V587000) were completed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “On the dashboard showed that the remain mileage was 70, but it stopped all the sudden due to no gas. I almost caused an accident because the car stopped on a public street with heavy traffic. After many times trying to start the car, it did not work; it was completely dead. I had to leave the car stranded to go and get gas to the nearest gas station.”

   NHTSA complaint #11170153, filed 2019-01, 15,365 miles

   “The fuel door sticks requiring it to be pried open in order to fuel the vehicle. Took it to the dealer. They know about this problem because they have a special tool to open the stuck fuel door. I had to fight to get them to replace the fuel door cable. I ended up contacting Subaru of america to resolve this issue. I notified them when my vehicle had 35,000 miles on it but they refused to address it until 43,000 miles.”

   NHTSA complaint #11244845, filed 2019-08, 35,360 miles
5. 5
   Electrical system

   Battery drain and no-start or stalling electrical faults

   Mentioned in 6 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners describe batteries going flat without warning, difficulty starting, and occasional instances where the engine shut off or the car would not restart while the electronics still worked. Dealers in the complaints replaced batteries, found no stored codes, or applied software updates, and some owners mention the battery failing just outside warranty coverage. Reported from a few thousand miles up to around 50,000 miles, with several cases at roughly two to three years of age.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask for the battery's age and any load-test record, and check whether the vehicle has needed frequent jump-starts or had software updates applied for electrical concerns.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My vehicle is having issues with the factory battery, the vehicle is having issues starting. The dealership is going to replace the battery, its less then three years old a d out of warranty by miles.”

   NHTSA complaint #11337188, filed 2020-07, 50,000 miles

   “Car was parked and locked. Keyless entry system allowed doors to be opened. Upon sitting in drivers seat, before any attempt to start car, a message on dash said remote key deactivated . After that, nothing worked, no further messages, could not lock doors, could not start car, nothing functioned. Finally had car towed to dealer, casey Subaru, newport news, va. Late next morning, dealer called to say car was ready for pickup. They could find no problem, both remote keys functioned well, no problem codes found. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11156620, filed 2018-12, 7,600 miles

Buying note. On a used example, budget for a possible windshield replacement and test the infotainment and backup camera carefully, since those two items account for most of what owners describe. Confirm the fuel gauge and fuel pump recalls were completed and check battery age and service history before buying.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.