10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
9,760 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2016 Subaru Impreza drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2016 Subaru Impreza Owner Comments

problem #12

Sep 012023

Impreza

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Engine light came on. Checked it, the failure was the transmission solenoid. It reported that a failure was about to occur. Brought it into the Subaru dealership because the will not sell any transmission parts to repair shops in the Phoenix area. I am not sure if I would have had a bigger problem, or not had I not taken it in right away.

- Phoenix, AZ, USA

problem #11

Aug 082023

Impreza

  • miles
This is the third time that this has happened on the highway. I was driving about 70 miles per hour when my acceleration cut out. My dashboard lights, head lights, and other electronics were still on, but the car stalled and would not accelerate. The car struggled to move forward, jerking while slowing down, and came to a stop. I was in the middle lane of traffic on the highway late at night driving home and wasn't able to get my vehicle fully out of the highway when it was coming to a stop. This put me in a very dangerous situation on the highway where my car could potentially be hit by people rushing by. I got out of the car and called 911, who helped me move my car to a safer location. Once the car stopped, i tried turning the key a few times and the spark plug ran, but the car would not turn on. The next day, the car did turn on and there were no warning lights or any other diagnostic readings. The car was taken to Subaru where they did diagnostic tests, but were not able to find any irregularities. I've had the same thing happen twice before and they couldn't diagnose the problem then either. I also experienced hesitation when accelerating where the car wouldn't accelerate, and then it would jerk forward when it did. After repeatedly going back to Subaru for this issue as the transmission is under warranty, they replaced the torque converter and said the problem was solved. I still experienced the hesitation and jerking while driving so I took it back, to which they said that it was driving normal, and that the hesitation was because of the way I drove the car. The car is not driving normal or safe because it stalled and stopped accelerating on the highway, like I told them it would again, putting me in danger. I believe it is the transmission that is damaged, and despite the extended warranty, they won't or can't address it. It would be available for inspection if it would help. There should really be a recall because they fight extended warranty claims

- Baltimore, MD, USA

problem #10

May 312023

Impreza

  • miles
Transmission failure while at high speed on an interstate highway resulted in disengagement, immediate deceleration and limited steerage in an area with limited breakdown lane. Subaru reports this is a known issue for which they extended warranty but it is incomplete and does not include any safety check prior to failure!

- Tolland, CT, USA

problem #9

Sep 222022

Impreza

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was driving on the highway when I experienced a sudden jerking and my car stopped accelerating while going about 67 miles an hour and came to a stop on the highway. It was dark outside and I was left in the road without the ability to turn my car back on. I towed the car to the dealership, and they couldn't diagnose a problem. The same thing happened two weeks later and they told me that because the car was less than a quarter-tank both times, that I shouldn't drive my car with less than a quarter tank of gas or I'd be at risk of this happening again. Being on the highway with cars rushing past in the dark several times put my safety at risk and the safety of other drivers. I later experienced knocking/jerking around 10 miles an hour, that led to a suspected problem with the transmission. The car would also hesitate accelerating when stopped, and would experience the same jerking motion with a thud at the same time. I brought the car in again, and they couldn't diagnose the problem, but recommended a service that may fix the issue. I experienced the same issue so I brought the car back in. They replicated the issue and did work under warranty to replace the torque converter. I experienced the same problem and brought the car back in, but they can't diagnose the issue now. I believe my car transmission is still faulty and puts me at risk of stalling while driving at highway speeds, which could very easily put me and others at risk. I had to bring my car in several times for them to acknowledge a problem, and have been put into the same car which i believe is unsafe each time. When the car stalled on the highway there were blinking warning lights, but there was no diagnosis at the dealership. The car is currently at the dealership and they want me to drive it for them to show them the problem again with jerking/knocking. I'm getting all my invoices together to have more documentation, and will have more by the end of the day.

- Baltimore, MD, USA

problem #8

Jan 312022

Impreza

  • miles
In November of 2018 and again January 31, 2022. In November 2018, I was backing up in small parking lot tap the gas pedal. and my car speed up going backwards, even when I was pushing the brake. What stopped the momentum was another car, my car crashed into caused extensive damage to that car( it was totaled). The second time; I turned the wheels to back-in as I had a several times into my driveway. The car was to far over, but because I was not centered enough in the driveway, I moved forward to realign myself. The car seemed to hesitate as I moved forward, before putting it in reverse. I Put the car in reverse, lightly hit gas the car seem to take off as if it was a rocket backing up into driveway and went through the back wall of my garage ( because there was so much snow it came to a stop). My daughter was observed on the ring camera. I have been very sensitive to making sure since first time to be more aware. It is significant to note prior to this occurrence my car did this in smaller spurts, ( but did not think anything of it, I took my car in for all of the checks) but I was able to control it by putting foot on brake, It's like this time the engine revved up on its own. This time the car was totaled. ( The back window shattered. A lot of damage underneath the car. I will not be buying another Subaru. It was my dream car:(. I was very traumatized.)I was diligent with the maintenance of the car. I informed my insurance company.

- Scottsville, NY, USA

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problem #7

Jul 162020

Impreza

  • miles
My car shakes when I driving the car and when I am waiting for the light to chance using the brakes and ac it looks like turn in off.I went to the dealer they said is normal but I bought the car new never shake I just worry have to do something with the brakes

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #6

Mar 012020

Impreza

  • 40,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Key gets stuck in vehicle ignition when the vehicle is placed into park. Some sort of component that tells the car it is parked is malfunctioning. This does not happen every time but probably about 50% of the time. Placing the car into gear and then back into park eventually fixes the issue, but it often takes multiple attempts. This started happening after adjusting the steering wheel for another driver. It has subsequently been an issue.

- Winooski, VT, USA

problem #5

May 012019

Impreza 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 15,000 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Subaru Impreza. While the vehicle was in park, the key failed to release from the ignition switch. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to capital Chevrolet (2855 maple ave ne, salem, or 97301, (503) 585-4141) where it was diagnosed that the gear shifter needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to NHTSA. The failure mileage was 15,000. Consumer stated the problem is with defective plate operated by the gear shifter to touch a senor which job is to release the key out of the ignition. This plate doesn't always do the job thereby the failure of the key. I was told this problem is happening in all Subaru models of 2016 and beyond. Consumer stated ignition key gets stuck and not releasing the key.

- Salem, OR, USA

problem #4

Feb 202019

Impreza

  • 23,437 miles
When vehicle is stationary and placed into park position, the gear shifter is able to be moved from park into drive, reverse, and neutral with the engine off. The key also becomes stuck in the ignition when the gear shifter is malfunctioning. Dealership stated that the shift interlock would need to be replaced to remedy the issue.

- Hayes, VA, USA

problem #3

Nov 222018

Impreza

  • 32,580 miles
I was driving to a thanksgiving gathering, when all of a sudden the car julted. It was very odd felt almost like a pin was put in the transmission forcing the tires to stop spining. But was very brief. After another 0.5 miles of driving on the freeway at 70mph it happened again but continuously with loud grinding and crunchy noises. After puling over the car was smoking. The transmission was extremely hot. No lights warning lights came on. Got a tow truck and it struggled to pull the car on to the trailer bed. And while it was rolling on you could still hear the grinding noises. We had 4 people in the car 2 small 5ft 2in women and 2 makes winning 180 lbs. We had food and duffle bags in the trunk and it was 40 degrees Fahrenheit outside we were 1 hour into the trip and on flare roads

- Hampton, VA, USA

problem #2

Jan 032018

Impreza

  • 3,300 miles
Cvt will not shift in cold weather. I took to the dealer 3 times and they said nothing wrong. I have a video of the tach reaching 2600 RPM's at 30 miles to 55 mph and cvt was stuck in 3rd gear, would not shift. I say this is a safety problem, not normal for this or any car. Gas mileage is bad, engine wear is bad and not safe on highway. This happened )1/3/18, 1/6/18 and 1/8/18.

- Nashua, NH, USA

problem #1

Sep 192016

Impreza

  • 2,800 miles
The 2016 Subaru Impreza started to go forward when the shift knob was in the reverse position. This happened 3 times in a row and on the third time the car was accelerating causing the driver to brake hard in essence "fighting" the transmission. After the car was turned off, tried again, made it home. It was a rainy day. Made appt. With dealer. Afraid to drive it!

- Howell, NJ, USA

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