Subaru Impreza - Problems, Statistics, and Analysis

Subaru Impreza owners have reported a total of 3,232 problems for their cars built in the 30 model years listed in the chart below. The chart shows the number of problems reported across all service years for each given model year of the Subaru Impreza. The 2002 Subaru Impreza cars have the most problems reported (337 problems).

Table 1. Total number of problems by model year for Subaru Impreza

Model Year	Number of Problems
2025 Impreza	8
2024 Impreza	49
2023 Impreza	6
2022 Impreza	15
2021 Impreza	18
2020 Impreza	95
2019 Impreza	214
2018 Impreza	178
2017 Impreza	160
2016 Impreza	104
2015 Impreza	96
2014 Impreza	143
2013 Impreza	323
2012 Impreza	321
2011 Impreza	77
2010 Impreza	61
2009 Impreza	145
2008 Impreza	247
2007 Impreza	84
2006 Impreza	68
2005 Impreza	93
2004 Impreza	113
2003 Impreza	64
2002 Impreza	337
2001 Impreza	13
2000 Impreza	54
1999 Impreza	27
1998 Impreza	55
1997 Impreza	37
1996 Impreza	25

🔍 Common problems of Subaru Impreza

The following chart shows the 30 most common problems for Subaru Impreza cars. The number one most common problem is related to the vehicle's air bags (432 problems). The second most common problem is related to the vehicle's engine and engine cooling (348 problems).

Table 2. Common problems of Subaru Impreza

Problem Category	Number of Problems
Air Bag	432
Engine And Engine Cooling	348
Power Train	288
Visibility	285
Service Brakes	246
Equipment	245
Electrical System	222
Exterior Lighting	201
Suspension	154
Gasoline Fuel System	130

Structure	128
Other Fuel System	124
Vehicle Speed Control	95
Steering	82
Wheel	55
Seats	52
Tire	36
Seat Belt	32
Forward Collision Avoidance	20
Electronic Stability Control	15
Unknown Or Other	12
Latches/locks/linkage	10
Air Brake	7
Lane Departure	5
Back Over Prevention	2
Interior Lighting	2
Other/i Am Not Sure	1
Parking Brake	1
Carry Handle, Shell, Base	1
Child Seat	1

📉 Compare Reliability Across Model Years Using PPMY Index

It would not be fair to compare the Subaru Impreza of an older model year to newer model years since older vehicles have been in service longer and thus are expected to have more problems. In order to compare the reliability across Impreza model years, we use the PPMY index which is defined as the problems reported per thousand vehicles per Year. A smaller PPMY index indicates greater reliability of the given model year cars.

PPMY = P / S / Y * 1000,

where P = total problems reported during the life of a Subaru Impreza model year; S = total units sold of the model year; Y = years since the debut of the model year (the age of the vehicle).

The results are shown in Table 3.

Table 3. Use PPMY Index to Compare Reliability Across Impreza Model Years

Impreza Model Year	Problems	Sales [1]	Vehicle Age	PPMY Index
2022	15	36,990	4	0.10
2021	18	22,927	5	0.16
2020	95	44,465	6	0.36
2019	214	82,366	7	0.37
2018	178	70,378	8	0.32
2017	160	75,071	9	0.24
2016	104	59,244	10	0.18
2015	96	65,230	11	0.13
2014	143	68,967	12	0.17
2013	323	88,302	13	0.28
2012	321	66,990	14	0.34
2011	77	49,303	15	0.10
2010	61	37,992	16	0.10
2009	145	42,533	17	0.20
2008	247	59,340	18	0.23
2007	84	39,198	19	0.11
2006	68	42,491	20	0.08
2005	93	38,808	21	0.11
2004	113	39,381	22	0.13
2003	64	23,833	23	0.12
2002	337	60,398	24	0.23
2001	13	9,301	25	0.06
2000	54	18,684	26	0.11
1999	27	20,133	27	0.05

📊 Number of Problems Reported During the First Year

Another way to measure the reliability across the model years of the Subaru Impreza is to use the total number of problems reported during the vehicle's first year in service, as shown in the Table 4.

Table 4. Number of problems in vehicle's; first service year

Model Year	Problems Reported
2025 Impreza	5
2024 Impreza	12
2023 Impreza	4
2022 Impreza	4
2021 Impreza	9
2020 Impreza	26
2019 Impreza	24
2018 Impreza	21
2017 Impreza	31
2016 Impreza	11
2015 Impreza	10
2014 Impreza	17
2013 Impreza	19
2012 Impreza	45
2011 Impreza	7
2010 Impreza	3
2009 Impreza	3
2008 Impreza	34
2007 Impreza	11
2006 Impreza	7
2005 Impreza	16
2004 Impreza	17
2003 Impreza	13
2002 Impreza	52
2001 Impreza	4
2000 Impreza	13
1999 Impreza	7
1998 Impreza	16
1997 Impreza	3
1996 Impreza	7

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