2014 Subaru Legacy Problems & Complaints

Average40% fewer complaints than a typical year of the Legacy at the same age

Owners have filed 53 complaints about the 2014 Subaru Legacy with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. That is about average for the Legacy at the same age. The most reported problem area is the air bags (14 complaints, typically around 23,000 miles). 10 recalls cover this model year.

53complaints
10recalls
4crashes
2fires
1injuries
0deaths

Most common 2014 Subaru Legacy problems

  • Air bags~23,000 miles
    1426%
  • Electrical system~87,000 miles
    1121%
  • Body & structure~30,000 miles
    713%
  • Other / not specified~75,000 miles
    713%
  • Windows, wipers & sunroof~19,000 miles
    611%
  • Transmission & drivetrain~50,000 miles
    611%
  • Engine & cooling~63,000 miles
    59%
  • Lights~80,000 miles
    59%
  • Speed control & acceleration~0 miles
    36%
  • Seats~19,000 miles
    24%
  • Steering~28,000 miles
    24%
  • Brakes
    24%
  • Fuel & propulsion system~3,000 miles
    12%
  • Suspension~23,000 miles
    12%
  • Driver assistance
    12%

Share of the 53 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.

Subaru Legacy complaints by model year

’95’96’97’98’99’00’01’02’03’04’05’06’07’08’09’10’11’12’13’14’15’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’2518212313911494947754604918487336565150167906653160147119117123121313410176
Owner complaints per model year, Subaru Legacy. Colour = our verdict for that year (red: avoid, orange: caution, green: better than average, blue: too new).

Best Legacy years: 2023, 2025, 2021. Years to avoid: 2015, 2016, 2011, 2020, 2019. Compare all years →

2014 Subaru Legacy recalls (10)

Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module

NHTSA recall 20V-001 · Jan 2, 2020 · 258,813 vehicles

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,…

Remedy: Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators with alternate inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020.

Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module

NHTSA recall 20V-003 · Jan 2, 2020 · 111,562 vehicles

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,…

Remedy: Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020.

Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module

NHTSA recall 20V-002 · Jan 2, 2020 · 127,547 vehicles

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,…

Remedy: Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020.

Electrical system › Ignition › Switch

NHTSA recall 19V-297 · Apr 11, 2019 · 511 vehicles

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.

Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ignition switch, replacing the ignition switch, if necessary, free of charge. The recall began May 10, 2019.

Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module

NHTSA recall 19V-009 · Jan 9, 2019 · 452,630 vehicles

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Legacy and Outback vehicles, 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles and 2010-2013 Forester vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York,…

Remedy: Subaru is notifying owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614.

Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module

NHTSA recall 19V-008 · Jan 9, 2019 · 330,120 vehicles

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Outback, and Legacy vehicles, 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles and 2010-2013 Forester vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska,…

Remedy: Subaru is notifying owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614.

Show 4 more recalls

Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module

NHTSA recall 19V-007 · Jan 9, 2019 · 43,394 vehicles

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2013 Forester, 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Outback, Legacy, and 2010-2011 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…

Remedy: Subaru has notified owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614.

Parking brake

NHTSA recall 18V-626 · Sep 13, 2018 · 27,175 vehicles

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Subaru Legacy and Outback vehicles equipped with a manual transmission. The electronic parking brake (EPB) may not engage as intended, allowing the vehicle to rollaway if the transmission is not in the proper gear when parked.

Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the EPB actuator assembly, free of charge. The recall began July 19, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614.

Visibility › Windshield wiper/washer › Motor

NHTSA recall 16V-694 · Sep 27, 2016 · 592,647 vehicles

Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2010-2014 Legacy vehicles manufactured November 26, 2008, to June 7, 2013, and 2010-2014 Outback vehicles manufactured January 9, 2009 to June 7, 2013. Due to contamination, components within the windshield wiper motor bottom cover may interfere with each other.

Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the windshield wiper motor bottom cover assembly, free of charge. The recall began October 2016. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-800-782-2783.

Power train › Automatic transmission

NHTSA recall 13V-336 · Aug 1, 2013 · 202 vehicles

Subaru of America is recalling certain model year 2014 Legacy 3.6R and Outback 3.6R and 2013 Tribeca vehicles manufactured June 12, 2013, through June 28, 2013 and equipped with 5-speed automatic transmissions. In the affected vehicles, the parking rod may come loose inside the automatic transmission.

Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the transmission, free of charge. The recall began during August 2013. Owners may contact Subaru at 1-800-782-2783. Subaru's recall number is WQJ-46.

What 2014 Subaru Legacy owners say

Air bags

My vehicle is suffering of the exact same issue described in recall WRA-24. However, this recall only covers the model years 2020 to 2022, mine is 2014 with approximately 106,000 miles. Since the last week of December, my vehicle has been to the Fort Wayne, IN Subaru Dealership approximately 9 time for the same issue. It has cost me over $2,500 plus the fuel used for all this trips (I live over 40 miles away from the dealership). The problem is still not 100 percent fixed after they changed the seat cushion, the airbag module, the seat belt buckle sensor, and I don't know what else. The last time (a couple of weeks ago) that the car was at the dealership, they had the car for over 2 weeks. The next morning, the car did the same thing again where the red airbag warning light turns on and the passenger airbag shuts off with a passenger sitting on the seat. …

Oct 2023

The occupancy detection sensor module failed. Similar to the 2014 forester recall the module has failed and Subaru dealership wants $3300 to replace the module. The passenger airbag is off due to the sensor not working. Previous airbag recall has been resolved, but I am concerned that they are related.

Nov 2024

Electrical system

The contact owns a 2014 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that the vehicle hesitated before accelerating. The contact stated that there was a lag in the vehicle while driving and attempting to accelerate above 65 MPH. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start immediately, and several attempts were needed to start the vehicle. The failure was intermittent; however, the failure was persistent while using the remote start feature. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the failure might be related to NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 19V297000 (Electrical System) and 13V336000 (Power Train); however, the VIN was not included in the recalls. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 50,000.

50,000 miles · Feb 2023

The contact owns a 2014 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that the check engine and brake warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle was jerking. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the mechanic retrieved an unknown transmission code. The contact was then referred to the dealer for assistance. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no further assistance was provided. The approximate failure mileage was 99,500.

96,000 miles · Nov 2020

Body & structure

The contact owns a 2014 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that while depressing the brake pedal, there was a clicking sound coming from underneath the vehicle, and the vehicle swayed slightly before coming to a stop. The failure became more persistent, and the clicking sound became louder within a week. The vehicle was taken to a certified mechanic, who determined that the frame had severe rust that had created a hole near the ball joints on the driver's side front wheel and informed the contact that the vehicle was not safe to drive. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case. The failure mileage was 130,000.

130,000 miles · Sep 2025

Takata recall auto accident front driver side crushed up to firewall and no airbags went off , zero ! Wife leg was badly brused because of this ! Auto was in motion at 25 miles a hour at a intersection going straight ahead was hit on driver front from side by cross traffic

Body · 23,000 miles · Aug 2018 · crash · 1 injury

2014 Subaru Legacy engines & fuel economy

EngineTransmissionDriveMPG city / hwy / combined
2.5L 4-cylCVTAWD24 / 32 / 27
2.5L 4-cyl6-speed manualAWD21 / 29 / 24
3.6L 6-cyl5-speed automaticAWD18 / 25 / 20

EPA ratings. Class: Midsize car.

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2014 Subaru Legacy a good car?

Based on 53 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2014 Legacy rates average: 40% fewer complaints than a typical year of the Legacy at the same age. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.

What is the most common problem with the 2014 Subaru Legacy?

The air bags — 14 complaints, 26% of all complaints for this model year. Next are the electrical system (11) and body & structure (7).

How many recalls does the 2014 Subaru Legacy have?

There are 10 recalls for the 2014 Subaru Legacy, the most recent from January 2, 2020 (inflator module). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.

What are the best and worst years of the Subaru Legacy?

The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2023, 2025 and 2021. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 2015, 2016, 2011, 2020 and 2019. See the full Subaru Legacy years comparison.

At what mileage do 2014 Subaru Legacy problems happen?

The median mileage reported in complaints is about 31,000 miles; 61% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 miles.

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.