No fee unless we win - the manufacturer pays attorney fees on a successful claimNHTSA recall 26V530000: 2024-2025 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, tire pressure monitors - August 2026Most people don't know: the 30 days your car spends in the shop do not have to be consecutive4.7 / 5 from 103 Google reviewsNHTSA recall 26V510000: 2023-2025 Dodge Hornet, seat belts - August 2026Most people don't know: a leased vehicle carries the same lemon law rights as one you boughtServing all of California from Beverly HillsNHTSA recall 26V451000: 2020-2026 Ford Explorer, seat assembly - July 2026Most people don't know: a used car still under the original factory warranty can qualifyAn attorney reviews every case and responds within 24 hoursNHTSA recall 26V422000: 2024-2025 BMW i5 and others, brakes - July 2026Most people don't know: a repair only counts if you reported it to an authorized dealerNHTSA recall 26V332000: 2022-2026 Acura MDX, airbags - May 2026Most people don't know: on a successful claim the manufacturer pays your legal fees, not you
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SUBARU LEMON LAW

California Subaru Lemon Law Attorney

Subaru owners are among the most loyal in the industry, but that loyalty is tested when a new Subaru comes with factory defects the dealer cannot fix. If your Subaru has been in the shop repeatedly for the same problem, California's Lemon Law is on your side.

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Subaru Subaru Vehicles

Look Up Your Subaru, and See What Owners Report

Pick your year and model to pull the federal safety recalls on record for that exact vehicle. Underneath, the systems Subaru owners report to the federal government most often, taken straight from the public complaint file.

Illustrative vehicle. An invented design, not any particular make or model.

Find Your Subaru

Federal recall records, checked live. Nothing is stored and you do not need to give us anything.

Make Subaru

What this check shows you

  • Every safety recall campaign the federal government has on record for your year and model.
  • What each campaign covers and the risk NHTSA recorded for it.
  • The campaign number, so a dealer can tell you in one phone call whether yours was ever repaired.

A recall is a federal repair order that applies to a run of vehicles. It is not a finding about yours, and it is only one part of the picture. Plenty of warranty defects never become recalls.

Recall data comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and is fetched fresh each time you search.

Problems Subaru Owners Report

Owners of Subaru vehicles from 2015 onward have filed 18,653 complaints with NHTSA. Grouped by the federal government's own component categories, these six come up most, with Outback, Forester and Crosstrek accounting for a large share of the file.

  1. Wipers and Washers

    3,607 owner reports on file

    Covers the windshield wipers, the washer system and the defrosters. Most of the reports in this category name the Outback, Forester and Crosstrek.

  2. Electrical System

    3,488 owner reports on file

    Covers wiring, the 12 volt battery and charging, ignition, the instrument cluster and the control modules. Most of the reports in this category name the Outback, Forester and Ascent.

  3. Engine

    1,295 owner reports on file

    Covers the engine assembly and the parts inside it. Most of the reports in this category name the Forester, Outback and Crosstrek.

  4. Transmission and Drivetrain

    1,018 owner reports on file

    NHTSA files the transmission, driveshaft, axles, clutch and four wheel drive hardware under this heading. Most of the reports in this category name the Forester, Outback and Ascent.

  5. Air Bags

    853 owner reports on file

    Covers frontal and side air bags, their sensors, the occupant classification system and the clockspring. Most of the reports in this category name the Forester and Outback.

  6. Forward Collision Avoidance

    816 owner reports on file

    Covers automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning and adaptive cruise control. Most of the reports in this category name the Outback, Forester and Crosstrek.

Source: NHTSA complaint database, model years 2015 and newer, extracted 2026-08-24. Counts are owner reports filed with the federal government, not findings by anyone. A complaint on file does not decide whether any one vehicle is a lemon. What decides that is whether a covered defect kept coming back after the manufacturer had a fair chance to repair it.

Key Takeaways

Your Subaru Lemon Law Rights at a Glance

If your Subaru has been in the shop repeatedly for the same unfixed defect while under warranty, California's Song-Beverly Act may entitle you to a buyback, a replacement, or a cash settlement. The law applies whether your Subaru is new or used. California's Lemon Law changed for used cars after the 2024 Rodriguez v. FCA decision: a used Subaru sold with the balance of a factory warranty generally no longer qualifies for a buyback or replacement, though a certified pre-owned car with its own new warranty may still qualify.

Who Qualifies

California buyers and lessees whose Subaru has a warranty-covered defect the dealer cannot repair after a reasonable number of tries.

Repair Thresholds

roughly four repair attempts for the same problem, two for a serious safety defect, or more than 30 cumulative days out of service.

What You Can Recover

a full buyback, a comparable replacement Subaru, or a cash-and-keep settlement.

Cost to You

nothing up front, and no fee unless you win, since Subaru pays your attorney costs on a successful claim.

Good to Know

the most common claims trace to 2.5L boxer engine oil consumption, Lineartronic CVT shudder, and EyeSight phantom braking.

Common Defects

Why Subaru Vehicles May Qualify as Lemons

Subaru has built a strong reputation for reliability, but recent model years have seen a rise in serious defect complaints. The brand's boxer engines and CVT transmissions, once considered strengths, have become sources of persistent problems for many owners.

Excessive oil consumption in the 2.5L boxer engine, sometimes burning a quart every 1,000 miles

Lineartronic CVT transmission hesitation shuddering, and loss of power during acceleration

EyeSight driver assistance system false alerts and unexpected automatic braking

Windshield cracking without impact a widespread issue across Outback and Forester models

Battery drain and electrical issues including Starlink infotainment freezing and dead batteries

These problems affect the Outback, Forester, Crosstrek, Ascent, Impreza, Legacy, WRX, and Solterra. If the dealer has been unable to fix your Subaru after repeated attempts, your vehicle may qualify as a lemon under California law.

Think Your Subaru May Be a Lemon?

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Your Rights

What You Can Recover in a Subaru Lemon Law Case

California's Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act holds Subaru of America accountable when they fail to repair your vehicle. The remedies available ensure you are not left paying for a car that does not work as promised.

Subaru vehicle at a California service center, representing The Lemon Pros Subaru Lemon Law help
Helping California Subaru owners hold manufacturers accountable for defects.

Full Vehicle Buyback

Subaru may be ordered to buy back your vehicle, refunding your down payment, all monthly payments made, taxes, registration fees, and incidental costs such as towing and rental cars.

Vehicle Replacement

You may opt for a new Subaru of comparable value. If you chose the Outback for its versatility or the Forester for its safety ratings, a replacement gives you the Subaru experience without the defects.

Cash Settlement

Many Subaru lemon cases settle with a cash-and-keep arrangement. You receive a significant payout and retain the vehicle. This is a popular choice for owners whose defect is frustrating but does not make the car undriveable.

Under California law, Subaru of America must cover your attorney fees if your Lemon Law claim is successful. You pay us nothing.

Why Us

Why Choose The Lemon Pros for Your Subaru Case

Subaru of America tends to be more cooperative than some manufacturers in Lemon Law negotiations, but they still have legal teams working to minimize what they pay. Having experienced attorneys on your side ensures you get the full compensation you deserve rather than a lowball offer.

At The Lemon Pros, we understand the specific engineering quirks of Subaru vehicles, from the boxer engine's oil consumption tendencies to the CVT's characteristic behaviors. We can distinguish between a genuine manufacturing defect and normal operation, which is essential for building a winning case.

We serve Subaru owners across all of California with free consultations and zero upfront fees. Let us review your case and show you what is possible.

Where Claims Start

Where Subaru Claims Tend to Start

Most Subaru lemon files we open trace back to a short list of systems, and knowing which one is acting up helps you frame the claim correctly from day one. The 2.5-liter boxer engine is a frequent starting point. Owners report it drinking oil faster than a normal break-in period would explain, sometimes a quart between changes, along with rough idle or a check-engine light that the dealer clears and sends you off with. Because the boxer sits low and flat, a leak or consumption problem can hide for a while, so the paper trail matters more here than almost anywhere else.

The Lineartronic CVT is the other big one. Instead of crisp gear changes you may feel a shudder at low speed, a pause before the car gathers itself off the line, or a flare in engine speed that does not match how fast you are actually moving. Service writers like to call this normal CVT character. Sometimes it is. When the same symptom comes back after a software flash or a fluid service, it stops being character and starts being a defect worth documenting.

Electrical and driver-assist complaints round out the list. Starlink screens that freeze or reboot mid-drive, a battery that goes flat overnight for no clear reason, and EyeSight cameras that slam the brakes for a shadow or an overpass all qualify when they get in the way of using the car. Phantom braking is the one to flag loudly, since anything that touches safety is treated more seriously and may need fewer repair trips before the law steps in. Across the Outback, Forester, Crosstrek, Ascent, Impreza, Legacy, WRX, and the electric Solterra, these are the patterns that pull owners into a California Lemon Law claim.

Warranty Timing

How Subaru's Warranty Fits the Picture

A lot of Subaru owners assume that once the odometer rolls past 36,000 miles the door is shut. It is not. Two warranties usually apply: the 3-year, 36,000-mile bumper-to-bumper coverage, and the longer 5-year, 60,000-mile powertrain warranty that wraps the boxer engine and the CVT. The question California's Song-Beverly Act asks is not whether the warranty is still active today. It asks whether the defect first appeared while coverage was in force and whether Subaru got a fair shot at fixing it.

That distinction changes who has a case. A CVT shudder you first reported at 41,000 miles still lives inside the powertrain window even if you are reading this at 70,000. A frozen infotainment head unit you flagged inside the first three years counts even after the bumper-to-bumper term lapses. What undoes claims is silence, gaps where the problem clearly existed but nothing on paper shows you raised it. Report early, report every time, and let the warranty timeline work for you rather than against you. If you bought your Subaru secondhand, our guidance for a used-car lemon claim walks through how factory coverage carries over.

Build Your Case

Build the Record Before You Call

Subaru cases are won on documentation, and the good news is that you control most of it. Keep every repair order the dealer hands you, even the ones that say no problem found, because a string of those for the same complaint is itself evidence. Write down the mileage and the exact symptom at each visit, photograph any warning lights, and hang on to rental receipts, tow bills, and anything you paid out of pocket while the car sat. If a service advisor brushes off the shudder or the oil burn as normal, ask for it in writing on the order. Those small habits turn a frustrating few months into a clean, persuasive file.

What the Law Gets You

Once the record shows Subaru of America had a reasonable number of tries and the defect held on, the Song-Beverly Act puts three outcomes on the table. California courts treat four attempts at the same problem as a fair benchmark, two for a serious safety defect like a stalling engine or failed brakes, and a car that has spent more than 30 cumulative days in the shop can qualify on time alone. A buyback refunds your down payment, the monthly payments you have made, taxes, registration, and incidental costs, minus a mileage offset for the use you got before the trouble began. You can instead take a comparable replacement Subaru, or settle for cash and keep the car when the defect is more nuisance than dealbreaker.

Because the statute shifts fees onto the manufacturer when you win, Subaru covers your attorney costs, and the money that comes back lands in your pocket rather than a firm's. If you bought used, the rules shifted after the 2024 Rodriguez v. FCA decision. A used Subaru carrying only the balance of the factory warranty generally no longer qualifies for a buyback or replacement, but a certified pre-owned model with its own new warranty may still qualify, and used-car owners can often still recover money damages and attorney fees. We review used-car claims to see which remedies apply. Run the numbers yourself with our buyback calculator, then check the full range of cases we handle if your situation reaches past a single defect.

Frequently Asked Questions

Subaru Lemon Law Questions, Answered

Most new Subaru vehicles carry a 3-year/36,000-mile limited warranty and a 5-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty covering the boxer engine and CVT. As long as the defect first showed up while one of those warranties was active, your Subaru can qualify under California's Lemon Law even if the warranty has since run out. What matters is when the problem started and that you gave the dealer a fair chance to fix it.
There is no single magic number, but California courts treat four repair attempts for the same defect as a reasonable benchmark. For a serious safety defect, such as faulty brakes or a stalling boxer engine, two attempts can be enough. Your Subaru also qualifies if it has spent more than 30 cumulative days in the shop for warranty repairs. The repairs do not have to be back to back to count.
CVT complaints are some of the most common we see from Subaru owners. Shuddering, hesitation during acceleration, a delayed response from a stop, or a sudden loss of power all point to problems with the Lineartronic transmission. Keep every repair order the dealer gives you, note the mileage and the symptom each visit, and avoid letting the service department wave it off as normal CVT feel. Those records are what build your case.
Yes. Electrical and infotainment defects qualify just like mechanical ones, as long as they substantially affect the vehicle's use, value, or safety. A Starlink screen that freezes or reboots while driving, a battery that drains overnight, or EyeSight cameras that trigger phantom braking are all legitimate grounds. Phantom braking in particular is a safety concern, which can lower the number of repair attempts the law expects before your Subaru is considered a lemon.
A qualifying owner can recover a full buyback, a replacement Subaru of comparable value, or a cash settlement that lets you keep the car. A buyback refunds your down payment, the monthly payments you have made, taxes, registration, and incidental costs like towing or a rental. Subaru of America also pays your attorney fees and costs when your claim succeeds, so the remedy reaches your pocket rather than a law firm's.
After the 2024 Rodriguez v. FCA decision, a used Subaru sold with only the balance of the factory warranty generally no longer qualifies for a buyback or replacement. A certified pre-owned Subaru or one sold with its own new warranty may still qualify, and used-car owners can often still recover money damages and attorney fees. The key question is what warranty came with your Subaru and whether the same defect kept coming back during that coverage. Bring your purchase paperwork and repair orders and we will tell you for free where you stand.
Courts use guideposts of roughly four attempts at the same defect, two where it is a serious safety risk, or thirty or more cumulative days out of service.
The purchase price of the Subaru plus taxes, registration and finance charges, less a mileage offset for the distance driven before you first reported the defect.
A CPO vehicle sold with its own manufacturer warranty can qualify. Since the 2024 Rodriguez decision, a used car carrying only the balance of the original factory warranty generally no longer qualifies for a buyback.
No. Repairs at any franchised Subaru dealer count towards your repair-attempt total, provided each visit is documented on a repair order.

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Alex Kim

a month ago

the folks at lemon pros got me exactly what I asked for plus a bit more for my jeep. they were very honest with the process and kept me up to date constantly. would recommend them without hesitation! worked with Anthony Greco & team :)

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VICTOR BIANCO

a month ago

Though I had to learn the virtue of patience (it took a little time), I had an excellent experience with the Pros, from beginning to end. The entire team was professional, knowledgeable, responsive, and genuinely committed to helping me through my lemon law case. They kept me informed throughout the process, answered my questions promptly, and handled everything with integrity and professionalism. They achieved a successful outcome on my behalf ($27,600). I highly recommend this firm to anyone in need of a knowledgeable and trustworthy lemon law attorney. Thank you for your patience with me and for your outstanding service!

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Mauricio Ventura

2 months ago

Trust the process. Suzy and Anthony were able to get me a buy back from GM after constant issues with the transmission. Suzy was patient explaining everything and returned my calls/emails/text within 24hrs. She’s the best. Anthony (Tony) was straight forward and did everything he could to get me my money. No BS, or changes at the end. It’s a process but they know what they are doing. Delivered on everything he promised. Thank you for all the help and it was worth the wait. I was able to get a new car because of you guys.

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Carlos Maldonado

2 months ago

The Lemon pros Worked with me During a time, I’m in my life, where I was going through a lot of transitions. They were professional, and very patient as I was not always disposable or able to find paperwork for my claim. It was not overnight, but when the day came for The Lemon pros to negotiate my settlement, It was a glorious outcome. I Told the Lemon pros get me at least $10,000 and I’ll be Happy, And what did they do? They hit the ball out of the park!!!! and got me a settlement of $17,500!!!! And I got The Check without amount to prove it!!! Thanks, Lemon pros!!!!!

R

Robert A. Ruiz, III

9 months ago

I couldn’t be more grateful for the outstanding team at The Lemon Pros. Their team was fantastic from start to finish, always responsive, professional, and committed to keeping me informed every step of the way. Their follow-through was exceptional and their determination truly made a difference in achieving a positive outcome in my case. I’m so glad I chose them to represent me and I highly recommend their services to anyone seeking a dedicated and reliable team.

Reviews reflect individual experiences. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

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Cost You Another Day.

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