2021 Subaru Wrx: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2021 Subaru Wrx
On the 2021 Subaru Wrx, the failure owners report most often is complete engine failure or seizure, with 5 reports on file. Across every failure mode on this year, half the dated reports were filed before 30,000 miles. Overall it scores 79 out of 100, severe risk for a 2021.
Severe risk for a 2021 — 49th riskiest of the 231 2021 vehicles we can rate. 21 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.
The failures owners actually file about
Owners have reported 11 named failure modes on the 2021 Subaru Wrx, and the three most-reported carry 52% of everything filed.
Complete engine failure or seizure leads with 5 reports and about 0.6 per 1,000 vehicles.
Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure follows with 3 reports.
Other powertrain problem follows with 3 reports.
By system, the reports fall mostly into engine (6), transmission (4) and electrical (3).
At what mileage it happens
Too few of the reports on this year carry an odometer reading to describe the timing: 1 of them do. The mileages quoted elsewhere on this page come from the modes that have enough of them.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
How reports accumulate
Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.
- Line share of reports filed by that mileage
Severity, and what it costs
Nothing in the reports on the 2021 Subaru Wrx mentions a crash, a fire or an injury. That is the ordinary case and it is worth stating: most defect complaints are about a car that stopped working, not one that hurt somebody.
The average severity weight across every report on this year is 4.29, where a stalled engine or a failed airbag weighs many times more than a rattling trim panel, and a figure this high means the reports are dominated by failures with safety consequences rather than annoyances. The weighting is set out in full on the methodology page.
What the top failures cost to put right, as editorial estimates for an independent US shop rather than figures from NHTSA: complete engine failure or seizure at $4,500–$12,000, control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure at $700–$3,000, other powertrain problem at $400–$4,500 and shifter, linkage or stuck-in-park failure at $250–$1,400. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
48% of the reports on this year sit in the engine, transmission, drivetrain or cooling systems — the four where a repair bill is usually four figures.
Every reported failure mode
| Failure mode | System | Reports | With reading | 25th | Median | 75th | Per 1,000 | Typical repair | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Complete engine failure or seizure | engine | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.6 | $4,500–$12,000 | Critical |
| Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure | electrical | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.4 | $700–$3,000 | High |
| Other powertrain problem | transmission | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.4 | $400–$4,500 | High |
| Shifter, linkage or stuck-in-park failure | transmission | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $250–$1,400 | High |
| Windshield cracking | glass | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $300–$1,600 | Moderate |
| Other engine problem | engine | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $300–$4,000 | High |
| Other steering problem | steering | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $350–$2,400 | High |
| Other suspension problem | suspension | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $350–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Other speed control problem | adas | 1 | 1 | — | 30k | — | 0.1 | $250–$2,000 | Critical |
| Other visibility problem | glass | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $150–$1,400 | Moderate |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Unclassified problem | other | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.2 | — | Moderate |
Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.
How often, against how many were built
Scaled by an estimate of how many of these cars exist, the 2021 Subaru Wrx draws about 2.5 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 79th percentile of complaint rates among 2021 vehicles we can rate.
That denominator is the weakest number on the page and it is fair to say so plainly. Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound.
The working figure is 8,562 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 2021 vehicles, which is what the risk score uses, is far more robust than the rate itself.
Recalls on the 2021 model year
NHTSA has issued 1 recall campaign covering the 2021 Subaru Wrx, affecting an estimated 8,562 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover exterior lighting:back up lights:switch. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
Recalls also distort complaint counts. Publicity about a campaign reminds owners that complaining is possible, so reports for a recalled component often spike after the recall rather than before it.
EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BACK UP LIGHTS:SWITCH
59,934 vehicles 2022-07-21- Defect
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2015-2021 WRX vehicles. The backup light switch may corrode and become inoperative, which can result in the backup lights not illuminating and the rearview camera image not displaying when the vehicle is in reverse.
- Consequence
- Inoperative backup lights and an inoperative rearview camera can reduce vehicle visibility and driver awareness, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect and replace the backup light switch, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 16, 2022. Owners may contact Subaru's customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRE-22.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
How it ranks in the 2021 field
The score at the top of the page, placed among its peers. The zones are the same thresholds the scorer applies, read out of the scorer itself, so the picture and the band word cannot disagree.
Scores are ranked within the model year, never across years, because an older car has had longer to accumulate reports.
- Left fewer and less serious reports
- Right more, or worse
- Marker this vehicle
Where 2021 sits in the model line
Severe risk for a 2021 — 49th riskiest of the 231 2021 vehicles we can rate. Because the ranking is against the same model year only, age cancels out of it.
Across the 15 model years of this car that carry enough reports to score, 2008 comes out best at 64 and 2022 worst at 83, with 2021 itself at 79.
If the model year is negotiable, 2008, 2009, 2004, 2016, 2005, 2024, 2017, 2019 and 2002 score lower than 2021 by a margin worth acting on. Same body, same engines, different luck — usually a supplier change or a mid-cycle fix, which the complaint data can show but never explain.
Within the 2015–2021 generation specifically, 2016 is the strongest year at 69 and 2018 the weakest at 79.
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Shorter is better. Years with too few reports to score are shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not good news.
Within the 2015-2021 generation, 2016 Subaru Wrx scores best at 69 and 2018 Subaru Wrx worst at 79.
The limits of complaint data
21 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork. Every count on this page is therefore a floor: it is the number of owners who went to the trouble of filing with a federal agency, which is a small and self-selected fraction of the owners who had the fault.
Of those 21 reports, 1 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 5% of the sample rather than all of it. Owners also round: readings pile up on multiples of ten thousand, which is why this site publishes "about 90,000 miles" and not "91,438".
Named failure modes come from matching phrases in the complaint text, so a badly worded complaint can land in the wrong bucket. The effect washes out across hundreds of reports and does not wash out across five.
And nothing here predicts what one car will do. These are other people's complaints, filed years apart, on cars maintained by strangers. Read the page as a map of where this model year has previously gone wrong, then have the specific car in front of you inspected.
Questions this page answers
What are the most common problems with the 2021 Subaru Wrx?
The most-reported failures are complete engine failure or seizure (5 reports), control module (ecm/pcm/bcm) failure (3 reports) and other powertrain problem (3 reports). Counts come from owner complaints filed with NHTSA, which are voluntary, so they show what owners bothered to report rather than every fault that occurred.
Is the 2021 Subaru Wrx reliable?
It scores 79 out of 100 on our risk index, which is severe — 49th riskiest of the 231 2021 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 2021 vehicles, not a prediction about any individual car, and it is built from complaint rates, severity and how early failures appear.
Which year of the Subaru Wrx is best?
Within the 2015–2021 generation, 2016 scores best at 69 out of 100 and 2018 worst at 79. Same body, same engines, different luck.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed