There are 5 owner-reported visibility & wipers complaints for the 2005 Subaru Legacyin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
2005 SUBARU LEGACY GT WAGON WITH 55K STARTED INTERMITTENTLY ABOUT NOV 1, 2008. THE HEATING/AC DISPLAY WOULD GO DEAD BUT THE FAN WAS ON AND KEPT BLOWING WHATEVER TEMP WAS LAST SELECTED BUT NONE OF THE CONTROLS WOULD CHANGE IT. COULD NOT DUPLICATE AT THE DEALERSHIP SO THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING. ABOUT 2 WEEKS LATER IT WENT FROM INTERMITTENT TO 100% DEAD. RADIO STILL WORKS AND I'VE NOTICED THAT THE RADIO DISPLAY DOESN'T DIM AT NIGHT EVEN THOUGH THE REST OF THE INSTRUMENT PANELS DOES. I CANNOT CONTROL ANY OF THE DEFROST OR HEATING/AC CONTROLS. *TR
LAST SATURDAY, DURING A SNOW STORM,THE DRIVER'S SIDE WINDSHIELD WIPER ARM ON THE 2005 SUBARU LEGACY WITH 11210 MILES CAME LOOSE AND STOPPED FUNCTIONING. I WAS UNABLE TO DRIVE IN THE SNOW STORM. THE DEALER , GANLEY SUBARU, EXPLAINED THIS WAS NORMAL. THEY STATED THE WIPER LINKAGE IWASNOT AS ROBUST AS THEY USED TO BE, AND THE WIPER WERE RETAINING NUT WAS DESIGNED TO COME LOOSE IF THERE WAS RESISTANCE ON THE WIPER. THIS WAS TO PROTECT THE WIPER LINKAGE AND MOTOR. THIS WAS VERY DANGEROUS. ESPECIALLY ON A CAR WITH ALL WHEEL DRIVE MARKETED FOR WINTER USE.*AK
THE WINDSHIELD WIPER SPEED ON MY 2005 SUBARU LEGACY WAGON IS MARGINALLY ADEQUATE IN VERY HEAVY RAINSTORM CONDITIONS. THIS CONDITION WAS REPORTED TO MY DEALER SERVICE CENTER, WHO ADMITTED THAT OTHER CUSTOMERS HAVE VOICED SIMILAR CONCERNS. THE DEALER VERIFIED THAT MY WIPER BLADE SPEED IS NORMAL FOR THAT MODEL. THE WIPER SPEED ON THE HIGH SETTING IS 10 CYCLES EVERY 10 SECONDS. WHEN COMPARED TO MY 2003 SUBARU OUTBACK WAGON, THE SPEED ON THAT VEHICLE IS 12 CYCLES EVERY 10 SECONDS. THAT IS 20% FASTER AND CLOSER TO WHAT I FEEL IS ACCEPTABLE FOR SAFE DRIVING IN A THUNDERSTORM. *JB
HEATING ALWAYS ON IN ANY VENT MODE, OPERATION OF CAR UNHEALTHY DUE TO HOT AIR ALWAYS BLOWING OUT OF VENTS; EVEN WITH COOL AIR AT LOWEST SETTING, 65 DEGREES F.
THE WINDSHIELD HAS CRACKED A TOTAL OF SIX DIFFERENT TIMES WHEN THE VEHICLE IS BEING DRIVEN. THIS COULD BE DANGEROUS BECAUSE THE WINDSHIELD COULD BREAK IN THE DRIVER'S FACE. TAKEN TO DEALER FOR REPAIR TWICE. *NM
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026