There are 8 owner-reported engine complaints for the 2016 Subaru WRXin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
Started having issue with the engine making loud rattle noises and oil pressure was not consistent. Upon further investigating I removed the oil pan and removed the oil pickup. The oil pickup screen was full of RTV sealant causing the oil pickup to struggle with maintaining proper oil pressure and flow to the engine. I ended up having to change my timing belt tensioners because one went bad. Probably because of low oil pressure or RTV was sucked into oil galleys and caused it to malfunction. My car sounds a little better now but I believe I also have a light amount of rod knocking. If I kept driving the car, This could have led to catastrophic engine damage and caused my car to stall while traveling on public roads. I later researched if others have seen this issue and it appear to be a common issue in with Subaru and Toyota vehicles using the FA20DIT engine. These engine already have small enough rods, they don't need to be robbed of oil and cause engine damage because the manufacturer applied too much RTV sealant in assembly. There needs to be a recall on this.
THE TURBO CHARGER INTAKE DUCT CRACKED ON MY CAR, THIS IS THE NEW ONE THAT REPLACED MY RECALLED ONE. BUT CLEARLY WAS NOT A SOLUTION. I POSTED THIS ON A FORM AND A LARGE AMOUNT OF PEOPLE COMMENTED STATING THEY HAD THE SAME ISSUE. RANGING FROM 15 WRX TO 18 MAYBE EVEN NEWER. WHATEVER THEY USED TO GLUE THE AIR BYPASS CONNECTOR TO THE TURBO DUCT DOES NOT HOLD UP. IT CRACKED AND COMPLETELY SEPARATED FROM THE PART. THIS ALLOWED DIRTY AIR TO CONTAMINATE MY TURBO AND ENGINE. POSSIBLY CAUSING PREMATURE WEAR IN THE FUTURE. THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED BECAUSE THE CAR CAN COMPLETELY STALL IF IT FAILS.
"TAKATA RECALL" TOOK MY CAR TO A LOCAL SHOP BECAUSE IT WAS LACKING POWER AND HAD LOW MPG READINGS. FOUND A BOOST LEAK IN THE TOP INTER-COOLER AND EXPRESSED THAT ALL THE 2016 WRX THAT COME IN THIS HAPPENS QUITE OFTEN. FORUMS AND ONLINE POSTS VERIFIED THIS PROBLEM, THE CAR IS A 2016 SO ITS FAIRLY NEW THIS SHOULDN'T BE HAPPENING.
FRONT END COLLISION VS DEER ON INTERSTATE AT APPROXIMATELY 75 MPH. 4-5 MINUTES AFTER THE ACCIDENT THE ENGINE CAUGHT ON FIRE. THE CAR IS A TOTAL LOSS. NO ONE WAS INJURED. WE ALL WERE OUT OF THE CAR AT THE TIME THE FIRE STARTED.
I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY AND THE CAR LOST A LITTLE POWER START TO SLOW DOWN TILL IT EVENTUALLY STALLED OUT AND NOW IT STARTS BUT DOES NOT STAY RUNNING.
AFTER LEAVING WORK AND DRIVING LESS THAN ONE MILE, THE VEHICLE'S ENGINE STALLED WHILE APPROACHING A CONTROLLED INTERSECTION. THE VEHICLE HAD TO BE PLACED INTO PARK AND RESTARTED. THE AMBIENT TEMPERATURE WAS 80 DEGREES; MOST AUXILIARY SYSTEMS WERE NOT IN USE AT THE TIME THE INCIDENT OCCURRED EXCEPT FOR THE RADIO. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT BEING OPERATED IN ITS OPTIONAL "PADDLE SHIFTER" MODE--IT WAS IN THE STANDARD AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SETTING. THE VEHICLE IS CURRENTLY BEING ASSESSED AT A DEALERSHIP, ALTHOUGH PRELIMINARY DIAGNOSIS FROM A DEALERSHIP REPRESENTATIVE INDICATES THERE IS "NOTHING WRONG." HOWEVER, A SIMPLE GOOGLE SEARCH OF "2015+ SUBARU WRX CVT STALLING" YIELDS A NUMBER OF OTHER VEHICLES THAT HAVE EXPERIENCED THE SAME ISSUE--THE VEHICLE STALLING WHILE AT LOW SPEEDS. SOME OF THE OTHER OWNERS HAVE INDICATED THEY HAVE PAID FOR THE REPLACEMENT OF OIL CONTROL VALVES FROM THEIR OWN POCKET TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE. SINCE THE VEHICLE IS PRONE TO STALLING, THIS CREATES A SIGNIFICANT SAFETY ISSUE FOR WRX OPERATES AS WELL AS OTHER MOTORISTS.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 SUBARU WRX STI. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE WOULD OVERHEAT, BUT NO SMOKE WAS PRESENT. THE ODOMETER GAUGE NEEDLE MOVED TO THE HOT INDICATOR. THE CONTACT WOULD TURN OFF AND RESTART THE VEHICLE, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO SPURR SUBARU (6331 BROCKPORT SPENCERPORT RD, BROCKPORT, NY 14420, (585)-637-9582) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE THERMOSTAT FAILED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE VEHICLE'S LEASE EXPIRED IN TWO MONTHS AND TO TURN IN THE VEHICLE AFTER IT EXPIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 23,000. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 (NA) SUBARU WRX. WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE THE TECHNICIAN RESET P CODES 1449, 1604, AND THE ENGINE LIGHT. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS NOW UP TO SUBARU STANDARDS; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 3,833.
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