2006 Subaru Legacy: problems, recalls and reliability
7 recalls and 87 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is vehicle speed control (26% of complaints); the 2004 and 2007 model years look more trouble-free.
Data updated weekly · latest recall Jan 2020
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 87 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“While driving down the highway I had to slam on my brakes to avoid colliding with someone and at that time the brake pedal went soft. Upon further inspection 2 different brake hard lines running to the rear of the vehicle have corroded and failed. This issue was supposed to be remedied under 14V311000 and the vehicle was originally taken in for that recall. Subaru of America was contacted and said because the recall work had already been completed they would not address the issue.”Owner report · Service Brakes · Oct 2021
“Tl* the contact owns a 2006 subaru legacy outback. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 mph, the accelerator pedal was depressed to the floorboard however, the vehicle failed to respond. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed nor repaired. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer were contacted nor notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 125,000. The VIN was not available.”Owner report · Vehicle Speed Control · Jan 2020
“Car loss power and went into limp mode with a solid check engine light and blinking cruise on the dash. The rpm jumped high with out the gas pedal being pushed down. Vehicle was in motion driving at 25 mph before the aforementioned happened.”Owner report · Vehicle Speed Control · Oct 2019
Show 7 more owner reports
“Tl* the contact owns a 2006 subaru legacy. While driving 25 mph, the vehicle did not decelerate when the brake pedal was depressed. In addition, the brake warning indicator illuminated. An independent mechanic diagnosed that the rear brake line was corroded and leaking brake fluid. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was not made aware of the failure. The manufacturer was notified. The failure mileage was 93,000.”Owner report · Service Brakes · May 2019
“Tl* the contact owns a 2006 subaru legacy. The contact stated that while driving at different slow speeds, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact called the johnson subaru of cary (919-238-6864, located at 5010 old raleigh rd, cary, nc 27511, where it was informed that there was no recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that there was no recall under the VIN. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately. 136,000.”Owner report · Electrical System · May 2019
“While driving in traffic all of a sudden the gas pedal stops working, the check engine light illuminates the cruise control light illuminates but the pedal has no effect on the engine the car slows very quickly and comes close to causing an accident. I have checked forums on the web and found where many others have had same issues. The forum is subaruoutback.org please check this sight the code is p2138 any help will be appreciated”Owner report · Vehicle Speed Control · Jan 2018
“The brake failed to stop. On city road. I had to push the brake paddle all the way down only to get weak breaking capability. Took the car straight to garage for break repair. The car needed break liner parts. The cost of repair was $300.. Subaru admitted the problem, gave $150 coupon for good faith. Brake failure. It could kill me for brake failure..”Owner report · Service Brakes · Oct 2017
“Car would not accelerate upon entering the highway after pushing on the gas pedal the car wouldn't do anything . I was able to get off to the side and missed being hit from behind from on coming traffic...I notice check engine light and flashing cruse control light... Second time some weeks later it did the same thing this is very dangerous because you never know when this will happen.”Owner report · Vehicle Speed Control · Sep 2017
“Passenger airbag sensor is faulty resulting in the car not realizing when a person is in the front passenger seat. This will not allow the front passenger airbag to go off when involved in a collision”Owner report · Air Bags · May 2017
“While driving, the check engine light comes on and there is no power to the gas pedal. The car is unable to accelerate or maintain speed and the driver needs to avoid potential collisions by pulling over on the road or freeway.”Owner report · Vehicle Speed Control · Mar 2017
When filing, owners marked a crash in 6 of these complaints and injuries in 6 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.
Recalls - 7 campaigns
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2003-2004 Subaru Baja vehicles manufactured January 22, 2003, to July 21, 2004, 2004-2005 Impreza vehicles manufactured January 28, 2003, to May 31, 2005, 2003-2008 Subaru Legacy vehicles manufactured January 22, 2003, to May 2, 2008, 2003-2008 Subaru Outback vehicles manufactured February 18, 2003, to May 5, 2008, and 2005 Saab 9-2x vehicles manufactured February 11, 2004, to March 17, 2005. The affected vehicles are equipped with a passenger side frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture upon its deployment.
Remedy: Subaru will notify their owners and General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The Subaru recall began on June 17, 2015. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-800-782-2783. The Saab recall began on July 27, 2015. Owners of Saab vehicles may call 1-800-955-9007. Subaru's number for this recall is WQR-53. Note: The recall completely supersedes recall 14V-399 (WQL-48) and partially supersedes recall 14V-763 (WQP-51) in that model year 2004 through 2005 Subaru Impreza and model year 2005 Saab 9-2x vehicles are now only part of this campaign. Note: On December 18, 2015 Subaru informed NHTSA of an expansion of this recall to include certain model year 2003-2004 Subaru Baja, 2003-2008 Subaru Legacy and 2003-2008 Subaru Outback vehicles.
Subaru is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Outback and Legacy vehicles manufactured from December 2003, through April 2009 and currently, or formerly, registered in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. Salt water could splash on the brake lines through a gap in the fuel tank protector, resulting in excessive corrosion of the brake lines.
Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicles. If no brake fluid seepage is observed, the affected area will be rustproofed with anti-corrosion wax. If brake fluid seepage is observed, the brake lines will be replaced followed by rustproofing with anti-corrosion wax. These services will be performed free of charge. The recall began on May 30, 2013. Owners may contact Subaru at 1-800-782-2783. Subaru's recall campaign number is WQG-43.
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Outback and Legacy, 2008-2011 Impreza and 2008-2014 Impreza WRX/STI, and 2009-2013 Forester vehicles, currently, or formerly, registered in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. Salt water could splash on the brake lines through a gap in the fuel tank protector, resulting in excessive corrosion of the brake lines. Note that affected vehicles not currently, or formerly registered, in the salt belt states identified above are eligible for repair, at no cost to the customer, upon request.
Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will test the brake system by depressing the brake pedal and inspecting for brake fluid leaks. If no brake fluid seepage is observed, the affected areas will be rustproofed with anti-corrosion wax. If brake fluid seepage is observed, the brake lines will be replaced followed by rustproofing with anti-corrosion wax. These services will be performed free of charge. The recall began July 2014 and second notifications will run through November 2014. Owners may contact Subaru at 1-800-782-2783. Subaru's recall campaign number is WQK-47. Note: This recall supersedes recall 13V-110 which applied to certain 2005-2009 Legacy/Outback vehicles. Vehicles that were remedied under the previous campaign still need additional areas rust-proofed.
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, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
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. Subaru owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Saab owners may contact the Saab Customer Assistance Center at 1-800-955-9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKC-20.
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, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
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. Subaru Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Saab owners may contact the Saab Customer Assistance Center at 1-800-955-9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKA-20.
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, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
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. Subaru owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Saab owners may contact the Saab Customer Assistance Center at 1-800-955-9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKB-20.
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. The ball spring inside the switch may break, reducing the strength of the ignition switch. If this occurs, the weight on the key ring and certain road conditions could cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position to the accessory position, turning off the engine.
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. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WUF-91.
Specifications
Factory options offered for the 2006 model year, decoded from the NHTSA vPIC database. Individual vehicles have one of each.
How other years compare
Check your exact Legacy by VIN
Recalls and equipment differ between individual vehicles. Decode your VIN to see what applies to yours.
Open VIN decoderFrequently asked questions
Is the 2006 Subaru Legacy reliable?
NHTSA has 87 owner complaints and 7 recall campaigns on record for the 2006 Subaru Legacy. The most complained-about area is vehicle speed control (26% of complaints).
At what mileage do 2006 Subaru Legacy problems usually appear?
Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 100,000 miles or less.
Does the 2006 Subaru Legacy have open recalls?
7 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module. Check your specific vehicle by VIN - recall repairs are free at franchised dealers.
Source: NHTSA recall campaigns and owner complaints (public domain). Counts reflect reports on file and are not a defect rate.