AutoUtility currently tracks 13 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2021 Subaru WRX. Powertrain & Transmission issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 6 complaints (46.2% of submitted records). Zero crashes, fires, injury reports, or fatality reports are cited across these complaint records.
Factual proportion of owner complaints categorized by automotive subsystem in NHTSA records
6 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
4 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
2 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
2 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
"Car battery keeps dying and is inadequately charged resulting in loss of electronics. The problem is a faulty DCM system."
"Manual (not power) Driver seat is loose-rocking car only has 47000 miles but this hardware failure will get worse over time definitely a safety concern if bolt breaks it appears that the plastic washer is wearing most likely poor material should be polyurethane or something like the form of a..."
"In October 2024, my vehicle, a 2021 Subaru WRX STI, was purchased from a Toyota dealership (Fort Bend Sterling McCall Toyota). The dealership sold the vehicle with an oil issue and a modified ECM. This issue caused catastrophic engine failure while driving. The vehicle stalled and could not be..."
"I am filing this complaint to report a serious safety concern involving my 2021 Subaru WRX, which is currently covered under the manufacturer’s powertrain warranty as well as an extended warranty. Subaru of Ontario, an authorized Subaru dealership, failed to properly diagnose or repair ongoing..."
"Excessive blow by contaminating MAP sensors & creating lean/rich conditions. This causes loss of power, stalling and will lead to catastrophic engine failure. EGR system is faulty"
Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2026)
| Model Year | NHTSA Complaints | Crash Reports | Safety Recalls | Detailed Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 Subaru WRX | 55 | 2 | 3 | View 2015 Problems → |
| 2016 Subaru WRX | 34 | 1 | 3 | View 2016 Problems → |
| 2017 Subaru WRX | 53 | 8 | 1 | View 2017 Problems → |
| 2018 Subaru WRX | 44 | 6 | 2 | View 2018 Problems → |
| 2019 Subaru WRX | 30 | 0 | 2 | View 2019 Problems → |
| 2020 Subaru WRX | 17 | 1 | 1 | View 2020 Problems → |
| 2021 Subaru WRX Current Page | 13 | 0 | 1 | Current |
| 2022 Subaru WRX | 25 | 3 | 1 | View 2022 Problems → |
| 2023 Subaru WRX | 7 | 2 | 1 | View 2023 Problems → |
| 2024 Subaru WRX | 13 | 0 | 0 | View 2024 Problems → |
| 2025 Subaru WRX | 2 | 0 | 0 | View 2025 Problems → |
| 2026 Subaru WRX | 0 | 0 | 0 | View 2026 Problems → |
Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 10 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications
| Vehicle Component / System | Total Complaints | Crash Reports | Fire Reports | Injury Entries | Fatality Entries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,SUSPENSION,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Cross-reference safety recalls, crash test safety ratings, and EPA fuel economy for this model year
Key performance indicators, EPA fuel economy specs, powertrain variants, and summary ratings.
Official recall campaigns, safety defect descriptions, and manufacturer free remedy instructions.
NHTSA 5-Star NCAP crash test results, driver assistance systems, and rollover resistance ratings.
EPA fuel economy ratings, electric range, and annual energy cost benchmarks.
Direct, deterministic answers synthesized from verified United States government databases for the 2021 Subaru WRX
In official NHTSA consumer records, the most frequently cited issue area for the 2021 Subaru WRX is Powertrain & Transmission, appearing in 6 records (46.2% of submitted filings).
Secondary reported categories include Engine & Cooling (4) and Electrical System (2).
AutoUtility does not issue subjective reliability scores or commercial ratings. In official United States government records, NHTSA tracks 13 consumer defect complaints and 1 safety recall campaign for the 2021 Subaru WRX.
Reviewing documented component complaint distributions, recall remedy notices, and active federal investigations provides an objective, evidence-based view of the vehicle's historical safety and defect record.
Consumer complaint records on file with NHTSA for the 2021 Subaru WRX cite zero crashes, zero fires, and zero injuries.
Incident entries represent consumer descriptions at the time of submission to federal authorities and do not establish mechanical causation or legal liability.
The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database under 49 CFR Part 576.
Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.