2022 Subaru Ascent problems: recalls, complaints and whether this is a year to avoid

Is 2022 a good year for the Subaru Ascent?

The spread across this nameplate is wide: the 2020 draws 7 times the complaints of the 2023. On a run like that the model year you buy matters more than the badge, and 2022 sits in the middle of it.

Older years have been on the road longer and collect more complaints for that reason alone, and a year that sold in higher volume collects more while being no worse.

This retrieval holds 3 of the nameplate’s model years. 2021 is absent, which means no records came back for it — not that it was clean. The ranking above is among the years shown.

The 2022 accounts for 13% of every complaint filed against the Subaru Ascent in this retrieval, which works out to 13.8 complaints per year on the road across the 4 years since it was sold new — the figure to compare against other years, because it removes the advantage a newer car gets simply from having had less time to accumulate reports.

Complaints fell against the preceding year: the 2022 carries 17% of the 2020’s reports. Some of that is age, but a drop this large between consecutive years often marks a fix.

Which recalls cover the 2022?

Take the campaign number to any franchised Subaru dealer. Recall repairs are free with no mileage or ownership limit, and they follow the car rather than the owner, so a used 2022 with an unrepaired campaign is a free repair you can claim. How recalls work.

Recall text is abridged from the NHTSA record. Search the campaign number at nhtsa.gov/recalls for the full notice and affected VIN ranges.

What do owners report on the Subaru Ascent?

Across every Subaru Ascent year, not the 2022 alone — NHTSA does not split component totals by model year.

• Electrical System — 105 reports
• Power Train — 72 reports
• Visibility/Wiper — 58 reports
• Unknown or Other — 54 reports

If your 2022 is doing something now, these are the guides for that system — each opens with whether it is safe to keep driving:

• Won't start — clicking
• Won't start — silence
• Battery light on

Which other Subaru Ascent years should you compare?

← 2020 Subaru Ascent · 2023 Subaru Ascent → · All Subaru Ascent years

If you are deciding between years, the table above is the short answer and the Subaru Ascent page carries the full run with the component breakdown. Before money changes hands, run the VIN for open recalls and read the inspection checklist — ten minutes in the seller’s driveway finds most of what matters.