IllustrationTHE HEADGASKET BURNED THROUGH. REPLACED HEADGASKET, HAD HEADS MILLED. NOW EXACTLY 1 1/2 YEARS LATER IN APRIL 2003 THE CAR IS OVERHEATING, EVERYONE SAYS THE CAR SHOULD NOT BE DOING THAT, BUT IT IS. IT IS ALOT OF MONEY FOR A CAR THAT IS ONLY 5 YRS. OLD AND HAVING MAJOR ENGINE PROBLEMS.
1998 Subaru Outback
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1998 Subaru Outback do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 207.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Outback years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
40–25K
325–50K
1250–75K
1675–100K
17100–150K
7150K+
59 reports with mileage · 68 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 40 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 13 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
9 crash reports2 fire reports7 injury reports
Engine And Engine Cooling complaints
40 reportsAPPEARS I HAVE A BLOWN HEAD GASKET ON MY 1998 2.5L OUTBACK. COOLANT CONTAINS OIL , COOLANT RESERVOIR FILLS UP RAPIDLY WITH COOLANT WHEN DRIVEN ON THE HIGHWAY. COOLANT NEVER RETURNS TO THE RADIATOR AFTER COOLING DOWN. *LA
CAR OVERHEATED. TOWED TO GARAGE. THEY REPLACED THERMOSTAT AND TESTED. RAN OK FOR ABOUT 20 MILES. OVERHEATED AGAIN. TOWED TO GARAGE. NOW THE DIAGNOSIS IS THAT I NEED A NEW HEAD GASKET. THIS CAR HAS LESS THAN 90,000 MILES AND HAS BEEN MAINTAINED FLAWLESSLY. *LA
WHILE DRIVING AT 70 MPH, AND WITH NO WARNING VEHICLE STALLED, CAUSING THE DRIVER TO LOSE CONTROL. OWNER HAD CONTACTED DEALERSHIP ON FOUR SEPARATE OCCASIONS, BUT PROBLEM STILL OCCURRING. *AK
BLOWN HEAD GASKET AT 105,000 MILES. MY RESEARCH INDICATES THAT THIS IS A VERY COMMON FAILURE FOR THIS ENGINE/MODEL YEAR. IT COST ME $3400 FOR A NEW SHORT BLOCK/LABOR TO EFFECT REPAIRS.*AK
I OWN A 1998 SUBARU OUTBACK.: VIN #[XXX]. ON THE DATE BELOW, THE TIMING BELT ON MY CAR, WHICH HAD 53 THOUSAND MILES ON IT AT THE TIME, BROKE AND RESULTED IN A CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE. THIS FORCED ME TO BUY A USED ENGINE. FORTUNATELY, I WAS ONLY DRIVING AT 20 MPH AND WAS ABLE TO SAFELY PULL OVER. HAD THIS HAPPENED AT INTERSTA…
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I OWN A 1998 SUBARU OUTBACK.: VIN #[XXX]. ON THE DATE BELOW, THE TIMING BELT ON MY CAR, WHICH HAD 53 THOUSAND MILES ON IT AT THE TIME, BROKE AND RESULTED IN A CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE. THIS FORCED ME TO BUY A USED ENGINE. FORTUNATELY, I WAS ONLY DRIVING AT 20 MPH AND WAS ABLE TO SAFELY PULL OVER. HAD THIS HAPPENED AT INTERSTATE HIGHWAY SPEED THE RESULT MIGHT HAVE BEEN VERY DIFFERENT. SUBARU'S OWN MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE SAYS THAT THE TIMING BELT SHOULD BE INSPECTED AT 60 THOUSAND MILES. I'VE BEEN IN TOUCH WITH THE COMPANY BUT THEY DON'T SEEM TO BE VERY RESPONSIVE OR FORTHCOMING. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER.*AK INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR
MY SUBARU OUTBACK HAS DRIPPED A LITTLE OIL FROM THE FRONT EVER SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR NEW AND HAD A BURNING SMELL. I TOOK IT BACK 2 TIMES IN THE FIRST YEAR BUT THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING EXCEPT TELL ME IT WAS TRANSIT PAINT BURNING OFF. I TOOK IT BACK WHEN I WAS 1000 MILES OUT OF MY WARRANTY BECAUSE IT WAS WORSE AND SMELLED BURNIN…
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MY SUBARU OUTBACK HAS DRIPPED A LITTLE OIL FROM THE FRONT EVER SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR NEW AND HAD A BURNING SMELL. I TOOK IT BACK 2 TIMES IN THE FIRST YEAR BUT THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING EXCEPT TELL ME IT WAS TRANSIT PAINT BURNING OFF. I TOOK IT BACK WHEN I WAS 1000 MILES OUT OF MY WARRANTY BECAUSE IT WAS WORSE AND SMELLED BURNING MORE. THEY TOLD ME IT WAS THE OIL PUMP SEAL BUT WOULDN'T COVER IT UNDER WARRANTY. THEY SAID IF I HAD BEEN HAVING REGULAR WORK DONE THROUGH THE DEALER THEY MIGHT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO WORK SOMETHING OUT. SINCE THEN IT IS WORSE AND THE BURNING SMELL IS VERY BAD. I KNOW OF 2 OTHER SUBARU LEGACY'S WITH THE SAME PROBLEM AND A $500 TO $700 FIX. I WAS ALSO TOLD BY A MECHANIC THAT THERE HAVE BEEN SOME FIRES IN SUBARUS DUE TO THIS PROBLEM AND DRIPPING ON THE CATALYTIC CONVERTOR.*AK
CONSUMER STATES THAT WHILE DRIVING AND WITH NO WARNING VEHICLE WILL STALL ,AND IT WILL BE HARD FOR THE CONSUMER TO CONTROL THE VEHICLE. DEALER NOTIFIED.*AK
ENGINE OVERHEATS. TWO SUBARU DEALER SERVICE CENTERS SAID THEY COULD NOT FIND THE PROBLEM, AND STARTED AN SEEMINGLY ENDLESS REPLACEMENT OF THERMOSTATS, AND EVEN THE RADIATOR. THE PROBLEM CONTINUES, AND NOW THAT I AM OVER 60K MILES, WITH MY WARRANTY EXPIRED, THEY SUDDENLY SAY IT IS A PROBLEM WITH THE HEAD GASKET, WHICH WILL PROBAB…
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ENGINE OVERHEATS. TWO SUBARU DEALER SERVICE CENTERS SAID THEY COULD NOT FIND THE PROBLEM, AND STARTED AN SEEMINGLY ENDLESS REPLACEMENT OF THERMOSTATS, AND EVEN THE RADIATOR. THE PROBLEM CONTINUES, AND NOW THAT I AM OVER 60K MILES, WITH MY WARRANTY EXPIRED, THEY SUDDENLY SAY IT IS A PROBLEM WITH THE HEAD GASKET, WHICH WILL PROBABLY COST OVER $2,000 TO REPLACE. I NOW FIND OUT THAT THERE ARE NUMEROUS PROBLEMS WITH THE HEAD GASKETS OF 1994-1998 SUBARUS, BUT THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A RECALL. WHY?*AK
1998 SUBARU OUTBACK - BLOWN HEAD GASKET, RESULTED IN OVER HEATING. MY MECHANIC ESTIMATES $2500 (ASSUMING THERE IS NO OTHER DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE). WE ARE ALSO CHECKING PRICES FOR USED ENGINES TO POSSIBLY REPLACE THE EXISTING ENGINE. MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 129000 MILES. *JB
Official recalls
201V216000 · Suspension:front:springs:coil Springs
Jun 25, 2001
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH FRONT COIL SPRINGS ORIGINALLY SOLD IN OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN THE STATES OF CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, IOWA, KENTUCKY, MAINE, MARYLAND, MASSACHUSETTS, MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA, MISSOURI, NEW YORK, NEW JERSEY, NEW HAMPSHIRE, OHIO, PENNSYLVANIA, RHODE ISLAND, VERMONT, VIRGINIA, WEST VIRGINIA, AND WISCONSIN, AND IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. THE FRONT COIL SPRINGS WERE PRODUCED WITH POOR PAINT QUALITY WHICH, AFTER CONTINUED EXPOSURE TO CORROSIVE SALT, CAN RESULT IN BREAKAGE OF THE SPRING.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: DEPENDING ON THE LOCATION OF THE FRACTURE, A BROKEN SPRING COULD MOVE PAST THE SPRING SEAT AND CONTACT A FRONT TIRE. SOME TIRES HAVE DEFLATED DUE TO CONTACT WITH A BROKEN SPRING.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL NOTIFIY CUSTOMERS TO BRING THEIR VEHICLE TO AN AUTHORIZE DEALERSHIP TO HAVE A SPRING GUARD INSTALLED ON BOTH FRONT STRUTS TO PREVENT TIRE PUNCTURE AND REPLACE ANY BROKEN SPRINGS FREE OF CHARGE. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN SEPTEMBER 18, 2001. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT SUBARU AT 1-800-782-2783.
98V042000 · Power Train:automatic Transmission:gear Position Indication (prndl)
Feb 20, 1998
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS. DUE TO POOR WELDS, IGNITION KEYS CAN STICK, SHIFT LEVERS/LINKAGES CAN BREAK AND SHIFT LEVERS CAN MOVE.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THIS CONDITION CAN CAUSE UNEXPECTED MOVEMENT OF THE VEHICLE INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH OR PROPERTY DAMAGE.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SHIFT LEVER ASSEMBLIES (EXCEPT THE HANDLE GRIP).
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.