Buyer Research

2014 Subaru Impreza — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $8,000–$12,000. There are 2 high-severity known issues you need to know before handing over a check.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 15 Subaru Impreza years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

Same fourth-generation car as the 2013 with less than half the complaints — 108 — but the same shape: airbags are 35% of the record and almost all of it is the passenger occupant sensor switching the airbag off with an adult in the seat. The engine cluster is smaller than the 2013's and no fires this year; the valve-spring recall still applies, and there are stalls on the highway and one sudden acceleration into a garage wall. The blower-motor harness that melts and the key that will not come out of the ignition carry over too. A 2014 is the better buy of the two years if the recall is closed, the passenger airbag indicator behaves, and the oil level holds between changes. It is not a car to buy from a seller who shrugs at any of those three.

What we checked

Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 108 owner complaints for the 2014 Subaru Impreza, and 3 recall campaigns.

A big number here usually means a lot of these were sold, not that it is a bad vehicle — popular models collect more complaints for the same rate of trouble. So the total on its own says little. What is worth reading is the shape of it. 35% of them are about one thing — airbags. That much concentration is a genuine pattern rather than background noise, and it is the first thing to check on any example you look at.

3 recall campaigns cover this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2014 Subaru Impreza

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Passenger occupant sensor switches the passenger airbag off with someone in the seatHigh — wallet impact

Thirty-eight complaints, 35% of the record, and the words that recur are passenger, seat, sensor. The weight-sensing mat in the passenger seat cushion misreads an adult — often a sweaty one, or one in damp clothing — and the airbag OFF light stays on; some owners had it replaced under warranty and it came back. The seat-belt chime for the passenger going off with nobody there is the same sensor. Subaru's repair is a new seat cushion assembly, and a dealer will charge just to read the code. Ask a Subaru dealer whether any extended coverage for the occupant detection system applies to this VIN. Put an adult in the seat and watch the indicator through the whole test drive. Five of the complaints are crash reports; one is a driver's airbag that went off on its own at a stoplight.

Repair cost (estimate): $900–$1,800 for the seat cushion and sensor mat

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under airbags (38).

Valve springs can fracture and stall the engine (recall); highway stalls and one sudden accelerationHigh — wallet impact

Recall 18V772 covers 2012–2014 Imprezas whose valve springs may fracture and cause a stall; the free remedy is a valve-spring replacement, a large job, and early on dealers could not get parts. Twenty engine complaints, two crashes: a car that died three times at highway speed with every dash light on, traced to a damaged bulkhead harness; a WRX that shuts off at stops with the dealer unable to reproduce it; EVAP codes in hot weather on the PZEV cars that dealers told the owner to ignore; and a car that revved and crashed through a garage door while being put in park. The FB20 also burns oil in these years — check the level cold and ask what it uses. Look up the VIN before you look at the car.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed; $2,500–$4,500 for a short block if it burns oil — about 45% of what this car is typically worth

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the engine (20); 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Blower-motor harness melts, key stuck in the ignition, and a no-crank dead dashMedium

Seventeen electrical complaints. The cabin blower stops with a faint burnt-plastic smell and the owner finds the resistor, harness, and sometimes the climate control unit melted — the same failure as the 2013. The key that will not turn fully off or come out of the ignition is the second thread; a shifter-cable adjustment or ignition lock component fixes it. One car went dead — no crank, no dash, no windows — after the wheel was adjusted, and tire-pressure sensor failures show up several times. Run the fan on high for ten minutes and smell the vents; take the key out in park three or four times; check the TPMS light goes out.

Repair cost (estimate): $200–$600 for the blower harness and resistor; $150–$450 for the key release; $60–$120 per TPMS sensor

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (17).

Brake-light switch can stop working (recall)Medium

Recall 19V149 covers 2008–2016 Impreza sedans and 2012–2016 wagons: contamination on the brake-light switch can keep the brake lights from coming on, so nobody behind you knows you are stopping. Dealers replace the switch free. It is a two-minute check — have someone stand behind the car while you press the pedal — and a two-minute VIN lookup to confirm it was done.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

WRX/STI only: secondary air-pump relay can stick on and melt the pump (recall) — and cars built after the coverage dateMedium

Recall 16V738 covers turbocharged Imprezas — in 2014 that is the WRX and STI, filed by NHTSA under Impreza — whose air-injection pump relay can fail closed until the pump overheats. Free relay replacement. One owner with a January 2014 build reports the same pump failure twice, at 79k and 92k miles, on a car built after the recall's September 2013 coverage cutoff. On a turbo car, listen for the pump still running a minute or two after a cold start and check the build date on the door jamb against the VIN lookup. The 2.0i has no air pump.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed; $600–$1,500 for a cooked pump outside coverage

Source: 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Lineartronic CVT hesitation and the extended-warranty questionMedium

Nine powertrain complaints, one a crash — fewer than the 2013 but the same CVT: hesitation from a stop, shudder under light throttle, and a flashing AT Oil Temp light on a long climb. Subaru extended the CVT warranty to 10 years/100k on many cars of this era, and a dealer can tell you whether this VIN is included and how much is left. A CVT replacement outside that is a four-figure bill. Drive it from cold, ease away from a stop, and hold 65 mph on a slight grade watching for the tachometer to hunt.

Repair cost (estimate): $1,200–$2,400 for a torque converter; $4,000–$7,000 for a CVT — around 70% of what this car is typically worth

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the transmission and drivetrain (9).

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Passenger airbag indicator OFF with an adult in the seat at any point on the drive
✗Recall 18V772 open on the NHTSA VIN lookup
✗Low oil on a cold dipstick or a seller vague about consumption
✗Burnt-plastic smell from the vents with the blower on high
✗Any stall or hesitation at a stop, especially on a WRX

Good Signs

✓Recall 18V772 valve springs replaced, closed on the VIN lookup with the invoice
✓Passenger airbag indicator ON within seconds of someone sitting down and steady for the whole drive
✓Oil level checked full at 1,000-plus miles since the last change
✓Subaru dealer confirms the CVT warranty extension applies to this VIN
✓Brake lights confirmed working with a helper behind the car