Buyer Research

2022 Subaru Legacy — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $19,000–$26,000. There is 1 high-severity known issue you need to know before handing over a check.

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Kestrel Take

A 32-complaint record, and more than half of it — 17 — is the windshield. Owners describe glass that cracks from a pebble that would have chipped any other car, or cracks in the garage overnight with nothing having touched it, and several have replaced it two or three times. That is the story of this year, and it is a $500–$1,200 story each time, not a walk-away one. The rest is thin: an airbag sensor recall that took Subaru most of a year to get parts for, a reverse-light switch recall, and a handful of EyeSight and infotainment complaints that include two crashes. Buy one with both recalls closed, a windshield you have inspected in raking light, and a screen that stayed on for the whole test drive; a thin record is not a clean bill of health, but nothing in this one points at the engine or the CVT.

What we checked

Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 32 owner complaints for the 2022 Subaru Legacy, and 2 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. 53% of them are about one thing — glass, wipers and mirrors. 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.

2 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 2022 Subaru Legacy

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

Windshield cracks from small impacts or from nothing at all — 17 of 32 complaintsMedium

Half this car's record is glass. Two patterns: a pebble strike that would leave a chip on another car instead runs into a foot-long crack within a day, and cracks that start at the bottom defroster strip with no impact mark at all, sometimes while parked. Three owners had three windshields each in two years. Because the EyeSight cameras sit behind this glass, a replacement means Subaru-spec glass plus a camera recalibration — Safelite deductibles of $500 show up in the complaints, and a dealer job runs higher. Inspect the glass edge to edge in low sun, and ask whether a replacement was recalibrated; an uncalibrated EyeSight is the next problem.

Repair cost (estimate): $500–$1,200 per replacement including EyeSight recalibration

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under glass, wipers and mirrors (17).

Passenger airbag occupant sensor can short and switch the airbag off (recall)High — wallet impact

Recall 24V227 covers 2020–2022 Legacy and Outback: a capacitor in the passenger seat's occupant-detection sensors can crack and short-circuit, which leaves the front passenger airbag disabled in a crash. Subaru mailed interim notices in 2024 and did not have replacement sensors until early 2025, so plenty of these cars spent a year with the recall open. The fix is free — new sensors in the seat cushion. Check the VIN on NHTSA; if the passenger airbag OFF light is lit with an adult sitting there, assume it has not been done.

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

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under airbags (1); 2 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Touchscreen lockups that take EyeSight, cruise and lane-keep down with them; phantom brakingMedium

On this car the screen is not just the radio: when the Starlink unit locks up — one owner says about twice a month — adaptive cruise, emergency braking and lane assist all drop offline until it reboots. One owner reports the opposite failure, automatic braking firing in traffic with nothing ahead, then the car refusing to restart. And one of the three forward-collision complaints is a 39 mph crash where EyeSight gave no warning at all — a reminder that this is a driver aid, not a guarantee. On the test drive, watch for the screen freezing and for EyeSight warnings that flash 'disabled' on their own.

Repair cost (estimate): $0–$1,800 — a software update at the low end, a replacement head unit out of warranty at the top

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the driver-assist and automatic braking systems (3), electrics and electronics (3), throttle and cruise control (2).

Water in the transmission inhibitor switch — reverse lights and backup camera stop working (recall)Medium

Recall 23V755 covers 2021–2023 Legacy: an under-welded park/neutral inhibitor switch can let water in, and when it fails the reverse lights do not light and the camera image does not appear in Reverse. Dealers replace the switch free; letters went out January 2024. Thirty seconds to check — select Reverse in a dim garage and confirm both the lights and the camera come up.

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

Source: 2 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Water finding its way into the footwell and the radio amplifier; telematics unit failuresLow

One owner had condensation dripping on her foot and water reaching the carpet, radio and amplifier; another had the Starlink telematics (DCM) module fail twice, killing the remote app and the SOS button. Small numbers, but both are cheap to check: lift the front floor mats and press the carpet for dampness, and press the Starlink call button to see whether it connects.

Repair cost (estimate): $150–$900

Source: not yet checked against public records.

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Any crack or repaired chip on the windshield, especially along the bottom defroster strip
✗Passenger airbag OFF light on with an adult in the passenger seat
✗Screen that freezes or reboots, or EyeSight showing a 'disabled' warning on its own
✗Reverse lights or camera not coming on in Reverse
✗Damp carpet under the front floor mats

Good Signs

✓Both recalls (23V755, 24V227) shown closed on the NHTSA VIN lookup
✓Windshield replacement invoice that lists an EyeSight camera recalibration
✓Starlink head unit updated to current firmware, with the dealer work order
✓EyeSight staying active and the screen staying on through a 20-minute drive
✓Starlink SOS button connecting when pressed