2017 Subaru BRZ Owner Complaints
Complaint Summary
The 2017 Subaru BRZ has 10 reported complaints.
- Top issues involve unknown or other and air bags.
Reliability Score
Reliability Score
Based on 10 complaints
Most Frequent Issues
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
3 30%
AIR BAGS
2 20%
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
1 10%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
1 10%
SEATS
1 10%
Quick Insights
The top category is UNKNOWN OR OTHER, accounting for 30% of all complaints.
Owners have reported issues across 7 distinct vehicle systems.
Note: Complaint data reflects owner reports and may not always indicate a verified defect. Compare with Recalls and TSBs for a complete picture.
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What owners keep reporting on the 2017 Subaru BRZ
The 2017 Subaru BRZ has 10 owner complaints in this dataset. UNKNOWN OR OTHER is the most common complaint category, representing about 30% of the reports shown here.
Most common complaint categories
The top complaint groups for the 2017 Subaru BRZ are UNKNOWN OR OTHER (3), AIR BAGS (2), ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) (1).
Are these complaints a serious red flag?
Potentially. 4 complaint reports involve higher-attention systems like brakes, steering, engine, powertrain, fuel, suspension, airbags, or electrical components, which is enough to justify a focused inspection.
What should buyers inspect on a used 2017 Subaru BRZ?
Start with the top complaint systems, compare them against the recall report, then inspect service records for evidence that those same areas were already repaired or monitored.
Detailed Complaint Log
Showing 7 of 7 systems
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
3 Reports30% of totalPreviewing the first 2 complaint summaries.
2017 SUBARU BRZ LIMITED WITH PERFORMANCE PACKAGE WAS INVOLVED IN AN AUTO ACCIDENT ON 4-5-21. SUBJECT VEHICLE HAD STOPPED AND WAS SLOWLY ENTERING TO CROSS AN INTERSECTION OF A DIVIDED HIGHWAY WITH A 50 MPH SPEED LIMIT WHILE BEING STRUCK BY AN ONCOMING CAR AT AN APPROXIMATE 90 DEGREE ANGLE WHICH IMPACTED THE LEFT FRONT FENDER NEAR THE HEADLIGHT AND BUMPER AREA.. UPON IMPACT, THE FRONT ENGINE PORTION BURST INTO FLAMES. THE LEFT FRONT DOOR WAS NOT IMPACTED AND DRIVER WAS ABLE TO ESCAPE AS FLAMES IMMEDIATELY ENGULFED THE PASSENGER SECTION. WHAT WOULD LIKELY HAVE RESULTED IN A REPAIRABLE LEFT FRONTAL DAMAGE CLAIM ACTUALLY BECAME A TOTAL LOSS DUE TO THE FIRE DESTRUCTION. THIS AUTOMOBILE WAS PURCHASED NEW FROM A SUBARU DEALERSHIP ON 10-9-17 AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AT APPROXIMATELY 3,300 MILES. THE CAR WAS TAKEN TO JIM KARAS SUBARU IN MEMPHIS, TN FOR REPAIRS. THE ENGINE WAS REMOVED FOR REPAIRS. ACCORDING TO MECHANIC'S INSPECTION AND REPAIR REPORT 521894S DATED 4-20-18, 'FOR P219A AND P119F PULLED VALVE COVERS AND INSPECTION VALVE CLEARANCE AND FOUND THAT ALL INTAKE AND EXHAUST VALVE ARE OUT OF SPEC AND TO TIGHT. REPLACED VALVES, ALL VALVE SHIMS TO BRING ALL INTAKE AND EXHAUST CLEARANCES INTO DESIGN SPEC. REPLACED ALL GASKETS AND ORINGS AS WELL AS HIGH PRESSURE FUEL LINE'. IT IS NOTED THAT SUBARU MAY HAVE HAD FIRE HAZARD ISSUES WITH OTHER REPAIRED SUBARU BRZ MODEL YEARS WITH THE FA 20 D BOXER ENGINE MANUFACTURED FOR YEARS BEGINNING IN 2013. MANUFACTURER MADE NO ADAS AVAILABLE ON THIS CAR.
4/20/2021
This week when I started my car, a yellow caution light appeared on my dash and a âcheck SRS warning lightâ appeared next to it. It would turn on and off, so i am unsure of what the problem is. I brought my car in for an inspection on January 28th, and they didnât detect any issue regarding airbags or anything related to it. One thing i noticed is whenever the passenger seat is pulled forward or backward, it then turns on.
3/8/2023
AIR BAGS
2 Reports20% of totalPreviewing the first 2 complaint summaries.
THE PASSAGER AIR BAG TURNED OFF WITH ME IN THE SEAT
6/6/2020
This week when I started my car, a yellow caution light appeared on my dash and a âcheck SRS warning lightâ appeared next to it. It would turn on and off, so i am unsure of what the problem is. I brought my car in for an inspection on January 28th, and they didnât detect any issue regarding airbags or anything related to it. One thing i noticed is whenever the passenger seat is pulled forward or backward, it then turns on.
3/8/2023
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
1 Report10% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON ,TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT ON, LIGHT PLATES OFF. ACCELERATOR STUCK WHILE DRIVING NOISE WHILE DRIVING. CAR HAD WATER DAMAGE FEW DAYS AFTER HURRICANE KATRINA. INSURANCE COMPANY (GEICO) IN THE REPAIR PROCESS DECLARED ONCE TOTAL LOST THEN CHANGE ITS MIND. I HAD BEEN OFF AND ON THE SHOP SINCE THAT DATE. STUCK WITH THIS LEASED CAR
10/10/2018
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
1 Report10% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY WHEN THE CAR STALLED THREE TIMES; THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON, THEN TURNED OFF. WHITE, SWEET SMELLING SMOKE BEGAN COMING OUT OF THE ENGINE. I PULLED OVER SAFELY. UPON INSPECTION OF THE CAR, IT WAS FOUND THAT THE VALVE SPRING COVER CAME OUT OF THE RIGHT SIDE (PASSENGER) ENGINE HEAD. SEE ATTACHMENT FOR A LIST OF ALL PARTS AFFECTED.
10/17/2020
SEATS
1 Report10% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
This week when I started my car, a yellow caution light appeared on my dash and a âcheck SRS warning lightâ appeared next to it. It would turn on and off, so i am unsure of what the problem is. I brought my car in for an inspection on January 28th, and they didnât detect any issue regarding airbags or anything related to it. One thing i noticed is whenever the passenger seat is pulled forward or backward, it then turns on.
3/8/2023
POWER TRAIN
1 Report10% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
-Manual Transmission issues with grinding or failure to go into gear. Vehicle is available for inspection upon request. -Merging into highway traffic can be dangerous when I'm more focused on my transmission grinding loudly and having difficulty shifting gears to get up to speed. -Unknown -Unknown -No warning lights of any kind
6/12/2024
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
1 Report10% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
The stock head unit (Model #: CA645UL) in my vehicle has been having Bluetooth issues. Every since I purchased the vehicle in 2016, from time to time, the audio from my Bluetooth would cut out and then come back on. It was only once in a blue moon ever since I bought the car, so I never paid much attention to it. However, recently it's been cutting out more frequently than usual. When I took my vehicle in for the 60,000 mile service on 12/12/24, I decided to mention this audio problem to see if the service center could address it while they are working on it. The technician attempted to update the software for the audio unit. After attempting the software update a few times, the technician found the old software was corrupted, causing the system to completely fail. This points to an internal fault in the audio unit. This issue affects my safety in two ways: 1) I can no longer make phone calls via Bluetooth. This poses a safety concern as I would need to take my eyes off the road to make or answer a phone call, which may result in a crash. 2) My backup camera is no longer functional due to the head unit because compromised. This poses a safety concern as I can no longer see as well when backing up or parallel parking. The problem has been confirmed by the dealer. I have attached a photo of the invoice from the dealership.
12/15/2024
Data and Methodology
Scores are derived from NHTSA recalls and owner complaints, normalized by vehicle segment averages.
What are the most common owner complaints for the 2017 Subaru BRZ?
Are complaints about the 2017 Subaru BRZ a serious warning sign?
How should buyers use complaint data for the 2017 Subaru BRZ?
Are complaints about the 2017 Subaru BRZ severe?
Complaint list entries are sourced from owner-submitted NHTSA ODI records.
Subaru BRZ: How should complaint data influence buying decisions?
Carfocal links complaint data directly to recall and maintenance routes for the same model year.
- Complaint entries
- 10
- Top-topic view
- 5 grouped topics shown
- Primary source
- NHTSA ODI owner complaint records
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