2018 Subaru Legacy · symptom sheet
Windshield cracks or distorts
- 27owner reports
- 27,000median miles
- 0involved a crash
Newest report Aug 27, 2026 · checked Oct 2, 2026
36 of the 117 complaints on this car are about the windshield and wipers. 27 of those describe windshield. Only infotainment is reported more often on this car.
Tick what matches of 27 reports
Windshield on other Legacy years
Report counts are for each model year on its own, so a newer car has had less time to collect them. Model years with too few reports of it for a sheet: 2016.
What this problem usually is
Many windshield complaints are about cracks owners can't explain: a line that starts at the edge of the glass, or a small chip that spreads. Nearly one in five of these complaints mentions it happening again or a second windshield.
What got replaced
Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the windshield (27 reports).
Recalls and investigations
One recall on the windshield and wipers covers the 2018 model year. A recall on the same system isn't always the same failure, so read the defect text.
In the affected vehicles, a software issue may cause the audio display system to not initialize, resulting in the camera display remaining blank. If this occurs, the rearview image will not display while backing up the vehicle.
All 3 recalls on the 2018 Subaru Legacy, with the owner complaints on each recalled system
NHTSA investigations into the windshield and wipers on the Legacy
Hood latch failure. Closed oct 31, 1994.
None of these investigations covers the 2018 model year.
When it happens
The middle half of failures fell between 11,900 and 37,000 miles, from the 23 reports that gave a mileage.
Is this a known problem?
The manufacturer has sent NHTSA 2 service bulletins or notices for the 2018 Subaru Legacy that deal with this problem. Newest first.
Federal rules make a manufacturer send NHTSA a copy of any notice about a defect that goes to more than one dealer or owner. Most of these are service bulletins, the repair instructions manufacturers send to dealers. NHTSA generally leaves safety recall bulletins out of this file, and recalls are listed separately.
This bulletin provides a procedure for diagnosing and repairing customer concerns of a âpoppingâ or âsnappingâ -type sound heard when opening the sunroof.
If you encounter a customer complaint of a white residue build up on the rear door partition glass or interior molding, it may be crystallized salt.
What owners wrote
“MAR 2024: 2018 Subaru Legacy, 36,000-miles. (1) Front Windshield had crack in it randomly one day. Coming up from bottom heating element. Easily able to find similar crack shape online. Find lots of windshield crack issues online for Subarus. Zero action from Subaru on this. (2) Broke again 11 months later [FEB 2025] in similar fashion, randomly one day.”
Filed Aug 12, 2025
“I have had the windshield replaced in this vehicle three times in less than one year. I recently took my car through a car wash that I use regularly and the next day, there was a new crack on the lower passenger side of the windshield. This is getting expensive to fix and seems to be a defect with the windshield.”
Filed May 24, 2021
Should you keep driving it?
This page can't tell you that. 0 of 27 reports involved a crash. Owners who file are the ones who had a bad experience, and nobody checks their reports. If the problem affects steering, braking, power or a fire risk, treat it as a safety fault and have it inspected before a long or high-speed drive.
File your own report with NHTSA. Complaint counts are how a problem gets an investigation. How reports land on this sheet.
Guide Paid for this repair before a recall covered it? How recall reimbursement works
Other problems on this car
- Infotainment, screen or backup camera fails 41 reports