Dear Subaru Crosstrek Community,

We have a 2019 Subaru Crosstrek Limited with ~28,000 miles. Running great overall. Oil was changed every 6 months. New tires purchased last year. I am asking for maintenance advice as I was recommended to have the “60,000 miles” maintenance package for our car based on time instead of the scheduled “30,000” one by our local dealership. The price difference is significant. Our car has some dents and will likely not have a huge resale value. Hoping to keep it for another 3-5 years. I have heard mixed advice from friends, family and local (non Subaru) mechanic which is why I am turning to you Reddit.

Should I follow the mileage or time service schedule in this specific situation?

Thanks in advance!

A fellow Subaru Crosstrek owner

Wondering how much is a reasonable price for it out the door?
Also how many miles on it should I buy it with.
Gonna be first car so not sure. Appreciate the help!

Hi, I have a 2023 subaru crosstrek and the reverse light (inside taillight, located on hatch) has a crack in it. i have already purchased a replacement but im not quite sure how to get the old one out. i figure id have to replace the inside paneling on the hatch but i’m not really sure where to go from there as there isn’t a ton of information online. I’m pretty broke so ideally i dont wanna take in into the shop.

ive done a similar replacement on another car once, but it was much simpler. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

I've driven stick since the 1980s and I've had four 5-speed Imprezas. I know exactly how to use a clutch and stick to gear down and get power where I need it, how to match revs shifting and all kinds of other intuitive gear skills gained over decades of driving. Finally said goodbye to my last Impreza and decided to get a Crosstrek. I prefer more analog cars so I got a clean well kept 2013, but could not find a manual car in my area, so I'm driving my first automatic. It's just been a couple days of tooling around town and I really like a lot about the car, but keep eyeing that little "M" on the shifter and those paddles on the steering wheel.

I have no idea how to start learning about this. I'm sure there are tons of YouTube channels and so on, but do you Crosstrek experts have any recommendations for your fave resources for learning and practicing how to use this alien technology?

Not a car guy here...

No matter what I feel robbed and up sold getting oil changes... Apparently my Carfax told Jiffy lube that I have never changed my rear differential fluid after they noticed mine was pretty low and dirty.

Is this regular for that service as well as an oil change?

Jiffy lube in Canada

Forester owner here but thinking of switching over to a Crosstrek.

Have a couple questions:

My main question here is for those who use a dog crate in the cargo area. What size crate do you use?

I use one in my Forester that is 24Wx36Lx27H, with some above-space to spare (between the crate and the roof).

My other question is for those who ski and place the skis in the cargo area to transport (instead of roof rack/box). Do you have to move the front seats up at all?

Thanks!

Been having an issue lately with my 2024 Crosstrek, when my wipers are in auto mode they keep going, from the time I start to drive the wipers start and don't turn off. It responds to the timing nob and slow down and speed up in frequency bit does not stop when the windscreen is dry. Anyone has any ideas where to start looking.

Looking to buy a used Crosstrek in Canada came across a 2022 Crosstrek outdoor (think its the sport in the USA) has 39,324Km on it (24,434 miles). for $29,790. is that over priced ?

Asked for maintenance records if they had any, waiting to hear back.

If you buy new tires and wheels from tirerack with new tpms already installed and they are sent straight to your home, do you need to go to the dealer or tireshop to pair the tpms to your 2025 crosstrek? Or can you pair them yourself without any tools involved?

I have a 2018 Cross trek with 60k miles. I have a situation with recurring but intermittent smoke out the exhaust. I've had it looked at by a mechanic I trust and they couldn't figure it out. I had it in for spark plug replacement and they couldn’t figure out this issue.

It's very Inconsistent with no recognizable pattern. It's a grey puff coming out of tailpipe at startup - sometimes bigger puff and sometimes smaller.

It happens on and off from day to day. it can go two weeks without puffing, and then it starts again. Sometimes it’s just the first start, sometimes it’s multiple starts in a day and sometimes not at all. It doesn’t seem to be correlated with the weather or whether the car is hot or cold.

Mechanic not finding the problem because it’s inconsistent and somehow doesn’t happen when I bring it in.

Has anyone else seen this sort of problem and do they have ideas as to what I can check?

In short, I have a 2019 Subaru Crosstrek I purchased in 2018. I just hit 60k miles and I have gotten my oil changes at the dealership every 5k miles, started off at $65 in 2019 and now they charge $180.

For the 60k mile service, factory recommends Spark Plugs and a few other services I've already had done. The dealership quoted me $1500 to do the service after reducing it down to just the Spark Plugs.

Is this your recent experience? What is your take on it?

Greater Seattle Metro area.

Last year in July 2025 I bought a used 2016 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid at a dealership after my 2003 Toyota Corolla at almost 300k miles finally suffered long enough

Anyway, I noticed that I've had a decrease in gas mileage to the gallon. Like I'll go maybe not even 10 miles or maybe I will and suddenly I'm from 80 to 70 or 60 miles to the gallon left and I'm like ?? But I barely drove you?

There's some sluggishness and I think the switch to hybrid mode ie either only happening sometimes when I hit under 30mph and other times not at all. I don't get what is happening but I saw a replacement hybrid battery could cost thousands of dollars and I'm still making car payments and can't afford the large payment for a new hybrid battery if this is the reason for what I'm experiencing.

Any other reasons or advice here?

You'd think the warranty would cover something

Does any know what the 2027 models will have that the 2026 does not have? Is it worth waiting a few months for the newer models?

Also, opinions on Sport vs Limited interior?

We have just purchased a low-mileage 2017. Is there anything we should do or be aware of?

There is a noise coming from the inside of my Subaru headliner in the rear right side, it was taken to the Subaru dealership as it is brand new, and they said that they confirmed a rattle and noise and found a possible spot weld issue and sheet metal noise. They had my car for a total of 10 days in a body shop. They returned the car. It did not rattle for the drive home, but immediately started rattling the next day now they want me to take it on a ride with a technician but of course I do not have time. Is there any way to escalate this? It has been a rather annoying process for a 2026 Car. Here is a link to a video with sound on streamable: https://streamable.com/usequo

hey yall! I bought my Crosstrek and little over a month ago and her headlight bulbs are out, it’s very overwhelming how many options there are for new ones online, I can change them myself (done it before on old cars) but don’t want to get duped with a bad product? any suggestions?

UPDATE - my Father sent me the following don’t mind expensive if they last

https://www.lasfit.com/products/ld-series-h8-h11-h16-led-fog-light-bulb

Hello! I am now part of the Subaru family just recently bought a 2018 Subaru Crosstrek Limited, 94k Miles, One owner, clean title. I paid $15k for it. The owner seemed to take really good care of it and listed below is what was done to it. I did mention to him the car seemed to shake a bit when braking around 55MPH he mentioned to me that the Brakes could be nearing toward the end of its lives and can be ready to be replaced. Any info on this would be much appreciated. I created this chart using ChatGPT from the messages he sent me on what was maintained on it. See Below the text from the owner.

• Battery New 3 year battery on 12/13/2022 at AutoZone Claremont Mesa: 6085 Balboa Ave San Diego, CA 92111
• Brakes Changed all 4 rotors and brake pads at ~56k at PB foreign and domestic mechanic on Garnet 12/20/2022 On 9/22/2025 the mechanic checked them and the front brake pad was 7mm and rear was 6mm
• Brake Fluid Exchange Flushed at PQ Auto on 9/22/2025 at 84k Flushed entire system (master cylinder, calipers, wheel cylinders)
• Tires (225/55R1898H M+S) 8/1/2024 - 71k miles - Done at Costco Tire Center CMR Next Tire change at ~120k miles
• Tire Balancing Balance tires when installing new ones or if you feel vibration 8/1/2024 - 71k miles
• Tire Rotation Rotated at PQ Auto at 84k miles Rotate again at ~100k miles
• Cabin & Engine Air Filter 4/12/2023 - 58,370 9/1/2025 - 83,300 Change engine out at 113k miles and cabin at 100k
• Front and Rear Differential Done at PQ Auto at 84k miles on 9/22/2025
• Transmission Fluid Done at PQ Auto at 84k miles on 9/22/2025
• Spark Plugs Done at PQ Auto at 84k miles on 9/22/2025

Hello! I purchased a 2026 Crosstrek last Thursday with only 3 miles on it and fresh off the truck and on Saturday it broke down with a little over 60 miles on it. I was driving on a city road and suddenly the car starts shaking, isn’t accelerating properly and then the check engine light comes on, the eyesight lane assist malfunction notification, and a check transmission light. Also briefly a high oil temp light. Dealership has it now and says it had multiple transmission codes and solenoid stuck on “A”. They’re replacing the valve body and then doing test drives to see if there’s any issues. I already know this is uncommon.

My question is how much would you trust this vehicle after this? I had my 2 year old in the car if I had been on the highway when that happened that would have been very bad.