What are the common problems with the 2003 Subaru WRX?
Owners of the 2003 Subaru WRX have filed 60 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the brakes (20) and the fuel system (16). In NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026, 49 of them list a mileage; a complaint is an owner's report, not a proven defect.
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See what the paid report includes →NHTSA's file holds 60 owner complaints on the 2003 Subaru WRX. Owners named the brakes most often: 20 complaints, and half of the 16 that list a mileage came after 8,300 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 60 complaints, 13 report a crash, 2 report a fire and 5 report an injury (5 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
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Common problems with the 2003 WRX
NHTSA's file holds 60 owner complaints on the 2003 Subaru WRX. Owners named the brakes most often: 20 complaints, and half of the 16 that list a mileage came after 8,300 miles. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 20 | 16 | 8,400 |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 16 | 14 | 65,000 |
| Engine And Engine Cooling | 4 | 4 | Under 5 mileages |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 4 | 3 | Under 5 mileages |
| Power Train | 4 | 2 | Under 5 mileages |
Of the 60 complaints, 13 report a crash, 2 report a fire and 5 report an injury (5 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Mileage when owners reported a problem with the 2003 WRX
The 49 mileages owners gave run from 2 to 164,000 miles. A quarter are at or under 7,017 miles, half at or under 23,800, three quarters at or under 76,000 and nine in ten at or under 121,929; 7 (14%) came after 100,000 miles, 2 (4%) after 150,000 and none after 200,000.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 2003 WRX wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
Most of these reports came early in the vehicle's life: 42 of the 49 came at or under 100,000 miles, so they say nothing about how many miles a 2003 WRX can cover.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Lowest mileage listed | 2 miles |
| 25th percentile | 7,017 miles |
| Median (50th percentile) | 23,800 miles |
| 75th percentile | 76,000 miles |
| 90th percentile | 121,929 miles |
| Highest mileage listed | 164,000 miles |
| Complaints after 100,000 miles | 7 (14%) |
| Complaints after 150,000 miles | 2 (4%) |
| Complaints after 200,000 miles | none |
Every model year together: Half of the 699 NHTSA owner complaints on the Subaru WRX that list mileage came after 44,000 miles (NHTSA complaints file of November 11, 2026). How many miles will a Subaru WRX last? →
Is the 2003 WRX a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2003 is a good or a bad WRX: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2003 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 60 complaints, the 2003 ranks 3rd of the 16 Subaru WRX model years from 2002 to 2024 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2002 (427). The fewest: the 2021 (13).
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 WRX | 427 | 327 | 40,000 |
| 2003 (this page) | 60 | 49 | 23,800 |
| 2004 WRX | 42 | 35 | 69,990 |
| 2005 WRX | 19 | 17 | 48,000 |
| 2006 WRX | 14 | 13 | 66,870 |
| 2008 WRX | 65 | 61 | 80,000 |
| 2009 WRX | 41 | 40 | 70,654 |
| 2015 WRX | 52 | 40 | 28,000 |
| 2016 WRX | 31 | 18 | 20,000 |
| 2017 WRX | 53 | 33 | 36,000 |
| 2018 WRX | 43 | 21 | 14,500 |
| 2019 WRX | 30 | 10 | 25,000 |
| 2020 WRX | 18 | 6 | Under 10 mileages |
| 2021 WRX | 13 | 0 | Under 10 mileages |
| 2022 WRX | 25 | 1 | Under 10 mileages |
| 2024 WRX | 14 | 1 | Under 10 mileages |
The linked 2015–2022 pages show NHTSA's September 15, 2026 collection, so their counts can differ from this table's.
Every WRX year compared on NHTSA’s complaints and recalls: Subaru WRX years to avoid →
2003 Subaru WRX recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 2 recall campaigns that name the 2003 Subaru WRX (1 vehicle campaign and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 2003 WRX lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 2003 WRX.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 11 of the 60 complaints on the 2003 Subaru WRX give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA name counted: WRX. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only this one.
- Recall-file name matched: WRX.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
2003 Subaru WRX questions
What are the most common 2003 Subaru WRX problems?
NHTSA's file holds 60 owner complaints on the 2003 Subaru WRX. Owners named the brakes most often: 20 complaints, and half of the 16 that list a mileage came after 8,300 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 60 complaints, 13 report a crash, 2 report a fire and 5 report an injury (5 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
At what mileage do owners report problems with the 2003 Subaru WRX?
Of the 49 complaints on the 2003 Subaru WRX that list mileage, the middle half came between 7,000 and 76,000 miles; 7 (14%) came after 100,000 miles, 2 (4%) after 150,000 and none after 200,000. These are mileages at a reported problem; they do not say how many miles a 2003 WRX can cover.
Is the 2003 Subaru WRX a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2003 is a good or a bad WRX: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2003 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 60 complaints, the 2003 ranks 3rd of the 16 Subaru WRX model years from 2002 to 2024 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2002 (427). The fewest: the 2021 (13).
How many recalls does the 2003 Subaru WRX have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 2 recall campaigns that name the 2003 Subaru WRX (1 vehicle campaign and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 2003 Subaru WRX before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 2003 Subaru WRX.