CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2014 Outback is showing an early trend of problems with hesitation when accelerating.

The vast majority of owners experiencing this problem have reported that Subaru has not been able to find the cause of the engine hesitation, or fix the problem.

Especially because this is a potential safety defect, we are flagging the 2014 Outback as a model year to watch out for.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
9 / 0
Average Mileage:
35,909 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2014 Subaru Outback miscellaneous problems

miscellaneous problem

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2014 Subaru Outback Owner Comments

problem #19

Jun 032024

Outback

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Water was coming out of my eyesight camera on the drivers side after a rain

- Oklahoma City, OK, USA

problem #18

Aug 282021

Outback

  • miles
Driving at highway speeds with over half a tank of gas and car just shut down, no warning lights, no noise just shut down and lost all control. Fortunately was able to safely move to shoulder. Sat there for a few minutes, called subaru dealer (no suggestions though i now know there is a recall (NHTSA 21V587000) for an identical problem in newer subaru outbacks and also plenty of online sites suggesting this has happened to other outbacks. Car restarted and we were able to complete our ride home, very scary to think of what could have happened if we were in a different situation of traffic or highway conditions.

- Indianapolis, IN, USA

problem #17

Aug 092020

Outback

  • 138,858 miles
I was on the highway, after driving a little more than two hours. The dash board lit up with many of the "trouble lights". the brake light began flashing, eye sight was lit, meaning that it was no longer engaged. At oil temp. Check engine transmission. All of the above. I am looking at a picture that I took showing the mileage and the warning lights. The car continued to operate, without any hesitation and I felt that it must "just be an electronic issue". it happened to me once before, about two years ago. I took it to an auto parts store for a quick diagnostic and the guy said it was fine to drive until I could get back home to the dealership. Two days later, the warning lights disappeared! I understand now from various threads on the internet, this is a common problem with the Subaru's cvt. It is sad because they apparently have been informed of this issue and their only response is a repair to the cvt ($1500-2000) or a new transmission all together ($5- 8K). I bought this vehicle as new... I have not owned a Subaru before but wanted the "security of a reliable car". I did purchase the extended warranty, but this happened after the 100K miles so I have no recourse. Please help all of the Subaru owners out there!! it's not just the Outback model, but several of their vehicles and it seems that it is something that has been happening over the years but they have not been made to address this design flaw. Safety wise-- I don't know if the vehicle will just quit in the middle of traffic, or what. We tried the "general fixes".... unplug the battery for a few hours; we purchased a new gas cap seal; but neither of those did the trick. I wanted to send my case to you but, also, this coming week, I will be dropping it off at the dealership to see what they have to say.

- Charleston, SC, USA

problem #16

Jan 012016

Outback

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Sunroof drains clog causing water to leak into car. This occurs when raining or washing car. Interior windows become very foggy and often times it is necessary to wipe them down with a cloth. Dealer was willing to remove standing water from car and seats as a "one time courtesy" and indicated that they would clear drains during each car service performed by them. Recently had the drains cleaned, we have had 4 flash flood warnings since then and water continues to leak into the interior (both when driving or stationary). This is a known problem to Subaru but I have yet to see a recall. This is certainly both a safety and health issue (visibility/mold/mildew). Leaking has occurred during the past 3 years, perhaps a bit more. We have a 2006 Volvo that has a sunroof and no leaks!

- Magalia, CA, USA

problem #15

Feb 282019

Outback

  • 66,000 miles
On Feb 28, 2019 I was driving my 2014 Subaru Outback on interstate 64 on a straight stretch at approximately 70 mph going uphill when accelerator became suddenly and completely unresponsive. I was in the far left lane of 3 lanes of traffic also traveling at a high rate of speed and had to try to get to the emergency lane to the right of the 3 lanes. I had absolutely no response when pushing on the accelerator pedal and could have been hit by numerous semi trailer trucks. I was able to coast to the right into the emergency lane which was a miracle because I was on a steep uphill incline. When I reached the emergency lane, I stopped the car, shifted into park, and back into drive mode and the accelerator did engage at that point. I immediately took the car to a Subaru dealer but they have not diagnosed it as of yet. I have been researching on the internet to see if other 2014 Outback owners have the same complaint and came across numerous other complaints of the same problem on the website www.carcomplaints.com. those complaining of the same problem have not had any success with a fix from Subaru. Please look into this before someone is injured or killed as I could have easily been today.

- Louisville, KY, USA

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problem #14

Nov 062018

Outback

  • 65,000 miles
My car is using way too much oil for a 4 year old car. Something is wrong and two places I've gone have suggested it could be something wrong with the pistols in the engine. I've read about other owners of this model experiencing the same trouble. This is highway and street driving.

- Louisville, KY, USA

problem #13

May 022018

Outback

  • 89,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Backup camera is not working when the vehicle is placed in reverse.

- Setauket, NY, USA

problem #12

May 012018

Outback

  • 60,000 miles
Back up camera went out at 60K miles

- Gurnee, IL, USA

problem #11

Mar 052018

Outback

  • 114,000 miles
4 year old car's transmission went up at 114,000. Although there was a warranty extension because of the transmissions, Subaru did not do a recall on the faulty transmission. Now they are quoting us $9000 for a new transmission.

- Delmar, DE, USA

problem #10

Dec 012015

Outback

  • 6,000 miles
Burning oil. Excessive oil changes

- Parma Hts, OH, USA

problem #9

Oct 012017

Outback

  • 30,500 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

V-belt chirping when running especially with A/C

- Portland, OR, USA

problem #8

Aug 012015

Outback

  • miles
My bluetooth, when I make a call or receive a call while driving vehicle in motion on the city streets and freeway, on the receivers end the person can hear a whinning noise like a dental drill. I bought a new cell to see if it corrects the problem and it did not. I took the vehicle to dealership prior to purchasing a new cell phone and the dealership told me they are not able to help me.

- Lemon Grove, CA, USA

problem #7

Mar 212017

Outback

  • 24,600 miles
Possible oil consumption. I have it twice or third and I have noticed that oil was gone when I checked the oil leveler. Yesterday, I have talked to Subaru service dept about it and he said it is ok that keep pour oil into every 1200 miles (burned some oil and between oil change). I bought oil and pour it into. I don't believe it was so normal for burned some oil like every 1200 miles. I am concerning about it.

- Davis, CA, USA

problem #6

Oct 182016

Outback

  • 21,000 miles
Subaru Outback moon roof is the problem. And apparently this is a known problem with Subaru vehicles, and yet, they choose to not share this information, even when specifically discussed prior to purchase. Even if you do not open the roof, there are drains that can clog, and when they clog, the car starts filling with water. The clog, in my case, was from fir needles, since I live in the mountains. But they also say that simply a spiderweb or road dirt can cause a clog of these very sensitive drains. In my case, water was running down through the driver side seat belt shaft, and on to the back seat floor. Since it rains a lot, then lots of water can come in. Many, many gallons of water. It happens both when the vehicle is parked and when it is moving. We had two October storms that dropped a great deal of rain, which caused so much water to enter the car that it sloshed when driven; literally, like driving a swimming pool! after much discussion, Subaru agreed to clean the disaster once only under warranty, and then they were done. There is nothing in their manuals about keeping these mystery drains clear. They just hope that it will not be a problem during the warranty period. They will lie to your face about the integrity of the water tight nature of that roof window. Repeatedly. And once those hidden drains start to clog, the windows initially start fogging up, followed by large amounts of mold and other nastiness. Then the carpeting, upholstery and all other "soft" components of the car need to be replaced. But there is no way to clean the air vent system, so mold is there to stay.

- North Bend, WA, USA

problem #5

Nov 012015

Outback

  • miles
New 2014 Outback with static noise coming from the audio / speaker system; both with or without the radio being turned on. This will happen randomly, with no particular set pattern or obvious reason; it's impossible to predict when this will happen or even try to re-create. We don't have the navigation package. I have a harmon radio without satellite. There doesn't appear to be a pattern and the dealer cannot pinpoint the issue. This happens even when the radio is off and I am not using the bluetooth. This has happened with or without engine running. This has continued to happen since I have owned vehicle randomly.

- Oakville, WA, USA

problem #4

May 262014

Outback

  • 500 miles
The interior windows will suddenly get covered with fog. This has happened over twenty five times to my car. It doesn't matter what the weather, or outside temp is. This, causes a serious problem trying to see out of the car. The first time it happened I caled the dealership. I was told to run the ac. It can happen even when the ac, is already on. I've had it into the dealership five times in the 14 months I've had the car. They can't find the problem. I've taken clear photographs 3 times showing clear images of how bad the interior fogging gets. Dealership told me to contact Subaru America ask for rplacment. I have spoken to three people at Subaru, provided all photos. They refuse to replace. This is going to cause an accident. Munn 16 2015 it happened while I was on interstate I-205 and it made seeing out of the car almost impossable. I had to carefully pull of to road side wipe windshield and all interior windows off. I have to carry towels with me at all times. Problem happens without any indacation, it's about to happen. I'm disabled veteran and require a lot of medical appointments at the va medical center. I live alone so I'm taking a chance just trying to get to the va. At some point this is going to cause an accadent. Subaru showed little concern, even if there are others with the same or simile problem.

- Clackamas, OR, USA

problem #3

Feb 022015

Outback

  • 28,000 miles
The sunglasses storage compartment door of the overhead console will not stay latched up. In the unlatched position the door blocks the rear view mirror.

- Waterford, WI, USA

problem #2

Nov 152013

Outback

  • 900 miles
I backed out of my driveway and put the car into drive and there was a long, about 7 second delay before the car moved forward. It was in gear and my foot was on the gas but nothing happened.

- Washington, DC, USA

problem #1

Feb 192015

Outback

  • 37,906 miles
Having warmed up the car in the driveway for five minutes and having driven for approximately 10 minutes, braking several times, driver approached the stop sign at the top of the hill where the road intersects with a busy highway. She tried to depress the brakes and nothing happened. To stop the car, she threw the car into park. "check engine @ oil temp" light or something similar came on. She turned off the car, waited a short while and restarted car, shifted into drive and car wouldn't do anything. Turned off car. A short while later she stared again; after pushing gas hard, car started to slowly move forward. Put car in P and waited for assistance, leaving heat on. When assistance came 10-15 min later, car was able to be driven to a safe roadside spot around the corner. Condition: Low temps. No ice on roads.

- Blue Mounds, WI, USA

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