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.
On Dec. 20, 2022, my Outback totally stopped working while sitting at a red light, causing traffic to be forced to maneuver around my car. A kind policeman put out flares until the tow truck arrived. I could not shift into park, nothing electric would work, except the radio continued to play and the flashers worked until it all died. I could not turn the radio off and the seat would not adjust. The electronic screen flashed on and off until it went totally black, after about an hour. This vehicle only has about 21,000 miles on it and was under warranty until 3 weeks prior to the incident. Every time I took it to the dealership, I explained that the electronics had glitches. They always said it was fixed but it never was right. The TomTom navigation system was totally unreliable from day one; the screen went blank and the radio would not work at all, as well as all the screen functions, without warning. The screen would read out that I should keep my hands on the wheel, although both hands were on the wheel. Over and over it had problems which were not resolved.
For one, my windshield cracked out of nowhere, I didn-??t know that windshields were having issues at the time, so I had to replace it on my own without contacting the dealership. Other issues include the front windows not going up all the way from time to time. The info system crashes and shuts down from time to time too, which leads to the Eyesight to shutdown temporarily too. And from time to time, the hatch buttons lag where I have to push on the buttons multiple times to get it to close
-??Driver-??s window failing to properly and completing retract. This has been particularly troublesome in the bitter cold of Northern Minnesota. On each visit to Subaru I have requested that the window be repaired. All efforts have been unsuccessful. -??Battery failure without cause or prior warning signs. On previous visits the Service Center failed to address and resolve the battery problem that I brought. In my most recent visit they referred me to a Legal Settlement action which prevents them from further addressing the battery issue. I brought the vehicle in twice for repair/replacement of the battery. Not resolved. -??Eyesight Driver Assist malfunction. Upon presenting the issue, the Service Manager suggested that the cause was sunlight hitting the sensors and he did not work on the issue. Even when I noted that the problem happened in the evening as well as during the daytime, no response. -??Check Engine Warning Indicator signifying any number of important malfunctions while also causing Cruise Control, Eyesight, RAB, and other critical, electronic systems to deactivate. More importantly, the Subaru Service Center informed me that there is a life-threatening risk associated with the underlying cause of this Check Engine light appearing, and, consequently, they would not permit me to drive the car from the Service Center until necessary repairs and part replacements were made. I have been waiting over two months for the automobile to be repaired and returned to me. I had previously brought the vehicle in specifically for this issue. At that time the Service Center failed to correct the problem and suggested it would disappear on its own (the warning light would turn off after a number of ignition starts). When I requested that they clearly understand the problem and fix the lighlight warning, the manager refused to continue to work on the vehicle.
My car has a defective battery or a paracytic leak that the manufacturer (Subaru) acknowledges but selectively addresses. The problem is described at subarubatterysettlement.com. I have had to return my 2020 Subaru Outback to the dealer five or six times with a dead battery that has trouble recharging and maintaining a charge. Each time this occurs, I have to have the car towed to the nearest dealer for extensive (like days) testing. Under some magic circumstance, the battery is either returned-recharged or replaced. I have had to return my car with a dead battery to my dealer four or five times. Each time it is the same. "yes, your car battery is warranted (first for 3 years, now for 10 years)," but the reliability of the car's battery is never resolved. Again the catch is I cannot replace the battery myself without voiding a 10-year warranty on the engine, but to keep the contract, I must have my car taken to my Subaru dealer for them to test it to make sure that the car battery is dead...or something. This is a safety problem because the car often doesn't have the cranking amps to start. And the vehicle is designed to shut the engine off at a stop and auto start when your foot is taken off the brake. This means my car could arbitrarily die at an intersection. I have disabled the auto-start feature but I cannot leave my car at the airport for fear that when I return I will have to have it towed to my Subaru dealer for testing.
Multiple issues are with the electric system. The power windows will stop working up or down, the headunit/defroster/safety features will all lose power while driving before starting up again, the rear gate will sometimes not function. Some issues have occurred where some of the added safety features don't seem to always function as well. In the last month both passenger side windows have cracked. The front is cracked vertically and the rear is cracked horizontally, nearly the length of the window. Living in Alaska, cold weather is not foreign and all care is taken to ensure the integrity of the glass is preserved. I am not sure how/why these windows cracked, it was during a period of cold around December 14, 2022. I did a little Googling and this doesn't seem to be a totally unheard of problem. Losing your window definitely compromises safety, as well as the fact that if it is -40F and you lose a window.
- Anc, AK, USA
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The problems I have had or currently have with my vehicle are as follows: 1. On or about November 17, 2022, multiple dash lights, including the check engine light, came on while idling in a parking lot. I turned the engine off for a few minutes and when I restarted the car the lights didn't come back on. I took no further action at that time 2. On November 17, 2022, when starting the engine for the first time that day, numerous lights came on on the dash. The engine was idling and there appeared to be some braking/stuttering not initiated by the driver of the car when it was being driven. The car was returned to our home garage after being driven approximately 1/10 of a mile and another vehicle was driven that day. The Subaru dealer advised to drive the vehicle to his shop in Miami. We took it to Subaru on November 20 and they fixed it that day. The technician said that -??The technician completely placed the sensor and told us that the car was fixed. 3. On November 29, 2022, many dash lights, including the check engine light, came on when starting the vehicle for the first time during the day. The engine was more or less idling. The car was driven and the lights eventually went out on their own while running errands. We took the interior to the Subaru dealer. They said the battery would need to be replaced and adjustments made and we returned the Outback to the Subaru dealer on November 29, 2022 for maintenance. They changed the battery and the star/stop and returned the car 3 days later 4. You were driving on the interstate when you started to brake accidentally. This occurred on southbound I-95 just north of boca raton with 2 children in the car as passengers. All the dash lights came on including the check engine light. Less than 10 seconds later, the car began to brake against the driver's will. The interior slowed to 20 mph in less than 100 yards. The vehicle continued to resist my attempts to accelerate.
the car brake, with the foot on the gas all the lights came on and it stopped on the street (traffic being stuck) it's a car safety problem it can cause a serious accident if I end up on I-95, if something happens to me they will be responsible for it I have everything the records and photos of everything that happened to the car Check. what happens to that car with the same failures over and over again in 2 months 3 time on the dealer with the same problem I buy this car on October 2022 and over and over again the same problem
On Saturday 12/10/2022 at approximately 5PM, I was driving my 2020 Subaru Outback on the left lane of a highway in South Miami at a speed of 65+ miles per hour when the vehicle lost all power. The vehicle-??s Eye Sight" system alerted me to "Keep your eyes on the road-??, then all of the instrumentation on the dashboard lit up. I was able to maneuver my vehicle through traffic to the relative safety of the right shoulder of the highway. I tried to restart the engine and that was a futile effort. The electrical failure in the vehicle also impacted the hazard lights and now my car was engulfed in darkness on the highway, making a bad situation even worse. I contacted Subaru Starlink and they promised a tow truck within in an hour but later revised the estimate to 11PM. Meanwhile there are 4 women occupants in my vehicle and all are in our 60's. Subaru could not and would not provide us safe transportation off the highway at that time of night due to "liability issues". In the end, I was able to secure my own tow truck and transported my car to a Subaru dealership and transported myself and my passengers to safety. The Subaru dealer informed me that my experience is a known issue with Subaru and that the root cause is a defective valve. This valve is on back order and its availability is impacted by supply chain issues. My car remains at the dealership and I have been provided with a loaner vehicle in the interim. There is no ETA on the repair or when I will have my car back.
Electrical problems cause frequent battery replacement and for the battery to drain at an alarming rate. The car has to be jump-started to be used, and the car battery will drain immediately as soon as the drive is over( even if it's hours). There is/was a class action lawsuit against Subaru of America, as the action says that Subaru failed to recall the vehicles and fix the problem. I'm paying a note on a 28k car that I can't get out of the driveway without jump-starting the car, and if I stop to run in a store when I return, the vehicle will not start. It's completely unsafe and ridiculous. I've taken this to the dealership (Ken Fowler of Ukiah, CA) and other mechanics, and no one has known about this issue or been able to fix it. Someone, please help.
Battery drained / dead after left sitting for 4 days. Read about a class action lawsuit for this issue. Left me stranded and had to call roadside assistance
I approached a stop light and barked. The car stalled and wouldn't restart. The interior lights on the console started to flash and car was dead. I was traveling southbound on Rt 1 in Delaware. I was in the center lane (3 lanes). there was a a lot of traffic and despite my hazard lights being on several people slammed their brakes nearly hitting me. I called 911 and the DE state police came to stop traffic and push my car out of the road. It was terrifying. The battery/electric system has been glitchy. When looking online at my Subaru service records, none of this has been listed there despite visiting Subaru for it and an episode where they had to tow my car because it wouldn't take a jump. This is a new car, and was purchased to have safe and reliable transport. The police report can be verified by calling [XXX] (Delaware State police) the incident number is [XXX] Officer [XXX]. I have a video of the lights flashing but site won't accept upload. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Battery died and wouldn't take a charge, car was towed to Subaru dealer and I was told I must have done something wrong that car was fine and battery took a charge from the dealer and was in good health. The tow truck driver was unable to jump the car. I was unable to ride with the tow truck driver because of covid. The car continues to have battery issues and the electrical system has hiccups from time to time where I can't get the door to look or the car doesn't recognize that I have shut it off. In the past 2 weeks the battery has died in the time it takes to unload groceries from the car. I drive a lot by myself and have been stranded when stopping for gas. I am taking the car to the dealer this Friday. I had to find out about the class action suit on Google! I was told this was unique to me.
The vehicle does not start at unforeseen times. Battery has been replaced. Safety is a risk if car would not start in unsafe location. Dealership has been unable to fix problem or find drain on battery or electrical problems. Car has had to be towed to dealership and jump started by a professional many times in order to drive to dealership.
I was stopped at a light in a 3 Lane St. It was approximately 930 at night. The auto start stop feature had turned off the engine and when I removed my foot from the brake to begin moving forward the entire electrical system shut off. I tried switching into park and restarting the car but the car locked the steering wheel at this point and killed all of the lights inside and outside of the vehicle. This meant that I was in a car in the middle lane of traffic with no lights and I was not able to turn on the flashers either. I had to use the emergency neutral setting in order to unlock the steering wheel and roll the car to safety. While we were rolling the car I attempted to turn on the vehicle again and it began running. This is the second time that the car shut off when i released my foot from the brake. The first time I was able to shift into park and restart the car.
Our 2020 Outback XT Onyx Edition with 24,000 miles was parked for 9 days at an airport. Union return, the battery was completely dead. We received a jump and drove the car for an hour on the highway, but noticed the electrical systems acting up at parking lot speeds - EyeSight system would disable briefly, power steering would get stiff, and ABS would trigger randomly when turning at low RPM. Upon shutting the car off, everything went dark and the battery was still completely dead, leaving us stranded. It needed to get towed back to the dealership, awaiting further diagnostics.
Battery is poorly charged, as indicated by idle battery voltage below 12.1 volts, and in one case the car would not strat and I had to call road service to get the battery jumped/boosted.
I have had to replace my battery already, i have only 19,464 miles on the car. I replaced the battery on 09/07/2022. I have replaced batteries before and there is usually a warning that it is starting to go dead, this time it was just dead and would not hold a charge.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Annapolis, MD, USA