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.
Driver's seat started peeling off approximately a year after purchase. Notified dealer, they said to contact Subaru of America via social media. Now almost all peeled off, have to cover with towel possibly interfering with airbags. Steering column lock will not lock in top position. Dealer repaired once under warranty, now out of warranty. Unsafe when column moves when driving. Transmission started slipping or behaving strangely around 90,000 miles. Never received notice of extended warranty I read about on Subaru forums (https://www.subaruoutback.org/threads/cvt-warranty-extension-2010-15.429481/) Paid $531.43 for fluid change at dealership because of the problem on 7/27/23 and no mention was made about extended warranty. It has not solved the problem. If transmission fails, that is a safety problem.
CONSTANT CHECK ENGINE, NO ADAS FUNCTIONS AND MULTIPLE CODES AND HUD INDICATORS INCLUDING CKENGNE, XMODE FLASHING, ADAS DISABLE AND MAJOR ELECRTICAL PARASITIC DRAW AND TRANSMISSION AND OVERHEATING. I believe the past major leg relay was replaced during first recall, it was not performed correctly and tied into accesssorry aux into same wiring. defrost/ ac failure and clutch hums upon shutting down
The continuously variable transmission failed at 114,000 miles. The unexpected lack of proper shifting on the roadway causes impediment to traffic expecting a continual flow of traffic. This causes the vehicle and drivers sharing the rode to have to make sudden braking or lane shifts without sufficient notice. The CVT was inspected by the dealer. There were no warning lamps or symptoms prior to failure.
On three separate occasions, most recently on 01/06/22, my Subaru Outback began to accelerate without touching the gas pedal. My wife and myself were both fortunate to have a foot covering the brake pedal when this occurred. We fortunately avoided the potential collision hazard. The UNEXPECTED ACCELERATION is alarming and continues to occur !
local mechanic doing standard maintenence at 62,861 miles, checking high rpms at startup, noticed that the crankshaft pully was moving up and down, slight variance, when it should be straight. apparently a recall issue on 2016 outbacks.
- Newport, NC, USA
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I took the car into paul moak Subaru on 10/14. The car was bucking under light acceleration. When pulling thru a stop light, or moving from a stopped position, the car kicks back and forth and I don't know if its going to keep going or stall. No check engine light. Paul moak Subaru says " this is due to an internal failure of the cvt transmission and the repair estimate is $9,319.59." This is almost the same as what I owe on the car. I knew of the extended warranty Subaru provided for the transmission but I'm outside the mileage portion. I reached out to Subaru North America on 10/27/20 but they say they can not help me due to the mileage. I drive approx 750 miles a week on a sales route thus the high mileage. 90 % of the miles are highway and are documented for tax purposes. I love my Subaru but cant believe I'm going to have to spend so much money on a 5 year old car. I have a family of 4 and am scared to take them in the car in this condition. I have to drive it in this condition until I can save the money it's going to cost to repair the transmission. Subaru should issue a recall on this transmission.
Continuous variable transmission (cvt). The vehicle stopped while making a left turn suddenly motionless, engine revved up at 3500 RPM but the cvt remained unresponsive. Paced shift gear to park position then to drive gear then the vehicle moved-up very slow then it pulled forward to a normal driveable condition. This issue happened in 2017, 2018, 2019. Took to dealership 2X tested the vehicle but, no problem found and no manufacturer's issue was release. Several Subaru owners complaints with the same issue, on 2013 - 2015 Outback models.the battery on 2015 Outback model like mine, had replaced in 2017 while under warranty up to 3 - years. Lately, the battery died several times, took back to the dealer for test and replacement but, the 3 - years warranty was over from its original purchased. The warranty should be applied on the second battery replacement that runs for the next 36 - months. Another issue is the catalytic converter the vehicle has, took back to the dealer last July 2020, a srvice advisor admitted that there was a problem, the vehicle drove for testing then came back with nothing wrong on the catalytic converter per mechanic assessment. The front exhaust pipe was cracked and it was repaired as part of manufacturer recalls. There are issues on this model referring to the cvt, battery, infotainment got freezed, no data on screen, engine oil consumption to fast. The main issue for me is the "safety issue." Which is the transmission. First time it happened was in 2017, 2018, 2019.
When I change gears from P( parking) in to D(drive) it take around 2 seconds to start the car driving I think that is bad for transmission, another problem is with taching screen it doesn't work properly many times especially when I'm driving in R(rearverse) and the gear lights in dashboard do not turn on. Thanks
Received Subaru recall (wuj-95) on Aug,3.2020 pertaining to exhaust pipe bellow failure. The recall includes replacement of the exhaust Y-pipe that is installed from engine to tale pipe. This exhaust pipe in my understanding was installed under a stress manufacturing process where the pipe and fastener system has to be forced in to install. This puts excess stress on the bellows and caused failure. My question is why did Subaru wait five years to notify the consumer and issue a recall. Please return my request for a full explanation of what happened. 2nd. I would like to address the cvt transmission issue. Subaru extended the transmission failure time line to 10yr-100,000 mile. I am having many issues with my cvt transmission and Subaru will not issue a recall. With all the complaints and problems with the gen-5 cvt transmission would please take a 2nd look at this issue.
I was going 55 mph on a straight flat surface when all of a sudden the RPM's shot up to around 4000 but the car was not accelerating. It was like it went into neutral. I pulled over to the side of the road and the car proceeded to die. Fortunately, it started right up and I drove home. I had a almost a full tank of gas. I had only driven it for 5 minutes as I was on my way home from work. I just had the oil/filter changed not even 2 months ago. I have 54,000 dealer serviced miles on the car. It was 86 degrees out. 2015 Subaru Outback premium 2.5
The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Outback. While driving 60 mph, the vehicle failed to accelerate, lost power, and the check automotive transmission and check engine warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who stated that the continuously variable transmission failed. The vehicle was towed to Subaru of puyallup (720 river rd, puyallup, wa 98371, (253) 286-5900) where it was diagnosed that the incorrect transmission fluid was placed in the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and provided case number: 150070620183. The failure mileage was 74,000.
At 65000 miles I had to replace a wheel bearing. I have never had a vehicle need a wheel bearing with this low millage. I am told others have had the same problem.
My Subaru has 51,000 miles on it and has had 6 wheel bearings replaced as follows. 3-22-17 @ 29K miles replace both rear wheel bearings and front right wheel bearing. 11-12-18 @45K miles replaced both front wheel bearings (2nd time for front right) 7-12-19 @ 51K miles replaced front left wheel bearing (2nd time for front left) the vehicle has had 6 wheel bearings replaced in the last 23 months. Front axle both sides changed twice and rear axle changed once each side. The last wheel bearing only lasted 6K miles and was near total failure making the vehicle inoperable. I am very concerned about this issue as it could cause a catastrophic accident. Therefor I believe the NHTSA should open an investigation into this vehicle.
The car would stall when coasting to a stop light or stop sign a few times and have been back to the dealer and can't replicated the problem. This is a dangerous situation and can cause an unsafe and huge accident with my family. The car would die while in drive and sometimes can't be restarted. It's happening again and afraid to drive the car since the dealer will say nothing is wrong with the car. It looks like it's related to idle being low or the cvt acting up when taking the foot off the gas pedal and try to accelerate from a dead stop or coasting to a stop. This happened a few times during factory warranty window.
Transmission failure. It is a known issue with models with their original cvt transmission, but rather than issue a recall, they're extending warranties and fixing as they break. This left me with no power on a state highway that had speed limits of 75mph. I managed to make it to the shoulder to be stranded for an hour waiting for a tow truck. This is extremely unsafe and if it's a known issue, I'm not sure why they're not preventing these scenarios. I was going about 70mph in the center lane of a 3 lane highway when suddenly my car jerked and then wouldnt accelerate.
Subject 2015 Outback cvt transmission lurches and bogs during acceleration, we have tried working with Subaru for repair however, they consider the unit as working to within standard and will not replace unless it fails completely.
The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Outback. While driving 35 mph, the vehicle's wheels seized and the vehicle jerked violently. The failure occurred without warning. The vehicle was towed to Subaru of las vegas (6455 w roy horn way, las vegas, nv 89118) where it was diagnosed that cv axles and the transmission failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 24,000.
After 2 years of ownership on my brand new Subaru Outback 2015, I have noticed a loud squeaky sound coming from the engine when I start my car after it rained/snowed. The sound would go away after a few minutes, however, it didn't seem normal. I took the car to the dealership to have it checked out. The dealership told me that nothing is wrong and it is perfectly fine. However, the squeaky noise still occurs after rain/snow. It seems to me that water is leaking into a belt when it's not suppose to and it is causing the noise when the engine is started. Subaru needs to look into this issue because this problem only happens after it rains/snows and cannot be replicated when the car is brought to the dealership. Therefore, it is hard to have this issue fixed.
Unexpected acceleration after parking, jump curb into tree, causing $7,000 in damage. Air bags did not deploy, both myself and passenger hit knees on dash, even with our seat belts still on. Had other computer issues earlier that day, back up sensors didn't work while backing car right behind mine. Car has now been at Subaru for a month, waiting for engineers results after their inspection 2/14/2018
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- Whiting, IN, USA