2014 SUBARU OUTBACK Complaints

The car had been recently serviced through the dealer and had 66,000 miles (9 yrs old). It was 6k miles past warranty. While driving, the radiator hose exploded—loud noise, white steam, and all the warning lights came on and the car heated up. I had the car towed and was told that the radiator hose, the radiator and the head gasket had been destroyed and the engine would need to be rebuilt. The car was essentially a total loss given the repair costs. There was no warning at all that anything was wrong with the car prior to the engine blowing. It is my understanding that many years of Subaru Outbacks have required recalls for head gasket problems.

The innermost taillight located on the liftgate melted the taillight housing and burned the socket in which it sits. This could have started a fire putting the safety of those in the vehicle and on the road at risk. The problem has not been inspected by a dealer or any other party. The taillights are available for inspection and the bulbs as well. there was no warning. The problem was noticed because the bulbs burned out and needed replaced. they have been replaced by me with LED bulbs to reduce the risk of fire or more damage. the problem was discovered on 8/23/2023. It is unknown when this problem started.

Valve body transmission module failed at 118k with no prior warning There are some subaru bulletins that say up 120k. Dealership i bought it from told me 100k. I was never notified this issue was a recall. It could have potentially caused an accident if the transmission failed on the highway.

I noticed when driving that my horn had stopped working. I am unsure if this is related to the airbag replacement or some other issue. The concern is that most people do not check their horns for functionality before it is really needed. I was able to get it repaired at a cost of 529.58

Suburu Outback had been showing signs of needing more oil between routine changes and frequent top-offs. When took to a Suburu Dealer in September 2021, prior to reaching 100,000 miles, Suburu said it was normal. Now at 118,000 miles as of November 2022, the engine jerks and makes noises. Upon taking to Suburu, short engine block repair was recommended, which would cost over $6,000. The issues of needing repair align with the 2016 extended warranty bulletin put out for other Suburu Outbacks, which goes through 100,000, but we were told that the VIN is outside of the extended bulletin and we are out of warranty. Being told our oil consumption is normal but suddenly experiencing a deterioration in the engine so suddenly is concerning; the jerky engine is not safe for the passengers or others on the road.

I was driving home on a road I drive on regularly at 40 mph. The car unexpectedly accelerated to a high rate of speed causing me to go off the road. I was unable to stop. The brake pedal went to the floor. The car went airborne, just missing a huge tree. It slammed into the ground & continued on to crash into 3 cars & someone’s garage! The car continued to rev & was bouncing back & forth between the 2 vehicles in the garage. The engine continued to rev after I got out. The homeowner shut it off. He said my brake lights were flashing on and off on the dash. The air bags never deployed. I have a witness. I wasn’t able to do anything!! I’ve since learned there’s a class action lawsuit against Subaru for this problem. Please do something about this. I could be dead, that homeowner that was in his garage could be dead right now. All I want is for people to be aware of this & for Subaru to get held accountable. It’s not right that they are aware of this and doing nothing about it!!

The contact owns a 2014 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while the key was in the ignition with the transmission in park(P) with the brake pedal depressed, the vehicle moved inadvertently. The failure occurred while the vehicle was on an incline. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 630,000.

The contact owns a 2014 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while driving the oil warning light illuminated and he added more oil. The contact stated that the oil level was low. The contact noticed that several times the oil level was low prior to the normal mileage interval to change the oil. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that the oil was low. The failure was not diagnosed or repaired, however, the independent mechanic stated that the failure could be related to a mechanical engine issue. The contact stated that he found a Technical Service Bulletin Number: 02-157-14R; NHTSA ID Number: 10188219 (Power Train, Engine) which he related to the failure. The contact stated that he recently had an oil change at 88,000 and the oil warning light illuminated at 91,217. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 88,000.

The Roll Connector Harness failed, and use of the horn was disabled. It is due to the mechanical steering of the vehicle, and fails over time. As a multiple Subaru owner this has been a topic of safety with most of the owners with 2014 Subarus. Subaru changed the design/engineering of this part in 2016 due to the concern. Because they won't issue a recall, and the cost of repair is high ($400+), mainly due to the location of the part, many will not fix the issue. There is no way to warn other drivers or deer without use of the horn. This has put me in harm's way multiple times until I finally got it fixed. I have contacted my dealer who says it is one of the more common issues they see with this year and probably 2015 as well. It needs to be recalled so everyone with this problem can get their cars fixed instead of Subaru charging for a known problem and making money over safety.

Parking break did not disengage. It also blocked the key hole and car could not be moved. I called AAA and they could not even tow it because the gears would not switch from parking to neutral. While manipulating the car, the AAA technician does not know how, but was able to move the key and the gear, and then the car could start. After some online research, there has been recalls for this problem in Australia in Subaru Outbacks of around this year. Since AAA technician did not have to move in the end the car, there is no receipt of this event. It has happened twice by now.