2016 SUBARU OUTBACK Complaints

The contact owns a 2016 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while the vehicle was occupied and parked at residence and attempting to start the vehicle, there was an abnormal sound coming from the underneath the vehicle. The contact stated while driving at various speeds there was exhaust fumes entering the cabin of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that front exhaust manifold connected to the catalytic converter needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the technician inspected the vehicle and became aware that the exhaust pipe was rusted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The manufacturer informed the contact that there were no recalls associated with the VIN. The contact related the failure to a Service Program Bulletin: WUJ-95R (Exhaust Pipe Front (EPF) Bellows Cracking); however, the VIN was not included in the bulletin. The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 171,000.

There’s an open recall on an exhaust leak for similar models and years and my car needs the same work done but it’s not covered under the recall

The 8 month old battery on my 2016 Subaru Outback just died. I understand that the warranty on the DCM was extended by a year, but the dealership said that if it turned out the DCM was not defective, I would have to pay for the test ($185) . The warranty only covers having the battery recharged or replaced. If the DCM is the cause of the battery drain, than the warranty should pay for replacing the DCM, in addition to replacing the battery. Otherwise the problem will continue to reoccur. There should be a recall on the DCM!

The steering warning light came on and my steering wheel stiffened. Luckily I was able to make it home, but when I went back to crank it. The light was still on and it would only move forward of backwards; because I wasn't able at all to turn the steering wheel.

Original owner of a 2016 Subaru Outback 2.5L, took in to Midas for small exhaust leak. Midas found that the Exhaust Pipe Front Bellows was cracking. They sent me a quote to repair the bellows and also a print out of Service Program Bulletin Number WUJ-95R n the 2015-2016MY Outback 2.5L referring to the Exhaust Pipe Front (EPF) Bellows Cracking. I called to speak with Subaru's corporate recall center and they said my VIN was not part of the recall, however, my car was manufactured in 2015 and is having the exact same issues as the other 2016 Subaru Outback 2.5L. Our safety is being put at risk as CO (carbon monoxide) is leaking into the vehicle due to the cracking in the Exhaust Pipe Front Bellows.

The left front drive axel cracked while we were driving on an overpass connecting two highways. We didn’t hit or bump anything. The car just stopped, like the brakes were slammed on, except the brakes didn’t work. As we were on an incline, the car started rolling backwards, but fortunately the emergency brake worked. It happened so abruptly, I wasn’t able to fully pull off the road and my children in the back seat were screaming for their lives as truck after truck whizzed by rattling our car with their horns blaring missing us by inches. The police and fire trucks eventually blocked us from traffic until we could get a tow. The engine worked, but we couldn’t get into any gear. The mechanic said it must’ve been a faulty part to have gone like that. When the axel broke, it damaged the front differential and the transmission so the car isn’t very drivable. On a less dramatic note, a month earlier, both back doors stopped working on the same day!! The child locks failed and the doors couldn’t be opened. I consider this a safety hazard, so we spent $$$ to fix it. As we take good care of our car, I am very curious why it’s failing so spectacularly all at once.

The contact owns a 2016 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that the passenger’s side wheel window trim was slightly pivoted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who determined that the trim needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired because the dealer had not confirmed if parts had been ordered or received. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 MPH in 2020, the vehicle experienced transmission failure and the vehicle came to a jerking stop, as if the parking brake had been activated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and the contact was informed that the CVT transmission had failed and needed to be replaced. The contact stated that approximately 4 years later, several warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but no cause for the failure was found. The contact stated that after leaving the dealer, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was returned to the dealer and was diagnosed with CVT failure. The CVT transmission was replaced. The contact was informed that the wiring harness needed to be replaced; however, the wiring harness had not been replaced. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and opened a case. The failure mileage was 35,000.

My 2016 Subaru Outback, manufactured 23 business days after the end date of recall WUJ-95, has the same exhaust system and now the same exhaust system failure as the cars covered under the recall. My car is available for inspection. This exhaust failure poses a risk of carbon monoxide poisioning. The problem in my car was identified by an independent mechanic who works exclusively on Subarus and has seen this failure in other clients' vehicles. He referred me to Subaru for repairs and recommended I look into why I hadn't received a recall notice. I contacted Subaru, opened a case, then didn't recieve a response in the timeframe they defined. After waiting a few days, I called back to learned my case had been closed. Their customer advocacy representative responded the next week and said my car was not recalled because it was manufactured on 11/3/2015, after the end date of the recall on 9/30/2015. She also cited a lack of service history with a Subaru retailer (I offered to provide records) and being out of warranty by time and miles (I mentioned 2017-18 Foresters received warranty extensions to 15 years or 150K miles for this failure.) I asked what their escalation process is for making exceptions and was told the representative was the only customer-facing person I would be able to speak with about this and she declined to offer any assistance, but did offer a loyalty discount on a new vehicle. My car has not been inspected by anyone else. I'm willing to take it to anyone who should look at it. There were no warning lights or messages related to the issue. It was diagnosed when I took the car in for regular maintenance and it explains the more noticable smell of exhaust in the car, that I had attributed to other traffic, when I'm sitting at stop lights.

The catalytic converter on my vehicle has an air leak causing my engine light to come on and almost all features such as cruise control become disabled. There is a recall that was issued in 2020 for the exact same problem my vehicle is having and the recall covers the same year, make and model of my vehicle. I was told that my vehicle isn’t under the recall but the representative was unable to specify why. I am trying to get the part replaced as the vehicle is polluting the air and causing my vehicle to not perform as expected.

I’m unable to remove the car key from the ignition when the vehicle shifter is in Park.