2018 SUBARU OUTBACK Complaints

WE HAVE HAD 3 CRACKED WINDSHIELDS SINCE PURCHASING THE VEHICLE ON 3/31/18. WE HAVE HAD THEM REPLACED BY THE DEALER EACH TIME AT A COST OF APPROXIMATELY $1100-1200 EACH TIME. EACH TIME WE HAVE BEEN DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY.

IN THE FIRST 1.5 YEARS OF OWNERSHIP WE HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE WINDSHIELD TWICE. IT CRACKED THE FIRST TIME WHILE STATIONARY IN OUR DRIVEWAY IN THE COLD AND WAS REPLACED A FEW MONTHS LATER. ONE WEEK AFTER IT WAS REPLACED IT CRACKED WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE INTERSTATE WITH NO VEHICLES WITHIN 500 FEET OF THE CAR. I'VE READ AND HEARD FROM OTHER OWNERS THIS PROBLEM IS ONE THAT IS A KNOWN ISSUE WITH THE OUTBACKS OF THIS MODEL YEAR.

BATTERY DIES PREMATURELY, IF VEHICLE IS NOT DRIVEN FOR A FEW DAYS, OR IF PARKED AND REAR HATCH IS OPENED AND CLOSED A FEW TIMES. DEAD BATTERY LEFT ME STRANDED FIVE TIMES SINCE 3/5/2019. BATTERY TESTED WELL AT DEALERSHIP THREE TIMES, SO WAS NOT REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY UNTIL IT FAILED A DRAW TEST.

2018 SUBARU OUTBACK, ONLY 10,500 MILES, BATTERY KEEPS DRAINING, AND FINALLY WOULD NOT CRANK THE ENGINE. THIS HAPPENED 10-24-2020 (SAT.) DEALER WHITE BEAR SUBARU WOULD NOT ANSWER HIS PHONE IN SERVICE DEPARTMENT. CALLED SUBARU ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE, THEY WOULD NOT TOW TO A SUBARU DEALER, ONLY A NEARBY INDEPENDENT REPAIR FACILITY. I REJECTED THAT, AND SINCE IT WAS THE WEEKEND, I HAD TO PURCHASE A NAPA AFTERMARKET BATTERY, EVEN THOUGH SUBARU WARRANTY WAS STILL IN EFFECT. COST ME OVER $160,00.

CAR LIGHTS CAME ON AFTER SITTING NOT RUNNING. WENT TO START THE CAR, BUT NOT ENOUGH POWER TO START IT. BATTERY LIGHT WAS ON. THE NEXT DAY, THE BATTERY WAS COMPLETELY DEAD. I HAD TO JUMP START IT SO I COULD GO BUY A NEW BATTERY.

BATTERY DIED MANY TIMES. CAR IS JUST UNDER 3 YEARS OLD, WITH 18,000 MILES STILL UNDER WARRANTY. DEALER SAID THE CAR MUST BE LEFT THAT THEY NEEDED TO TEST. THE CCA RATING IS 300 SOMETHING. A FRIEND IN COLORADO HAS A 2019 FORESTER WITH A CCA OF 620! VERY SIMILAR ENGINE, BOTH MODELS ARE TOURING. COULD IT BE THAT VEHICLES IN LESS COLDER AREAS ARE FITTED WITH INADEQUATE BATTERY CCA SO SUBARU CAN SAVE A FEW DOLLARS? ALSO THE RAB LIGHT CAME ON WHILE DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. HOW IS THAT OK? THE INFOTAINMENT SCREEN HAS FROZEN MULTIPLE TIMES. WHEN IT DID THE VOLUME OF THE RADIO COULD NOT BE LOWERED..I WAS PARKED WHEN IT HAPPENED, (RADIO WAS LOUD) THEN STARTED DRIVING AND COULDN'T LOWER IT.. PLEASE NOTE: THESE ELECTRICAL ISSUES OCCURRED AT DIFFERENT TIMES ... I HAVE NO IDEA IF THEY'RE RELATED

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 SUBARU OUTBACK. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH, A ROCK IMPACTED AND CRACKED THE WINDSHIELD. THE CONTACT STATED HE EXPERIENCED THE FAILURE ON THREE SEPARATE OCCASIONS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE LOCAL DEALER ALBANY SUBARU LOCATED AT 718 SAN PABLO AVE, ALBANY, CA 94706, (510) 528-1244, WHERE THE WINDSHIELD WAS REPAIRED THREE TIMES. THE MANUFACTURER HAD BEEN INFORMED OF FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 1,500.

THE BATTERY IN MY 2018 SUBARU OUTBACK HAS DIED 3 TIMES IN THE PAST 6 MONTHS. THE FIRST TIME I WAS PARKED CLOSE TO A LOCAL MECHANIC AND AFTER JUMPING AND TESTING THE BATTERY HE DEEMED IT DEAD AND REPLACED IT. 2 MONTHS LATER, WHILE PARKED AND IDLING AS I WAITED FOR MY HUSBAND AT AN APPOINTMENT, THE CAR SHUT DOWN AND WENT DEAD. IT WOULD NOT RESTART, BUT AFTER I WAITED A FEW MINUTES IT RESTARTED. A MONTH AGO AS I WAS DRIVING ABOUT AN HOUR FROM HOME, ALL THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS WENT ON AND THE SAFETY (EYESIGHT) SYSTEM DISABLED. I TOOK THE CAR INTO THE DEALER THE NEXT DAY AND ALSO TOLD THEM ABOUT THE DEAD BATTERY AND ASKED THEM TO CHECK THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM FOR A DRAIN. THIS MORNING (EXACTLY ONE MONTH SINCE DEALER SERVICE) THE BATTERY WAS DEAD AGAIN. AFTER JUMPING IT AND STARTING THE CAR I DISCOVERED THAT THE REAR LIFTGATE WILL NOT WORK. I HAVE TRIED FROM INSIDE THE CAR, OUTSIDE USING THE BUTTON ON THE LIFTGATE AND REMOTELY WITH THE KEY FOB, NOTHING. AFTER A A QUICK INTERNET SEARCH I SEE THAT THIS BATTERY DRAIN IS A COMMON COMPLAINT WITH THIS MODEL/YEAR AND THAT SUBARU JUST REPLACES THE BATTERY RATHER THAN ADDRESS THE UNDERLYING PROBLEM. THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE, I SHOULD NOT HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT WHETHER MY CAR WILL START EVERY TIME I GET IN IT.

I WENT OUT TO MY CAR IN THE DRIVEWAY THIS MORNING AND THE WINDSHIELD HAD A 6 INCH "T" SHAPED CRACK STARTING WITH A SINGLE CRACK EMANATING FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE WINDSHIELD ON THE PASSENGER SIDE, HORIZONTALLY ABOUT 6 INCHES TOWARD THE DRIVER SIDE, THEN PERPENDICULAR IN A T FORMATION 3 INCHES UP AND DOWN . THE PREVIOUS NIGHT I HAD DRIVEN THE VEHICLE AND THE WINDSHIELD WAS FINE. I FOUND NO EVIDENCE OF AN IMPACT STRIKE ON THE WINDSHIELD. THE CAR WAS STATIONARY WHEN I FOUND THE CRACK. IT HAAD BEEN DRIVEN APPROXIMATELY 12 HOURS EARLIER.

ON INFREQUENT YET MULTIPLE OCCASIONS SINCE PURCHASING THE CAR IN SPRING 2018, AFTER HANGING UP FROM A BLUETOOTH PHONE CALL, THE RADIO WOULD BLAST AT FULL DECIBELS AND BE UNRESPONSIVE TO ATTEMPTED ADJUSTMENTS WITH THE VOLUME CONTROL. ON ALL OCCASIONS EXCEPT FOR TODAY'S EVENT, I WAS DRIVING ON MAJOR HIGHWAYS, BECOMING STARTLED, THEN HAVING TO IMMEDIATELY TRY TO RECTIFY THE EAR-BLASTING SOUND. TODAY, I WAS IN A PARKING LOT, HAVING TURNED OFF THE ENGINE--THE RADIO CONTINUES TO PLAY AND THE BLUETOOTH REMAINS LIVE IN AN OUTBACK FOR 5 MORE MINUTES, UNTIL THE DOOR IS OPENED--I MADE A CALL, HUNG UP, AND THE RADIO VOLUME WAS FINE; I IMMEDIATELY MADE ANOTHER CALL, HUNG UP, AND THE RADIO BLASTED AT FULL DECIBELS AGAIN. THIS TIME, I WAS UNABLE TO ELICIT A RESPONSE BY TURNING THE VOLUME KNOB, WITH THE RADIO STOPPING SHORTLY THEREAFTER BECAUSE IT HAD REACHED THE 5-MINUTE LIMIT. THIS EVENT OCCURRED WHETHER I HUNG UP FIRST OR THE OTHER PERSON HUNG UP FIRST. I HAVE HAD THE CAR BACK TO RAFFERTY SUBARU ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS, WITH A VARIETY OF FIXES ATTEMPTED, MOST RECENTLY BY SWAPPING OUT MY AMP WITH ONE FROM A LOANER VEHICLE. I HAVE FOUND IDENTICAL COMPLAINTS ON THE SUBARUOUTBACK.ORG FORUM, WITH OTHERS ACHIEVING NO RESOLUTION AS WELL, AND WITH OTHER BEING CONCERNED ABOUT THIS UNCONTROLLABLE CONDITION OCCURRING WHILE DRIVING AT HIGH SPEED ON HIGHWAYS. THIS APPEARS TO BE A PROBLEM IN THE 2019 AND 2020 MODELS AS WELL.