2018 SUBARU OUTBACK Complaints

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 SUBARU OUTBACK. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE HIS WIFE WAS PULLING INTO A PARKING LOT, THE ENGINE REVVED, AND WITH THE DRIVER'S FOOT ON THE BRAKE, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED AND WENT OVER THE PARKING CURB AND CRASHED INTO AN EMBANKMENT IN ANOTHER PARKING LOT. THERE WAS NO WARNING. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HIS WIFE COMPLAINED ABOUT AN UNKNOWN LIGHT THAT ONCE FLASHED ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE DASHBOARD. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE LIGHT DID NOT STAY ON. THE VEHICLE WAS DAMAGED BUT WAS NOT TOTALED. THERE WAS NO INJURY AND NO POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE (ANDERSON SUBARU LOCATED AT 7050 PENSACOLA BLVD, PENSACOLA, FL 32505), WHERE THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE VEHICLE OPERATED AS INTENDED. THE TECHNICIAN OFFERED TO HAVE AN ENGINEER EVALUATE THE FAILURE BUT WARNED THAT IT WOULD TAKE THREE TO FOUR MONTHS TO BE COMPLETED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 39,000. *DT*JB

BRAKES ARE SOFT AND GO ALMOST TO THE FLOOR. ONE CANNOT PUMP UP TODAYS BRAKES. REAR BRAKES ALMOST NEW. FRONT BRAKE PADS NEW. BRAKES STOP VEHICLE IN NORMAL OPERATION. MY CONCERN IN EMERGENCY SITUATION. VERY HEAVY BRAKING GOES VERY CLOSE TO THE FLOOR.

THE VOLUME OF THE PHONE RING: THIS IS ANOTHER PROBLEM GOING ON FOR YEARS, THROUGHOUT DIFFERENT YEAR MODELS, AND VERY WELL DOCUMENTED ON THE INTERNET IN SEVERAL FORUMS AS WELL (HTTPS://WWW.SUBARUOUTBACK.ORG/THREADS/2018-W-NAV-PHONE-RING-VOLUME.497495/). EVERY TIME MY CELLPHONE RINGS, IT'S EAR PIERCINGLY LOUD. IT MAKES ONE JUMP LOUD. I DID TRY TO GET HELP AT THE DEALERSHIP BUT SADLY THERE IS NO REMEDY. THE PROBLEM IS TWOFOLD: 1. THE PHONE CONNECTED VIA BLUETOOTH TO THE CAR'S NATIVE SYSTEM. WHILE IN SETTINGS THERE IS A MODE WHERE ONE IS ABLE TO ADJUST THE RING VOLUME (WHICH IS FOR SOME REASON SET TO '10' BY DEFAULT) AND BRING IT DOWN TO '1-2', SOON AS ONE PARKS AND LEAVES THE CAR FOR EVEN AN HOUR THE SYSTEM RESETS TO '10'. EVEN WORST, SOMETIMES ALL ONE HAVE TO DO WITHOUT LEAVING THE VEHICLE, TO TURN UP THE VOLUME ON THE RADIO AND THAT WILL RESET THE PREVIOUSLY LOWERED RING VOLUME. 2. THE PHONE CONNECTED TO AIRPLAY FOR WHICH THERE ARE NO SETTINGS WHATSOEVER. EVEN IF THE PHONE IN SILENT MODE AND THERE IS NO SOUND FOR TEXT MESSAGES, IT RINGS OVERWHELMINGLY LOUD.

THESE INCIDENTS ARE ONGOING PROBLEMS FROM PURCHASING MY FIRST OUTBACK 4 YEARS AGO. THE QUESTION/ANSWER BELOW (*WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN?) CANNOT BE ANSWERED TRUTHFULLY, PINPOINTED TO AN EXACT DATE. IT WAS A BRAND NEW CAR PURCHASED FROM THE DEALER AND MY CURRENT, SECOND ONE WITH THE SAME EXACT ISSUES ARE ALSO A NEW PURCHASE FROM THE SAME DEALER. THE HAZARD FLASHERS: WHEN THE CAR IS IN PARKING AND HAZARDS ARE ON, IF ONE LOCKS THE CAR WITH THE FOB, THEY WON'T BE ABLE TO UNLOCK THE CAR WITH THE REMOTE ANYMORE. THE TINY KEY FROM THE FOB NEEDED TO UNLOCK, WHICH IS HARD ENOUGH ESPECIALLY FOR SOMEONE WITH DISABILITIES AND CONSEQUENTLY TRIGGERS THE CAR'S ALARM. WEATHER WARNINGS: THIS OUTRAGEOUS THING STARTED JUST A FEW MONTHS AGO (NOV. 2019), WHEN I WAS PROMPTED TO UPDATE THE FIRMWARE. EVER SINCE AT ANY WEATHER PHENOMENA (REGARDLESS OF MY PHONE BEING PLUGGED IN OR NOT, BLUETOOTH ON OR OFF) A WARNING APPEARS ON THE SCREEN AND ONE HAS TO INTERACT WITH IT. THIS WARNING POPS UP SOMETIMES EVERY 2-4 MINUTES WHILE DRIVING. ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS ON THE HIGHWAY AT HIGH SPEED, AT NIGHT AND WHILE USING THE NAVIGATION SYSTEM IN UNFAMILIAR AREAS SINCE ONE'S BEEN DISTRACTED BY THE BLACKED OUT SCREEN. WHEN I FIRST REPORTED THIS ISSUE AT THE DEALERSHIP THEY SPENT AN ENTIRE DAY FINDING THE PROBLEM, UNSUCCESSFULLY. WHICH IS A HUGE SURPRISE BECAUSE THERE ARE MULTIPLE WEBSITES AND FORUMS (HTTPS://WWW.SUBARUOUTBACK.ORG/THREADS/WEATHER-ALERTS-ON-THE-HEAD-UNIT-RADIO.449129/) DISCUSSING THE PROBLEM WITH NO SOLUTION, GOING BECK FOR YEARS. WHILE I APPRECIATE THE EFFORT, IT'S ABSOLUTELY NOT MY VEHICLE'S JOB TO TELL ME ABOUT THE WEATHER.

WE HAVE 2 CRACKS THAT CONTINUE TO GROW ON OUR WINDSHIELD. WE HAVE NEVER HAD A WINDSHIELD CRACK IN THIS WAY IN OVER 50 YEARS OF DRIVING. THE CRACKS GROW OVERNIGHT IN THE GARAGE!!

WINDSHIELD SPONTANEOUSLY CRACKED OVERNIGHT WHILE PARKED IN A GARAGE. 12" CRACK APPEARED ON DRIVER'S SIDE. THIS IS THE SECOND WINDSHIELD THAT HAS CRACKED WITHIN 2 YEARS AND LESS THAN 27K MILES.

WE PURCHASED A NEW 2018 SUBARU OUTBACK IN JULY 2018. MY WIFE WAS THE PRIMARY DRIVER OF THIS VEHICLE. BY APRIL 2019, MY WIFE WAS SUFFERING FROM SEVERE KNEE AND HIP PAIN ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF HER BODY. DURING HER VISITS TO HER ORTHOPEDIC SPECIALIST (KNEE), SHE WAS ASKED MULTIPLE TIMES IF SHE WAS IN AN ACCIDENT. IN JULY 2018, I GOT TO DRIVE HER CAR ON AN 8 HOUR TRIP. BY 5TH HOUR, MY RIGHT KNEE WAS IN MAJOR PAIN, LIKE BEING ON FIRE FROM WITHIN. IN CLOSE INSPECTION OF DRIVING POSITION, I FOUND THE FOLLOWING: 1. TRANSMISSION TUNNEL INTRUDES IN DRIVING POSITION TO OPERATE GAS PEDDLE 2. GAS PEDAL IS TUCKED AWAY TOO FAR TO THE RIGHT (LINE OF SIGHT COVERED BY TRANSMISSION TUNNEL) 3. THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE GAS AND BRAKE PEDAL ARE LONGER THAN ANY OTHER CAR THAT WE HAVE OWNED. OPERATING THE TWO PEDALS REQUIRE WIDE TURN OF RIGHT ANKLE). THE COMBINATION OF THE ABOVE 3 DESIGN ISSUES FORCES DRIVER TO OPEN THE RIGHT LEG AT THE HIP. NEXT TO TURN TO RIGHT FOOT BELOW THE KNEE FURTHER TO THE RIGHT. LASTLY REQUIRE WIDER TURN OF RIGHT ANKLE TO OPERATE BRAKE PEDAL IF NOT LIFTING RIGHT FOOT TO OPERATE THE BRAKE PEDAL. LATER THAT DAY, WE DID AN INTERNET SEARCH ON "SUBARU" + "LEG PAIN". WE FOUND OUT REPORTED ISSUES SINCE 2013. ALSO, OUR SISTER IN-LAW WHO HAS A SUBARU FORESTER SHARED THAT AT TIME SHE FEELS DISCOMFORT IN HER RIGHT LEG WHEN TRAVELING LONGER THAN 2 HOURS. SINCE THEN WE HAVE HEARD FROM OTHER SUBARU OWNERS HAVING PAIN IN RIGHT SIDE OF THEIR BODY. INFORMATION SURFACES ONLY WHEN WE SHARE OUR EXPERIENCE. SINCE JULY 4TH 2018, I HAVE BEEN DRIVING THE OUTBACK. WHILE MY DAILY COMMUTE IS NOT AS LONG AS WIFE'S, I AM EXPERIENCING DISCOMFORT IN MY RIGHT KNEE AND ANKLE. I HAVE REACH OUT TO LOCAL DEALER AND SUBARU AMERICA TOP EXECUTIVES. SO FAR THEY REFUSE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THEY HAVE A PROBLEM OR WILLING TO WORK WITH ME.

WINDSHIELD IS VERY SUSCEPTIBLE TO CHIPPING FROM THE SMALLEST STONE FRAGMENTS, THEN EASILY SPREADS. WE HAD IT REPLACED ALONG WITH RECALIBRATION OF THE EYE SIGHT. COST WAS 697.00 PRIOR TO THAT ANY TIME YOU WOULD HEAR THE FAINTEST SOUND OF SOMETHING HITTING THE WINDSHIELD YOU WOULD SEE A TINY CHIP MARK. I HAVE BEEN IN THE AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR BUSINESS FOR 30 YEARS AND DRIVEN MANY VEHICLES IN MY 62 YEARS AND THIS WINDSHIELD BY FAR IS THE MOST FRAGILE. EVEN THE NEW WINDSHIELD HAS CHIP MARKS AND IS ONLY A COUPLE OF MONTHS OLD.

I WAS DRIVING IN A 4 LANE (TWO ON EACH DIRECTION) PARKWAY TOWARD A RED STOPLIGHT WITH ONE CAR STOPPED AT MY LANE AT THE LIGHT, I WAS COASTING, SLOWING DOWN TOWARD THE CAR. WHEN I WAS ABOUT 30 FT AWAY THE LIGHT CHANGED, THE CAR IN FRONT STARTED DRIVING AND I APPLIED THE ACCELERATOR. THE DISTANCE TO THE CAR IN FRONT WAS DEFINITELY INCREASING HOWEVER MY CAR WENT INTO EMERGENCY BRAKING MODE, CANCELLING MY ACCELERATION PEDAL ACTION AND STOPPING THE CAR. LUCKILY NO ONE WAS BEHIND ME AS IT WOULD HAVE ALMOST CERTAINLY ENDED IN A REAR-END COLLISION.

I JUST DRIVEN HOME FROM WORK ON THE FREEWAY FOR 20 MINUTES. GOT HOME AND PARKED MY CAR ON THE STREET IN FRONT OF MY HOME. I WENT INTO MY HOME AND CAME OUT ABOUT 30 MINUTES LATER TO DO SOME YARD WORK. A CRACK IN MY WINDSHIELD CAUGHT MY EYE. I LOOKED AT IT AND IT WENT FROM ONE SIDE TO THE OTHER IT WAS NOT THERE WHEN I PARKED MY CAR 30 MINUTES EARLIER AND NOTHING HIT THE WINDSHIELD ON THE FREEWAY. THIS HAPPENED 9 MOS AFTER I BOUGHT MY CAR. IT WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY BUT THEY MADE ME PAY $1118.33 OUT OF MY POCKET AND THEN TOLD ME TO GET REIMBURSED BY MY INSURANCE.