Subaru Outback

"Battery again dead. Dead batteries have been an ongoing problem with my 2016 Outback. I have had to have the battery jumped 2 times and have also had to buy 2 new batteries .... all at my own expense, because Subaru had a design flaw that allowed a continuous battery "drain", and the corporation refused to acknowledge and recall the problem. Lots of angry customers on line! I had to eventually solve this battery drain problem myself, by purchasing and installing a special sensor. This SHOULD have been recalled, repaired, and paid for by the Subaru Corporation !"

"Battery frequently dies."

"serious radio went out"

"Battery was replaced for fourth time in eight years. The dealer has replaced the battery at no cost to me during that time. Recently, they replaced the Data Communications Module (DCM) which was reportedly the cause of all the failed batteries. The DCM was replaced under warranty, at no cost to me."

"Battery drains when left for more than 10 days requiring a jump start"

"Seems to use/destroy batteries. I buy premium batteries and they last less than 2 years. This is not a major problem, but is very annoying."

"Have had continued problem w/ the battery discharging when car not driven frequently, esp. in winter. Battery keeps draining--we have replaced it on our own 2 times now. Subaru and other garages can't find a problem."

"Front Passeger Window would not operate properly. Battery needed replaced"

"It seems to go through a lot of batteries but I am never sure of what provokes this. A couple of times the battery is still under warranty because I always take it to the dealer."

"Broken seal in headlight. Quoted 900 for repair by Subaru dealership."

"There was a problem with the navigation system upgrade which ultimately affected the battery life. The system was upgraded to prevent future power drains."

"Starlink module developed an electrical short in early 2023 that drained the battery. I thought it was the battery and replaced it. It developed again in December 2023 after the car sat for 2 weeks. In March 2024 the dealer tracked it to a defective Starlink unit that was replaced. Subaru customer care paid for the repair."

"passenger side rear bearing needed replacement"

"Leaking coolant pump repair."

"Right axel replacement"

"Battery died after sitting in the car for 2 months and had to be replaced"

"The Moon roof leaked. So much so that the front and back seat floor was full of water. I would park on an incline,with the rear of the car lower than the front,during rain so I didn't get water in the floor boards. I searched youtube to find a fix. I cleaned the drains. That didn't fix the problem. Then found a youtuber that suggested that the moon roof had loose mounting bracket screws when it was installed at the factory. Causing the roof to drop down and causing the roof to not seal tightly. I tried his recommendation to fix the leak. IT WORKED. It took me only 10 min. to fix. The roof leaked from about 2019 to 2022."

"Owned 8 years, needed 6 new batteries. Dealer never found the problem. Said it was bc I did not drive enough so told me to take it out of the city a few days a week and ... just drive. Giving up and plan to get another car soon."

"During maintenance check, battery failed. This is the 3rd battery I have had for this car - previous 2 have failed. After further testing this was related to the starlink program looking for a signal and slowly draining the battery. Starlink issue fixed and new battery installed per a Subaru bulletin."

"There is some 12-volt drain that continually kills batteries. I'm on my 4th. The dealer flashed the computer to make it charge higher and it's still marginal."

"This is the sixth battery put in this vehicle"

"The battery has drained while being parked many times. This last time it was parked, with a battery that is less than a year old, and drained from 100% to 32%. I tested it with a TOPDON battery tester. There are no aftermarket items plugged in the system."

"windows would not respond to switches"

"Battery drain due to malfunctioning keyless entry module."

"Have to replace the key fob battery approximately every 3 months."

"Keyless trunk (rear station wagon hatch) door opened by itself, twice while driving and once while parked."

"The keys and the driver's door unlock and lock buttons in the 2016 Subie Outback do not lock or unlock the rear passenger door lock."

"Both keys stopped working even after replacing batteries. New keys work better but occasionally I still have an issue"

"It was inherent in the car, DCM kept pulling energy even when car was off. There was a class action lawsuit. I replaced the battery 3 times in 6 years. There is now a software fix that I just had done at the dealer."

"I have had to replace the battery 4 times in the 7 years I've owned it, which seemed excessive to me. This spring my Subaru dealer told me this was a common problem and the factory installed battery system was undereqipped for my vehicle and an upgraded system was recommended."

"The rats had eaten several wires so many electrical functions within the car were not working. It was not covered by the warranty"

"Started about two years agoId get in to start and the battery would be dead. Subaru finally admits this is a problem with this and other year outbacks. I carry a jump pack so I can jump start the car when it wont start. Thus my confidence in Subaru is gone. Our previous Subaru had a problem with the head gasket and they knew it but took no steps to correct it for those cars they sold. I actually love my car but I no longer trust the Subaru company."

"When sun light hits screen, you cannot see the display"

"In bright sunlight the display screen "washes out" and shows the touchscreen sensor grid behind it"

"The display screen touch sensitivity became inoperable in places on the screen. Paid to replace the screen in the dashboard."

"Had to replace head unit, which affected radio, backup camera, bluetooth, navigation/GPS screen, all touch screen functions"

"The navigation was freezing up. When Subaru replaced the Radio Unit, the problem was fixed."

"Map update software either reject the VIN or claim to be up to date. Dealer charged $$$$ for failed update, no maps update. Also fony battery drain problem response. Big charge, no fix."

"It was outdated and the screen difficult if not impossible to see due to sunlight. Nothing can be done about the screen washing out but I did update the GOS"

"Navigation system is useless (can't read screen in bright light) I use my iphone instead."

"started three years ago. Battery drained overnight eventually destroyed battery. Happened again and found (via internet ) it is a common problem. Too expensive to renew Starlink, (over $2000). Suggested on internet that removing a fuse saves repeated need for new batteries. Did that- it works but cannot now use hands free phone."

"After a seven year history (from new) of three battery replacements the dealership finally discovered that the DCM was draining the battery and replaced it under my extended warranty. Note: a year later (now) this appears to be a recall issue - apparently the DCM is constantly searching for the 3G network that is no longer available - and draining the battery in doing so. I'm guessing the dealership was already aware of this upcoming recall when they did my repair a year ago."

"started after 2 years. Replaced battery twice. Eventually corrected due to customer recall and correction of battery input"

"If key is left in ignition while engine is turned off, the battery is drained. You did not give battery problems as an option, so I picked radio."

"Door speakers needed to be replaced"