Subaru Outback

"Frequently enough to be inconvenient, Apple Carplay and Android Auto do not connect. This has been an issue since we first purchased the vehicle. We trying unplugging it and plugging back in, turning off the car and unplugging and plugging back in after starting the car again will usually resolve it, but not always. Sometimes it just remains disconnected. Happens equally with Apple and Android."

"Known issues with the "head unit" caused the back up camera to loose resolution. Subaru has scheduled a replacement unit after complaining."

""When attempting to end a task, i.e. navigating instructions, the screen was non-responsive.""

"The main display had to be replaced by the dealer as a recall because it would not work. The new one is okay but still slow to accept a touch and does not always work correctly in apple car play and plain radio."

"The laminate on the screen separated. Subaru replaced it no charge."

""The infotainment system screen would freeze up and or fail, rendering all other functions useless. GPS, phone, radio, navigation all ceased working. However the backup camera continued to work.""

"The system has a life of its own. It will make calls, change radio stations. Unable to change app. Cost to replace...$1500."

"Uncontrollable screen performance making it unusable. Replaced entire system under extended warranty."

"The display screen would freeze and flicker making The radio and Apple CarPlay unusable."

"screen randomly freezes. restarting the engine usually fixes it. doing a software update works only for a while then the problem re-occures."

"Display freezes until I restart engine. Switches from screen to screen on its own sometime. Navigation system cannot be updated."

""Random change from screen freezing to changing screen, changing radio station, constant inconsistent beeping, touch screen sometimes working sometimes not""

""It doesnt actually freeze, but instead starts jumping from station to station or from setting to setting. Seems to be a relatively common problem.""

""My touch screen became unusable, a $1700 fix. The item was no longer under warranty, but my service agent at the local dealership suggested I call Subaru USA. There had been a recall I was not informed about. I made my case to an agent at Subaru USA and he agreed. The touchscreen was replaced at no charge to me. Color me a happy customer""

"Subaru has class action lawsuit about display screens for this year Outback failing"

"Touch screen is non responsive 90% of the time."

"can't remember specifics. simply couldn't use any functions. Subaru replaced entire screen (plus ?) @ NC"

"Electronics would freeze on long drives. Several dealer trips resulting in replacement of display/stereo."

"The infotainment system went haywire - flashing, automatically scrolling radio stations, initiating phone calls from paired device, etc. There was no way to shut it off or reset it."

"It started freezes sometime, now it freezes all the time. you can change stations from the steering wheel only to a preprogrammed station. You can not use the GPS or add new stations, to me this is a safty issue when traveling to unknown locations."

"Audio unit display went crazy and had to be replaced."

"Unable to change between playing CD and RADIO.It seems stuck and won't play either. The next time you start the car it may or may not be ok. Ugh..!"

"The 2018 Outback had issues with the radio and it had to be replaced. My replacement had to be replaced because it began to free again."

"The entertainment touch screen developed bubbles under the glass which caused it to register touches that were not happening and unresponsive to real touches. This is apparently a common problem with this model."

"The touch screen stopped working. When it started happening, it would happen at least once per day andn eventually became unusable. The problem was resolved by replacing the head unit. constantly."

"Touch screen started separating. Although it was no longer under warranty, as a gesture of goodwill, Subaru of America replaced it at no cost."

"The touch screen recently started freezing up randomly and making screen selections on its own. A new head has been ordered from Subaru and its covered under my extended warrenty."

"Display failed first time under warranty. Class action lawsuit extended warranty to five years. It failed again five years from the original replacement date. Turns out the five year extension was from the purchase date. My dealership put me in touch with Subaru customer service and after a few days of internal debate they replaced it a second time at no charge."

"the electronic system is a disaster. They have not fixed the radi, which freezes the entire system, does not operate radio, does not operate rear-view camera. Called the 800 number and they said they would offer to pay half to fix my radio (1,400 total) even though on-line they said they offered limited full coverage for the audio system They had a problem voiced by many owners on line and did not own up to it. I think their whole reputation is a farce. Will never buy another Subaru."

""Screen freezes or is erratic jumping from application to application, applications do not respond to touch, radio stations change at random.""

""The screen would freeze or act erratic. Became unusable as a touchscreen and display. It started around 87,000 miles. The Subaru dealer replaced the screen under warranty.""

"The display screen would have what appeared to be hundreds of water spots on the screen and would occassionally switch radio stations on it own. It cost $2000 to repair"

"Unable to use touchscreen on some occasions. Freezes or delays processing input"

"Freezes up on every other time for about 2 months. Did a software update at home it kept freezing. Subaru service did an update and it works now. I just have screen touch controls in certain areas of my screen that are not as responsive all the time (they said due to my over use of that button haha)."

"The video display freezes every time I use my vehicle, making it virtually impossible to use the navigation system, radio, phone, and other functions that the video console manages. The screen not only freezes, but it blacks out occasionally. It also seems to queue commands while it is frozen and then visually and rapidly flashes through each without unfreezing. The video display also routinely disconnects from my Android phone, rending Android Auto useless. I traded in a Toyota Highlander, which I loved and which had 230k miles on it, for my Outback. Doing so was a huge mistake! I will not purchase a Subaru again."

"The computer display screen glitches and does not respond to touch. It randomly turns on, it calls people when paired, it switches stations automatically and does a lot of really weird random stuff."

"Touch screen registers ghost touches which cause it to do random commands and then freezes"

"This is also part of the screen freezing"

"Screen blanking was the start of malfunctions in head unit in 2024. At first it would reboot by restarting car. Then display malfunctions became permanent."

"CEASED WORKING AND WAS REPLACED"

""System goes out, therefore eyesight, cruise control etc.cant use""

"The display screen went bad, was recalled, but the recall had a 2 year expiration, which we were not made aware of the recall or of the 2 year expiration. We still ended up having to pay $1000 to have the display replaced, since we were unable to view any menus without their known faulty display. The display goes bad due to the high internal temperatures reached inside the vehicle during the warm months. Apparently, from what I read in Subaru chat groups, the displays were going bad after, on average, after 3 years. It was a widely known problem and the company still uses the exact same display supplier."

"doesn't always connect"

"Subaru proises to make good."

"The display unit has a prominent position in the center of the dashboard. It displays software and contains touch controls for GPS Navigation, cell phone integration and entertainment. When the car is on, this display is constantly, randomly jumping between various screens without anyone touching it. Sometimes it freezes completely or goes blank for a second or two, most of the time it flashes between screens and beeps multiple times with every screen jump. This effect renders the GPS Navigation totally useless and makes the sound system and cell phone integration features inoperative. The backup camera display works when car is in Reverse. The display problems immediately return as soon as car is set to Drive. We feel the distraction of the flashing screens combined with the noise and the loss of GPS navigation and hands off phone features make the car unsafe to operate in highway conditions. We are also concerned the failure is affecting the blind spot sensors that occasionally and randomly fail to detect cars crossing at high speeds from the far lanes to the lanes next to us. When driving, for safety, we keep the sound off, don't use our phones or connected them to the car and do our best to ignore the beeping and flashing screens. We are attempting to work with Subaru. We are advised we can have a replacement unit for $1500. We believe this is a common problem for Outbacks. We have lost confidence in Subaru due to their failure to fix this issue (and the leaky head gasket mentioned earlier). We feel these issues are design failures not related to normal vehicle use or age. We have put 48K miles on the car since we purchased it the end of 2017, low mileage by any standard. We cannot in good conscience recommend any Subaru product at this time and most likely will never buy another Subaru again."

""The radio assembly, including touch screen and android auto interface, froze up in a state that resulted in continuous beeping with no selection possible. Replaced by dealer under the extra cost extended warranty, would not have been covered under regular warranty.""

"Still in process but phone randomly calls and touchscreen doesn't work."

"Within the last year when hot unit lock up and would be non-responsive. Problem with "bubbles" behind surface. Unit replaced."

"Display became unreadable"

""Harman-Kardon head unit malfunctioned and required total replacement of the Head unit. All electronics (e.g., radio, Bluetooth, GPS/navigation) failed.""

"Display started having spots that looked like crystals forming under the screen."

"Since I first purchased this Outback, the nav system has displayed upcoming turn instructions in the small display in the between the speedometer and the tachometer. This blocks visibility of the digital speedometer. I was told that this would be fixed in a future quarterly update but it hasn't been. The system now blocks the digital speedometer by showing phone call info in this area. The Infotainment system, froze up twice but the dealer was able to reset it. The third time it froze, the dealer had to order and install a warranty replacement system. This system was also the subject of a class-action lawsuit which provided an extended factory warranty."

"The radio would start charging channels, it was having problems when I bought it. The volume would go up and down by itself. I was finally able to get it to the dealership so they could see the problem. Also the rear lift gate locks up and I am unable to open it for a while when it happens."

""Started around Jan 2025. The display screen locked up and sporadically made a beeping noise. Took the car in for service in mid-February and was told the display screen had to be replaced for about $1,400. Also was told it was a known issue for which Subaru had an extended warranty, but it had expired 6 months earlier. Dealer gave me Subaru America phone number and they agreed to pay for the part, given the low mileage on my car. After many phone calls with the dealer, the screen was finally replaced on May 21st.""

"The screen's plastic face had blurred spots that interfered with being able to see the screen."

"Screen delamination which apparently caused 'ghost' touches, freezing, and inability to use any apps/functions relying on head unit - GPS, radio, bluetooth, Apple Car Play."

"Touchscreen for entire radio unit bubbled and no longer is usable . The bubbles make the screen think it is being touched so it constantly is pressing its own buttons Not yet resolved due to cost"

""I live in Florida, so interior of parked vehicle gets very hot. Started to experience malfunctions in 2024, 6 years old, that could only be corrected by replacement of the head unit. $1500 to replace.""

"In less than seven years the whole display had to be replaced. Radio stations just randomly changed. Touch screen didnt work. Subaru blamed on the Florida heat."

"CEASED WORKING AND WAS REPLACED"

"LED screen became sunburned. Wouldnt respond to touch. Would change stereo channels on its own. Common problem with these according to dealer and Internet forums"

"The touch screen became unresponsive and then would respond to touches that werent happening. It was enough of an issue for Subaru that they had extended the warranty on it and replaced it for free."

"Screen would freeze up and GPS and radio would not function. Subaru has had two class action suits for this problem. Screen was replaced under warranty and everything is working for the past 12 months."

""Head unit screen delaminated over a period of months causing bubbling of the internal screen surface, a known issue with this model year. Unable to use any integrated features of the system. Random buttons activate intermittently changing the radio station, starting GPS, or making a call involuntarily. Ongoing issue yet to be resolved. Part is "on backorder" for unspecified amount of time and the quote from the dealer was approx $1600.00 to replace. Currently in discussion with Subaru of America regarding the issue.""

"Radio display screen delaminated"

"I've had the "Head Unit" replaced three times. While I have liked the display and functions of the unit, it is not acceptable to have it fail 3 times."

"unit failed/subru said they might help. NEVER heard back from them."

""Unable to update, so maps inaccurate if areas are newly constructed.""

"I have a GPS that gets lost. I turn the car on and the time is totally wrong (Not just a time zone issue). Map will place me somewhere in the country. Time and map will never correct until the car is turned off and the system shuts down so not a fast fix. Started using Apple Car Play instead."

"Delamination of audio unit affected navigation system as well as audio. The screen was coming apart. This happened in February 2025."

"Navigation would intermittently fail"

"I have recently started having issues with the upper left corner of my touch screen not responding at all. The means I cannot hang up calls there, cannot change the radio, cannot hit redial."

"Idaho goes from standard time to daylight savings in the spring and visa versa in the fall of each year. The first 2 years after we bought the car new, the clock automatically changed. It no longer automatically changes. I learned how to manually change it by referring to YouTube."

"The screen on the entertainment system has delaminated, making it impossible to see what the backup camera is showing when the sun is also behind the car. Radio changes stations randomly when sunshine hits it. Other functions activate on their own randomly as sun hits the screen. Subaru has offered to replace the system. I have been waiting since late last year for the replacement to come in."

"Bubbles in touch screen causing non-response or random commands"

""After driving 7 - 10 minutes the TPMS warning like comes on, though the tire pressures display the correct PSI""

"Head unit touchscreen delaminated. Known issue, Subaru of America paid for replacement but still cost $500 in labor to replace"

"Car purchased with Data Control Module (DCM) not updated to use 5G cell network. Subaru would not replace it under purchased warranty when car bought. Paid for replacement of DCM. Subaru then extended a warranty for all cars and refunded part of the cost. Not happy with the whole process. Probably my last Subaru."

"dash does not light up immediately upon starting. But will come on within 15-20 min."

"There is no other electronics problem"

""Screen had issue. Would switch apps at will. Phone, gps, stereo all failed to operate properly. Had to replace with aftermarket unit""

"entire unit failed. no radio, no gps, no maps,"

"I have had 2 iPhones and both of them have had connection issues with both bluetooth and apple CarPlay. Even the replacement head unit continues to have this issue. The fact that it happens even if hard connection (i.e. wired connection) and the dealer has no solutions makes me leery of the brand. Because of this I have no confidence in Subaru electronics and wont buy another Subaru vehicle."

"Does not automatically pairs with iphone , have to restart the car."

"Febuary 2025: Because of delamination of the audio unit, the radio would skip from one station to another."

"Radio would go into scan mode and change stations every few seconds nonstop"

""My radio would not hold a station but kept flipping from one to another, sometimes leaving Sirius XM and going to AM or FM.""

"Unusable screen resulted in unusable radio"

""as happens with the screen, the radio freezes and the station cannot be changed even with the dials.""

""When the screen locked up, a beeping noise would sporadically happen. It seemed like the radio was trying to find a station. The beeping noise occurred even with the volume turned all the way down, very frustrating!""

""radio occasionally does not allow changes (freezes) at times, even though I've had it replaced under a recall (twice).""

"The company replaced the screen and all components it required to work correctly."

""Radio, phone pairing and screen were part of the same unit. The main source of the problem was the touch screen, and it caused the radio to jump around, failure to respond to input, and refuse to pair. Dealer wanted $2100 to replace.""

"Had to replace entire InfoTainment system, which includes radio, built-in GPS, Apple CarPlay. System stopped working."

"The Subaru dealer replaced it with a rebuilt screen. Cost $1800 +"

"It would just randomly decide to sitch stations and wouldn't let me override"

"Dash speakers are passenger side became fuzzy. I paid to fix it"

""The middle dash speaker starting making a horrendous noise, I had to remove it.""

"Amplifier had to be replaced to regain all sound. Subaru did this without charge."

"The panel would not respond to any commands and would not go crazy flipping all over the channels"

""When car was purchased it was connected to StarLink with free service for a year. We chose not to renew this service since we were using Apple Play linked to the Outback. However, despite StarLink supposedly being discontinued, we eventually learned that it was periodically linking to the car. A result of this was that, if we didn't drive the car for a week or ten days, the battery would drain and required a restart. Sometimes interior lights would fail. Over the last four years we had many calls to Triple AAA for battery restarts, and gradually each battery failed. We have had three batteries in the last four years in a car that is not driven extensively (in part because of the problem). One battery was replaced free of charge by Subaru; we paid for the other two. We have been assured that the problem is now fixed, that StarLink is completely disconnected and will no longer drain our battery, but we don't feel very confident that the problem is completely behind us. This has resulted in our using a new car purchased in the latter part of 2024 and our old 2012 Volvo S60 instead of the Outback. Apart from the battery/electrical system issue, there is no problem with the vehicle. Stating that we would probably not purchase such a car again is completely a result of this set of problems...no other issues with the car.""

"The battery on the car did not recharge adequately during the winter and forced us to jump it. We replaced the battery with a much more powerful one and resolved the problem."

""The battery would lose all charge if the car was not driven in 3 days. The problem continued despite replacing the batteries 3 times. Two years later Subaru announced a recall due to an electrical problem that was draining the batteries. Problem was then fixed, but until then, very annoying.""

"chronic battery failure due to battery drain issue."

"Battery was replaced 3 times in about a year. I am aware of 2 other similar vehicles (different years) with the same issue which was related to a bag computer chip. They have not acknowledged that issue with mine vehicle."

"LED running light went out drivers side. $900 to repair as the whole front exterior panel needs to be removed and whole new light system is needed to be replaced."

""Interior lights sometimes failed before the battery was completely compromised as discussed in the previous analysis of this problem (the two issues seem related to electrical power drain...e.g., as battery was failing, the automatic shut-off for interior lights, which should happen a few minutes after we parked the car, did not engage, thus even more rapidly draining the battery.""

"this car has been a pain in the backside for months. There's some kind of electronic problem between the key fob and battery and locking doors and non-starting the engine! # visits to local dealter, now I had it towed to a 2nd dealer!"

"Alert re low battery on one fob despite service and battery replacement. !2V battery does not retain charge and is hight maintenance. Rear hatch is temperamental and does not consistently respond to fob or dash controls."

"During summer in AZ, car claims key battery needs replacing every month"

"frequent tailgate operation failure."

"One of the rear windows will not go up/down when temperatures are high. Began happening several years ago but we have not addressed."

"In May of 2025, we had failures in the rear passenger and rear driver side windows. First, the driverside rear window went bad while we were in NC. I took our Outback to the Subaru dealership in Boone, NC & was advised that they "were required to replace the masterswitch on the driver side door before replacing the window harness in the door of the rear driver side". This was after I had explained that we had experienced window issues periodically when it would work in an electrical stuttering fashion on both sides, driver & passenger, but that the rear driver side window had exhibited the most problems & then finally totally failed. They ignored my suggestion of replacing the electrical window harness & replaced the masterswitch for just under $500. I felt that I had no choice due to the fact that they were refusing to listen to me, we were on vacation in a different state from our home state, & there was a lot of rain forecasted for the following 5 days. To make a long story short, Modern Subaru's replacement of the master switch did NOT solve the problem & they informed us that they had to order a electric window harness, which wouldn't arrive until after we actually left NC. I asked them to place the window in the up position so that we could drive it to our home dealership to have it actually functionally repaired. We took our Outback home & had the electrical window wiring harness replaced, which solved window problem. Ironically, I had our Subaru certified shop order the passenger side wiring harness when we initially ordered the same for the rear driver side window before we left NC for home since we had experienced similar electrical stuttering functions on the rear passenger side, as well. That window failed on the day that we took the Outback into the shop. Both windows worked upon having their electrical wiring harnesses respectively replaced. Go figure."

"Driver side power window wouldnt always raise. Sometimes it took 3 or 4 tries. Very annoying."

""Rear liftgate would open without being triggered, seats would readjust themselves after car was turned off, other random issues.""

"Poll lease see prievous comments. Started with my cousin using the window feature that will close the window with minor flicking if control. At first this was fine but a few years later the problem started. This only occurs on the front passenger seat. It never occurs on the drivers seat. The problem with the front passenger seat can be replicated by both the window controls in the passenger and driver sides."

"The Starlink system was configured to continually try and poll a 3g cell tower. Twice when the car was in a remote location this caused the battery to be depleted. The problem was eventually resolved by Subaru"

"I had issues opening trunk especially when out of my yard"

"The whole electrical system went haywire/shut down. Car locked up and had to be towed. Nothing electrical worked properly."

"The push to open tailgate sometimes works sometimes not. Took the car to a dealership service and they were never able to fix the problem."

"Occasionally, the automatic rear gate will not open. There is a series of 4 or five 'beeps'. The way it is resolved is by just starting the car, driving then it works."

""After getting a new battery, the remote starter would only start the car for 3 minutes. Had to have the timer reset.""

"Second time in 12 months the tire pressure monitor has stopped working."

"At about 127,000 miles low tire pressure light came on.(TPMS) Tire Pressure was actually fine. Dealer said the sensor was bad and needed to be replaced. $150 to diagnose/ $146 to replace. On way home light came on again.. different tire- $150 diagnose/ $146 replace. 130,000 miles. TPMS light on again. Diagnose $150 had the remaining two sensors replace so as not to have to pay for another diagnosis and have to bring car in again."

"Tire pressure sensor light was constantly on. Took it to the dealership mechanic and they were never able to fix it"

""TPMS warnings would trigger for no reason, even after all 4 tires were replaced. Weather conditions were not necessarily at issue, warning light would come on in 70 degree weather as well as 30 degree.""

""TPMS sensors in all four tires replaced at 85,000 miles""

"I only have 1 2018 Subaru Outback"

"Battery drain, Subaru replaced at their cost"

"The struts are load and need replacement"

"I had to buy three high cost batteries within 2.5 years since 2O22. Finally, the serviceIt ended up being a problem, not with the batteries but with something in th d car that was draining batteries. It was repaired under my extended warranty. the hood that const a ntly"

""pulley system needed to be replaced, under warranty""

"Crankcase oil level sensor leaking. Still functioning but leaking at seal."

"TPMS system failed and sensors had to be replaced."

"cracked windshield"

"Tire monitor failed"

"2018 Subaru Outback seats developed cracks on drivers side seat at approximately 50k miles. Subaru dealer stated it was not defect and refused to repair. Driver is 110 lbs! Windshield cracked and was replaced at dealership. A few months later we came out of house and replacement was cracked completely across. No impacts to windshield but Subaru refused to warranty. Internet search shows both windshield and seats are common problem!"

"The battery drains if car sits for extended period of time."

"Battery dies over short time due to electronics that are "on" when car off. Have replaced battery 4 times. Known problem in Subarus and other brands."

"Radiator leaking had to be replaced."

"tire sensor failure"

"Battery issues. Wouldn't start after brief periods without use. Thought it might have been battery drain issues that Subaru mentioned. Didn't test it because we tested our 2016 Subaru Outback for the same issue. They charged $170 and didn't find anything. Battery was not that old. We traded it in and bought the 2025 Subaru Forester"

"TPMS sensors had to be replaced"

""Driver's side window did not close properly. Pressed the button to close window, and window immediately came down again. Repeatedly.""

"The tire pressure monitor system has failed centrally. Tire pressure readings are no longer available for all tires."

"Audio visual radio, it had to be replaced told this was a problem by Subaru. No recall but Subaru replaced it for only a $100 deductible it was not covered but there owner assist program help cover a $3000 replacement."