10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
6 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
21,607 miles

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problem #24

Sep 102023

Outback

  • miles
I was pulling into a parking space very slowly when the car went into overdrive and suddenly accelerated at a high speed. It plunged down a slight decline and hit a large tree. My airbag failed to deploy although I was thrown violently forward, and the car sustained severe front end damage. The car is considered a total loss and I spent a day at a hospital emergency room. The sudden unexpected acceleration and the lack of airbag inflation is going to be assessed by Subaru on 10/24/23. I understand that there are two class action lawsuits against Subaru (in NJ & CA) for this same unanticipated acceleration issue.

- North Kingstown , RI, USA

problem #23

Nov 222022

Outback

  • miles
I experienced a sudden unintended acceleration of my 2013 Subaru Outback while braking to make a left hand turn at a stoplight on Federal Road in Brookfield, CT. I was able to squeeze the brake hard while shifting into neutral to avoid slamming into the car in front of me while the engine raced. The car would have gone out of control had I not been able to press very hard on the brake pedal. This incident was not the first time this unintended acceleration of the vehicle occurred. About a month ago, I was in a similar situation on the road when I was decelerating and applying the brake that the car had a rapid unintended acceleration that caused me to press very hard on the brake pedal to keep the car from lurching forward. I-??ve owned the vehicle since December 2012 and this situation has probably occurred less than 5 times over the 10 years of operation. Each time I thought it was perhaps my error for somehow touching the accelerator with my foot while the brake was applied. After the recent November 22 incident, I now realize that there is likely a systemic problem with the accelerator. I plan to have accelerator inspected by the dealer.

- Bethel, CT, USA

problem #22

Sep 112021

Outback

  • miles
Thank you NHTSA for being my voice. We need and appreciate the life saving work you collectively do to keep my family, myself, and others safe on our roads. I need your action. My 2013 Subaru Continuously Variable Transmission valve body is failing. This is a major safety issue because my Subaru risks stalling out and potentially being harmed in a crash causing bodily injury or death to the driver, passengers, and other motorists. This is a known issue with Subaru and the NHTSA. Instead of a recall, Subaru of America opted to extend the warranty to 100,000 miles or 10 years for this safety issue. My car is 8 years old and over 100,000 miles. (I have taken amazing care of my beloved car and have already replaced the short block assembly that was a Service Bulletin under warranty for excessive oil consumption.) My goal, with your assistance, is to hold Subaru accountable to fix this known CVT failure at their cost (Approximately $1,829.94) by honoring my 8 year old car that is within the 10 year portion of the warranty extension. Although it is a known problem for cars over 100,000 miles, Subaru is denying my claim. The verbiage of this Continuously Variable Transmission issue being covered under an extended warranty of -??100,000 miles OR 10 years, WHICHEVER COMES FIRST-?? is a protection of the manufacturer only. I am compelled to ask you for your help and appreciate your time and advocacy. I can help in any capacity on my end. I am at your service!

- Bellingham, WA, USA

problem #21

May 192021

Outback

  • miles
Upon entering a parking space, my 2013 Subaru Outback went from idle to full acceleration, hitting a parked, unoccupied truck. Braking had no effect on the car, the air bag did not deploy, and the car did not decelerate until I was able to engage Park-within a few seconds it resumed the idle. The police made a report, car was taken to wrecking yard, and is now at repair facility for possible repair. There were no prior warnings or messages. I was unaware of a safety issue with Subaru and when I contacted my local dealer, I was told they were unaware of any issues. I then did research online and found numerous problems.

- Jacksonville, TX, USA

problem #20

Jun 032020

Outback 4-cyl

  • 83,000 miles
The warning lights- brakes, tire pressure, cruise control, engine lights and traction control all come on and won't go off. Had them reset by the mechanics but a day later they came back on while I was driving down the highway for no reason. Cruise no longer works as the lights are on. A lot of people on line seem to have this problem and I think you should make Subaru issue some kind of recall to fix this problem. Thank you.

- Madison Lake, MN, USA

problem #19

Mar 012019

Outback

  • 40,000 miles
When driving over 40mph the car seems to jerk out of the blue it even seems like one side of the vehicle lifts or tilts as if it has hydraulics makes it hard to control continuously grip the steerg wheel in order to keep control is unbearable. There is something seriously wrong after readg online&on this website obvious somethings wrong. Why R U waiting for crashes& possible deaths to raise this issue? when driving on the highway at normal highway speeds all of a sudden you feel a quick pull as if a magnet just pulled your car and it also starts to lift when driving on the highway at normal speeds. Car lifts the front right side of suspension as if it's going to roll over and at the time it drops like it's going to fold under and you're going to crash. Like it has hydraulics but only on one side. This is very scary when your driving at normal highway speeds. This makes you slow down out of nowhere and causing others around you to suddenly avoid you. This is a nightmare. Subaru needs to acknowledge there is a problem. See all the other complaints and there is a lot more online by others that don't know how to go to this website and place a formal complaint because I did not even know about it. Came across by mistake. This car is meant for driving long distances and I am afraid to do so. When your afraid to drive your own car scarred of the quick jerk and the possible rolling of your car due to the "real" actions the car is performing while driving is and should be a vehicle safety concern prior to accidents and deaths taking place. Just because the "manufacturer" says it's in specs does't mean nothg wrong plus its the manuf sayg this, not an independent company.boweing their airplane had hard time stating plane's fault. You can not put the manuf in charge of making the right choice when it comes to money.

- San Jose, CA, USA

problem #18

Mar 192019

Outback

  • 93,000 miles
Issue is ongoing for the last 6 months. Vehicle intermittently stalls when at idle and placed in gear. Hesitation when accelerating while driving (acts as if it not getting enough power.) I have taken the vehicle to 3 different dealerships and contacted Subaru of America and I am not getting anywhere. Dealerships can't duplicate the problem, so therefore can't diagnose the problem. I have video records of this issue occurring.

- Ozark, MO, USA

problem #17

Apr 102018

Outback 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 17,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Subaru Outback. While driving 50 mph, the vehicle would downshift to a lower gear without warning. The failure intermittently recurred. The vehicle was taken to capitol Subaru (located at 920 capitol expressway auto mall, san jose, ca 95136, (408) 763-4024) where diagnostic testing was completed; however, a failure code could not be found. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 17,000. Consumer stated loses power suddenly.

- San Jose, CA, USA

problem #16

Jun 172018

Outback

  • 67,000 miles
Sudden unwanted forceful acceleration (suspect auto cruise control got engaged via eyesight malfunction), collision avoidance failed to engage. Back home safely from a local grocery, pulled the car slight on the driveway, stopped with foot on the brake to open the garage, about to hit the home link, must remain stopped while garage door opens because driveway slopes downward, heard engine roar with foot still on the brake, car started throttle forcefully, got bewildered, pressed hard on the brake; it did not respond, the car hit hard on the garage and brick wall, causing extensive damages. Air bags deployed, driver was senseless, both driver and passenger hurt, car is declared total. It was very hot at about 4:15 pm, air condition had been running at full force all the while during the short 15 minute drive. The driveway has a 10 ft slab with upward slope, the car stopped with front wheels at the end of the first slab. The remaining driveway is about 30 ft on a downward slope. I keep the car totally standstill while the garage is opening. The car was at a slight angle facing slightly toward the driver side corner of the garage. The car is still on my driveway: Event data recorder and eyesight data recorder should have valuable diagnostic information. The impact was very forceful: A complete brick wall got displaced by almost 1 inch at one side and the displacement on the other side of the wall caused a two story load bearing brick column to crack on both sides. Garage structure and roof got damaged. This car is maintained in good condition and never have been in accident before. Called police, but they did not come. Let me know asap if you want diagnostic data: I am 100% sure that this is a manufacturing defect. I saw collision avoidance work in many other situation, but this time, it did not work. This is a serious public safety issue happening a lot with Subaru.

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #15

Mar 222018

Outback

  • 69,000 miles
Subaru Outback self-accelerated (unintended acceleration) on March 22, 2018 as I was attempted to park the car in a parking lot. Due to the self-acceleration the car hopped over the curb in the parking lot and ran over a bush. My foot was no where near the accelerator and even when applying the brake, I had to press extremely hard on the brake to stop the vehicle. While it self-accelerated the engine made a loud revving sound. On March 23, 2018 the car self-accelerated again with my husband driving on the open road. After this incident we had the car towed to our car dealership. Subaru has had the car since March 23 and denies any problem with the accelerator or car.

- Earlysville, VA, USA

problem #14

Aug 112016

Outback

  • 25,000 miles
Cruise control bug. If I decrease my speed by 3 or more mph in rapid succession, the cruise control resets to the original speed, I.e. the cruise control speed changes from 60 to 59 to 58 to 57 to 56 to 60. This seems like a dangerous bug since it causes unintended acceleration. I have a video that I can share for documentation.

- Shelburne, VT, USA

problem #13

Oct 062015

Outback

  • 8,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while the vehicle in the driveway, it accelerated without warning and crashed into the garage door. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact sustained head injuries, but did not require medical attention. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 8,000.

- Albuquerque, NM, USA

problem #12

Dec 022014

Outback

  • 35,700 miles
Prior to this incident, I had noticed several occasions where the engine would suddenly rev for no reason while I was driving at a slow speed or braking. This incident happened on Dec 2, 2014 at approx. 7:40am eastern time. As I was approaching the security check-in gate at my job, traveling about 10 mph, I depressed the brake to slow down and wait for the gate to open. As I was slowing down, the engine suddenly rev'd to maximum and the car accelerated and lurched forward. I was not able to stop or control the car and it crashed through the security barrier gate. No one was injured and there was no damage done to the car, but the metal arm of the gate was severely bent. I took the vehicle to my Subaru dealer several days later to be inspected and report the incident. The dealer said there was a problem with the engine control module (ECM) and updated the software. Since then, the car has run smoothly with no further acceleration problems. The ECM update also seemed to solve a problem I had experienced where the car had difficulty starting up.

- Marietta, GA, USA

problem #11

Jul 112014

Outback

  • 28,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while depressing the brakes, the engine rpms increased as the vehicle suddenly accelerated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 28,000. The VIN was not available.

- Beaverton , OH, USA

problem #10

Dec 272013

Outback 4-cyl

  • 9,000 miles
While towing a camper well within the towing capacity of the vehicle, the vehicle would not accelerate beyond 60 miles an hour. We (myself, my wife, and 6 dogs) were South of pueblo, Colorado going up that very long include towards trinidad. The vehicle's engine would not rev as if it's transmission was failing, but it would absolutely not accelerate beyond 60. We pulled over and contacted the nearest Subaru dealership (back in pueblo) and went back to pueblo and had them look it over. They couldn't find anything wrong and their test did not show any problems. They were only able to speculate that it may be a failsafe feature that prevents the engine from becoming damaged when it begins to overheat. We had driven from North of dallas to West of fort collins, with stops, without problems, but this day the temperature was 50 degrees and probably the warmest it had been our entire trip. We had previously stopped for a few hours in garden of the gods, so it had only been back on the road for an hour when this occurred. After the dealership looked at it, we hitched it back up and continued on our trip. They instructed us to just drive slower when going up hills and mountains. We experienced problems again when we got to trinidad, but drove through it since the exits are rather sharp and black ice was a concern. Once we stopped driving up inclines the vehicle drove like normal. After we stopped towing the camper the vehicle stopped having issues.

- Denton, TX, USA

problem #9

Dec 132013

Outback

  • 12,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while braking to a stop, the engine rpms increased excessively as the vehicle suddenly accelerated without warning. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure and current mileage was 12,000. The VIN was not available.

- Minneapolis, MN, USA

problem #8

Sep 032013

Outback 4-cyl

  • 3,035 miles
I stopped at a stoplight. When the light changed, I pressed the accelerator and moved forward. I released the accelerator to slow up because of traffic conditions. When I pressed the accelerator again to move forward, the engine did not rev up. It was as if the car stalled. After several pushes on the accelerator ( 8 seconds worth) the engine revved up and the car once again moved forward just as if nothing was wrong. All this time I was blocking the intersection. This has happened multiple times now. Dealer indicates no problem found.

- East Longmeadow, MA, USA

problem #7

Nov 082013

Outback 4-cyl

  • 4,600 miles
After stopping at a stop sign, I attempted to drive off, but the car did not accelerate on application of the throttle pedal. The engine remained at idle, and the car rolled slowly into the intersection. Nothing I did corrected the problem until I placed the transmission in park, turned off the engine, then re-started the car. The car then performed normally until I reached the next stop sign, where the problem repeated. In all, the problem occurred seven (7) times on this day, apparently at random. That is, at some stops the car performed normally, and at other stops, the car failed to accelerate when the throttle pedal was depressed. The service department at my Subaru dealer was unable to replicate the problem and therefore performed no repairs. Two weeks later, the problem occurred again, three (3) times in two days. This is an extremely dangerous problem, because it can leave the car in a busy intersection without the ability to move until the driver turns off the car and then re-starts it. This problem has been noted by other Subaru Outback owners in online forums, and at least one other vehicle safety complaint has been filed regarding this problem.

- Napoleon, OH, USA

problem #6

Sep 282013

Outback

  • 8,204 miles
I brought the car in for a routine repair. When I got it back it began to malfunction. It would not shift correctly. The automatic transmission was slipping. The car did not accelerate correctly and chugged. The acceleration abruptly stopped at a high speed on the freeway nearly causing a severe accident and replicated this at a low speed, and from a stop. I returned the car 3 times and the issues remain consistent. To date Subaru of America has not addressed my concerns. The car is unsafe for me and my family. Downtown oakland Subaru has yet to identify what is the cause of the malfunction. Each service department person has test driven the car and experienced the same issues.

- Oakland, CA, USA

problem #5

Jul 272013

Outback

  • 2,088 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 mph, the vehicle failed to respond upon engagement of the accelerator pedal. The engine was turned off and after being restarted, the vehicle resumed normally however, the failure recurred six times. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for diagnosis but the technician was unable to duplicate the failure. The dealer offered to replace the throttle body at no expense to the contact. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the defect. The approximate failure mileage was 2,088.

- Walkersville, MD, USA

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