NHTSA Complaint #10893220 — 2015 SUBARU LEGACY

IN JANUARY OF 2015, I PURCHASED A NEW 2015 SUBARU LEGACY WITH THE LATEST SAFETY FEATURES AND EQUIPMENT. WITHIN 3 MONTHS OF PURCHASE OF THE LEGACY BEGINNING IN APRIL OF 2015 THE RADIO/NAVIGATION/DRIVER ASSISTANCE DISPLAY CONSOLE BEGAN TO LOCK UP AND BECOME NON-OPERABLE AFTER ABOUT 15 MINUTES OF OPERATION. THE DEALER (MATT SLAPP SUBARU OF NEWARK, DELAWARE) HAD DIFFICULTY DIAGNOSING THE PROBLEM AND CALLED IN THE SUBARU REGIONAL TECHNICIAN TO TRY TO RECOMMEND A FIX. HE RECOMMENDED A COMPLETE REPLACEMENT OF THE CENTER CONSOLE RADIO AND DISPLAY. THIS ALL TOOK SEVERAL MONTHS. WHEN THE REPLACEMENT UNIT CAME IN, WE BROUGHT THE CAR IN FOR THE REPAIRS SHORTLY AFTER THE NEW RADIO/DISPLAY CONSOLE HAD BEEN INSTALLED, THE SAME PROBLEM WE HAD BEFORE WAS EVIDENT. IN ADDITION, WE WERE UNABLE TO ACCESS THE MAP AND NAVIGATIONAL FUNCTION AT ALL WITH THE NEW UNIT. AT ABOUT THE SAME TIME AS WE WERE DISCOVERING THIS, THE DEALER CALLED TO TELL US THAT THE COMPUTERIZED INVENTORY ACCOUNTING SYSTEM HAD FLAGGED THE MISMATCH BETWEEN OUR MODEL AND THE RADIO/NAVIGATION CONSOLE THAT HAD BEEN INSTALLED IN MY SUBARU. WE RETURNED THE CAR TO THE DEALER AGAIN AND FOR THE SECOND TIME A NEW AND CORRECT MODEL RADIO/NAVIGATION CONSOLE WAS INSTALLED. WE NOW HAD ACCESS TO THE NAVIGATION SYSTEM SCREEN AND MAPS AGAIN GOING INTO THE FALL OF 2015 AND FOR THE REST OF THE WINTER EVERYTHING SEEMED TO BE WORKING FINE. BUT DURING A WARM SPELL IN APRIL OF 2016 THE PROBLEM CROPPED UP AGAIN AND I BEGAN TO MAINTAIN A LOG (ATTACHED) OF THE OCCURRENCES WHICH BECAME MORE AND MORE FREQUENT AS WE MOVED INTO SUMMER DURING THE MONTH OF JULY THE SYSTEM LOCKED UP ON THE RIDE HOME AT THE END OF THE DAY ON ALMOST EVERY SUNNY, WARM DAY. SINCE IT DOESN'T HAPPEN UNTIL I'M ON MY WAY AND TRAVELING ON HIGH SPEED, LIMITED ACCESS HIGHWAYS FOR 90% OF MY COMMUTE WHEN IT'S DIFFICULT TO FIND A SAFE PLACE TO PULL OFF THE ROAD,