2010 SUBARU OUTBACK Electrical System Problems

The contact owns a 2010 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while coming to a complete stop, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. Additionally, the vehicle would make abnormal sounds and the gear shift indicator light would disappear from the instrument cluster. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the dealer could not duplicate the failure. The vehicle was taken to four independent mechanics. The last mechanic diagnosed that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V297000 (Electrical System) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The vehicle was not repaired and remained with the independent mechanic. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

Total engine failure at just 75k miles. Barely driven, maintenance schedule always kept up to date, out of nowhere engine stopped and I was told the oil was completely empty. They were unable to resolve by adding oil. Also, transmission light has been on for 3+ years. Have been told by every repair shop who has checked this that it’s just a glitch in the electrical system and the transmission is fine. A few weeks prior to engine failure, the car began to have trouble accelerating and made a sort of “race car” sound. Barely could go past 40 mph without slamming on gas. Finally, doors have randomly decided to stop locking and unlocking while using key fob. Batteries have been replaced. Some doors work, some do not (namely, the driver side door). Other misc electrical issues like USB failure.

MULTIPLE TIMES OVER THE PAST 6 YEARS I WILL BE DRIVING AND IF USING MY CRUISE IT STOPS WORKING AND I HAVE FLASHING LIGHTS , BRAKE AND CRUISE LIGHT FLASHES ON AND OFF, CHECK ENGINE AND TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT STAY ON. THESE LIGHTS STAY ON FROM 1 DAY TO ALMOST 2 WEEKS BEFORE THEY GO OUT. I HAVE HAD THEM CHECKED MANY TIMES BY SUBARU DEALER AND OTHER MECHANIC SHOPS WITH NO RESOLUTION EXCEPT TO CLEAR THE CODES

WHILE DRIVING ALL THE WARNING LIGHTS ON THE DASH LIT UP. BRAKE, SKID CONTROL, CRUISE CONTROL AND CHECK ENGINE. THIS HAPPENED DURING THE SUMMER AND I STOPPED AT A REPAIR SHOP AND THEY RESET THE COMPUTER AND IT WORKED FINE UNTIL TODAY. I GOOGLED THIS PROBLEM AND SEEMS MANY OTHER SUBARU OWNERS ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM. SEEMS DEALERS HAVE MANY EXPENSIVE REPAIRS BUT EVEN AFTER REPAIRS, OWNERS ARE STILL HAVING THE SAME PROBLEMS. I JUST RETURNED MY CARE TWICE FOR A RECALL ON THE AIRBAGS. THIS SEEMS TO BE A REOCCURRING PROBLEM WITH SUBARUS.

DROVE MY CAR A FEW MILES AND THEN STOPPED AT A STOP LIGHT ON A 4 LANE ROAD IN THE CITY. WHEN THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN I STEPPED ON THE THROTTLE AND GOT NO RESPONSE. PUT THE TRANSMISSION IN PARK AND BACK INTO DRIVE AND STILL NOTHING. TURNED THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON AND ENGINE RESPONDED TO THROTTLE.

CRUISE CONTROL, BRAKE, CHECK ENGINE AND VEHICLE DYNAMIC CONTROL LIGHTS ALL COME ON WHILE OPERATING THE VEHICLE.

WHILE DRIVING THE FOLLOWING WARNING LIGHTS HAVE COME ON: BRAKE, VEHICLE DYNAMICS CONTROL, AND AT OIL TEMP. IT HAS HAPPENED TWICE NOW AND LIGHTS GO AWAY ONCE CAR IS TURNED OFF AND BACK ON AGAIN.

UPON STARTING CAR THE CENTER CONSOLE DIDN'T TURN ON - THIS INCLUDED RADIO/CD PLAYER, AC, HEATER, MPG, CLOCK, AND CHARGING STATION/USB, STEERING WHEEL ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS. SEEMS TO BE A FAULTY ELECTRICAL SHORT

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 SUBARU OUTBACK. WHEN THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO DISENGAGE THE PARKING BRAKE, THE CHECK ENGINE, ABS, TRACTION CONTROL, PARKING BRAKE, AND CRUISE CONTROL WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO LANDERS MCLARTY SUBARU (LOCATED AT 5790 UNIVERSITY DR NW, HUNTSVILLE, AL 35816, (256) 382-2425) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE PARKING BRAKE FAILED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED DUE TO THE REPAIR FEES. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND PROVIDED CASE NUMBER: 1-38208244231. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 150,000.

DASHBOARD WARNING LIGHTS GOING OFF. STARTS AS SOON AS THE VEHICLE TURNS ON. VERY RARELY DOES IT TURN OF. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT IS FLASHING, ANTI-SKID LIGHTS FLASHING, LOW TIRE PRESSURE LIGHTS FLASHING, CRUISE CONTROL LIGHTS FLASHING. HAVE TRIED MULTIPLE FIXES, BUT NOTHING WORKS. THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR OVER 1 YEAR.

MY HUSBAND TOOK IN MY SUBARU OUTBACK FOR RECALL. IT WAS VDC. FOLLOWING THE FIX FREQUENTLY THE OIL LIGHT WILL COME ON. ALSO THE BRAKE LIGHT WILL COME ON. ALSO THE TRACTION LIGHT WILL COME ON. I HAVE HAD MY CAR IN NUMEROUS TIMES AND THEY CAN'T FIX IT. THEY WERE ESPECIALLY NICE WHEN MY HUSBAND CAME IN. MY HUSBAND DIED IN APRIL AND I SEEM TO GET A RUN AROUND. THEY SAY THEY DON'T HAVE RENTALS FOR ME AND THAT THEY ARE LOSING MONEY BY GIVING ME A LOANER. THE LIGHTS COME ON WHEN I AM DRIVING AND IT CAN BE ON THE HIGHWAY, CITY STREETS, AND I AM NOT TURNING AT THE TIME. SOME TIMES THE BLINKER SOUND COMES ON WHEN I AM SITTING WITH THE ENGINE ON. IT IS REALLY FAST AND LOUD.

MY HEADLIGHTS BOTH LOW BEAM AND HIGH GO OUT ON A MONTHLY BASIS. I HAVE A 2 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER AND LIVE IN THE MOUNTAINS OF LAKE TAHOE. THIS IS A NUISANCE AS WELL AS A CONSIDERABLE SAFETY HAZARD AND THE DEALERSHIP SEEMS TO THINK THERE IS NO ISSUE OTHER THAN CONTINUAL BAD BULBS. I AM CONSIDERING FILING A LAW SUIT AGAINST SUBA [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).' *PM

IN MARCH 2013 AN AUTHORIZED SUBARU SERVICE DEPARTMENT NOTED THERE WAS A RECALL (49 CFR PART 573.6) FOR PUDDLE LIGHTS ON MY CAR AND ORDERED THE PARTS. THIS IS NOTED IN MY FILE AT THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT. THEY WERE GOING TO CALL ME WHEN THE PARTS CAME IN. THAT DID NOT HAPPEN. NOW MY PUDDLE LIGHTS HAVE FAILED AND THE SHORT MAKES IT SO MANY MORE FEATURES IN MY CAR DO NOT WORK (INTERIOR LIGHTS, GAUGES AND KEY FOB (CURRENTLY USE THE SAME FUSE). FOR SOME REASON MY VIN DOES NOT SHOW ON THE RECALL LOOK UP, BUT IT FITS THE VIN RANGE AS WELL AS MAKE, MODEL AND YEAR. IS IT POSSIBLE THAT SUBARU CAN SKIRT THE RECALL, IF THE PUDDLE LIGHTS WERE INSTALLED AT THE DEALERSHIP AT TIME OF PURCHASE AND NOT AT THE FACTORY (SAME PART, AUTHORIZED SERVICE DEPARTMENT, NEW CAR)? THIS APPEARS TO BE THE CASE.TO...

SOFTWARE UPDATE REQUIRED THAT IS NOT COVER BY RECALL. IF NOT UPDATED, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, BRAKE LIGHT, TRACTION CONTROL, AND CRUSE LIGHT BLINK.

PADDLE SHIFTERS ON STEERING WHEEL ARE NOT WORKING. WHEN DOWNSHIFT IS APPLIED WITH PADDLE, NOTHING HAPPENS OR VEHICLE UPSHIFTS (VEHICLE IN MOTION.) SPORADIC LOSS OF RADIO, HORN, COMPASS AND OTHER ELECTRICAL FUNCTIONS WHEN STARTING CAR AND CONTINUING WHILE DRIVING. REFER TO NHTSA CAMPAIGN # 10V283000 DATED 6/24/2010. MFR CAMPAIGN WVR-28.

TOOK 2010 SUBARU OUTBACK IN FOR OIL CHANGE AND TIRE ROTATION AND WAS TOLD LEFT BRAKE LIGHT WAS OUT AND LEFT FRONT MARKER LIGHT BULB WAS OUT. THIS IS THE ?? TIME LIGHTS HAVE GONE OUT WITH THIS VEHICLE.

CENTER CONSOLE COMPLETELY SHUTS DOWN. ONGOING- STILL AS OF 6/15/15 REPEATED SERVICING AND CONTACTS WITH DEALER AND SUBARU NATIONAL HAVE FAILED TO RESOLVE PROBLEM CONCERNED WHETHER OTHER PROBLEMS WILL OCCUR

I RECENTLY PURCHASED THIS CAR USED AND NOTICED THE STEERING WHEEL RADIO CONTROLS DID NOT WORK. AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH I DISCOVERED THERE WAS ALREADY A RECALL ON THIS CAR AND THIS CAR HAS ALREADY HAD THE RECALL WORK PERFORMED ON IT IN DECEMBER OF 2010. THE AFFECTED PART IS THE STEERING WHEEL ROLL CONNECTOR. THIS PART ALSO ALLOWS FOR THE CONTACT OF OTHER ELECTRICAL SIGNALS FROM THE AIRBAG, CRUISE CONTROL AND PADDLE SHIFTERS TO THE CAR'S COMPUTER. I CALLED SUBARU AND THEY SAID THE RECALL WORK WAS DONE. I PURCHASED THE PART FROM THE SUBARU DEALER AND INSTALLED IT PER THE SERVICE MANUAL INSTRUCTIONS. UPON INSTALLATION OF THE ROLL CONNECTOR AND COMPLETION OF THE TOTAL REPAIR THE STEERING WHEEL RADIO CONTROLS FUNCTIONED AS THEY WERE INTENDED. I THINK THIS IS A CONCERN BECAUSE SUBARU HAS REPLACED A KNOWN DEFECTIVE PART WITH ONE THAT AFTER A LITTLE OVER 4.5 YEARS...

THE OUTSIDE BULBS CONSTANTLY BURN OUT, IT CAN BE A HEADLIGHT, (HIGH BEAM, LOW BEAM) LICENSE PLATE LIGHT, BRAKE LITE, RUNNING LIGHTS....THE INSIDE LIGHTS HAVE BEEN OK THIS BULB ISSUE STARTED AT 27,000 MILES AND HAS BEEN A CONSTANT PROBLEM SINCE. OUT OF 24 SERVICE ORDERS, NINE OF THOSE ORDERS HAVE NEEDED TO HAVE ONE OR MORE BULBS REPLACED. I LIVE IN THE FOOTHILLS OF CALAVERAS COUNTY, CALIFORNIA AND THE EXCUSE THE DEALERSHIP GIVES ME IS THAT WE HAVE ROUGH ROADS IN THESE HILLS. WELL, I SAY, WHAT A LINE OF POOP, I DRIVE A SUBARU, IT'S MADE FOR OUR AREA. EITHER I HAVE AN ELECTRICAL PROBLEM THAT OBVIOUSLY STARTED WHEN THE CAR WAS UNDER WARRANTY OR THAT THE BULBS THAT ARE BEING USED ARE TOTALLY OF BAD QUALITY. *TR

HEADLIGHT WENT OUT AFTER REPLACEMENT A YEAR AND 3WKS AGO. THIS IS THE 3RD HEADLIGHT REPLACEMENT ON A 2010 VEHICLE SINCE PURCHASE 3YRS AGO AT 29,500MI AS A CERTIFIED USED SUBARU FROM THE DEALER. *TR

ON APPROXIMATELY 04/13/2014 APPROXIMATELY AT 6:00 PM ET, MY SUBURU OUTBACK 2010 RAPIDLY ACCELERATED WHEN MY FOOT WAS CENTERED ON THE BRAKE PETAL AND I MOVED THE GEAR FROM NEUTRAL TO DRIVE. THE VEHICLE LURCHED FORWARD, ENGINE HIGHLY REVVED. I PUSHED HARD AS POSSIBLE ON THE BRAKE AND SHOVED THE GEAR BACK INTO NEUTRAL. THE ENGINE WAS RACING AND I SWITCHED OFF THE POWER. I POWERED BACK UP AND THE TEMPERATURE GAUGE, GAS MILEAGE CALCULATOR, ETC. WAS OUT. THE AC/HEAT TEMPERATURE AND CONTROL SCREEN WAS OUT. THE FAN CONTROL ONLY WOULD WORK AND PUT OUT EXTREME HEAT. THE OUTSIDE MIRROR MOTORS WOULD NOT WORK. FOR THE NEXT 30 MINUTES ON THE WAY HOME I STOPPED SEVERAL TIMES AND EXPERIENCED THE SAME ELECTRICAL CONDITIONS UPON RESTART. ON APRIL 14, 2014, ALL SYSTEMS WERE NORMAL WHEN I STARTED THE ENGINE. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER WAS TOLD THEY WOULD REPLACE THE...

HEADLIGHTS BURN OUT IN TANDEM. THE FIRST OCCURRENCE WAS IN 2012. IT HAPPENED AGAIN ALMOST EXACTLY ONE YEAR LATER. HEADLIGHTS SHOULDN'T BURN OUT AFTER LESS THAN ONE YEAR OF REGULAR USE. THERE ARE FEW MILES ON THIS VEHICLE AND IT DOES NOT HAVE EXCESSIVE USE (EITHER NIGHT DRIVING OR LEAVING THE HEADLIGHTS ON DURING REGULAR USE). MY MECHANIC FEELS THIS IS A SIGN OF A LARGER ISSUE AND IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S FAIRLY WIDESPREAD. MY MECHANIC ALSO VERIFIED WITH A SUBARU MECHANIC THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BULBS SUPPLIED BY HIS SHOP AND A SUBARU DEALERSHIP. THEY ARE BOTH PHILLIPS BULBS. *TR

LOW-BEAM HEADLIGHTS ARE FAILING EVERY 6 MONTHS. THIS IS NOT NORMAL AND IS A SAFETY ISSUE. *TR

FOLLOWUP TO NHTSA ID NUMBER: 10525592 THE EFFECTED LOT NUMBER IS 0423SD (YEAR 2010, APRIL 23, LOCATION SD) THIS IS DIFFERENT FROM THE ORIGINAL EFFECTED LOCATION OF 9X13A OR EARLIER (OCT 13, 2009, LOCATION A AND EARLIER). EXHIBITS THE SAME SYMPTOMS. ORIGINAL COMPLAINT: VEHICLE PADDLE SHIFTER FUNCTION, CRUISE CONTROL, HORN CONTROL ARE INTERMITTENT AND VOL UP AND MUTE RADIO FUNCTIONS DO NOT WORK ON THE STEERING COLUMN. THIS IS VERY SIMILAR TO NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER 10V283000. I WILL HAVE THE DEALER PROVIDE THE STEERING ROLL CONNECTOR LOT NUMBER TO DETERMINE IF MY VIN HAS AN OLDER STEERING COLUMN ON TUES. MY VIN IS OUTSIDE OF THE EFFECTED RANGE OF A*310001 TO A*377827. *TR

WE PURCHASED OUR 2010 SUBARU OUTBACK IN DECEMBER 2009. BY SPRING OF 2010 I HAVE NOTICED THAT AT RANDOM TIMES I WILL TURN THE CAR ON AND MY INTERIOR LIGHTS WILL NOT WORK, MY HEATING/AC WILL BE BLASTING HOT AIR AT ME FROM THE DASH VENTS WHEN IT IS IN THE OFF POSITION, RADIO WILL NOT TURN ON AND CAN NOT SEE MY MILEAGE DISPLAY. ALSO AT RANDOM TIMES MY GAUGES WILL NOT REGISTER. I HAVE TAKEN IT SEVERAL TIMES TO THE DEALERSHIP. EACH TIME THEY HAVE INFORMED ME THAT NOTHING IS WRONG WITH IT, THEY CAN NOT RECREATE IT AND TO NEXT TIME DRIVE IT THERE WHEN IT DOES IT SO THEY CAN SEE IT IN ACTION. EACH TIME IF I SHUT OFF THE CAR AND TURN IT BACK ON IT GOES BACK TO NORMAL. I HAVE ALSO HAD INSTANCES WHERE I HAVE FELT LIKE I WAS GOING TO...

I BOUGHT MY OUTBACK IN MARCH 2010. I NOTICED MY DASH LIGHTS FLICKERING EARLY IN MY OWNERSHIP, BUT I THOUGHT THEY FLICKERED BECAUSE MAYBE I WENT INTO A SHADOW AND A SENSOR CAUSED THEM TO GO OFF AND ON. THE FEELING THE CAR IS GOING TO STALL HAS HAPPENED BEFORE, BUT IT WAS AND WOULD ONLY HAPPEN EVERY NOW AND AGAIN. ON A RECENT TRIP, JANUARY 8, 2012, IT DID IT EVERY TIME I SLOWED DOWN FOR 4 OR 5 TRAFFIC LIGHTS . THAT REALLY GOT MY ATTENTION. I THOUGHT MAYBE MY BRAKES WERE CATCHING SO I TOOK IT INTO MY DEALER ON JANUARY 12, 2010. THEY TOLD ME THE BRAKES WERE FINE. AFTER I THOUGHT ABOUT IT, I DECIDED THE "CATCHING FEELING" ACTUALLY FELT MORE LIKE L HAD NOT DEPRESSED A CLUTCH WHEN SLOWING DOWN AND THE CAR WAS GOING TO STALL. THE ONLY PROBLEM WITH THAT THEORY IS...

BOUGHT NEW, MAY 2010. THE VEHICLE STALLED AND ALL OF THE LIGHTS ON THE DASHBOARD ILLUMINATED FLASHING- BRAKE LIGHT, CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, CRUISE, OIL LIGHT, ETC. UPON RESTART THE VEHICLE OPERATED AS NORMAL ONLY ALL THE LIGHTS ON THE DASHBOARD WERE STILL ILLUMINATED AND FLASHING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER, MY AUTO IMPORTS IN MUSKEGON MI, WHERE THEY WERE UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THIS FAILURE HAS OCCURRED APPROXIMATELY SIX TIMES IN THE PAST. THE AUTHORIZED DEALER WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. IT IS GOING BACK IN TOMORROW AFTER THE FLASHING DASHBOARD LIGHTS HAVE BEEN ON FOR 6 DAYS. THE STALLING HAPPENS MORE OFTEN WHEN ACCELERATING TO ACCOMMODATE A TURN OR START UP FROM A STOP SIGN/SIGNAL. *TR

SUDDEN ACCELERATION DISABLING THE CRUISE CONTROL TO SLOW DOWN AND THEN HITTING THE RESUME BUTTON CAUSED THE CAR TO SURGE . THE RPM INCREASED FROM 2000 TO 6000 RPM. THIS OCCURS WHENEVER THE SET SPEED IS 20MPH GREATER THAN THE CURRENT SPEED. THE DEALER COULD NOT CORRECT THIS, CLAIMING THAT THE FULL ACCELERATION IS BY DESIGN. WIDE OPEN THROTTLE IS NOT A GOOD PRACTICE SINCE IT MAKES THE CAR HARD TO CONTROL. WHAT BELONGS ON A RACE TRACK NOT ON A HIGHWAY. *TR

VEHICLE HAS REPEATEDLY STALLED DURING DECELERATION ONCE CLUTCH IS DEPRESSED OR TAKEN OUT OF GEAR. OTHER TIMES IT WILL REV DOWN TO ABOUT 400 RPM AND THEN CATCH ITSELF PRIOR TO STALLING, BUT MOMENTARILY REMOVING ALL POWER ASSISTS. HAS BEEN TO DEALER ONCE, PROBLEM WAS DUPLICATED AND ECM WAS REPROGRAMMED, PROBLEM HAS BEEN BETTER SINCE, BUT NOT RESOLVED. *TR

5 MONTHS AFTER THE CAR WAS PURCHASED NEW I STARTED USING THE AIR CONDITIONER. WITHIN THE FIRST WEEK AS I WAS SLOWING MAKE A RIGHT TURN INTO A PARKING LOT FROM THE STREET I ENGAGED THE CLUTCH TO SHIFT FROM 3RD GEAR TO SECOND AND THE CAR DIED AND I HAD NO POWER STEERING OR POWER BRAKES. I DIDN'T USE THE AIR CONDITIONER ALL THE TIME. TWO TIMES THE FOLLOWING WEEK THE SAME THING OCCURRED AGAIN, BOTH TIMES SLOWING DOWN AND ENGAGING THE CLUTCH AND DOWN SHIFTING. I TOOK THE VEHICLE IN TO HAVE IT LOOKED AT ON 6/2/10 AND THEY TESTED ALL THE SENSORS AND CHECKED IT ON THEIR COMPUTER AND THEY FOUND NO PROBLEMS AND ASKED THAT I KEEP A LOG OF EACH TIME IT HAPPENS AND IF I NOTICE ANY PATTERNS. I NOTICED THAT THE MAJORITY OF TIMES AS I WOULD ENGAGE THE CLUTCH TO DOWN SHIFT...