2019 SUBARU OUTBACK Electrical System Problems

The screen gets has bubbles form behind it from condensation and causes it to flash and click buttons on its own. It will interrupt maps while navigating, is very distracting, and dangerous to have this radio equipped when it is a known issue. I have almost crashed because of this.

8/15/23 stopped at light. Car ceased to drive. Put in Neutral, then Drive, car lurched forward & drove. On 8/22/23, driving 50-60 mph, car suddenly goes into nothing. Flash of light across the dashboard. Manually put into Drive and drove. Took to Reynolds Subaru in Orange, VA. [XXX] , technician, drove car w/scan tool multiple times over several days. Unable to duplicate what happened to us. The Electric system? Transmission? Fear driving car as it could repeat incidents. We live with high speed roads, numerous 10- wheel trucks, no shoulders, no room for failures. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Car has 28k miles, has required 4-5 battery replacements. Cause is parasitic power drain. Subaru dealer can not diagnose and/or fix the problem. Subaru America is no help whatsoever. Battery failure makes car inoperable, several instances have put us in significant risk.

Battery drain issue. The battery was replaced by dealer twice, and it drains down after about one month to two months. The car won't start and I need to call roadside service for a jump start several times a week. The dealer ran tests and says there is no unusual electronic drain when car is off, but didn't diagnose what the issue is--just replaced battery, and now after about 7 weeks I'm having same issue again.

The infotainment system suddenly started playing random songs, started switching from maps to music, going through stations on the radio etc..escalated to not accepting any touch commands and totally took over doing its own thing like making random phone calls, etc which I could not stop because it won’t accept touch commands. My husband thought I was in an accident because it kept calling him as I was driving on the highway and I couldn’t stop it from calling him and I also couldn’t answer it. Very dangerous as it gets loud at various times and suddenly will make a beep beep beep sound like it would if you were scrolling through stations. The service manager said this is a known issue in these cars and said it’s coming from behind the screen. He said we can try to turn it off by pushing the volume and station buttons at...

Dcm / starlinks unit has a parasitic drain on battery that requires battery change every year. Car doesn't start unexpectedly. Not great for an outdoorsy car where we'd be more likely to be outside of cell signal.

Two batteries in my Subaru suddenly started draining completely within a few days of each other. One day my husband was on a busy street and the dashboard began flashing, the lights, dImmed, and the car started making an unusual beeping sound. Our mechanic called Subaru and was told that it could be a problem with a VCM fuse. He tested the car overnight and easily discovered the VCM fuse was the problem. The part to fix the problem has been back-ordered for two months and the local Subaru dealer says it will be at least two more months before the part arrives. Subaru has acknowledged that the car is not safe to drive. Subaru customer advocacy has told us that the repair is not covered under our power train warranty. The part costs $900. Plus, we have had to rent a car for over $1000 a month. Subaru wants...

Car battery loses charge often due to parasitic DCM wire. Have been stranded often with my children despite buying new batteries. Battery, Alternator, everything tests fine. But there is an electrical issue. The radio and other electronics go on the fritz a week or two before each time the car needs a jump. it’s unreliable and unsafe.

Battery failed to start vehicle. Jumped with another battery, checked that the charging system was operating. The next morning it would not start. Changed battery with a new one slightly larger, no problems. Found out later that there are so many functions that drain the smaller battery. I did not want to be on the road and unable to restart the vehicle. Others have had the same issues, there is a class action lawsuit with a settlement. Filed the required forms and was denied because I did not have a Subaru dealer replace the battery.

There is a parasitic battery drain happening from somewhere in my Subaru Outback. I purchased a battery approximately 6 months ago because my previous one died. Today this one died. Nothing such as leaving lights on or anything else on my part precipitated this. It has not been inspected yet by the dealer. This seems to be a common thing based on research and needs to be a recall.

Battery drain. The vehicle battery will be dead after 2 days. I've needed charges over 15 times in 6 months. The battery was replaced twice and dealer said there was no parasitic drain when car is off, but offered no solution for fixing the car. I'm still having to call roadside services for a charge off and on. It's highly inconvenient and could be dangerous to not have any reliance on the battery. The car has less than 10,000 miles. I have been gypped into buying this car that isn't working properly. When will Subaru take these vehicles back or provide a solution for dealers to implement?

At roughly 57k miles, the infotainment system in my Subaru outback started flashing rapidly, thinking something was touching the top right corner of the screen. It changes the radio stations interrupts phone calls by transferring them off of the Bluetooth system, affects the navigation system by stopping the map, and eventually locks itself up and because unusable. Not only is this distracting to the driver, but it questions the integrity of all of the computer systems in the vehicle, including the Subaru EYESIGHT.

The head unit of the vehicle is experiencing delamination which is causing "phantom inputs" where the screen registers touches on without any user input. This causes constant audio sound effects to be played which causes driver distraction. The only way to resolve this is to turn off the head unit completely. The delamination also causes "bubbles" to appear on the touch screen interface which renders the backup camera near inoperable due to the video from the backup camera being obstructed; this effect is further compounded in sunny conditions since the "bubbles" exacerbate the glare. Subaru is aware of the problem and has issued a warranty for the 2018 model year vehicles as outlined in Service Bulletin 15-263-20. However, Subaru has failed to correct the problem in subsequent model years.

Power Rear lift gate does not work on a consistent basis. It will work normally for several days, then without warning, not work. Will not work with remote or interior opening mechanism. Only the manual release in the rear will unlatch the rear gate, which is quite heavy to lift and not designed to be done so in a manual fashion. Unable to duplicate issue at Subaru dealer. Obviously, this is a know issue after reviewing similar complaints here.

Battery goes dead after vehicle not driven for a few days.

MY19 Subaru Outback 3.6R. Battery died after being a vacation for about one week. Replaced with a brand new battery. About one month later went on vacation again for about 4-5 days, the battery was again completely dead. The car has an issue in which it is draining the battery when parked - this could result in unexpected failure of critical vehicle electrical systems due to operating in a low voltage state or potentially leave someone stranded. A new vehicle like this should not be draining a new car battery because it is not being ran for a 7 day period. Subaru needs to issue a recall to fix this battery draining issue.

Dcm failure at 65K

Since Oct-Nov ‘22 I’ve had 3 batteries drained; the latest June 10 ‘23. Last replacement was a new battery and a new communication unit; drained battery still occurring - chronic problem. No long term solution

Replaced battery 3 months ago due to battery dying repeatedly after vehicle would sit for a short amount of time. Old battery was less than 2 years old. Problem has persisted even with the new battery. This issue risks leaving me stranded anywhere I park the car, including in the middle of the highway if the car were to die there. Looking online this appears to be a common issue with this model and other owners have reported a parasitic drain from the circuit containing the Starlink/DCM module (I have not confirmed this myself).

Car dies unexpectedly leaves you stranded when you lease expect it. Died on 9/1/22, 9/16/22, 9/25/22, 9/26/22 - took to dealer and issued a new battery. Most recently died on 5/24/23.

I own a 2019 Subaru Outback. In the past month, the battery drained in <15min while the car was turned off and locked (happened twice during a quick lunch and a grocery run). Dick Hannah Subaru Vancouver has diagnosed a chip malfuction (the chip keeps running while car is off and drains the battery). Autozone has verified independently that the battery itself is perfectly fine. It happened again while I was out hiking this past weekend and I almost got stuck in the wilderness which can be very dangerous. AND, I couldn't start it the next morning either! What is worse, Subaru of America has no ETA of the replacement chip due to shortage. So far, Subaru of America has not approved my request for free repair, free loaner vehicle, and extended warranty, despite multiple phone calls. I am extremely upset about their level of customer service and willingness to...

Display screen for radio, navigation, status has failed and is flashing on/off. Radio, navigation and other functions are not operable. First occurred in Fall 2022, dealer examined and diagnosed in Jan 2023. Repair replacement parts are indefinitely unavailable. There is not a committed schedule to repair/replace. This appears to be a widespread problem/defect with no known schedule to deliver parts for repair. The result is a vehicle that is dangerous to drive at night with flashing lights at this display panel. I write about this to add to the field of data and information about this problem with this model vehicle. Any assistance in expediting manufacturers attention to this is appreciated

My car which is a 2019 Subaru ourback started having main computer display showing bubbles which then started randomly activating a touch and activating different menus of the car July of 2022. This pretty much renders the the main computer display useless which controls many of the car controls, through which the rear view camera is displayed and through which the phone connects for hands free calling. Because of the random touches, we can no longer pair a phone with the car as it would randomly call people due to the random activation of the touch sensors on the car. After researching this, I found out that this is called delamination and has been affecting all prior model years for which, apparently there is a nation al recall up to but not including my year car. I went to the Subaru dealer ship who informed me that up to a...

Vehicle battery goes dead for no reason. It's been replaced several times. Left stranded several times when car started went shopping, wouldn't start to go home. This has occurred more than 5 times, portable battery charger was purchased.

Starting December 2022, I've had a problem with my 2019 Subaru Outback - the battery goes dead when parked for as little as 24 hours. I have had the battery replaced twice - first by AAA in mid-December, 2022 and then by my local Subaru dealer in early February, 2023. Each time, the car seems fine for 4-6 weeks, then the problem starts again. Each time I take it to a Subaru dealer, they tell me they have found a different problem with the electrical system causing a "parasitic draw" on the battery while shut off. In February, Koeppel Subaru in Queens performed an ECM programming update at the same time they installed a new battery and told me that would fix the problem. But this past week, the problem resurfaced. I then visited Premier Subaru in Branford, CT who examined the car and they have told me I have...

Battery keeps draining when off. It has left me stranded and needing to call for help several times. The battery checks out fine and will charge, but drains overnight. There is no warnings or low battery indicator.

Vehicle would not start after turning off the motor! This has happened 3 times until it would not start at all, which left myself and young girls stranded for 2 hrs until AAA arrived! The battery is good but something is draining the battery!!! Will take to Subaru dealership to diagnose the problem!

Battery drain, if you don't drive the car everyday, car will not start due to electrical parasite. My wife works overnight at a hospital and found car's battery dead after working late shifts. Frequent needs a jump after shift. Dangerous area where she works. Dealer indicated nothing wrong with car and blamed car started for discharge. Looking onsite, many experiencing same unsafe issue. Just purchased new battery and still discharge.

Trunk popped open and will not close. Power rear gate latch control needed to be replaced. Couldn’t fully open or close trunk while driving or even after stopped

My 2019 Subaru Outback is used primarily for short-interval driving within my village. On the initial instance during the summer of 2022, the car would not start and did not have enough battery voltage to crank the engine. Lights and electrical components were non-responsive. After recharging the battery, the condition resolved. On January 2nd of 2023 the car was once again experiencing a dead battery condition. My assumption was that the battery was approaching end of life and I replaced the battery with a new one. Once again the condition resolved. On February 27th 2023 the car again experienced a dead battery condition and would not start. The battery was less than 2 months old. After recharging the battery the condition resolved. I took the battery to the place of purchase for testing, and the battery tests normal. The car is available for inspection upon request. The safety of my...

Screen of Harman Kardon stereo developed bubbling that at first only impaired visibility of the display. Visibility of the backup camera video became reduced as the bubbling progressed. Soon the unit began experiencing electrical issues like not responding when the screen was pressed or acting like it had been pressed when it had not. Trying to use Apple CarPlay will occasionally result in the entire system freezing the rebooting. Audio using Bluetooth connections will skip. I took the car to the dealership and they confirmed they have seen this issue multiple times before and the screen may be overheating and shorting out.

I own a 2019 Subaru Outback Touring. This is the second Subaru Outback I have owned. In Aug of 2022, my windshield cracked out of nowhere. The crack came up from the center and spread out across the windshield. I had it replaced at the Subaru dealership in which I bought the car. Everything seemed fine until 12/23/22, when we got some heavy rain and I get in my car only to see water steadily dripping inside via the vehicle the left A-pillar on the front drivers side. I return to the dealer where it turns out that there was a problem with the brand new factory-brand windshield that was replaced in August, and it had been slowly leaking water into my car over those 4 months, resulting in massive damage to the airbag system, electrical system, among other things. These damages came to over $10,500. The water had gathered...

Today is Monday February 20th 2023, The car (2019 Subaru ) will not start if it's not driven daily or if a door is left open for longer than 20 minutes (i.e. cleaning, loading/unloading) because the electrical system is faulty and draws too much on the battery when the car is off. We already replaced the battery and the issue continues. Subaru is aware and I hope they issue a recall soon to repair this broken electrical system. It's a serious safety hazard when your car is unreliable, for example it's frightening to be a stuck in an unfamiliar area. So far I have had the nicest people jump start the battery. But it's already caused many losses by causing me to be late to work and doctors' appointments. These are real life scenarios in which so many of us have been affected by this faulty system. Subaru, please provide...

Bought a new car battery and a battery charger because the car is often dead.

Several models of Subarus from 2017-2020 have a known parasitic drain that kills the battery frequently. My Subaru Outback (2019) battery has died four times in one year. This occurred more recently in December and the dealership replaced the battery and updated the software, saying it would fix the problem. It happened again (now in February) after I was out of town for a week. Anytime you don't drive every day, this will happen, and Subaru has admitted that there is no fix. There is a class action settlement that did nothing but pay for a couple replaced batteries, no fix, and even that is limited to lower miles and for a certain time. That doesn't begin to cover the cost of having to sell my car, buy a new one at a higher price, when a 2019 outback with low miles should have lasted me at least ten years....

I was out of the country for 4 weeks. While week 2, my daughter tried to start outback but the battery was dead. I have 2019 Subaru Outback, total mileage now is 16,400. I don't see why this car's battery die just little after 3 years. We called AAA to start the battery, few days later after driving few hours a day, again my car's battery is dead. The same goes to my remote key.

Ever since this car was new it has always dragged while starting. Like the battery was weak but, its my first subaru so figured it was the style of starter. After a couple years the battery got weaker and weaker until it died. Replaced battery and it started doing the same thing. Now, the car is 4 years old and this is our 3rd battery. The alternator charges 14.6 volts which is perfect. But, sitting overnight the battery is constantly being drained. If i put a charge on it and remove it from car it holds the charge. So, it isn't the batteries plus, we had the battery and alternator tested and those aren't the problem. The vehicle constantly drains the battery while sitting overnight. After a few days it won't start at all. Subaru says there isn't a problem. I have a sickly parent living here and he has...

The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, or while the vehicle was parked, the Infotainment system and screen made abnormal sounds with the screen flashing. The contact stated that the Navigation and Bluetooth also malfunctioned. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the failure was diagnosed as a malfunctioning audio unit that needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the repairs were not completed because the parts were on backorder. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 34,000. The contact stated that the failure mileage was actually 43,000. The issue with the display causes a distraction while driving. The dealer was contacted several times but with no remedy. The dealer only states that they are waiting for the parts but has no provided an ETA.

Has seemed to have low battery for many many months At least 5 times we have had to jump start Rear hatch was beeping and did not want to close or respond to any buttons Passenger side window would not open or close with driver side buttons Took to dealer, battery failed and they replaced it I picked it up next day and still felt slow to start like battery was drained Now dealer stated I may have to pay for further diagnostics regarding battery drain

With less than 7000 miles on the odometer, our Outback2019 radio system component started to malfunction and rotate thru channels. Sheehy Subaru of Springfield performed system update, but no change. The entire component was ordered but is now on back order. It is now almost 4 months and we don't trust other possible related components of the system (e.g., GPS) to function properly to feel safe driving this vehicle.

The battery dies after 3 days of parking inside my garage. The battery passed a test. This is the third time the issue has taken place.

This model of vehicle has persistent electrical issues resulting in the vehicle dying or being unable to start. Replacing the battery does not resolve the issues. Placing the keyfob in Faraday cages to prevent drain also does not resolve the issues. Charging the battery to full before using the vehicle temporary delays the issues but 3-10 days later the vehicle will die again. The vehicle has undergone examination by a Subaru certified maintenance dealer and they insist no issue can be found and the vehicle passes all checks. Most recently the vehicle died within a few days of getting a complete check out and passing all tests. This affects safety because a vehicle dying from electrical failure may cause an accident due to an absence of power steering, braking, etc. The vehicle may also strand motorist in compromising environmental conditions such as extreme cold, heat, etc.

Bought car end of August off lease with 40K on it from local Subaru dealer. Dealer made point of telling me car had new tires and battery which was appreciated. Have added 900 miles since then mostly local. After not driving for a week in September car would not start. Charged battery all seemed fine been driving frequently after that no issues. Now with colder weather car does not start if not driven for 2 days or more. Using multimeter was able to find circuit for DCM (what Subaru refers to as the Data Control Module) was drawing power when car should be in sleep mode. Brought to Subaru dealer today and was advised the DCM needs to be replaced. I am aware of many other people with this particular car having similar issues with no identified culprit, recommend this be looked at as possible issue specifically the StarLink system.

I would have experienced the same battery issues for the last 14 months. 12 months ago I purchased a back up charged starting battery that I use on a monthly basis. Subaru did advise of the battery warranty extension of which I took advantage of today I’ve seen the other complaints in the nature site and being from the automotive industry myself, I believe that when you look back to the DCM issues from 2016 to 2018 and the latest issues on the 2023 you’ll find a common thread it’s not just a button. One key thing is that units of measure for the tire pressure monitoring system Arbitrarily change while you were in operation from psi to kilopascals. It indicates to me that there is still some Telematic related event and the vehicle isn’t sure where it is at a given time so it sets the units and the...

I was in a parking lot pulling into a parking spot. My car sped with full power over a curb barrier and hit a parked car in front of me. The force was strong enough to push the car I hit back several inches. My airbag did not deploy. The forward obstacle collision detection did not work. My safety could have been at risk if this happened while on the road or freeway. There were no warnings that day, however a week or so earlier when I tried to drive the car it would not start (new battery installed approx 3 months ago) and all lights on the dash came on. I tried to start it a few times but after smelling gas I left it. Later that day it started with no problems. The car is up to date on services/recalls. It is scheduled for inspection with my insurance...

Problem started Aug 4, 2022. I went to start the car & the battery was dead. Jumped it, ran errands. Two days later dead battery again.Kept happening even though no lights left on when car turned off. Finally called dealership & they said battery was bad so it was replaced.3 weeks later battery went dead after car sat unused for 24 hrs. Was told car needed to be driven everyday to keep battery charged. I'm retired & don't drive everyday. Dealer then advised it was due to the control area network (CAN) system in the car & to contact Subaru of America. Apparently it doesn't go into sleep mode & drains the battery when the car isn't in use. Subaru is not being up front about this & it's dangerous.

the horn randomly gives several short beeps during vehicle operation. It seems to happen when the vehicle is stopped at red lights. This began after the dealer installed the Subaru OEM remote car starter.

The car's battery is draining fast and the car's electric system stopped working after I replaced the battery three times. The car is currently inoperable.

The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. The key fobs were inoperable. The battery warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that there was a low charge and the battery needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was contacted but no additional assistance was provided. The approximate failure mileage was 3,000.

Navigation screen is delaminating and bubbling under the touch screen. It would cause navigation touch screen to detect phantom inputs and cause radio/telephone to do random actions (ie. calling random people, cycle radio stations, map zoom in) that is very distracting to driver. Screen would be completely unresponsive to touch input or button input.