2016 Subaru Crosstrek

I was driving on the highway and my hood opened and flew back into the windshield. This caused my windshield to break. It was very dangerous and scary since I was driving on the highway. I was very lucky that I did not hit anything or anyone and also that no one else hit me. The tow truck driver said that the hood latch was broken. I have never had any issues with my hood closing prior to this and had no idea it was broken. There were no warning lights and the hood appeared to be closed, it looked the same as the hood always does, not lifted up or anything. The vehicle is still being fixed so I would think it could be further inspected if needed. The damage to my car is extensive. It needs a new hood, new windshield, fenders, and roof. The hood hit so hard that it caused the above mentioned parts to be distorted and bent. The part that failed on the car is the back up hood latch to prevent this from happening if the hood does open without warning like this.

On Jan 7th, during rush-hour traffic on the highway, without any warning all of my vehicle lights began to dim. The power steering and brakes went out. I was able to steer to the side of the road. Then, all of the lights went out and the car shut off. I was unable to shift the vehicle into park, and as I was going up a hill at the time, I was forced to roll backwards slowly and engage the emergency brake. Only luck prevented a serious, perhaps fatal accident. It was also below freezing in Ohio so I had to sit in the frigid temperatures until a tow truck arrived. After being towed to two separate dealerships, the Subaru dealer believes this was caused by a faulty hybrid battery, alternator, or both. An inspection is available by request. The problem did flag multiple error codes (confirmed by the dealer) but it is very frightening that there was absolutely NO warning and I feel unsafe driving this vehicle, even after it will be repaired. Next time, myself or others, may not be so fortunate. The alternator is being recalled in 2017+ Subaru Crosstrek for this very issue, but not the 2016 (my vehicle).

I have had three occurrences with my vehicle where I discovered a dangerous situation in the manual heater and air conditioner control module connector that resulted in the module connector and the wiring harness connector both becoming scorched and melted due to excessive heat. I believe that this is probably occurring due to high electrical current at the connector. In all occurrences, the first symptoms of the problem are intermittent blower fan speed followed by the fan speed knob becoming melted into a fixed position. The first occurrence was in February 2021 and the damaged control module (part number 72311FJ500) and the pigtail connector were replaced by a trained auto body tech. The second occurrence was in August 2021 and I took the vehicle to the Subaru dealership given it was a repeat occurrence and because we were concerned it might be a problem that could impact other vehicles. The service department at Subaru kept the vehicle for 2 weeks to diagnose the problem and eventually recommended we replace the vehicle's main wiring harness as well as again replace the damaged heater and air conditioning control module. We authorized the required repairs. The issue has now occurred for a third time and I will be taking the vehicle to Subaru again. I will be asking the service department to contact the manufacturer about this safety issue. I believe the primary risk to safety the potential of a fire in the vehicle in the right circumstances due to excessive current at the connector of the module. There is a secondary but less acute risk that the heater becomes inoperable during the winter and puts occupants at risk which is the situation we are facing as we travel frequently in rural areas.

The key will not come out of the ignition when placing the car in park! We have to fiddle with the shifter to get the key to release. Contacted the dealer and Subaru of America to see if this could be fixed as a recall, unfortunately it is a service bulletin as of now and costs >$500 to fix this known problem that occurred on a vehicle with 50K miles! This is unacceptable and would like it fixed at no charge.

Ignition Key stuck in the ignition cannot be removed from ignition after parking. This problem never occurred in previous 5 years of ownership. It happens nearly every time the car is driven, and has been reported widely on the internet by Subaru owners. In many cases, owners have not been able to remove the keys at all, and have had to call for assistance. On the advice of a repair tech, we replaced our battery, which, at 5 years old, was probably due to be replaced. This has not solved the problem.