Subaru Outback electrical problems

BATTERY DRAINED WHEN VEHICLE PARKED WITHOUT ANY LIGHTS OR OTHER ELECTRIC LOAD CAUSING DEAD BATTERY. THIS HAPPENED 2X, FIRST TIME WAS ON THE 3RD DAY OF BRAND NEW CAR OWNERSHIP. 2ND TIME 6 MONTHS LATER. NO-START CONDITION LEAVES WOMEN PRIMARY DRIVER IN A VULNERABLE POSITION OF BEING STRANDED WHILE AWAY FROM HOME. APPARENTLY THERE MAY BE A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT PENDING FOR SIMILAR FAILURES TO OTHER SUBARU OWNERS. *TR

WITHIN ONE YEAR OF OWNING MY BRAND NEW 2019 SUBARU OUTBACK I HAVE HAD TO JUMPSTART IT SEVERAL TIMES. AFTER TAKING IT TO THE DEALER THEY ARE TELLING ME THERE IS PROBLEMS WITH THESE BATTERIES THAT THEY HAVE A BAD CELL IN THEM. SO THEY SAID THEY WILL GET ME A NEWER AND BETTER BATTERY, WELL ALMOST ONE MONTH LATER I NOTICED MY CAR'S BATTERY STARTED TO ACT VERY VERY WEAK AND I BELIEVE WITHIN A DAY OR TWO I WILL NEED TO HAVE A JUMPED AGAIN TO GET IT RUNNING WITHIN ONE YEAR OF OWNING MY BRAND NEW 2019 SUBARU OUTBACK I HAVE HAD TO JUMPSTART IT SEVERAL TIMES AFTER TAKING IT TO THE DEALER THEY ARE TELLING ME THERE IS PROBLEMS WITH THESE BATTERIES THAT THEY HAVE A BAD SELLING THEM SO THEY SAID THEY WILL GET ME A NEWER AND BETTER BATTERY WELL ALMOST ONE MONTH LATER I NOTICED MY CAR'S BATTERY STARTED TO ACT VERY VERY WEAK AND I BELIEVE WITHIN A DAY OR TWO I WILL NEED TO HAVE A JUMPED AGAIN TO GET IT RUNNING. I BOUGHT MY CAR BRAND NEW WITH 2 MILES ON IT AND I DON'T DRIVE IT A WHOLE LOT I AM NOW AT 3200 MILES AND I'M HAVING BATTERY ISSUES. THE CAR JUST TURNED ONE YEAR OLD IN MAY OF 2020. THIS CAR SPENDS MOST OF THE WEEK IN A GARAGE AND IT IS REALLY ONLY DRIVEN ON THE WEEKENDS BUT I SHOULD NOT HAVE TO HAVE IT JUMPED FOR ONLY SITTING A FEW DAYS IN THE GARAGE. *TR

CAR WILL NOT RESTART AFTER BEING TURNED OFF. HAPPENS RANDOMLY. AFTER THE CAR SITS FOR A WHILE (HOUR OR MORE) THE CAR RESTARTS NORMALLY. IT ACTS LIKE A DEAD BATTERY, BUT ONLY SOMETIMES. THE TURN OFF PERIOD COULD BE AS BRIEF AS 2 MINUTES. I PURCHASED THE CAR AS A CERTIFIED PRE-OWNED FROM A DEALERSHIP IN BOISE LARRY H MILLER SUBARU AND ONLY HAD THE CAR FOR 4 DAYS BEFORE THIS HAPPENED. IT'S NOW AT THE DEALER. CAR HAS 12,000 MILES ON IT WHEN THIS HAPPENED. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 SUBARU OUTBACK. THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO RESTART THE VEHICLE. AAA WAS CONTACTED AND THE VEHICLE WAS JUMP STARTED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE RECURRED 4 TIMES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO COMPETITION SUBARU OF SMITHTOWN LOCATED AT 601 MIDDLE COUNTRY RD, ST JAMES, NY 11780 WHERE THE BATTERY WAS REPLACED. THE FAILURE RECURRED AND THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE SAME DEALER AND THE BATTERY WAS REPLACED. THE FAILURE RECURRED AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED OF AN UNKNOWN VOLUNTARY MANUFACTURER RECALL TO REPLACE THE EXHAUST AND CATALYTIC CONVERTER HOWEVER, THE PART WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE CONTACT WAS PROVIDED A LOANER VEHICLE. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED A WEEK LATER TO RETURN THE LOANER AND RETRIEVE HIS VEHICLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 13,270.

CAR WOULD NOT START, CLICKING NOISES CAME FROM THE FUSE PANEL LOCATED INSIDE VEHICLE TO THE LEFT OF THE STEERING WHEEL WHICH WE NEVER HAD HEARD BEFORE, NO PRIOR INDICATION OF LOW VOLTAGE OR BATTERY DISCHARGE. EVENTUALLY RED BATTERY ICON DISPLAYED BRIEFLY ON INSTRUMENT PANEL. UNABLE TO START, HAD TO GET A TOW, JUMP UNSUCCESSFUL.FORTUNATELY CAR WASPARKED AT HOME IN THE GARAGE. LIGHTS WERE NOT LEFT ON NOR WERE DOORS OR LIFTGATE AJAR.

WITH ONLY 170 MILES ON THE ODOMETER, I WENT TO START MY OUTBACK AND IT WOULD NOT START. HAD ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE COME AND JUMP THE CAR, WHICH RESULTED IN THE CAR STARTING. I THEN PARKED IT IN MY GARAGE OVERNIGHT. WHEN I WENT TO START IT IN THE MORNING, THE BATTERY WAS COMPLETELY DEAD AND I COULD NOT EVEN UNLOCK THE DOORS WITH THE REMOTE. I DRINK 10 MILES ROUND TRIP ON AN AVERAGE DAY TO/FROM WORK AND HAD THE CAR FOR A TOTAL OF 4 DAYS BEFORE THIS HAPPENED.

BATTERY COMPLETELY DISCHARGED AFTER SEVERAL DAYS OF NOT USING VEHICLE, THIS HAPPENED ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS DURING FIRST YEAR OF OWNERSHIP. INITIALLY WE THOUGHT IT WAS RELATED TO LEAVING THE KEY IN OR NEAR THE VEHICLE, OR THE AUTO CLOSE BACK HATCH NOT COMPLETELY CLOSING DUE TO MAT OBSTRUCTION. AFTER BEING STRANDED SEVERAL TIMES AND ALMOST MISSING A FLIGHT WE PURCHASED A BATTERY STARTER. IT WAS IRONIC AND A LITTLE HUMBLING TO HAVE TO CARRY A BATTERY STARTER AROUND WITH YOU IN A BRAND NEW CAR SO YOU WOULDN'T GET STRANDED SOMEWHERE - ESPECIALLY A VEHICLE MARKETED TO ADVENTUROUS FOLKS WHO PARK AT REMOTE TRAILHEADS. I EVENTUALLY PURCHASED A NEW HIGHER AMP BATTERY WHICH HAS LARGER MITIGATED THE ISSUE, BUT I STILL PERIODICALLY CHARGE THE NEW BATTERY AS ADDITIONAL INSURANCE. I MEASURED A PARASITIC DISCHARGE RATE OF ~114 MA WHICH IS ABOVE BASELINE OF 50 MA CITED BY SOME, BUT BELOW 150 MA THRESHOLD MENTIONED BY OTHERS. SUBARU (BOTH DEALERSHIP AND CUSTOMER SERVICE) WERE MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE BUT DIDN'T OFFER TO DIAGNOSE OR REMEDY, ATTRIBUTING THE ISSUE TO NOT DRIVING THE VEHICLE OFTEN ENOUGH IN COMBINATION WITH SUGGESTION WE PURCHASE A BETTER BATTERY GIVEN OUR DRIVING HABITS. SO WE HAVE A VEHICLE WITH A RELATIVELY HIGH PARASITIC DRAIN RATE THAT COMES WITH A UNDER SIZED BATTERY, LEAVING THE CUSTOMER TO WONDER WHAT IS GOING ON AND CREATING POTENTIAL SAFETY ISSUES IN TERMS OF NON-STARTING VEHICLE. *TR

BATTERY RUNS OUT FOR NO APPARENT REASON, ESPECIALLY WHEN NOT DRIVEN FAR OR FREQUENTLY. FIRST BATTERY REPLACED BY DEALERSHIP BEFORE 2 YEARS, AFTER 3 INCIDENTS. SECOND BATTERY JUST BEGAN THE SAME PROBLEMS, IT IS ONLY 2 YEARS OLD. POSSIBLE THAT PROBLEMS HAVE BEEN MINIMAL BECAUSE PRE-COVID THE CAR WAS MOSTLY DRIVEN ON HIGHWAY, ALLOWING ALTERNATOR TO RE-CHARGE THE BATTERY NEARLY DAILY. BUT IF THE CAR SITS FOR 4 DAYS IT CAN RUN OUT OF BATTERY. THIS CAUSED A MISSED SURGERY APPOINTMENT. *TR