Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
Please take your complaints about your 2011 Outback and file a formal complaint with the National Highway and Transportation Safety Commission. If they see a trend they will open an investigation. Please pass on to everyone you know that's having a problem with the transmission and brakes like we are right now. Our dealership and Subaru just shafted us and said they won't replace anything because the car drives 'normal' for them. Something is wrong with these vehicles.
They gave us another 2011. It's much better but still jerks from a rolling stop when you go to move forward again.
Where is the best place to file a complaint?
Peter from Mass.
Please mention any other problems you may be having because as you can see, there are many, especially with the transmission. Best luck to all of us is all we can say.
Any insight on CVT vs the 5 speed auto in the 3.6?
Driving 2001 S-10 crew 4x4 and love it. 180500 miles
I'm going to be selling my Acura TL and need a car for dogs and grandkids. Have no idea what to even look at since nothing that I can afford has the configuration of the Outback.
Know this isn't the forum for it, but any suggestions would be appreciated.
Dealer did not provide me with data I requested.
Subaru stone walled.
If your brakes have failed at all or you have squishy non-responsive, slow brakes on your 2011 let NHTSA know.
I haven't driven my car since November 2011 when the brakes failed. When I bought this new outback I didn't expect to get an undriveable, unsafe car and an ongoing hassle.
I WILL NEVER EVER BUY A SUBARU AGAIN.
After having the service bulletin applied to my 3.6, the jerking had stopped UNTIL last week. Again, the dealer has to feel it else you get nowhere. I was told 2 days ago at the dealer that the service bulletin cannot be applied more than once and that it has to be another issue even though it is doing the exact same thing it did before. We are very unhappy with our choice to purchase a Subaru.
So here I am over a year into the lease and I have only 11,000 miles on the car. I don't drive much anymore, my friends hate riding in the car because it's extremely uncomfortable and you almost get whiplash when the transmission does engage again. The fact that any modern automaker could produce such a crap product and overlook this enormous issue is amazing to me.
I brought the car into the dealership recently and printed off the service bulletins I found on other forums ahead of time. They dismissed the issue, refused to look at what I had found online, and told me that it's a NORMAL problem. They stated there are no codes in the TCM or ECU and that everything is fine. They did not do the TCM re-flash that others have said were successful and they gave me a free car wash and sent me on my way. The day prior to the appointment with the dealership, I called SOA and filed a formal complaint. The dealership stated that SOA had followed up with them the day of my appointment and that my “file” was now heavily documented regarding the issue.
So now I have a little less than 2 years left on a lease for a car that I absolutely hate, a well-documented file, and a car that while nice to sit in treats you like you’re riding a bucking bronco at times. Driving this car is the most unpleasant experience I’ve ever had with a vehicle. For anyone out there wanting to get into any of the Subaru products with this 5 speed automatic transmission I have one recommendation run! Run far away! For a low to mid-$30,000 car, you can find a much higher quality product elsewhere that won’t leave you wondering if your transmission just fell out of the back end every time you try to accelerate.
I only wish there was a way for me to get out of the lease and wash my hands of Subaru.
I brought the car into the dealership recently and printed off the service bulletins I found on other forums ahead of time. They dismissed the issue, refused to look at what I had found online, and told me that it's a NORMAL problem. They stated there are no codes in the TCM or ECU and that everything is fine. They did not do the TCM re-flash that others have said were successful and they gave me a free car wash and sent me on my way.
Not too long after reading this:
I got a great deal on it and the sales staff and the dealership were awesome and very welcoming. I have nothing against their service.
While I can certainly understand your frustration with the car's transmission performance, I have to question your evaluation of what constitutes "awesome" with regard to a dealership's service.... :confuse:
Unfortunately, they have a product that lets them down. I got a good deal on the car so the sting of having this transmission issue isn't as bad.
Basically, the sales process was great, the product that was sold is not great, and the dealership I went to recently dismissed the issue.
It's rather unbelievable that the dealership was so willing to dismiss the issue even if you didn't buy (lease) there since it pretty much guarantees that you're not likely to buy something from them in the future!
If they haven't even applied the service bulletins on what is a fairly well-documented issue, I have a hard time believing that they can call it "normal" with a straight face. You might try elevating it with Subaru directly and expressing your insistence that the software updates be applied.
Often times "hard shifting" is a software mapping issue rather than a design flaw with the hardware. This transmission has been around a while, and the issue is not universal amongst applications.
--- "ok, so i was driving my new-used 2007 Subaru outback 2.5i a good deal this past weekend and tried to localize whatever is going on with it a bit more. I had the ATF changed at the Subaru dealer here in asheville but the problem is still occurring. it seems to occur most at higher speeds (between 60-70 mph) and not necessarily during a shift but more when i'm changing speeds. and it feels like i'm driving over one of those strips along the road meant to wake you up if you fall asleep. it only lasts about a second and goes away. it also seems to happen more during inclines. oh and the ball bearings are all fine. any ideas?" ---
If you did indeed get an "altitude" car, you will notice a performance difference in Texas summer heat/humidity, as the engine was not expecting to run on such dense air.
kcram - Pickups/Wagons/Vans+Minivans Host
I'd fill up with better octane as soon as you can.
-If it's software related why didn't I have the issue until a couple months ago?
-What if the symptoms come back in 6 or 12 months, once the drivetrain is out of warranty?
-Why would the reprogramming not be covered under the warranty (they told me the work would be chargeable because a software update is not considered a "drive train" component)?
The person on the phone did not have answers and said they needed to talk to their warranty manager and they would call me back. In the meantime I came across this thread and knew this was not an isolated issue. I was prepared to battle it out...One hour later I got a call back....to my surprise i was told that the tech took it for another test drive and that the issue was still present. I was told the tech will now replace the torque converter and it will be covered under warranty. The parts will be installed on Thursday. Obviously it's great news that they will deal with the issue properly, but now I'm suspicious.....will they really change the torque converter without further dispute? Im afraid they will implement some software workaround that hides the issue instead. Since I didn't get a loaner car I now have my car back for a couple days...it still drives/shifts exactly the same as before....is there a way that I could be sure they really change the torque converter?
In any event I will post the result of this up coming event.
The good news is that it wasn't "jumping" that time! Keep hunting for that leak and monitor your tranny's fluid level. If the fluid gets low, it can cause issues with engagement.
In any event it seems good now....
For those other owners of the 2012 outback 3.6....I hope you've come to a better resolution that we"
I have same problem with my 2012 Subaru 3.6
I hope someone find the answer