Disappointed in my (Canadian) 2018 Subaru Outback

Maintenance/Repairs
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Our first Subaru in our lives, (we regret it).
2018 outback Subaru malfunctions;
On A brand new car the trunk opens without command.
There have been multiple times where I had to jump start the vehicle.
The light button in the trunk is moved on and off with loading and unloading the car which causes the battery to drain.
If the battery is dead, we have to reprogram the windows, along with everything else, which has to be done by the dealer every time. (Impressive car?)
Sometimes I can’t turn the radio on or off.
The screen often gives snowy images or refuses to function along with the GPS.
The engine has already stalled three times in the middle of traffic, I could start the engine immediately afterwards, but either way, this shouldn’t happen.
We’ve already told our mechanics multiple times that something is wrong with the computer,
so far, they made 1 attempt to solve the problem, but with no results.

This is a company car, time and delivery is important.
For the price you pay on a new vehicle,
we would at least like to have a reliable one.
This was an expensive vehicle and we did not get what we paid for.
Moral of the story; the 2018 outback Is a malfunction!
This vehicle has multiple faulty electric problems and it needs to be fixed.
We have attempted to contact the head office but no one is willing to listen or do anything to solve the problem.
To top it all off, when calling online the company about my concern,
They requested my credit card information with a charge of $5 in order to talk to them about THEIR mistakes!

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Does this mean you are trying to do an online chat type of conversation ? If so that is wrong. In the manual there are instructions on the ways to contact Subaru and file a claim . Also you said you talked to the mechanics , well you need to be talking to the dealers general manager.
Also research your state Lemon Law .

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I file a claim and I have spoken with Subaru Ontario and they promise to do an investigation,

but I feel neglected at my dealer, they look at me as it is my fault.

Sometimes the Subaru drives perfectly for 2-3 weeks and then bad things happen, and I have to prove it.

I think they use way too much electronics in the car.

But now I know that I am not the only Subaru owner who has problems with the 2018, several owners have electrical problems with the outback 2018.

And they got the blame from the dealer that the trunk opened from itself or a dead battery.

4

No more than any other vehicle made in the last few years . There is only one regular member here that is in Canada so maybe he will see this thread .

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@cdaquila Hey Carolyn , when and if you move this to the main area could you put a clue in the header that this OP is in Ontario .

6

Your car is under warranty…use it.

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And make sure you document every issue in writing, along with the dealer’s response. Do they have ‘lemon laws’ in Canada?

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This could be as simple as bad battery internally, or bad connections at the battery.

Will the dealer swap in a known good battery as part of their troubleshooting?

I’d suggest you do it yourself, except it’s a new car and you want to avoid being blamed for anything you may have done.

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I have many Canadian friends who are Subaru owners and really like their cars. Only one had mechanical problems and that was after several years of ownership and in the Rocky Mountains. All owners are members of our hiking and ski club and rely on their Subarus to get them through the worst weather.

OP need to confront the dealer’s GM and get some action. He’s getting the “sunshine” treatment.

All our friends are all dedicated readers of the owner’s manual and maintain their cars well. The dealers have been quite competent, especially compared to GM dealers.

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Go to another dealership. You can take the car to ANY Subaru dealer…even one in the US!!!

Yosemite

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Yeah the lemon law comes to mind if they have that in Canada. Or another dealer. One reason I now go to an Acura dealer 60 miles away instead of 30 miles away is because I don’t have to wait a week or two for an appointment. They are both nice folks but when you want something done, you want it done now.

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Canada doesn’t have real lemon laws for faulty cars like the U.S. has.

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Rodents just can’t resist the soy-derived wire coatings used in many Subaru vehicles. The chewed up wires are costing owners hundreds, and sometimes thousands of dollars in repairs but Subaru, like other automakers, insists this isn’t a defect.

and I am stuck with an eco friendly retarded car .

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Rodents just can’t resist thesoy-derived wire coatings used in manySubaru vehicles. The chewed up wires are costing owners hundreds, and sometimes thousands of dollars in repairs but Subaru, like other automakers, insists this isn’t a defect.
and I am stuck with an eco friendly retarded 2018 outback .

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Is that the problem the dealer found? Rodent damage?

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It’s probably not the computer itself, but either a sensor or activator is malfunctioning , or a power or ground problem. You don’t want them to replace the computer, if at all possible. That will just create more uncertainties.

Sorry you are having this difficulty w/your new car. I expect that Subaru Corp will eventually figure out what’s causing it, but until they do it sure seems like it would be very frustrating. Until the issues are resolved, suggest to use the vehicle in its most basic mode; i.e. don’t use the GPS, open the doors, turn on the engine with your key in the lock if that’s even possible, put some masking tape over that button so the trunk light doesn’t come on, etc. You are right about car’s being overly juiced-up on electronic gadgets and gizmos these days, but there’s not much you can do about it; most of the models, even the basic ones, come that way now. There’s no “simple configuration” option. Beyond doing what I do (only drive vehicles 25 years or older), about the only mitigation available to the new car purchaser is to order the car in its most simple configuration, manual transmission and the like. But on some cars even a manual transmission is not an option. In your case I expect there are just a few sample defects that need to be diagnosed and repaired, then you’ll like your Subie better.

RE: “soy-derived wire coatings used in many Subaru vehicles … chewed up wires”
I think the soy-based wire insulation is used on many makes these days, not just Subaru.

For the flat 4 2.5L engine there’s a couple of bulletins out. Suggest to make sure they’ve been done.

  • 16 111 18R: Reprogramming for P0841 (transmission control module)
  • 7 131 18: Stop lamp switch adjustment affecting wheel cylinder pressure sensor