Headlights problems of the 2011 Subaru Outback - part 2

I have had to change the low beam headlight bulbs at least 3 or 4 times on this Outback based on them burning out prematurely. I owned a 2003 Outback that never had the headlights changed, and this is happening too frequently and is occurring on both 2011 Outbacks I own. The most recent light failure was last night as the car started. The first failed while under warranty and was replaced by the dealer, and the second one failed with 100 miles out of warranty and was not replaced by the dealer. This is an issue that needs to be addressed.

I own two 2011 Outbacks and each of them are consuming low beam headlights with at least 4 bulbs changed in under 50000 miles. I have filed a similar report for the other 2011 Subaru Outback I own and consider this issue serious based on the lack of life of the part regardless the type of bulb replaced. My previous 2003 Outback never had a bulb changed in it, yet this vehicle is plagued with bulb issues and costs.

We have had to replace both front headlights multiple times since we bought our Outback. It seems my wife is driving with one headlight way too often. I have researched this problem and we are not alone. Online I have found hundreds of other people with the same problem. I am convinced that this is a safety problem that needs to be addressed by Subaru not to mention it's a huge financial burden since access to these bulbs is difficult even for repair shops.

This car is subject to premature and frequent headlight burn out. For example, both headlamps were replaced by dealer in late January 2014. They both are burned out by December 2014, creating a very unsafe situation.

This vehicle buns out a set of headlights each year.

Both the low beam headlight bulbs went out at the same time. It was nighttime, and I had no use of my car. I bought new bulbs from the auto parts store the following day. When I opened the manual to get instructions for the light bulb change, I found that the recommended advice is to bring in the car to the dealer! there are instructions for those willing to brave getting underneath the car! to change a light bulb!! I am fortunate because I work in the daytime, and dst has already started. Otherwise I would find it necessary to get a tow to a shop! for a light bulb! headlights are necessary for safe and legal driving at night. Just as I shouldn't need an auto repair shop to change a tire, nor should I need a hydraulic car lift to change a light bulb!! this is something that anyone willing to get a little grease on their fingers should be able to accomplish at anytime at any place so that the car will be road worthy and the driver and passengers will be able to make it to their destination safely. I hope this "engineering" catastrophe will be addressed and rectified.

Headlights keep going out. This will be my 4th time replacing the headlight bulbs on this vehicle.

Low beam headlights only illuminate road to about 15 feet in front of car. Headlights were then adjusted by Subaru dealer who stated they were at the max height. Lights now illuminate to about 25 feet in front of car. Extremely poor visibility at night. Subaru dealer said there is nothing more he can do.

Hello, my front headlights went out after having the vehicle for 3 years, I replaced them and then within the year of replacing, the one was burnt out again. I think there is a problem since I'll have replaced the light 3 times within 4 years. This is especially a pain since you have to take the tire off to replace a lightbulb.

This is a low beam headlight issue. I have replaced close to 6-8 low beam headlights over a year and half. No one can find the answer and Subaru doesn't deem it to be a safety issue, although I disagree. I have had my battery tested for power surges and this is not happening. I've seen countless other postings from 2011 Subaru owners and nothing is being done. The low beams are blowing and the projection of the light is not adequate for night time driving. Something has to be done. I've also had a situation where both high beam lights blew out at the same time. That only happened once. The replacement costs are adding up because the low beam light is impossible to do without being put on a lift at the garage. Thank you.

Purchased this car 7/2011. No problem with exterior headlights until about one year after purchase. Highbeams are fine. Never had to replace them. Running lights have never had an issue. Around 11/2012, regular headlights(both bulbs in the headlight housing )have been repeatedly replaced. In oct 2013, both bulbs on driver side were replaced. Went several weeks later for my state safety sticker, the small bulb needed to be replaced on the driver side. Then in Feb 2014, the large bulb on the driver side burnt out and was replaced. May 2014, both lights on the passenger side where out. Replaced them. These needed to be done at a garage each time. Jan 2015, both replaced on the passenger side. Now, Feb 12, 2015 and again, both on the passenger side are out, and need replacing. Going to try more heavy duty bulbs. Husband has learned how to replace the bulbs through the wheel well. I have paperwork for at least 7- 8 bulbs in 3 1/2 yrs needing replacement. Think Subaru needs to acknowledge a problem in exterior lights in the Subaru 2011.

It is now three headlights in 24 months have burnt out. I would just like to know what the issue is with my car.

The contact owns a 2011 Subaru Outback. While driving at an unknown speed with the low beam headlights activated, the passenger side headlight failed to illuminate. The contact continued to drive with the high beams engaged. The contact replaced the headlight bulb. Three months later, the driver side low beam bulb failed and needed to be replaced. The driver and passenger side low beam bulbs were replaced four times. The manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 50,000.

After owning this vehicle barely 2 years, the 1st headlight (driver side) bulb blew out. To replace it at the dealership was $90 due to the difficulty of reaching the bulb housing - so I was told. Then about 3-4 months later the other headlight (passenger side) went out. Then about 6 months later the rear light bulb went out. Around 2 months ago (12/20/2014) the driver side head light went out again and then passenger side went out last Friday (1/17/2015). This is a great vehicle overall, but I have never owned a vehicle that I'm constantly replacing headlights (front or rear). This is very annoying, expensive and dangerous.

Passenger side headlight has burnt out 6 times; Subaru denies any underlying issues, keep replacing the headlight; no more warranty as this point; main concerns are safety and nuisance.

The passenger's-side low beam headlight burned out a week ago and was replaced by the dealer. One week later, the driver's-side low beam headlight burned out. The car only has 15,000 miles presently. The dealer reports that this is a common occurence in late-model Outbacks. I live in alaska where the use of headlights is mandatory on some roads. Frequent and unanticipated loss of the headlights is a safety hazard as well as costly.

Low beam headlights keep burning out both sides. Lights burn out independently of each other. So far have replaced lights 3 times 6 in total. Problem reported as an issue in Subaru forumn.

The contact owns a 2011 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that the headlights and the taillights failed intermittently. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer, who stated that the headlights and taillights needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure an stated that the vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 12v602000 (exterior lighting). The approximate failure mileage was 28,000.

We have owned this Subaru since new. The original headlight bulbs burnt out at 58,000 miles. Since then I have had to replace the bulbs every two to three months, using the Subaru recommended h7 bulbs from sylvania. The car has burnt through at least one dozen light bulbs.

I have had the car since August 2010 and the low light beams keep burning out. I have had to replace one or the other three times now. This time the new bulb lasted less than a year. And last year I also had to replace one of the high beams. I have never owned a car that needed headlights replaced so ofter (actually I've never had to replace a headlight on any other vehicle I've owned). Also, I have to bring it to a dealer every time this needs to be done because it's too difficult to change myself. It's very inconvenient. There are many other people who have the same complaint so it leads me to think it's a fault that should be addressed. Other than this, I love my car!.

Driver side low beam headlight failed at about 29,000 miles. Passenger side low beam headlight failed at ~32,000 miles (roughly 3 months time elapsed between events).

The car's headlights burn out at a very frequent rate. Replacing them is very inconvenient and time consuming since you have to remove the wheels in order to get access. Dealer charges $100. 00 to replace. Something must be wrong with the electrical system since my other Subaru has needed only one replacement since 2004.

We are experiencing chronic headlight, taillight and break light burn out issues. We have had the right headlight replaced twice and the left headlight replaced once as well as the taillight and break lights replaced once since November of 2012. We do not live on a bumpy road or have any other odd driving conditions. We drive our car only on normal paved roads in a suburban environment. Our Subaru dealer has not been able to resolve this problem. We believe this is a major safety issue as we never know when the lights are going to burn out.

I am on my third set of headlight bulbs car is 23 months old and bulbs keep burning out. Never had a problem like this. Many other owners have the same issue and no resolution has been found. This is the low beam bulbs that burn out. Not at the same time usually within 2-4 weeks of each other.

I have replaced my headlight bulbs 3 times for each headlight and I only have 88,000 miles on my car.

The first time the headlight went out was during the cold months two years ago and it was on the driver's side. A year later (2013) , the passenger's side headlight went out. I just replaced the driver's side headlight again on November 2, 2014. I have never had a vehicle, nor heard of anyone I know having a vehicle, that requires annual headlight replacements.

I purchased my vehicle new from dealer 18 months ago my vehicle requires a low beam bulb replacement every 6 weeks to 3 months. I have been pulled over by the police on numerous occasions due to this defect. Poor access for headlight replacement is another safety issue that compounds this problem. I always leap a replacement headlight in my previous cars for such the rare occasion that a bulb burned out I could easily pull over and in 2-3 minutes be back on the road with functioning lights. I have never owned a vehicle that required laying on the ground, having to remove the inner fender and likely if you aren't a petite 5 foot tall individual such as myself you may also have to remove the tire to access a headlight. This is a serious safety issue and the dealership telling me there are no service bulletins pertaining to such a problem. All they(Subaru dealer) can do is give me a new bulb and that I am no longer under warranty for a bulb if anyone other than they (Subaru dealer)installs the bulbs . Ridiculous! I feel more concerned about the bulb burnout shortout or whatever it is issue due to the fact that you just can't fix it along side the road if you had to.

I purchased my vehicle new from dealer 18 months ago my vehicle requires a low beam bulb replacement every 6 weeks to 3 months. I have been pulled over by the police on numerous occasions due to this defect. Poor access for headlight replacement is another safety issue that compounds this problem. I've always kept a replacement headlight in my previous cars for such the rare occasion that a bulb burned out I could easily pull over and in 2-3 minutes be back on the road with functioning lights. I have never owned a vehicle that required laying on the ground, having to remove the inner fender and likely if you aren't a petite 5 foot tall individual such as myself you may also have to remove the tire to access a headlight. This is a serious safety issue and the dealership telling me there are no service bulletins pertaining to such a problem. All they(Subaru dealer) can do is give me a new bulb and that I am no longer under warranty for a bulb if anyone other than they (Subaru dealer)installs the bulbs. Ridiculous! I feel a greater concern about the bulb burnout shortout or whatever it is issue due to the fact that you just can't fix it along side the road if you had to. All car headlights should be easy to get to and replace they are just that important. Especially when a car has really questionably operating headlights Subaru.

I have replaced six headlight bulbs since I bought the car in July 2011. I don't even drive that much after dark. I don't use the auto headlight feature either.

Low beam headlight bulbs burn out approximately every 3 months requiring expensive replacements. Combined with an overly difficult access to replace them, it's effectively an extortion scheme by Subaru to force you to the dealership.

I have owned several Subaru's over the years and always loved the headlights. Unfortunately, I have owned this one less than a month and I almost had an accident driving at night on the country roads in CT. The night time driving lights only illuminate to a very low height (10 feet maybe?) and have a cut off line which appears to bounce up and down on country roads, making it almost impossible to see the road or anything in the distance. When I took the car back to the dealer to have them adjust or replace the headlight bulb they said that is how it was manufactured and there was no adjustment needed. They said to drive with the high beams on it will help. I honestly think that this may (probably will if it hasn't already) cause accidents, it almost did for me and Subaru should really look into a fix for this before someone loses their life.

The contact owns a 2011 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that the headlights did not provide proper illumination of the roadway. The contact stated that there were two different light shades where the top half of the light was dark and the lower part of the light was bright, making it difficult to drive at night. The dealer and manufacturer were notified, but denied any assistance with repairs to the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 20 and the current mileage was 7,000. The VIN was not available.

Subaru Outback low beam headlights going out is a dangerous safety issue. Purchased 2011 Outback in Nov 2010. July 2011 driver side low beam headlight replaced at dealer. Nov 2011 passenger side low beam headlight replaced at dealer. July 2012 driver side low beam headlight replaced at dealer. Dealer checked out lighting system and found no problems. Dec 2012 both low beam headlights out. Called Subaru corporate and they said they had no reports of this problem (even though there are lots of discussions online). Replaced at local mechanic because it was 17 degrees out and these bulbs are not easy or cheap to change (my cost was $40+ for 2 bulbs plus $38 for mechanic install). Identified that dealer bulbs removed were philips. Replaced with sylvania. March 2013 driver side low beam headlight out again. Called corporate again. They suggested taking to local dealer (45 minutes away) to have them check the car out. Corporate and dealer are sorry to hear of problem and will change the bulb . . . But that doesn't eliminate the safety issue. In addition, it doesn't take care of the hassle or the costs. If you need more examples of this same problem (to prove it is not just my car), check out these other cases listed on this NHTSA website: 2011 ------------------------- date of incident: 03/01/2013 NHTSA id number: 10500919 date of incident: 05/03/2012 NHTSA id number: 10487940 date of incident: 09/13/2012 NHTSA id number: 10475296 date of incident: 08/17/2012 NHTSA id number: 10471366 2010 ---------------------------- date of incident: 11/01/2011 NHTSA id number: 10498055 date of incident: 10/01/2010 NHTSA id number: 10486749.

The headlights do not cover enough visibility while moving forward down road. There is a noticeable line where the headlights shine. They beam very low to the road surface. We brought to dealer because of concern the response was that that is the way they are. No resolve. Difficult to see driving in dark unless high beams are on. High beams are very nice. The line of darkness to lighted road is not prevalent. Other drivers often shine brights on me when I have my lights on regular low beam.

Our 2011 Subaru Outback was purchased new in summer 2010 at continental motors, anchorage, alaska. The driver's side low-beam erratically dimmed and after three service requests over the next two years the dealer finally agreed that my complaint was valid and repaired the problem. The driver's side headlights have worked continuously since. Last summer (2013) the pax-side low-beam died and the bulb was replaced. This summer it died again and is in the shop today for replacement (as is the small marker light in the same unit). I asked the service rep if this is a chronic Subaru problem and he acknowledged that it is, especially in the lower 48. According to him the dealer(s) have submitted complaints to the manufacturer requesting a "fix" or redesign of the electrical circuitry. It certainly seems to warrant a recall and repair.