general problems of the 2017 Subaru Outback - part 2

I have had the battery replaced 4 times in less than 6 years. There seems to be something wrong with the electrical systems ability to keep a battery charged, or something draining the battery constantly.

Battery dead and needing replaced within 2 months.

When the car is not driven the car battery is drained completely and requires replacement. I have replaced the car battery three (3) times in less than one year. Alternator is functioning properly. This costs $165 each time I replace a car battery. I cannot see mileage as car is dead (approx 12,000).

I purchased a used 2017 Subaru Outback in December 2020 from a friend whose mother had owned the car before her death in Nov. 2019. That owner purchased it used from dealer in sevierville TN in 2019 and had to replace a battery at least once according to records. The battery has failed three times since Dec. 2020, totally drained and would not recharge so a replacement was needed. I replaced the first battery then took it to dealer for other two replacements. The previous owner had a garage under her mountain house. She was found dead in her den chair. After her burial the family later found the 2017 Subaru Outback parked in her garage underneath the house was totally empty of gas. I believe from reading issues other Subaru owners have had that this car did not turn off and this lady died from carbon monoxcide poisoning. This is an issue well documented over many years and it is way past due for a recall by the manufacturer. Since it continues even to 2020 models there should at least be a stop production order until this issue is corrected. It is not just an inconvenience but a very real danger for owners who park in a home garage. As the government agency trusted to oversight of manufacturing defects presenting a danger to the safety of the public it is way past time for you to act.

The vehicle's electrical system is actively draining the battery of power. This is a known problem by Subaru.

I have had to buy 2 batteries since I bought the vehicle!! I have 60038 miles on it- one within 6 months of purchase Subaru tyler TX and the second roughly one year ago patriot subara saco,maine I’ve had to get jumped by aaa at least 3 times in past 2 years no one can give me a definitive answer to why my batteries don’t last….

Battery was defective.

Battery is not holding a charge, causing electrical issues (windows not working properly, locks not functioning) and for the vehicle to fail to start. The battery is brand new and this is still an issue. 45,000 miles on the vehicle, there were no warning lights indicating a bad battery. This has not been confirmed yet by a dealership/mechanic/insurance.

Nhtsa report we purchased this vehicle used on 9/11/2019 from Subaru of spokane in spokane washington. The car has failed to start and required towing to the servicing Subaru dealership carter Subaru of ballard, wa where they have replaced the battery, (twice) and fuses. In three years, this car is on its third battery and has failed to provide reliable use, required towing, and two weeks of lost use. This is apparently a well-established issue--Subaru of America has lost at least one class action suit in NJ, as well as a lemon law case in California. However, these two dealers in washington state are behaving as if they have never heard of the issue and are not forthcoming in fixing the problem so it does not reoccur.

Battery failure ( would not charge or hold a charge).

Started car and all warning lights on dash were flashing. Turned car off and car would not start and there was a loud ticking noise coming from the engine bay. Contacted aaa and technician checked battery and verified that it was dead and he was not able to start the car and this time there was a different loud ticking noise with all dash warning lights flashing. Installed higher quality battery and the car would not start with the same result. Had car towed by aaa (9/12/2022) to our local Subaru dealer for diagnosis. After 5 days the joint box or biu part #82201al20a was defective. These are the Subaru code defects from the dealer are b1578, b1401 and b1411. Cost to repair including diagnosis is $956. 02. Previous battery/electrical issue in 2018. Battery drained by electronic brake fixed under warranty.

Battery has been replaced 3 times in two years.

My battery is constantly needing to be jump started even after replacing it twice. The battery tests are always good. If I open my trunk while the car is not running, I have to get it jumped. I’m currently unloading groceries and what not with the car running to save myself from having to get jumped.

I had a battery that was about 1 year old that died suddenly. I called triple aaa and they replaced it, and 1 week later, the new battery died and the car wouldn't start, so aaa came and replaced it again. 3 days after that the 3rd battery died. Aaa confirmed both times that there was nothing wrong with the alternator and everything looked fine. Looking online it seems that this has been a common issue with Subaru Outbacks.

Battery drains completely when parked for a week. Replaced the battery after it happened twice. After replacement, battery still drains after being parked for a week resulting in the vehicle having to be jump started.

This is the same issue we are seeing with our other Subaru where we come out to drive and the battery is dead. We would jump the battery and be able to drive for the day and the next day the battery is dead in the morning. I replaced the battery several times over the last few year and the battery would die with a less than 2 month old battery. I was driving around in both cars with jumper cables permanently. After taking it to the dealer, the battery was in great condition, the alternator was charging properly and there is a known electrical issue with this model and year that is part of a class action lawsuit. I had to replace my rear gate module electrical unit because it was going on and off in the night and draining my battery. I will be looking to get re-eimbursed for this company issue.

Battery drains completely when not driven for2 to 3 days.

Since I purchased this car, I had the battery drain to the point the lift gate would not open and kept beeping as if something was wrong with the car. I replaced the battery and the problem corrected itself. I am now having lights in the dashboard go out and the power windows stop working. There appears to be an issue with the electrical system.

Battery constantly drains. New battery (8/22) will not hold charge.

While driving, advance driver assist systems became disabled, car intermittently stopped and resumed responding to accelerator, power steering became inoperative, car eventually lost all power. Gear would not shift out of drive. Emergency brake would not engage. Fortunately, I was able to coast the car to the shoulder of the road. Had to keep foot on brake until roadside assistance arrived. Car was towed to repair shop where battery was replaced. Similar system failures occurred while my wife was driving a couple of weeks prior. She was able to coast car into a parking lot just off the road. In the past month, the dealer has replaced parts that diagnostics said created parasitic drain. The alternator has been replaced and the battery has been replaced twice in the last couple of months. Car had body work performed last week and the car will not start without being jumped. We are going to drive it to the dealer with fingers crossed that the electrical system will not shut the car down while in transit.

Battery has paracitic draw caused by ecu problem. Battery dies if not driven every day.

Frequent battery draining requiring battery to either be replaced or charged unless car is driven daily.

The power rear lift gate mechanism frequently does not work. Even when car is unlocked the rear lift gate refuses to open just giving a 3 beep warning. The back can be manually opened but not by me as it is extremely hard to lift. Sometimes the gate only opens partially, or only closes partially. After my husband manually moves the gate it does not close fully and does not lock so we have no guarantee objects from inside the vehicle will not fall out while moving. Additionally, if my dog is in the car and the gate is inoperable I cannot get him out. Today it only opened part way and I accidentally walked straight into the edge of the gate almost knocking me out! this is a problem that comes and goes - it worked today in walmart parking lot but not when I arrived home. The dealer said to bring it in when it doesn't work, but then it works when you get to the dealer and he says there is no problem!!.

I experienced 2 incidences of sudden unexpected acceleration (sua), the second one led to an explosive collision. Subaru asked that I sign the edr release but refused to give me (rightful owner) a copy. With significant effort I obtained a copy of the edr for myself. It is near impossible for the consumer to obtain their rightful copy, significant because it stinks of poor transparency for Subaru to investigate Subaru (see below). Once I obtained my copy, I released the edr to Subaru and my vehicle was inspected by soa at our local dealership. For some untold reason, the vehicle would "not to be released to me" at the end of the day but was held for additional time at the dealership. Later customer "advocacy" informed me that the results of the investigation was that the throttle was active 1. 5 seconds prior to impact and that it was a case of "pedal misapplication". Because I also had the data I was acutely aware of how soa cherry picked data to match their own narrative. I know for a fact what happened considering all the data, together with the actual facts of this potentially fatal accident. I was pulling straight into the parking spot, yet the edr mistakenly "thinks" that the car is turning sharply to the right the entire time (edr shows this and why pbs not active). The electronic sensors are being fed erroneous information. With the steering wheel 'supposedly' at full lock, the power steering pump is told to spin faster to maintain pressure. The computer tries to pick up speed for this and sends an electronic message to open the throttle. The rpms suddenly surge and the vehicle explodes forward leaving only a fraction of a second to react before impact (at which point edr confirms brake was on). Intermittent failures in electronic sensors do in fact happen as experts know. Incredibly, soa refused to hear me. I am concerned for the safety of other Subaru drivers as well as those in the path of a Subaru sua incidence. Ignoring this can have fatal consequences.

My charging system fails to keep my battery charged . This happens irregularly - even when the car has just sat in the garage for two or three days. We have not left the doors open or the lights on. It's very frustrating.

The battery of the car keep dying, leaving us stranded in what could possibly be unsafe situations. We have gotten the battery checked out numerous times at the dealership, plus got a battery replacement in October 2020 but it still keeps occurring. This is a 2017 Outback with less than 30,000 miles, so should not be happening.

Battery found dead 2x first time July 2021, replaced battery second time July 2022, car will not start.

Car has repeated failed to start due to drained battery. Battery is drained by system. This has occurred dozens of times since the car was purchased new. Date of most recent occurrence is listed below.

Repeated battery drained issues. Multiple batteries replaced.

The battery keeps draining. This is our second battery replacement. Had to jump start the car few times.

2 June 2022 incident started with tail gate issues (would not respond when the button was pressed, beeped straight about 3-5 minutes). Took car to the dealership, they did the parasitic drain test, and found that the battery no longer held a charge. Replaced the battery and then tested for a draw. Found that there was draw from the dcm (data communication module). That is scheduled to be replaced as is the back up battery. Of note, the car was purchased new in July of 2017, and returned to dealer with a dead battery 27 February 2019 (7556 miles on the odometer) at which point the battery replaced. The car was taken to the dealership again for battery issues 4 January 2020 (they charged the battery) and 27 March 2020 (battery tested fine, and they jump started the car). All work on the car has been done by either briggs Subaru in topeka kansa, or gallatin Subaru in bozeman montana.

Premature battery draining. This is the 3rd battery purchased for my 2017 Subaru Outback. The most recent battery was purchased on 05/11/2022. Today (05/28/2022) I went to leave for work and the entire system is dead. Not the first time I had this problem and as mentioned this is the 3rd battery purchased in the past 2 years.

The car failed to start after the battery drained when the car was turned off even though no lights, etc. We’re left on. No warning lamps/messages were provided prior.

Purchased vehicle new Dec 2016. Battery being drained on more than one occasion requiring jump to start. Had to call tow truck for jump until purchased charger to have in vehicle. Also corrosion accumulates on battery. Took to dealer first time and had checked out but no problem was identified. Happened again yesterday (05/19/2022). When this occurs there is a clicking sound from the fuse box under the hood. Found many complaints online referencing this problem with no resolutions. Understand there is a class action law suite in progress.

Battery is going dead after short periods of time. Replaced battery 3x in the last year and a half. After researching, this is a big problem with the 2017 Subaru Outback.