Software problems of the 2017 Subaru Outback

Vehicle died while in a hospital parking lot and was jump-started. Battery replaced by a local repair shop. Car could only sit 2 - 3 days before needing a jump start. Took car to stl Subaru dealer. They upgraded the charging software. The dealership stated that the two-week-old battery was bad. When connected to the car, the overnight voltage drops on the battery would be from 0. 4 to 0. 5 volts. The battery was typically dead within 3-4 days. When disconnected from the car, the overnight voltage loss on the battery was minimal. This indicated the car had unsustainable current draw even when "turned off. " returned to the Subaru dealer, noting the car displayed excessive current draw when turned off. They reported was that the factory diagnostic machine had indicated no problem with the car or it's electronics but that the battery was bad. Local repair shop disagreed but replaced the battery with another new. The overnight discharge condition continued with a new battery. I placed the car in "parked and locked" condition and measured the current across each fuse in both the engine and passenger compartment. 2 passenger compartment fuses showed significant current draw when the car is parked and locked, serving a power window and the circuit labeled "acc" which includes the car's heating, cooling and defrosting. I removed these fuses and the car can now sit unused for extended periods. Replacing the fuses returns the car to the overnight battery drain condition. I now have a car with a non-functioning passenger window and no heating/cooling or defroster. It is unclear if the car can pass the state safety inspection in this condition. To me, this proves that the problem is not the battery but rather unsustainable current draw from the car's electronics when parked and "turned off. " the car is not safe to drive without a defroster.

Vehicle's battery went dead at about 22,283 miles in Jan of 2020. Battery would keep dying even after proper jumping. Vehicle was brought in to dealership. Dealership advised of software issue draining the battery. I was advised that they did an update and replaced battery. A year later, vehicle is having battery issues again (battery kept dying- multiple times- even after driving to try to "charge" battery). Vehicle was brought into dealership in Feb 2021 at 23,560 miles. Different statements were made by dealership. I was told there was an issue with the vehicle electrical system needing more power than the battery could provide. I was told they had a solution, a bigger battery. When I picked up my car they just swapped out the battery with the same size battery. They didn't tell me (tried to hide it). When I confronted them, they advised that Subaru didn't have a fix yet for the draining of the battery. Subaru says I will just have to keep bringing in my vehicle every time there is an issue with the battery until they come out with a fix. Please note: Subaru appears to try and hide the electrical issue. None of this information was on my service paper work and they only spoke about the electrical system in Feb 2021 after I brought up the issue after reading forums on the internet about people having the same issue.

On multiple occasions, I've arrived at my car after a reasonably short time away - each time overnight, parked in my garage - to find my battery fully drained. I wondered if I had left my lights on, and if that might have caused the problem. I found that the controls for my headlamps were in the off position. Next, I wondered if I had left a door ajar, or an interior light control switch in the on position. I never found a door ajar. I never found an interior light switch on. I take my car into faraway corners of the wilderness on occasion. I cannot risk battery drain when I return to my car after a day or two of adventure. To be safe after these incidents, I removed the lightbulb from the "way back" of my Subaru Outback. I did this to avoid accidentally draining the battery if I left that light on (easy to go unnoticed). Further, I keep each of the other interior light swich controls in the off position. I changed this from the "on when a door is open" position that I used to keep the switches in, again to ensure that I don't accidentally drain the battery. During my next maintenance visit with my Subaru dealer's maintenance team (an oil change, I believe), I discussed the battery failure with the technician. I asked the person if there was some way set a software control so that no light would remain illuminated with the engine turned off for more than some set period of time (for instance, 10 minutes, or a half hour). The technician said there was no way to set that for the car. I regularly check to ensure that I'm not leaving my front seat, or mid-seat lights on since my battery had drained on those occasions. I've always wondered, however, if the problem was some electrical issue with my car, rather than my own potential mistake. More and more, I think it may have been an electrical battery drain issue.

Bought the Outback new in July 2017. In 2018 the car battery died several times. The the original battery was tested and failed the gr8 test and was replaced under warranty. In 2019 the battery once again died and the battery failed gr8 test. It was replaced under warranty. In 2020-4/2021 the battery died several times when the engine was not running (drivers door opened for 10 minutes, radio on for 10 minutes and driven to a restaurant 10 miles and battery dead after 30 minutes). On 4/19/21 battery tested and a draw test performed. The draw test found the vehicle to be in spec and the battery passed the gr8. The car's software was updated to fully charge the battery on short trips.