Automatic Emergency Braking Problems of Subaru Outback - part 1

1. Pre-collision warning system malfunctioned. On my vehicle it has activated 4 different times when there was no obstacle in the roadway -- one of which happened in front of a semi truck and the semi truck almost rear ended me. On the loaner vehicle while mine was being looked it, the pre-collision warning didn't activate at all when there was a significant obstruction in the roadway and I wrecked the vehicle. 2. My safety has been put at risk by having a pre-collision warning system activate randomly and then brake hard due to this. It was also put at risk by the pre-collision warning system not activated at all and causing an accident. My safety has further been put at risk by Subaru asking me to continue to drive my vehicle to help them figure out what is happening. I am not a crash test dummy. 3. The problem has not been able to be reproduced but I do have some pictures of the malfunctions. 4. The vehicle has been inspected by the dealership. 5. My vehicle has been plagued with multiple electrical issues prior to the pre-collision warning activating for no apparent reason. The warning signs were came on and off too fast for me to see what they were other than the vehicle was braking hard for no reason.

I was driving my 2019 Subaru Outback north on [xxx] just north of alanson, michigan on [xxx] when it applied the brakes and made a noise similar to driving on the rumble strip. There were no vehicles in front of me. Scary and now I am nervous driving this car. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

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Arriving at my childhood home, I followed the driveway to the left to park in front of the garage door. With my foot on the brake and slowly rolling to a stop, the car suddenly accelerated and jolted forward making contact with the garage door and the frame of the garage. This caused damage to the house, garage door and the front of the car. Thankfully there was no other car in the way or a pedestrian! only the house and car were damaged. This was sudden and there was no warning or prior occurrence to make me aware of the problem. We spoke to the dealer service manager and at first he said he never heard of anything like that. After further conversation he admitted that another car had a similar issue. They kept the car for two weeks and couldn't repeat the issue. We then went on line and found there are several class action lawsuits against Subaru for the same thing - unexpected and sudden forward acceleration! but when contacting Subaru corporate for assistance in resolving this, they claimed they never heard of any class action lawsuits or problems such as this. We need help dealing with Subaru. They are playing with us.

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The infotainment system in the car has suffered from screen delamination, which is apparently common with these models. This has left the touchscreen both non-responsive to touch as well as randomly selecting items on the screen, rendering it unusable. This is a safety issue because the only way to deactivate reverse automatic braking and the rear parking sensors is through the touchscreen. Being able to do this is essential when connecting a trailer or attempting to reverse with one attached. Subaru is aware of the problem and was subject to class action litigation related to it, ultimately being required to extend the warranty on the units as a result. However, the warranty extension was inadequate and left several thousand units in the field which would eventually require replacement. Note that a similar issue on the 2019 models resulted in an 8-year / 150,000-mile warranty extension on the units, yet prior models were only required to have a 4-year / 80,000-mile extension.

The car will not stop if another vehicle is in front of it and I don't hit on the brakes. I have taken it in for this problem more than three times and they put it on the computer and it can not find anything wrong with it. And once they reset it works until I turn it off and start it back up the system goes back to the default setting I have reached out to the dealership to let them know that it is still not working properly and the thing that has happen is that they have call me once tell me that they will look in to but as now June 12, 2025 I have heard nothing. The car is new and when I received it the car had a big squirrel nest in it which I had to take it back the next day for that and yes the car is new. I purchased it from classic Subaru atlanta corp.

Thermo control valve. Check engine light on. Eyesight adaptive cruise control automatic emergency braking blind spot warning forward collision warning lane departure warning lane keeping assistance x mode dealership would not honor repair even though there is recall it does not cover VIN 63400 miles vehicle inspected by manufacturer code p2682 check engine light is on and eyesight warning.

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The Subaru front camera incorrectly detected a hazard. The automatic braking system engaged and locked the steering. I skidded off the pavement, causing damage to the car. At the time of the accident, the blind sight warning lights flashed on the dash signaling that they were disabled. I was going very slow in a driveway. No personal damage just property damage and damage to the car. I have let the insurance company know about the issue and the collision center. I have had periodic instances where the warning signals of blind sight disabled have come on the vehicle. I informed Subaru in August 2024 about the issue at my last maintenance appointment. There is also a software update required on the vehicle. I asked Subaru to update the software in August 2024, but I was told by a service technician that it was not possible to update . I had to make a separate appointment for the software update as it took a long time.

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The vehicle has received all scheduled and regular maintenance. I was driving right around the speed limit of 50 mph. Traffic was stopped ahead, and I had plenty of time and space to stop. I pressed the brake pedal, but continued to coast. I pressed it harder, all the way to the floor for at least four seconds, and there was no resistance, no feel of the antilock brakes kicking in, no emergency braking to avoid a collision, and no braking or slowing whatsoever. I could not safely swerve out of my lane, as there was no shoulder on my left and traffic on my right, and so there was an accident. The vehicle is currently at the body shop, and I told stare farm about the brakes, but they have no intention of investigating it.

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The car will stop going backwards down a steep driveway thinking that the road is something that I’m going to hit. It will break going forward, including on the highway when there’s nothing in front of it it will break in the fog if the fog is heavy enough. In construction zones, it thinks every cone is a moving car and stops often. I contacted Subaru and they have not addressed my concerns.

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When going down my driveway, the (rab) reverse automatic braking system will often times turn itself off and not reset like the manual say's it should. I have to stop the car, shut it off and open the door to ensure everything is off and restart the car to get it to reset. It has been in the dealership, Subaru of kennesaw, kennesaw GA 4 time for this issue. Last time it was in the dealership they had it for over a month. And it is still happening. This started after a software update done on 10-28-2024 and to date has happened 52 times since then. I have photo documentation of these instances. These exceeded the max allowable of your website so did no upload them.

There are a couple of issues. 1. The car keeps applying the brakes at lower and higher speeds even though there is literally nothing in front. This is both annoying and risky, especially at higher speeds happening at the interstates. When I asked at the dealership, they said the car is not equipped to do something like this. But that does not mean this is not happening. At lower speeds, it feels like massive pressure forced on the stomach. 2. The lane departure warning system is subpar at best. It cannot comprehend the real-world lane markers- if modified, and is constantly forcing to go through the work areas and seemingly trying to make a collision. If I were not aware and attentive, I would have crashed to the barriers on the highway. 3. The rear cross traffic warning system does not seem to capture the presence of cross traffic unless it is directly behind in most cases, specifically if the vehicle is coming from the right side of the vehicle. It is not helpful at all.

My eyesight device stopped working correctly when I had the interior cleaned and the front windshield was spray cleaned. "obstacle detected" warnings started popping up and slowing down the car. Per the dealership, this was caused by the backsplash from the cleaner and now the entire device has to be replaced at a cost of $3300. Subaru later offered to replace it for $1800. I wish I was told to only spray the cleaner on a cloth or this could happen. Now I have to replace it or it could suddenly stop the car on the highway.

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Three primary issues of major concern on this vehicle: 1. Phantom emergency - braking at random, both low and high speeds. The most dangerous of the three. 2. Lane keep assist - unaware or unable to compensate for real driving conditions, construction areas, pedestrians walking a dog, heavy machinery on a semi-truck as examples. 3. Infotainment blinding - a large, high gloss screen at a 45-degree angle, placing it in the direct reflective angle of three windows: sunroof, passenger front, passenger rear. Absolutely blinding even with sunglasses on during the right time of day. The sunroof can be pulled closed with a shade but the other two will still cause complete blinding. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? 1. Emergency braking at slow speeds is annoying for sure, but it has also occurred at 65mph and almost caused an accident had the nice lady behind not forced herself off the road to compensate. It braked for no reason (rain? splash? not sure) and nearly caused an entire row of cars to crash into me. 2. Lane keep is highly problematic because it simply doesn’t know really what it’s doing or aware of surroundings. Per the above, examples had I not intervened: it would have happily crashed me into concrete following the wrong lines in construction areas, run a woman’s dog over as we tried to cross the lines to give passing space. 3. The screen is set up so that it is directly in line to reflect the sun at different points in the day. When I say blinding, I mean really blinding (it’s the sun after all). You lose visibility on the road and become a danger to yourself and others. We carry a towel to toss over it during certain points in the day, it’s that bad. I have more detailed information, but the character limit is low on this form. Contact me if you want more.

Last year, my car would not start up again after the start stop feature activated in an intersection. This is after leaving the dealer who told me the car was fine. I’ve since replaced the battery. It still is sluggish to start at times. It is especially bad starting when start stop is activated. I turn the feature off every time I start the car. I’m worried every time I take a long trip I will get stranded. The dealer cannot find anything wrong with it they say. The automatic braking system is also horrible. It goes on prematurely and I’m sure damages the car.

Driving on a slightly curving road next to a lake a car started to pull from the left of the road so he could see. This was slow and I started to brake and then to continue when he stopped. He did not enter past the double yellow. Yes he was facing the wrong way. The car locked its breaks and I was shocked but the other driver was waiting still. I could not move!! it did release finally and I continued. Not able to move was terrifying that I was going to be rear ended. . But on labor day 3024 9/01/2025 , I went through a construction area and it locked up at a stop sign. I had floor the car to move. Pulled over and tried to fathom why the car was saying the brakes were on. The engine light on. The eye sight light on. . . . Basically everything. . These brakes should not remain locked and I find the idea of locking brakes is not healthy. This can not be logical. Other problems of stupid risks. 1. The turn signal continues on after turns on less they are sharp? if a wheel is turned and straightens out the light should go off. Automatically. 2. The cruise control takes a 3 second wait for a response. Then it will decide to go not to 70 bit right up and past 80. It it not an easy set. Poor and distracts even trying to get it set. Maybe get used to slow. 3. The dynamic steering is a problem in that it is not adjustable. It drives what it considers the middle of the road. Trucks are in the right lanes and trying not to be so close I fight the controls and have a a sore steering arm muscles. Get used to being in the hands of truckers is not my thing. The idea they cann't adjust it is bizarre and illogical. I hate the pull to the right. Yeah. Don't use cruise and turn off the safety systems was the statements from Subaru. 4. The hatchback opens unexpectedly but not when you have hands full. Final: this car is too risky for me. I do not want to drive this machine ever again.

After an automatic software download update, the rab off light came on. The rab light comes on when the car is put in reverse and provides the option to turn that function off. After the update, the rab icon is no longer displayed. It is the only system so far that I noticed that malfunctioned after the software update.

While driving in the fast lane on interstate 5 at a speed of approximately 70mph, with cruise control on, during clear dry conditions, my automatic emergency brake system engaged and made my vehicle come to an abrupt and complete stop in the fast lane. I lost complete control of my vehicle. I was unable to steer or accelerate. Once I stopped, I was able to use my accelerator, but very quickly my vehicle abruptly stopped again and I could not steer it. After I stopped for the second time, I was then able to then accelerate slowly and pull off the freeway into the wide left shoulder. When I turned the car off and then back on again to get out of danger, I disengaged the cruise control, and I was able to get back on the freeway and out of the fast lane. It was a clear day, no clouds, no shadows, no birds, no vehicles right in front of me or next to me. There was no warning lamp or alarms prior to the braking. There was no debris or excessive dirt on my windshield. My husband and I were certainly in danger of being rear ended at a high speed, but miraculously, the vehicles behind us were able to stop and/or pull into the left shoulder to avoid a collision. Not only were we at risk of serious injury or death, but there very easily could have been a multi-car pile up on the freeway with many people at risk of injury. My car is currently at my local Subaru dealership and they are investigating the problem. They have not been able to reproduce the issue yet, but are bringing in another specialist tomorrow. I felt this issue absolutely needed to be reported as it is a very serious safety issue. I do not trust my vehicle any more.

On [xxx], I was driving east on [xxx] on the north side of toledo ohio close to the intersection with [xxx] . The "check engine" warning came on, all the vehicle "eyesight" functions were automatically turned off, and pre collision braking and pre collision throttle control features were activated. There was no danger of a collision at this time, but all of this left me stranded in the middle of this busy four lane highway. I was able to literally crawl to the shoulder of the road. I was not hit, but it was just good fortune that prevented that. This is where my safety was at greatest risk. After about 10 minutes during which I started and stopped the car numerous times, the pre collision braking and throttle were deactivated and I was able to drive the car. I located the nearest Subaru dealer (yark Subaru toledo, ohio) and drove there. The cause of the check engine light was diagnosed as a failure of the thermal control valve. I had received a letter from Subaru dated may 1, 2024 stating that this part might fail and extending the warranty for this part. That letter specifically stated that nothing needed to be done until the part failed. There was no mention of the fact that the car would be disabled when it happened. Part was eventually replace on July 1, 2024 two days later. Since then I have spoken to 3 people at Subaru of America seeking to understand why a check engine situation caused the vehicle to be disabled. I also asked the service advisor at yark Subaru to explain. They have all been friendly and attentive, but they cannot or will not give an explanation. My main concern is that a check engine situation may cause this pre collision shut down to happen again. Based on the danger I was in when this happed, I think that there should have been a recall and the thermal control valve replaced before failure. To be clear, the repairs were completed under warranty and Subaru has sent me a $350. 00 coupon for future service. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (f.

Several months ago Subaru updated the software in the above mentioned systems. Ever since the systems have become overly sensitive to the point of locking breaks up on the highway, at highway speed, for no obstruction. This has taken me from highway speed to a complete stop in the middle of the number 2 lane on several occasions.

On April 25, 2024, around noon, my wife and I were driving south on interstate 95 (I 95) in our 2017 Subaru Outback, at approximately 70 mph. It was a clear and sunny day. We were just north of the tradition exit (in port st. Lucie, florida) in the far right-hand lane when our vehicle violently jolted. It felt like we were being dragged from behind, although we were still moving forward at a reduced speed. It was making a terrible sound (tires screeching), and you could smell rubber burning. This sensation felt similar to an airplane’s hard landing on the tarmac. My initial thought was that someone hit us from behind, while my wife thought we may have blown a tire. I glanced at the instrument panel and noticed that the word “eye sight” was displayed. As we were coming to complete stop, we realized cars were speeding to the left and right of our car to avoid hitting us. We both immediately realized that we were in a very dangerous situation and at risk of being hit from oncoming traffic. My wife put the hazard lights on while I was attempting to drive the car off the road. However, the car would not move forward even though the engine was running, and it was in gear (drive). Several good samaritans stopped to assist us in trying to move the car off I 95. However, the car would not move because all four wheels were locked. My wife called 911 and florida highway patrol (fhp) and road ranger arrived approximately twenty minutes later. They were unable to assist us with moving the car off the road. We called a tow truck company (apex towing) to move the car because all four tires were locked and had to be lifted off the road. Our car was towed to a safe location and we able to call aaa to have the car towed to dyer Subaru in vero beach, florida. As time has passed, we realize that our car was a stationary object on a heavily traveled interstate. If a car had hit us, the outcome could and most probable would have been catastrophic to everyone involved.

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The contact owns a 2024 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while driving 72 mph with no other vehicles nearby, the forward collision avoidance: automatic emergency braking system engaged inadvertently, and the vehicle came to a complete stop. The contact stated that he was able to continue driving; however, the vehicle started jerking and was hesitating while driving. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission had failed; however, the dealer was unable to duplicate the failure related to the forward collision avoidance: automatic emergency braking system. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 100.

While going 65-70 mph on the freeway the car began braking on its own with no cars nearby. It almost came to a complete stop but then started moving, then hesitated once more before releasing. I reported it to the dealership. They said they could try to recalibrate but otherwise I should contact Subaru of America because I no longer felt safe on busy California freeways.

My brakes failed as I was pulling up to a curb as I attempted to break to put my car into park my breaks failed to engage. My vehicle is also equipped with emergency braking system that did not engage my vehicle crashed into and through a 7/11 while I was breaking the entire time manuall! the vehicle would not stop and did not stop until it hit the back wall of the store inside.

The pre-collision braking system has engaged twice during normal traffic flows and came close to causing an accident.

My son was traveling at an appropriate highway speed when the truck in front of him stopped suddenly. He braked immediately and was able to slow down significantly, but not enough to avoid colliding with the back of the truck in front of him. He was going approximately 20 mph, still braking, when the collision occurred. His best recollection is that the vehicle's pre-collision system did not engage until after he collided with the truck. There was damage to the front end of the vehicle but it was not severe. My son moved the vehicle onto the shoulder of the highway and put it in park. The driver of the truck called the police. My sons got out of the vehicle. While they were talking with the other driver and the police, a fire started under the hood of the vehicle and within several minutes the entire vehicle was consumed. The wreckage was towed to 1022 shannon court, livermore CA 94550. In July 2023 we were involved in an accident that impacted the front bumper, left front quarter panel, and Subaru eyesight system of the same vehicle involved in this accident. Repairs after the July 2023 accident were performed by kraft body shop in santa clara, CA. Repair and calibration of the Subaru eyesight system were performed by santa cruz Subaru after that accident.

My vehicle is equipped with eyesight. I was driving to my home after work at night and suddenly the infotainment system screen went blank; including braking assist, adaptive cruise control, lane assist, emergency braking etc including navigation, also the hvac shut off and eyesight that controls these as well, shut off. It was suffocating in the car due to no a/c and thusf I tried to pull over at a remote text-stop place and tried restarting the car but in vain. All screens were dark, no warm air, I couldn’t see what direction I was driving to, as well as I solely relied on navigation. I brought this car for it’s safety features and warmth in this cold temperature in upstate NY and this happened. I waited for 20 mins, charged my phone for only 4-5% with a fellow citizen who was waiting there as well and checked online just to see a lot of people reported the same issue with 2021 Subarus with eyesight. And there is no way one can fix it. I tried contacting the dealer but in vain. I am afraid that if this would happen again, I wouldn’t be in a situation to face this scary experience.

On November 21th, 2023, we were driving on a 30 mph street at 8:00 pm with no traffic and our automatic emergency braking system deployed on our 2020 Outback, we jolted to a stop for no apparent reason. This could have been dangerous if a car was behind us. Just had our oil changed with free inspection at miller hill Subaru 1 week prior. First incident. Will have the dealership inspect ASAP. The "auto start /stop no activity detected" indicator message light came on afterward.

Automatic braking system has almost caused a rear-end collision 5 times, because it thinks a shadow is an object. We’ve brought the car to the dealership but they told us twice that they can’t replicate the problem. That doesn’t change the issue. I don’t want to wait until we have a collision and have to go through physical therapy and repairs to address this. Front headlights are blinding other drivers causing them to flash their brights at us regularly on the freeway and local roads which then blinds us and causing us to slow down and break. The dealership say that the lights can be adjusted but this is a serious risk to us and something that happens every night. It’s stressful to drive the car anticipating this all the time. We’ve replace the starter last year and having issues again. The car struggles to start. Last year they said this was a known issue and also replaced the battery. But it’s happening again. This indicates a more complicated issue in the electrical. I don’t want to have to replace the starter every year.

While pulling into a parking spot with my foot on the brake and preparing to stop, the car continued to move up over the curb and then began to accelerate even after I applied both of my feet pushing down on the brakes until I hit our condo building. The car and building received extensive damage, and although the car was not totaled it will cost over 7,000 dollars to repair. Personally I was not injured. The air bags did not imploy at impact. There were no warning messages or prior failures with the vehicle before this day. The car was taken to a body shop and not the dealer so we have not had the dealer look at the systems that broke down, but our insurance adjuster will be.

A well-known failure of the thermal control valve (tcv) occurred, which disabled many or most of the safety features on the car in addition to crippling the heat output in the cabin. Additionally, depending on which way the valve sticks, it could overheat the car and ruin the engine, or worse. Car is under 4 years old and repair estimate is nearly $1900. There is a technical safety bulletin https://static. Nhtsa. Gov/odi/tsbs/2022/mc-10222348-0001. Pdf that outlines a redesigned tcv.

Traveling on I-75 sb just outside atlanta, was in lane 2 of about 7 lanes. One car in lane 1, bumper was near my driver door, another truck in lane 4 or 5 approx 200' in front of us. We were in the front of a pack of vehicles. I had the cruise control set about 70, weather was clear, about 3 in the afternoon. With nothing in front of us and no warning, the car began flashing the red dash lights, the cluster flashed the red warning about braking, and the brakes were automatically applied with enough force to set the seat belt pretensions and we unweighted the seats. The car drastically slowed, I am unsure the slowest speed, I was attempting to override the braking by pressing the accelerator. The system complied with my command and the car sped back up. We were nearly hit from behind when the following cars attempted to brake and go around us. No physical damage occurred in the incident. The Subaru dealership in kennesaw attempted to recreate the problem without success. The diagnostic computer found no error codes in the vehicle. We have disabled the advanced safety systems of the Subaru to prevent any further unwanted braking.

Eyesight driver assist went out rendering safety features inoperable. Touch screen also blanked out so unable to adjust a/c, navigation,radio etc. Car had been on long distance all hiway drive and at 7 hours systems failed. Weather was in the 60s, overcast and it was in the afternoon. Pulled into rest stop and turned engine off then restarted but still failed. Drove 2 more hours and next rest stop systems came back after letting car sit off for 10+ minutes.

The windshield has spontaneously cracked on 4 separate occasions. Subaru denies this is a defect and claims all have been caused by rock chips. This is not true. The cracked windshield has caused the vehicle on numerous occasions to slam on its breaks while traveling at 55 mph or greater as it “senses” a collision. This has nearly caused 3 accidents so far.

Driver experienced an unexpected uncommanded sudden acceleration upon application of the braking system in the driveway, which caused a collision with the garage/house. The safety of the driver and other were put at risk. Significant damage to the house/garage occurred. This is a first time occurrence. Owner has not yet had the opportunity to have the vehicle inspected by dealer, independent service center, manufacturer, police or insurance rep due to timing of the accident. No warning lights message were displayed. Driver slowed the vehicle in anticipation of putting the vehicle in park when uncommanded brake release occurred, vehicle accelerated and struck the house. Reason for incident is unknown. Vehicle remains parked pending further inspection.

Yet to be diagnosed but possibly the cockpit control computer. Dealer service department has not been able to diagnose. No components have been replaced yet except for a software update that did not correct the issue. Safety systems all report as not functioning, these include all "eyesight systems";the air bags, automatic emergency braking, lane departure and lane keeping. Additionally all center console functions are not functional, including hvac and radio. The vehicle has been to the dealer twice where the problem could not be reproduced. No other inspection has been performed. No warnings or other messages appear prior to the failure. The failure persists for approximately 10 minutes, after which normal operation resumes. I write this following the fourth occurrence of the failure.