What 805 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 Subaru Outback Wilderness

INFOTAINMENT SYSTEM IS FAULTY. I HAVE NO BACK UP CAMERA, BLUETOOTH, RADIO, CAN NOT PROGRAM CLOCK. SUBARU DEALER SAYS THERE IS NO FIX OTHER THAN TO REPLACE HEAD UNIT. I HAVE BEEN WAITING SINCE DEC 14TH FOR THIS REPLACEMENT UNIT. WHILE AT DEALER I ASKED FOR A LOANER AND WAS DENIED. SUBARU SAID THE CAR WAS SAFE TO DRIVE WHICH IS NOT TRUE SINCE THEIR BIGGEST SAFETY FEATURE ISNT ACCESSIBLE

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OPEN RECALL FOR FUEL GAUGE NOT BEING ACCURATE. I ALREAY RAN OUT OF GAS ONCE AND WHEN I TOOK THE CAR TO DEALER THEY SAID THERE WAS NO REMEDY TO MAKE SURE I ALWAYS HAVE A 1/4 OF A TANK OF GAS TO AVOID THIS IN THE FUTURE! THIS HAPPENED TO ME ON JULY 13, AND I HAVE BEE WAITING SINCE FOR SOLUTION

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WAS DRIVING ON HIGHWAY WHILE FUEL RANGE INDICATED ON DASH JUST HIT 30 MILES TO EMPTY AND CAR RAN OUT OF GAS. WAS NEVER INFORMED BY SUBARU OF ANY RECALL FOR THIS VEHICLE.

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I DROVE TO A NEARBY TOWN, INDICATOR SAID 40 MILES TO GO BEFORE EMPTY. PARKED. RESTARTED THE CAR AFTER HALF AN HOUR. MOST OF CENTER DISPLAY FUNCTIONS WERE DEAD. IT DID SHOW BACK-UP VIEW, BUT NO RADIO, NO MAP. DROVE TOWARD HOME AND GAS STATION. AFTER TWENTY MILES, ON CRUISE CONTROL AT 70MPH ON HIGHWAY, ENGINE SUDDENLY STARTED RACING AS THOUGH IT HAD DOWN SHIFTED, I BRAKED AND HEADED FOR THE SHOULDER. NO TURN SIGNALS, NO INDICATORS, NO EMERGENCY FLASHERS - IT SEEMED THAT THE COMPUTER CRASHED WHEN I RAN OUT OF GAS. AFTER ADDING GAS AND RESTARTING, ALL WAS NORMAL EXCEPT THE THE RADIO MEMORY HAD BEEN WIPED.

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 SUBARU OUTBACK. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTIFICATION FOR NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 18V773000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE) AND STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER FAILED TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE WITHIN A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME. THE DEALER (SUBARU OF SANTA CRUZ, 4100 AUTO PLAZA DRIVE, CAPITOLA, CA 95010) CONFIRMED THAT PARTS WERE NOT AVAILABLE TO PERFORM THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE. PARTS DISTRIBUTION DISCONNECT.

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 SUBARU OUTBACK. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH AT NIGHT, THE FUEL RANGE DROPPED AND THE VEHICLE LOST POWER AND SHUT OFF. THE CONTACT PULLED THE VEHICLE OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THE MANUFACTURER'S ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE WAS CALLED, BUT NO ONE ANSWERED. THE CONTACT CALLED THE POLICE FOR ASSISTANCE DUE TO THE DARKNESS. THE CONTACT CALLED TRIPLE A AND WAS PROVIDED SOME FUEL TO DRIVE HOME. TWO DAYS LATER, THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 18V773000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE). THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO GROOVE SUBARU (720-279-9409, LOCATED AT 5300 S BROADWAY, ENGLEWOOD, CO 80113) WHERE IT WAS CONFIRMED THAT THE PARTS WERE NOT AVAILABLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CALLED, BUT NO ONE ANSWERED THE PHONE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 12,500. ..*BF*JB *DT

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DASHBOARD TOLD ME I HAD 20 MILES WORTH OF FUEL LEFT WHEN SUDDENLY THE INDICATOR CHANGED TO A DASH AND THE CAR RAN OUT OF GAS. OCCURRED WHILE DRIVING 50 MPH ON A BUSY EXPRESSWAY, THANKFULLY IN THE SLOW LANE.

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CAR STALLED AND RAN OUT OF GAS WHEN THE SYSTEM SAID I HAD 20 MILES LEFT. I WAS 2 MILES FROM HOME/GAS STATION. THIS HAPPENED AT A STREET LIGHT ON A BUSY STREET. I HAD TO GET OUT AND PUSH THE CAR OUT OF THE WAY IN 5 LANES OF TRAFFIC.

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RAN OUT OF GAS WHEN GAUGE SHOWED 40 MILES LEFT - CAR LOCKED UP ON A 70MPH FREEWAY - REPORTED TO SUBARU ALMOST A YEAR AGO AND RECENTLY SAW WHERE A RECALL HAD BEEN INITIATED BUT CALLED SUBARU CUSTOMER SERVICE AND THEY HAVE NO IDEA WHEN THIS WILL BE RESOLVED EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE KNOW ABOUT IT FOR A YEAR - WHY IS THIS NOT A SAFETY ISSUE THAT THE NHTSA IS FORCING THEM TO FIX

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 SUBARU OUTBACK. WHILE DRIVING 35 MPH, THE FUEL GAUGE INDICATED 40 MILES REMAINING, BUT THE VEHICLE RAN OUT OF FUEL. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO A DEALER TO BE DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 8,000.

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OUR SYSTEM SHOWED 40 MILES TO EMPTY. LUCKILY WE WERE IN A TURN LANE COMING UP TO A TRAFFIC LIGHT AND THE CAR SHUT OFF/STOPPED RUNNING. TRAFFIC HAD TO GO AROUND US TO TURN AT THE LIGHT. SOMEONE STOPPED AND GAVE US 5 GALLONS OF GAS. WE WERE ABLE TO RESTART THE CAR AND GO TO A SERVICE STATION AND FILL UP.

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30 MILES LEFT AS INDICATED ON FUEL TANK, CAR ENGINE SHUT DOWN WHILE DRIVING ON ROAD AND CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP IN LEFT SIDE OF HIGHWAY, MY FAMILY WERE PASSENGERS IN MY CAR AND THIS COULD HAVE BEEN A FATAL SITUATION. A GOOD SAMARITAN HELPED US MOVE OUR CAR OVER TO SIDE OF ROAD OUT OF HARMS WAY. I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED IN SUBARU AND DO NOT TRUST THAT IT HAS THE BEST 'SAFETY' FEATURES IF IT IS THIS INACCURATE IN INFORMING ME OF MILEAGE! I CAN'T HELP BUT THINK WHAT WORSE OUTCOME COULD HAVE HAPPENED TO MY FAMILY. THANK GOD WE ARE ALL OK. DO BETTER SUBARU, FOR THE LIVES OF YOUR CUSTOMERS DRIVING YOUR VEHICLES AND THE SAFETY OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC.

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** 2018 SUBARU OUTBACK ** THIS HAS HAPPENED THREE TIMES** DRIVING CAR WHEN CAR SHUTS OFF COMPLETE LOSS OF POWER ENGINE TURNS OFF WITHOUT WARNING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS - SEEMS TO OCCUR WHEN THE LOW FUEL WARNING SYSTEM TURNS ON AT 1/4 TANK OF GAS. THIS 3RD TIME ALMOST GOT ME KILLED TRAVELING AT 45MPG WHEN IT HAPPENED TODAY INSIDE A MAJOR INTERSECTION. SOFTWARE / SENSOR FOR THE LOW FUEL SYSTEM? SOMETHING IS VERY SERIOUSLY WRONG. 1. IS THIS CAR SAFE TO DRIVE WITH A FULL TANK OF GAS? 2. HAS THERE BEEN OTHER COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS EXACT PROBLEM? 3. IS THERE A RECALL OR FIX ?

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NUMBER OF MILES SHOWED 40 UNTIL GAS WAS NEEDED- 8 MILES LATER WAS COMPLETELY OUT OF GAS ON MAJOR HIGHWAY- CONTACTED SUBARU SERVICE WHERE CAR WAS PURCHASED AND ASKED IF THERE WERE ANY ISSUES WITH THIS, HE SAID YES-- HE ACTUALLY SAID THE SAME EXACT SCENARIO-- WHERE SAID 40, AND APPROX. 8 MILES LATER COMPLETELY OUT OF GAS- HE TOLD ME THAT THEY HAD FUEL ENGINEERS LOOK AT THE CAR THAT WAS BROUGHT IN AND SAID THE ONLY WAY TO GET GOOD INFORMATION IS TO RE-SET TRIP A AND RE-SET TRIP B AFTER YOU FILL YOUR TANK-- SO IT CAN CALIBRATE. I HAD NEVER HEARD OF THIS BEFORE- THEY SHOULD COMMUNICATE THIS TO THEIR CUSTOMERS TO AVOID THIS HUGE SAFETY RISK. POLICE WERE CALLED TO US BROKEN DOWN ON FREEWAY TO ALERT TRAFFIC WE WERE SITTING ON SHOULDER- VERY UNSAFE AREA TO "RUN OUT OF GAS"- SUBARU SHOULD GET THIS GLITCH FIXED-- AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, COMMUNICATE TO PEOPLE THAT THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM. I HAVE ALSO CONTACTED SUBARU AMERICA TO LET THEM KNOW AND I HAVE OPENED A CASE. THEY WILL CALL ME BACK NO LATER THAN WEDNESDAY, OCT 10TH, 2018 WITH AN UPDATE. I ALSO WANTED THIS TO BE BROUGHT TO NTSB ATTENTION SINCE SUBARU SOUNDED LIKE THEY KNEW ABOUT IT, BUT DIDN'T EVEN TELL US WHEN WE PURCHASED THE CAR. CAR HAS ROUGHLY 4K MILES ON IT.

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 SUBARU OUTBACK. WHILE THE CONTACT'S WIFE WAS DRIVING 50 MPH, THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO MCCURLEY INTEGRITY SUBARU (LOCATED AT 9620 SANDIFUR PKWY, PASCO, WA 99301, (509) 412-7100) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE VEHICLE RAN OUT OF FUEL. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT WHEN THE FUEL GAUGE DISPLAYED 20 MILES TO EMPTY, THE FUEL TANK WAS ACTUALLY EMPTY. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE FUEL GAUGE WAS DEFECTIVE AND THE MANUFACTURER WAS WORKING ON A REMEDY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 2,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. *TT*JB

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MY GAS LIGHT WENT ON AND THE MONITOR SAID I HAD 60 MILES LEFT. WITHIN A COUPLE BLOCKS IT WENT TO 50 THEN 40 THEN 20 AND WAS OUT OF GAS. IT STILL SAID I HAD 20 MILES LEFT WHEN THE CAR WAS IN THE LEFT LANE OF A ROAD AND COMPLETELY WOULDN'T START. I WAS JUST GOING STRAIGHT ON A CITY ROAD. PEOPLE WERE HONKING AT ME AND I WAS SCARED SOMEONE WOULD HIT ME. THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED TO ME BEFORE. THEN SOME PEOPLE HELPED ME GET IT ACROSS THE 2 LANES AND ONTO THE SIDE. I LOCKED IT AND WENT FOR GAS. WHEN I CAME BACK. THE CAR WOULD NOT UNLOCK WITH THE KEYLESS ENTERY. I HAD TO TAKE OUT THE HIDDEN KEY AND OPEN IT. AND THEN WHEN I PUT GAS IN IT. IT STARTED NO PROBLEM. I WENT TO FILL UP AND IT FILLED UP AT 17 GALLONS. SO IT STILL HAD MORE THEN 2 GALLONS WHEN IT RAN OUT. I BROUGHT IT TO SUBARU, THEY LOOKED IT OVER FOR A FEW DAYS. CALLED THERE SPECIALISTS BUT SAID THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED AND I SHOULD JUST TRY TO KEEP THE GAS TANK AT FULL AND IT SHOULDN'T HAPPEN AGAIN. I FEEL FOR A 2018 NEW CAR THIS IS SCARY.

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RAN OUT OF GAS WITH 12 MILES REMAINING ON INDICATOR. CAR WOULD NOT START. HAD WE BEEN ON THE ROAD DRIVING IT WOULD HAVE CAUSED US TO STOP WHILE IN MOTION. FORTUNATELY, WE WERE AT THE SUBARU DEALER WHEN IT HAPPENED TO OUR BRAND NEW SUV. APPARENTLY THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM THAT IS CAUSED BY A DEFECTIVE FUEL CLUSTER THAT CALIBRATES THE AMOUNT OF MILES ONE HAS REMAINING. WE WERE TOLD THAT SUBARU KNOWS ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND IS MANUFACTURING/ REPLACING THE PART IF THEY ARE NOTIFIED THAT A PARTICULAR CAR HAS THE PROBLEM BUT IT WILL BE A MONTH BEFORE THE NEW PART IS SHIPPED TO OUR DEALER FOR INSTALLATION. UNFORTUNATELY, SUBARU HAS NOT NOTIFIED OWNERS OF THIS POTENTIAL PROBLEM AND WE COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING POSTED ON THEIR WEBSITE ABOUT THIS.

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DRIVING THE CAR ON I95 AT 60 M/H WITH THE GAS INDICATOR DISPLAYING 30 MILES RANGE, AND A 1/8 TANK LEFT, THE CAR GET TO A LOWER GEAR AND THE STALL. THE ENGINE GET A COMPLETE STOP, BUT I MANAGED TO GET TO THE RIGHT SHOULDER WITH NO HARM

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SUBARU OUTBACKS HAVE DEFECTIVE DTE (DISTANCE TO EMPTY) COMPUTER CODE THAT WILL RUN YOU OUT OF GAS WITH READINGS LIKE "30 MILES TO EMPTY" OR "40 MILES TO EMPTY" I FEEL THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AS THE GENERAL EXPECTATION IS EVERY CAR OUT THERE GETS YOU TO 0 AND HAS A RESERVE. I RAN OUT OF GAS IN MOTION ON A CITY STREET 2 MILES FROM A GAS STATION WITH "30 MILES TO EMPTY" DISPLAYED. SAT ON SIDE OF ROAD AT 1AM FOR 40 MINUTES WAITING FOR GAS. IMAGINE IF THIS HAPPENED TO SOMEONE IN A TUNNEL, IN THE LEFT LANE ON A BUSY 5 LANE HIGHWAY, ETC. THIS HAS BEEN COMPLAINED ABOUT ON A POPULAR OUTBACK MESSAGE BOARD HTTP://WWW.SUBARUOUTBACK.ORG/FORUMS/138-GEN-5-2015-PRESENT/482441-RUNNING-EMPTY-2-5-JUST-FACTS.HTML HTTP://WWW.SUBARUOUTBACK.ORG/FORUMS/138-GEN-5-2015-PRESENT/412218-I-RAN-OUT-GAS-GAUGE-HAS-NO-MERCY.HTML#POST4724098 HTTP://WWW.SUBARUOUTBACK.ORG/FORUMS/138-GEN-5-2015-PRESENT/442537-OUTBACK-RAN-ME-OUT-GAS.HTML . <--- THIS ONE IS ME HTTP://WWW.SUBARUOUTBACK.ORG/FORUMS/138-GEN-5-2015-PRESENT/427057-USING-MILES-TILL-EMPTY.HTML HTTP://WWW.SUBARUOUTBACK.ORG/FORUMS/138-GEN-5-2015-PRESENT/461266-RAN-OUT-FUEL-20-MILES-LEFT.HTML HTTP://WWW.SUBARUOUTBACK.ORG/FORUMS/138-GEN-5-2015-PRESENT/364505-MILES-LEFT-FUEL-GAUGE.HTML#POST4173305

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I WAS DRIVING MY CHILD TO SCHOOL ON A RAINY MORNING IN TRAFFIC,20-30MPH ON A STRAIGHT ROAD. THE CAR STALLED AND THEN THE ENGINE SHUT OFF. (I AM LUCKY I DID NOT GET REAR ENDED; OTHERWISE I WOULD BE IN THE HOSPITAL GETTING MY CHILD CHECKED OUT.) ROLLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD; AS CLOSE AS I COULD GET.. SHIFTED INTO PARK AND RESTARTED THE CAR. STARTED RIGHT UP. I HAD A QUARTER TANK OF GAS AND DROVE THREE MILES AFTER THAT AND STILL HAVE ENOUGH TO GET TO A GAS STATION; SO IT IS NOT A FUEL SUPPLY ISSUE. THIS IS NOT SAFE!!! THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE!!!! THIS IS A NEW CAR PURCHASED THREE MONTHS AGO!!! CALLED THE DEALER'S SERVICE REP AND ASKED IF THIS COULD BE PART OF THE ISSUE I AM HAVING WITH FUEL ECONOMY. I AM AVERAGING 16.1 MPG. MY 2007 MERCURY MILLAN PREMIER AWD AVERAGED AROUND 22.8MPG: 10 YEARS OLDER AND LARGER ENGINE (3.0 VS 2.5). I ALSO LET HIM KNOW THAT AT LOW SPEEDS THE CAR IS FIGHTING AS IF IN THE WRONG GEAR AND LOW TORQUE. ALSO THERE IS NOT A SMOOTH COAST, IT IS ALMOST AS IF THE CAR IS BRAKING BY BEING IN THE WRONG GEAR. I HAVE HAD A TOYOTA, DODGE, FORD, MERCURY, HONDA, AND HYUNDAI IN THE FAMILY AND NEVER HAD PROBLEMS LIKE THIS. THIS IS NOT SAFE!!! THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE!!!! THIS IS A NEW CAR PURCHASED THREE MONTHS AGO!!! I ALSO ASKED HIM IF THIS HAS SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE HEAD UNIT WHICH IS RIDDLED WITH PROBLEMS. HOW DID SUBARU LET A CAR LIKE THIS OFF THE LINE? I NOW FEAR USING THIS CAR. I DO NOT WANT TO BE IN A FATAL ACCIDENT AND I DO NOT WANT TO INTRODUCE FATAL RISKS TO MY FAMILY. I AM TOLD THAT IF THE PROBLEM CAN NOT BE REPRODUCED AT THE DEALER, THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN DO. TRANSLATION: CAN'T FIND THE PROBLEM, CAN'T FIX THE PROBLEM, I AM STUCK WITH A DEATH TRAP.

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