What 891 owners told NHTSA about the 2020 Subaru Outback Wilderness

I was parking my car slowly until it suddenly accelerated. I hit a wall and car got totaled.

NHTSA ODI 11725434

Gas cap was not secured overnight. The next day every ADAS function both safety and convenience was disabled and their lights were on. Users guide said car should recover after a few miles of driving. 100 miles and multiple restarts later it did not. It was taken to the dealer where they cleared the error for free. Poor design that a loose gas cap could cause a collision due to lack of ADAS. Dealer said it is a known condition with all Subaru models.

NHTSA ODI 11689824

I was driving to a medical appointment in Ann Arbor Mi, and was in the area where [XXX] has a few big turns in the road .... like at ... [XXX] .All of he sudden the car started to accelerate a little on the turn so I attempted to brake the vehicle and I could not feel the brake pedal. I slowly moved into the right lane and frantically trying to slow the car down. I still could not feel the brake pedal and I believe when I hit the speed control off is when it slowed down and I was able to finally brake the car. It all happened in a matter of 10-20 seconds I would guess and it was absolutely terrifying. I have on occasion used the speed control to slow down the vehicle and wonder if that might have some connection. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11686503

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.

NHTSA ODI 11634070

After completing an OTA software update the screen would not load and entered continuous buffering disabling all environmental and safety functions.

NHTSA ODI 11627582

ACC eye sight is intermittent. It normally fails within 5 minutes of operations and just turning the car on.

NHTSA ODI 11611611

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

NHTSA ODI 11607657

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 (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11602880

A small horizontal crack recently appeared on my Outback's front windshield while it was sitting in a garage overnight. The crack started from the passenger side and has now crept over to the middle of the windshield. Previous to this incident, the car had been sitting unused for over a month, so there was no opportunity for rocks or other debris from the road to cause the crack. This is the second time that the windshield has developed a crack out of thin air. I have replaced the windshield at least five times since owning the vehicle, in addition to having small chips from rocks repaired twice. These incidents are potentially dangerous and could possible interfere with the vehicle's automated systems such as collision detection and cameras.

NHTSA ODI 11592368

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 [XXX] that outlines a redesigned TCV. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11560041

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.

NHTSA ODI 11556399

Per Subaru there is something wrong with the Cockpit Control Module (CCM) that is causing a constant / parasitic draw on the battery. This results in the battery being dead within 4 hours, leaving us constantly stranded. Because the CCM also controls the electrical system, many of the safety features (auto breaking, lane departure, etc) turn off randomly. This is the diagnosis from our local Subaru dealership: COCKPIT CONTROL MODULE IS DRAWING 2 AMPS. WITH COCKPIT UNPLUGGED THERE IS STILL A 1 AMP DRAW. WILL NEED TO REPLACED CCU THEN FIGURE OUT WHERE THE OTHER 1 AMP DRAW IS. UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE WITH MULTIPLE SYSTEMS DRAWING I have opened a case with Subaru of America, but with no resolution.

NHTSA ODI 11555354

I was driving and car accelerated without warning. Hit partially open garage door, only stopped after hitting and damaging back wall of garage. Significant damage to car, items in the garage and garage wall. There was no warning whatsoever. As of yet the car has not been assessed as to the cause of the malfunction.

NHTSA ODI 11545058

I purchased the lease for the vehicle in January 2020. I first notified Subaru in Austin of an obvious "glitch" with the computer operating system in April 2020. The "glitchy" OS challenges came and went, I would notify Subaru and they would remedy the issue with a "patch" update at the service center. On April 29 2022 a clear night and a suitably clean vehicle, the RAB system completely failed to recognize/notify/respond to a mailbox behind me, upon impact the mailbox broke the rear windshield. on June 28 2022 the vehicle fails to start, and is "surging" completely draining a new jumper box, and then promptly burning it out, the box will no longer operate. Put in a new battery(#1), make an appointment for service on the vehicle. The dealership replaces the battery(#2), computer updates are completed. Vehicle goes to the body shop for the rest of the work to be completed. 28 days later, I arrive to pick up my vehicle, all work is complete. However the vehicle will not start (again) Auto body shop replaces the battery(#3).on 9/23/2022 after dark, my Subaru Outback 2020 Limited, stops and puts its Parking break on., all dials spike, then dies, rear hatch signal goes off continuously, regardless of its actual state of open/close. The vehicle refuses to jump with a new jumper box. Outback 2020 is successfully jumped by a newer vehic. New battery installed(#4). 9/29/2022 another appointment at Subaru service center to look at my vehicle, they swap out the battery(#5) and update computer. Upon pickup vehicle is without trailer lights, 3 airbag lights on, ABS light on/off. 10/17/2022 appointment at a different service center for an Oil change service, 10/18/2022 diagnostic check appt, 3 blown fuses found. 11/16/2022 Austin service, found many lost comm. codes.- reprograms , engine control module. Outback 2020 intermittently has problems opening and closing hatch/windows, display loading issues, many warning/hazzard lights & signals on/off (from April 2022- present day.)

NHTSA ODI 11536710

While driving my Subaru Outback, I encounter a problem where the Starlink Multimedia system abruptly goes black. Shortly after, the driver information center also goes black. Although the car continues to run, the cruise control, if engaged, and the EyeSight safety system shuts off as well. Both systems then undergo a reboot.

NHTSA ODI 11525777

-The windshield has cracked in the same place for no apparent reason. -The cracked windshield can affect the use of the safety systems built into the windshield. -I'm not sure how this can be "reproduced" as we are talking about a broken windshield although the windshield has been fixed already once and now, the second break has occurred. -Not inspected but replaced once. It is currently broken and can be inspected again if need be. -The first one appeared in August 2022, the second in May 2023

NHTSA ODI 11523317

A crack has spontaneously appeared at the base of my windshield after no apparent damage. The crack is spreading across my windshield and will affect my adaptive cruse control and automatic emergency breaking if it interferes with the Subaru eye-sight system at the top of my windshield. I have not taken the vehicle in for service but I did see this was an issue that lead to recalls on previous outback models but not currently a recall for the 2020 Subaru Outback. I do not have any current warning lamps or messages.

NHTSA ODI 11518941

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the Eyesight System inadvertently deactivated, causing the power steering to fail and the vehicle to go into Limp Mode. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle to correct the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 121,000.

NHTSA ODI 11494086

Blind spot warning does not turn on when there is actually a vehicle truly in the blind spot. Visibility in new cars via windows is blocked and insufficient, and the blind spot warning does not activate at the right time. Drivers could easily cut someone off with less than a foot in front of the car in the blind spot, because there is no proper warning. Warning only turns on when vehicle could hit another car when switching lanes. Not before when visibility is limited by vehicle structure and mirrors. Also, touch screens are a huge hazard in cars. Having to look at a touch screen in order to control air or other items is a huge safety hazard. Tactile controls and buttons are much safer. Not to mention touch screens and screens do not work during heatwaves. Car sitting in temperatures above 80 degrees, have major issues with computer screens working. Forward collision and driver monitor warning is also a hazard. Forward collision warning occasionally turns on when there is fog or smoke. Additional warnings distract drivers from actually looking at the road. Driver monitor warning turns on when looking through turns, causing drivers to be distracted and look at why the vehicle is beeping at them instead of paying attention to where they are driving.

NHTSA ODI 11482205

The car set overnight (was fine) next AM no electrical. Everything locked except driver's door and passenger door. No battery charge at all. Everything DEAD.

NHTSA ODI 11479466

I was driving in a residential neighborhood at low speed, about 20 mph. I slowed down because I needed to park at the curb, and also I was approaching a large speed bump. This was one of the wide, flat ones. I pulled over to the right curb a couple of car lengths before the speed bump, preparing to park. I went over the bump, accelerating a tiny bit to get over the bump. I was going maybe 10 miles an hour. As I came down off the bump, or shortly after that, the accelerator pedal moved down away from my foot. I felt the pedal move down and away so that my foot was no longer touching it. At the same time, the engine speed surged (I heard it rev), and the car lurched forward for a second or two. I put my foot on the brake and also saw the obstacle detection on the instrument panel and saw the red lights and heard the beeping, and the car stopped moving. I don’t know whether I braked first or the car did. I was still about 2 car lengths away from a parked car in front of me when my vehicle stopped. I took my vehicle to a dealership the next day. They performed diagnostics but were unable to find anything wrong with it.

NHTSA ODI 11469946

Two issues. Main cabin computer reboots randomly. This causes other safety systems, Eyesight, to stop working until the device boots back up. This is 2020 and "fix" / update for cockpit control module wasn't available until Feb. 2021.Thsi did not fix the problem. Dealership updated cockpit control module again in Dec 2021 and yet again in Jan. 2022. This issue is still ongoing and I've learned yet another software fix came in April 2022. Issue #2 - Open recall for CVT Chain guide breakage dated Dec 15, 2021. Over six months and no fix. Transmission is getting worse and poses a potential safety issue.

NHTSA ODI 11469019

Since we have owned the car since Feb 2020, we have had many dead batteries and the Subaru dealership 100+ miles away has replaced our battery at least 4 times. We live in rural Wyoming and need a reliable car for driving in the winter months when it can get below zero. We have jumped the battery numerous times but sometime the electronics don't work correctly like cruise control, dash warnings, windows, airbags, etc. We are always taking a chance driving it the 100+ miles from our residence to the nearest Subaru dealership in Ogden, UT. Even after driving it over 100 miles the battery will not charge up because it is damaged and we have to get a new battery from the Subaru dealership. We are averaging about 12,000 miles yearly travel; however, sometimes the car is not driven at all for a few days. If we don't drive the car at least every other day, we will have a dead battery. We are afraid one of the cars numerous safety systems won't work after jumping the battery and driving the car. The date 09/29/2021 was the last time we had the battery replaced. We disconnect the battery now so the car doesn't drain the battery. Other dates were 03/17/2021, 06/21/2021, 07/23/2021, and 09/29/2021.

NHTSA ODI 11465003

Infotainment system went into a continuous boot loop where screen went blank then subaru bootup screen appeared, then menu started to load then process repeated. During this process the Eyesight driver assistance system would produce an error saying all of it's functions were disabled while the infotainment system was rebooting. Also the display in center of the dashboard that shows vehicle info was randomly showing scrambled text while the infotainment system rebooted. This has happened multiple times, appears to happen when the vehicle has been on for several hours and is warm so it is hard to reproduce.

NHTSA ODI 11459721

Head unit shuts off while driving with no warning, and no clear cause. All safety features shut off including Eyesight and rear brake assist (shows as off in instrumental panel). It has happened multiple times in the past several months ( at least seven times) Head unit then appears to restart while underway, as if I had just entered and started the vehicle. Contacted dealer who said “the radio sometimes shuts off”. I explained that it was the entire head unit and safety features. It was simply left with them saying they have know of it happening, but no action or follow up was recommended. Time of incident is an estimate. Electronics seem to be slow to start when vehicle is first started. Was not able to get photos while driving.

NHTSA ODI 11457251