Problems with 2015 Subaru Outback ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

My car has a dead battery. i just replaced the battery in november 2018 and it is already dead. this also happened in november 2018 and when i brought it to the dealer they said everything was fine with the battery and they could not find anything wrong. the car runs for a few days and then the car battery dies again. i have the battery swapped out for one with a higher cca. this battery i bought in november 2018 has no power as of february 2020 which is too short of a lifespan. there must be something in the car draining the battery and subaru does not want to fix it.

We have owned the vehicle since may 2015 and had a dead battery 4 times with no apparent reason. we have replaced the battery each time. subaru doesn't seem to admit there is an issue.

This is approximately the 5th time i have had to have my battery jumped within the last two years. no visual drain (no lights left on for example) is suspected. vehicle had been in use on various trips prior to car not starting. i have key fob and couldn't even open the back hatch to get tools out of car. when car was fairly new, had problem where key fob could not start the car (happened three times) but felt that was an elusive key fob problem. now i am not sure what problem is but i am suspecting there is some sort of short or system drain on battery that has surfaced. vehicle was in driveway, parking lot and in parking space on street when these lapses occurred. reading online about numerous similar problems with dead battery and suspicious electrical drainage of batteries. most recent problem happened 11/29 and again 12/4. car was in garage (not used) between 11/29 and 12/4.

A supposed gas cap seal caused 20 icons to flash constantly upon my dash. the car had been sitting in a parking garage for two days prior to the incident

Vehicle would not start. after jumping the battery vehicle started, aaa performed roadside testing and determined the battery and alternator are working properly and are sufficiently charged. car would not start for unexplained reasons. previous service history leads me to believe there is an ongoing electrical issue with this vehicle. previously the airbag light would frequently illuminate. dealership stated it was due to electrical interference and that nothing was wrong.

Safety issue: car horn does not work (no sound) when driving straight ahead and steering wheel is straight. for horn to work i must turn the steering wheel either to the right to the 2:00 o'clock position and beyond or to the left to the 10:00 o'clock position and beyond.

Hello, my windshield broke about 6 months after purchasing the vehicle. i don't know how or why. it was just broken one morning when i went out to my car. i figured a rock or something hit it. there was no recall at the time and so i had it replaced with a oem windshield. my second windshield just broke a couple of weeks ago while changing my wipers you can see where the ceramic wiper heater delaminated inside of the windshield. it turned bright red. i have owned alot of cars and never seen a windshield that is so fragile. i have changed many, many wiper blades and i know what a quality windshield is. i set the wiper blade holder down on the windshield gently and it cracked, the crack grew across the windshield in a day or so. ridiculous. these windshields run about 500 bucks and should be better quality. i also have electrical problems where my car clock will not set... currently. it took them 3 years to figure out the steering retaining pin was broken even though i was complaining about it since i bought the car. the rear gate stopped opening and they had to replace the struts on a 3 year old car. there is something wrong with the front end but my dealer said "wait until it gets worse" can you believe that? thanks,

My vehicle has had repeated dead battery problems. in feb the dealer said i needed a new battery and charged me $174. on 5/20/19 my battery was dead. i had it jumped and then drove over 40 miles. on 5/22/19 it was dead again. the dealer said i don't drive enough. many others have clearly had the same problem. i think i have a lemon.

I've had my 2015 outback for 3 years now (2020 now) i have had to replace the battery every year. the first year i believed it was time for a new battery, within 6 months my car died while i was driving into a parking lot. the entire electrical system shut down and i had to manually move it. my mechanic took apart my engine and discovered loose seals that had allowed many parts to rust over including broken brackets and a torque converter. warranty won't cover any rust but did cover the $84 broken seal. i spent close to $3,000 on repairs and a new battery then. i was initially quoted from the dealership $6k. it has been 11 months and i left my car alone for 3 days and the battery is completely dead once again.

I have had 3 radios replaced in my 2015 outback, since 12-8-17 problems include , navigation going out, the siriusxm going out, now the replacement unit( both remanufactured) has a 'chirp' sound coming out of it when driving down the road on all channels. very distracting as you look down at the dash to check for warnings, taking your eyes off the road.this replacement unit is less than a week old( replaced on 7-26-18. subaru customer service contacted 8-1-18. first noticed on 7-29-17.

My car was parked at a pier. got into car and would not start. did not seem like a battery issue, however, as it sounded as if it would start to turn over, but then just clicked off. then i pushed the button to the driver's seat window and it got stuck half way up, but the other windows were okay at that time. then the wheel locked up and the break would not budge. then after trying to turn the car on again, the other windows stopped working. each time before trying to start it again, i waited a few minutes. then after trying to start the car again, all the locks froze and we were stuck inside the vehicle! inside locks and lever did not work! luckily, the driver's seat window was stuck half way down, so i took my manual key out of the access key, and stuck my hand and arm out the window to open the car from the outside. it was also luck that my friend was with me, as she had to pull the inside knob at the same time (as i could not reach it) so i could open the door. then 2 men walked by and offered their assistance. where able to jump start the car and get it going. the problem still was not solved, however, as now my parking break was stuck on and i could not turn it off. then i inadvertently turned the car off, and it miraculously turned right back on and all software deficiencies were cleared so i was able to drive home. this all happened over a period of 5 hours, during which time i had called aaa for a tow, my ex-husband for a ride (as aaa would not allow my dog to ride in the tow truck) and i was 1hr 20 min from home which as the evening crept in, was slowly becoming an unsafe area and we were getting more and more scared. what if i had been alone? what if my window was not half way down? what if i had broken down in an unsafe place from the get go? this car is unsafe to drive!

Battery periodically goes dead overnight

The car would stall when coasting to a stop light or stop sign a few times and have been back to the dealer and can't replicated the problem. this is a dangerous situation and can cause an unsafe and huge accident with my family. the car would die while in drive and sometimes can't be restarted. it's happening again and afraid to drive the car since the dealer will say nothing is wrong with the car. it looks like it's related to idle being low or the cvt acting up when taking the foot off the gas pedal and try to accelerate from a dead stop or coasting to a stop. this happened a few times during factory warranty window.

The infotainment system freezes up about every other day and this has been happening again for the last month. rear backup camera stays on at times. screen freezes and hard knob controls of infotainment system will not work when touch screen is frozen. this is the second module that has been installed due to these issues and problems continue.

I'm writing on behalf of my brother, who is disabled. the battery in his 2015 subaru outback has been replaced 2 or 3 times sine he purchased it brand new. this is a serious safety issue for him. he does not leave anything on in the car ; lights, radio, etc. the dealership has replaced them so far but i'm concerned about what may happen in the future. one time the car wasn't driven for a few days and when he went to start the car,it didn't. another time he brought the car through the car wash and stood outside the vehicle with the car off but ther radio on while talking to someone he knew. when he got back in the car it wouldn't start. he was unsure if the battery was replaced a third time. with the current weather trend in connecticut (teens, single digits, below zero with the wind chill. prior to owning this car, he never replaced a battery in any of his other cars. i have a vehicle with over 138k miles on it and never replaced the battery. from what i've read online, this is an issue for many people. it is time the nhtsa contacts subaru to fix this issue. my brother is mobile but he can't move quickly. if he got stuck in the cold weather without heat from his car it would not be a good reflection on subaru or the nhtsa. thank you for taking a close look at this issue.

Purchased in august 2014. yesterday i put the 3rd battery in the car. this seems excessive and may indicate a problem with draw on the battery during down-time. charging system checks fine and also checked fine at the point of replacing the battery the other times.

Rear door hatch randomly does not open, whether i press the button on it, the button inside the care, or the key fob. this happens almost every day, and always when it is raining or has rained. the driver's door will always open (though never the passenger door) with the key fob in proximity. you can hear that the back hatch unlatches, but does not raise up. cascade subaru in ohio has not been able to fix it so it works as it should. this vehicle was preowned, bought from the dealer, and exhibited this problem from the first day we owned it.

The back up display screen becomes unusable as a result of the touch sensitive sensors becoming visible, thus interfering with the rear back up camera image. it is especially dangerous in bright sunlight making the rear back up camera useless. it also impacts the ability to read any of the controls on the screen, however not being able to identify objects when backing up we believe is a serious issue. the dealer has been great and has replaced two of them at no charge. however this is clearly a defect in the touch sensitive screen.

2015 subaru outback. consumer writes in regards to defective voice recognition system in vehicle. *ld updated 10/04/2017*js

At temperature 48 f, sat in stationary car for 30 min with radio on, lights on. battery ran all the way down. had to get a jump. at temperature 36 f, sat in stationary car 20 min. with radio off, lights off. battery ran all the day down. had to get a jump. subaru says that battery tests normal on gr-8 test and that current draw is normal at this time .010a-.027a. i'm concerned that the vehicle battery is not equipped to support its electrical needs. could key system be a factor? subaru would not do anything beyond the above tests. there are other reports like this on internet sites. my confidence in the vehicle is eroded.

Technician and service advisor informed me that a 80 pin connector that controls the head system had caught on fire and fused two connectors together. i used the hvac system on my way home from work and parked the vehicle in the garage.if this happened in the garage it could have resulted in a catastrophic house fire.

After being parked and unused for as few as 3 days, the battery drains and the car will not start. this has happened on two occasions. several other owners of 4 cylinder 2015 outbacks have reported this issue at http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/138-gen-5-2015-present/344506-dead-battery-2016-a.html

When i pull the express window switch to lift my driver side window, it will go all the way up and then come down about halfway. it will not let me raise the window unless i move the switch down to lower the window. i think the first time it did it was around may, 2016. by july, it was doing more and more often, and the passenger side was also doing the same thing. i took it to the dealer on july 26 and they told me they had to reprogram it. they said if it does it again, just hold the switch up for 5 seconds and that should reprogram it again. that did not help. both my windows are doing it more often now. when i go back to dealer to have my windshield fixed, i will let them know that my power windows are still not working properly. this problem occurs while i am driving or stationary. it does not do it all the time, but it does it enough times that it is problematic.

Purchased the 2015 outback in sept. 2014. took to back to dealership service dept. october. 24, 2014 because of loud popping noise around windshield especially when bluetooth phone connected. they could not find any problems. popping noise around windshield continued from time to time. took back to dealer july 29, 2015 for popping noise around windshield and poor radio am reception. they replaced the radio but am radio reception still not great. got in the outback on nov 17, 2015 and there was a 5" crack on the bottom of the windshield slightly right of the center. a couple of weeks before this i was driving and heard a very loud popping noise. it made me jump as i thought the windshield was going to shatter but nothing happened. i had received a letter from subaru about windshield cracking problems so i contacted the dealership. i took it in so they could take a picture. at that time i also reported problems with the defroster not keeping the windshield clear especially on rainy days and nights. this problem with the defroster has occurred several times and it was i the lower portion of the windshield. i thought the subaru had electrical l issues because of the popping, poor am radio reception and the defroster. now the windshield! this is my first subaru and possibly last if the problems persist. all of the incidents happened while driving but when i discovered the crack it was parked in the garage. crack us now about 9".

Two problems. 1. replaced windshield three times in 15 months. two were original subaru branded windshields. original and industry replacement windshield are too brittle and thus unsafe. any little pebble chips them and they always have a long crack within a few hours. 2. radio system does not always function properly. at times it scrolls down and we are unable to change channels or adjust the volume. the dealer was made aware of the problem in july and would replace it since it is under warranty. supplier has not responded to send part after four months. subaru is non responsive to our concerns.

2015 subaru outback 2.5i limited - monday 6 july 2015 - while driving, the check engine light, collision prevention off light, line warning off light, and x-mode light messages displayed. i had not disengaged the collision prevention or line warning lights and had not engaged the x-mode feature. there was no message indicating no brake lights. made appointment for thursday morning 9 july. based on service advisor's advice that it was ok to drive the car until i brought it in, i drove the car for two days with no brake lights. (discovered this when my wife followed me to the dealer.) there should be a message to alert the driver brake lights are not operable. after service appointment thursday (flashed computer to clear codes), noticed the vehicle was sluggish. while driving at 60 mph friday afternoon 10 july sluggishness continued to increase, gear shifting became erratic, then the collision prevention off light and line warning off light messages displayed - but no check engine light. shortly thereafter the vehicle totally failed to maintain speed or accelerate. coasted off the exit ramp and called for a tow truck. do not know whether brake lights were operable while this was occurring. i am aware there is a recall wqs-54 on the eye-sight system (which we showed the dealer service advisor). having no way to know if brake lights are operable is a severe safety hazard. i have not received any notification from subaru regarding this recall. updated 11/14/2017*cn

We stopped to have lunch and 30 minutes later the car battery as dead or so it seemed as it wouldn't turn over. we had to call highway safety to come and he jumped it off. we got some an hour later and then we went to our son's house for another hour and when we tried to start it again it was dead. our son sorta rocked the car from side to side and then it would crank. on our wy home we stopped at the grocery store and got milk and then it was dead again. a man jumped it off again. next day as we were taking the car to our subaru dealer it started right up. still we took it on in to our midland, tx dealer and they could find nothing wrong! we are elderly 87 and 83 and can't take much more of this kind of trouble. (nothing is wrong) we sat 3 hours in the sun on sat as we waited for road side service. please help. *tr

We recently purchased a new 2015 subaru 3.6 r outback (currently less than 600 miles) and the srvd (blind spot & rear cross traffic detection) system keeps malfunctioning. this happens when the vehicle is started and does not go away when driving. a small yellow " i " icon displays in the instrument cluster but is easy to overlook since there is no audible warning. the system starts working again if the car is stopped, and the engine is turned off and on - until of course the next random failure. this is a case of a "false negative" error, because the the side blind-spot mirrors indicate that the sides are clear to pass, when they may be not. it would have been preferable with a "false positive" error, namely the side blind-spot mirrors indicate that the sides are not clear to pass even if they are! what is truly alarming is that the dealer was not able to replicate the problem codes even after keeping the car overnight for further test drives. since my family has come to rely on this safety system it is potentially a very serious hazard. i hope subaru takes this matter seriously and (unlike toyota) alerts all their customers immediately before it is too late, and comes up with a fix asap.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 subaru outback. the contact stated that there was a chemical odor in the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer to be inspected; however, the mechanic was unable to determine origin of the odor. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vin was not available. the approximate failure mileage was 1,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 subaru outback. the contact stated that while the vehicle was on, the front window defroster caused the front windshield to crack. the crack was located in the middle of the windshield and extended upward. also, the contact indicated that the plastic exterior panel near the window melted. the cause of the failure was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 3,400...updated 06/09/15*bf updated 9/28/2017*cn

I have had 3 intermittent start up issues when the temperature is below 0 degrees on my new 2015 outback. it occurs after a short trip, less than 10 miles. when i went back to try and start the car the first time the door is open bell chimed, but the car would not start up.the heater, radio and other electronics were not showing on the screen. the third time the car key would not even turn in the ignition. i left the key in the ignition and 10 minutes later the car would start. being stranded in below 0 conditions is a scary proposition! i have read on the subaru.org thread that there is a relay switch issue. *tr

I warmed the car up and drove to shoprite. twenty minutes later i returned to the car to put the stuff away to go home. when i pressed the button to start the car only the radio started and the message flashed keyless start up deactivated see manual. i saw the manual could, just about understand it, did what it told me nothing changed. i called roadside assistance at subaru and the lady said it was my battery even though i told her what the message said on the screen. she sent someone to jump the battery .when he arrived 50 minutes later the car started perfectly. i called subaru service at my dealership ,that i have used since 1979. the person i spoke to said he knows nothing about it. i looked on line at the subaru forum and found others experiencing the same or similar message. i am including their website http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/66-problems-maintenance/220162-2015-outback-not-starting. i want to know if the car resets itself. no one can tell me at subaru (glannzmans) i have driven subaru since 1979 and they started all the time. this is the eyesight model supposedly really safe but i do not know when i leave my house if the car will start . i makes me feel not very safe. *tr

Two issues; the similarly reported electrical stop. started car on cold morning, drove short distance, dropped kids off at school. went to restart, and car was completely dead. had to jump it. second issue; burning oil smell in cabin. oil level was fine, and smell not coming from tail pipe. took car to shop today for the oil smell, and i told them about the electrical stop. they said the electrical issue is related to needing to replace 4 relays. the oil smell, however, is due to a bad crankcase seal that they said failed most likely due to the cold. i found similar reports on subaruoutback.org/forums/

Two incidents related to the ignition/electrical system for this car happened during a second start after a short trip in cold weather. both incidents occurred in temperatures at or below 5 degrees fahrenheit. the car started and ran normally, then after i drove for short trip (between 5 and 10 minutes long) i parked the car, turned it off and left it for about 5-10 minutes. for the first incident: the car would not start. the accessories, including the heat/fan system and radio worked, but the car would not crank. the dashboard "security immobilizer" indicator flashed as if the key was not in the ignition. after leaving the key in the "on" position for 5 minutes, all of the dashboard lights briefly illuminated and the car was able to start again. the second incident: the car started, but the accessories, including the heat/fan system would not turn on. i was able to drive, but because there was no heat or fan, the windsheild soon began to fog-over, diminishing visibility, disabling the eyesight system, and forcing me to find a safe place to pull over. after the car ran for about 4 minutes total, the accessories turned on again. i have contacted both my dealer and subaru of america of this problem, and have not yet been advised of a solution other than to avoid short trips in cold weather. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 subaru outback. the contact stated that while driving at an unknown speed, the navigation voice commands failed to activate. as a result, the contact had to constantly look at the screen, which was a distraction. the vehicle was taken to a dealer. the contact was unsure about what needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired. the failure recurred and the vehicle was taken back to the dealer who diagnosed that all personal data needed to be cleared out as a temporary remedy. the technician stated that there was no remedy for the failure. the failure persisted. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 2,500.

After being parked outside overnight with temperatures below 0 degrees f, the vehicle started fine the following morning but had numerous warning lights illuminate (power steering, at oil temperature, among others) while idling in my driveway. vehicle warmed up for 5 minutes. once warmed up, owner turned the vehicle off and attempted to restart 20 minutes later. vehicle would not restart but other electrical components (lights, radio, etc) worked but the starter would not engage. vehicle towed to dealership for diagnosis of what appears to be an electrical problem. *tr

We took delivery of this vehicle on 1/2/2015. it is a 2.5 limited model with eyesight, navigation and keyless ignition. on the day of delivery, the entire electrical system failed and the ignition did not work. the car was returned to the dealer who checked the battery and found nothing wrong. a few weeks later, the same problem occurred. after five minutes, the problem resolved itself. the car was again taken to the dealer who indicated that the problem had been fixed (loose wire/fuse). today (2/16/2015), the electrical system partially failed. while the ignition worked and some warning lights illuminated (including the air bag warning light). the entire center panel of controls (radio, navigation, climate control, etc.) was disabled. we are concerned because the eyesight system controls braking, acceleration, etc. the air bag warning light illumination is also a concern. we have seen that other subaru owners are reporting similar chronic issues with their new similarly configured vehicles. *tr

In november 2014, i took delivery of a new 2015 subaru outback, 3.6 limited. the vehicle was equipped with the optional premium electronics package, and the eyesight collision avoidance system. after about three weeks of ownership, i started to experience random malfunctions with the key-less ignition, and the key-less entry systems. the ignition problems all involved engine start, and occurred in scenarios where the key-fob wasn't recognized. about the same time, the gps navigation system started to display erroneous locational data, and the associated 'starlink' touch screen system would freeze-up (become inoperable). as of today, i have posted six different videos to youtube to dramatically illustrate the problem. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mf_rumicqm . i have had the car back to the dealer five times for this problem, and it can't be fixed. i have also met with subarus, seattle zone service manager. in emails from subaru's corporate service officials, they refuse to acknowledge the problem exists, despite the videos. unofficially, the zone service manager acknowledged that some other owners are experiencing the same issue, which he believes is a systemic problem in vehicles with this option combination. he does not know of any solution. my concern is that the eyesight system can override driver commands involving braking, and engine throttle. will the problems with the gps and starlink touch-screens potentially create a dangerous malfunction of the eyesight system that creates an accident rather than mitigating it? *tr

Since the car was new, periodically when the vehicle is started,. the blind spot caution/waning system is disabled. this is confirmed by a caution light in the instrument panel. the only way to reactivate the system is to turn off the ignition and restart the engine. if the malfunction is not caught on starting the vehicle the system cannot be activated until the vehicle is stopped and the engine restarted. the problem has been ongoing for two years and 40,000 miles. every time the vehicle is brought in for service at daryl waltrip subaru in franklin tn the problem is pointed out to the service manager. every time i am told by the service rep that there is nothing wrong with the system but they have updated the computer. recently a relay in the system, part no. 87611al00b, was replaced. this has only exacerbated the problem. i have made multiple calls to subaru's customer care line and they have not been willing to help. multiple calls to the service manage at daryl waltrip subaru in franklin tn have gone unanswered and have not been returned. subaru customer care has supposedly contacted the service manager at daryl waltrip subaru requesting that he contact me, he has not. this is a continuing problem.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 subaru outback. the contact stated that while driving 70 mph, the engine seized as the keyless access system disabled warning light illuminated. the failure recurred twice. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. the technician diagnosed that there was a faulty connector in the wiring. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 1,000.

Accelerator suddenly became unresponsive resulting in complete slowdown to stop in traffic. had to shut off vehicle and restart numerous time to get to safe location. resulted in expensive fix and could have been disastrous if occurred during highway/heavy traffic situation. apparently was a sensor of some sort. happened a while ago, so date provided is approximate, but i just became aware of this site. *tr