Battery draining. Bought car from dealership preowned with 25k miles. Owned it for 3 weeks and so far -Battery dead, jumped it, good for a day then dead again. -took back to dealership, said bad battery, replaced it, good for a week and a half then dead again -scheduling to go to a subaru dealership for diagnoses Ive read about the DCM on these vehicles trying to connect to 3g towers continously even when the car is off. The 3g towers are no longer in use in the USA. Subaru should have a software update to remedy this issue but have not found that thus far. Just a lawsuit over this issue.
2021 Subaru Ascent: battery drain or dead battery
6 of the 106 complaints about the 2021 Subaru Ascent describe battery drain or dead battery.
- owner complaints
- 6
- of this car's complaints
- 6%
- recalls
- 1
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall and 151 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below
Battery drain or dead battery by model year
What owners say
After 3 years the battery died completely and the car was unable to start, I replaced the battery with AAA and the next the day, it also died again. I was able to jump start the battery the next day and continued to use the vehicle. I have the battery for about a month and again the battery on the vehicle had drained where I was unable to start the car but I was able to jump start the car with a battery jump starter. There has been 3 occasions of battery just draining and I have a new battery installed. I called Subaru and they mentioned that there could be an issue with the back latch no closing which could drain the battery, however, the have confirmed that the back door does completely close and lock or it will just automatically come back up. I feel there is something wrong with the electrical system and AAA has confirmed with me the the alternator or the battery is functional.
The vehicle has a parasitic battery draw. I purchased a new gel cell (Redtop) battery, the most powerful one that fits the car, and was reimbursed by Subaru. The car battery still goes totally dead after about one week, even with occasional driving. I have to carry a jump battery in case I am traveling to insure that I can get the car started when I stop.
Car would not start in morning. @20,000 miles. Battery dead..not even trying to turn over..Had to get car jumped then all safety features went dead..looked on Subaru sight and it showed every safety feature disabled..I did not drive car till next day to bring to dealer..next day all features fine like nothing happened..Dealer found nothing wrong. Dealer tested battery and showed fully charged..
The battery died after 2 years and 15000 miles. I was with my whole family ( 2 months old, 2 and 4 years old) away from home. I was able to reach the dealership leaving my family in a store and they said that nothing was wrong with the battery. Next day the car wouldn’t start and they finally replaced the battery under my extended warranty. Today I discover that there is a class action settlement for older models of my car. I was advised to write a complain to you. Apparently they didn’t fix the problem with newer models either.
The battery went dead even though the car was parked in the garage and had been driven recently. AAA was called to jump start it. The vehicle only has 5k miles on it, so it shouldn’t be having battery problems. We are lucky this happened at home.
Service bulletins that may apply
- This Service Information Bulletin announces Service Manual updates for the diagnosis of hands-free calling...
- This announcement provides information on the connected services platform for Subaru EVs.
- This Service Information Bulletin has been developed to outline the steps for gathering basic but...
- This announcement provides information on DCM replacememts due to a parasitic draw.
- This announcement provides information on a new software update for the Midtronics Dss and DCA machines.
- This bulletin contains illustrations of exchange components and their manufacturer as well as a...
- This Bulletin provides a repair procedure for increased dark current and unintended battery discharge that...
- This announcement provides information on an enhancement of the TechShare CVT diagnostic assitance...
Related recalls
Electrical system: wiring: interior/under dash
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2019-2022 Ascent vehicles. The ground bolt that secures the ground terminal of the Positive Temperature Coefficient (PTC) heater may have been improperly fastened, which could result in melting of the ground terminal and surrounding components.
- Risk
- A melting ground terminal increases the risk of a fire.
- Remedy
- Owners are advised to park their vehicle away from structures and to avoid leaving the vehicle unattended while the engine is running. An owner who notices or smells smoke coming from the dash or driver's footwell area should immediately stop operating the vehicle and turn the ignition switch to the "Off" position. Dealers will replace the PTC heater ground bolts and if necessary, replace the ground wire and the connector holder, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed February 6, 2023. Owners may contact Subaru's customer service at 1‑844‑373‑6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WRL-22.
Recall number 22V907000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2021 Subaru Ascent battery drain
Is battery drain or dead battery a common problem on the 2021 Subaru Ascent?
6 of 106 owner complaints about the 2021 Subaru Ascent (6%) mention battery drain or dead battery. The model year with the most reports is 2019.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2021 Subaru Ascent?
There is 1 recall and 151 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2021 Subaru Ascent
CVT failure 12Transmission failure 12Lane assist 11Windshield crack 11Jerking 6Adaptive cruise 5Hesitation 5Slipping 5
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2021 Subaru Ascent?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history