2001 Subaru Outback transmission problems

Filed Sep 9, 2008 · Transmission · 75,000 miles · NY

Tl*the contact owns a 2001 subaru outback. While driving approximately 30 MPH, the contact heard a loud clicking noise and then the vehicle stalled. He noticed that the transmission had fallen out of the vehicle onto the road. The vehicle was towed to his residence. He is in the process of notifying the dealer to determine the cause of the failure. The failure and current mileages were 75,000.

Filed Apr 9, 2008 · Transmission · 60,300 miles · RI

The automatic transmission park mechanism does not engage properly. With selector lever in "park " and car turned off and ignition key removed, the car rolls. In the early years, the car rolled only slightly and finally "engaged": now, the car rolls several feet and does not always engage, requiring use of the emergency brake for all parking. Because the problem is getting worse, we searched for repair & recall information. We found that although our model & year are on the recall list for this park mechanism, our VIN# is not.

Filed Feb 12, 2008 · Transmission · 65,000 miles · CA

Starting around 62k miles, I heard a whining noise from the front of the car. The noise got louder and higher with wheel speed. When I took it to a mechanic, they diagnosed a bad differential bearing, and informed me that the recommended fix was replacement of the entire transmission, including both differentials. When I went to the dealer to confirm this, they quoted me $6,000-$8,000 for the repair. I tried to get some relief from subaru of america, since the powertrain warranty goes for 60k miles, but they were unwilling. This caused the value of my car to go to zero, since it's worth about $8,000 without the transmission problem.

Filed Jul 12, 2005 · Transmission · NC

I own a 2001 subaru outback. After hearing a whining noise in the front of the car, I took my car into my mechanic. He informed me that I probably needed to have the front differential replaced and referred me to the dealership. The dealership told me I needed the entire transmission replaced. Because the milage on my car was at 62,000 miles, the dealership would not honor my warranty because it only extended to 60k. Astounded that any car with only 62k miles on it would need its entire transmission replaced, I appealed to subaru customer services and asked them to own up to the defect. They declined my request.

Filed Jun 27, 2005 · Transmission · MA

Clutch chatter: my clutch is chattering or shuttering when the car is cold or I am driving it for the first time in the day. This has been a problem since I purchased the vehicle 2 years ago.

Filed May 4, 2005 · Transmission · 61,500 miles · WA

Since day one, the clutch has shuddered at engagement when engine/drivetrain is cold. The tremors are violent enough to shake the entire vehicle disturbingly. This has been a nuisance and somewhat of a safety issue as you cannot accelerate quickly if necessary. Over the last 10000 miles or so, I've noticed a burning smell when engaging the clutch on an uphill start. Dealership says the clutch is slipping and will need replacement soon and I only have 61500 highway miles on the car! I've had plenty of cars go over 150000 miles with no clutch problems. Subaru has a definite design flaw in these hydraulic clutches that they are refusing to own up to! Regrettably, I may have purchased my last subaru.

Filed Sep 21, 2004 · Transmission · NJ · crash

Consumers child accidentally bumped the shift mechanism causing vehicle to roll backwards. The keys were not in the ignition when the consumers son bumped into the shift. It was verified that the safety interlock was not operating as designed. (a pin had come disconnected) *sc

Filed May 11, 2004 · Transmission · CA

My clutch shudders when cold and sometimes when warmed up. Been happening since around 20k miles. Took to dealer at 25k miles but they couldn't duplicate problem. They said bring it back when problem worsens. Brought back to dealer at 56k miles, and dealer said clutch was bad. Wouldn't cover it under warranty since they said it was "user wear". Yeah, right! I had to pay full cost to replace the clutch!! I think this should be investigated since many people with outback clutches have similar problems. I've look at outback model years 2000-2003 on the federal safety agency complaint web site and there are many incidences about the defective clutches.

Filed May 3, 2004 · Transmission · PA

While driving 50 MPH there was vibration in the center of the vehicle. Consumer took vehicle to the dealership, and technician determined rear differential unit needed to be replaced.

Filed Apr 23, 2004 · Transmission · 10,000 miles · IN

My 2001 subaru outback has a clutch shudder ( jutter ) that is reported to occur in all subaru models with the 2.5 ltr engine. There are inumerable consumer complaints about the problem and yet subaru burries its head in the sand and pretends there is no problem.