My car just dies on it's own while driving and it has trouble starting back up or somedays it just won't start up but after it dies while going down the road but after cranking it a few times it finally starts the check engine light comes on the traction control light starts flashing the brake light starts flashing and the cruise control light starts flashing I took it to a dealer and no codes were thrown in my car and after a few days of all the lights on and flashing they suddenly go away on their own this is extremely dangerous I can't control when or where this happens on the road I've almost been hit several times from this happening it does the exact same thing when I'm sitting still in park trying to start my car I get all the lights on the dashboard lit up and blinking on and off just like when it dies going down the road but nobody can find a cause or a reason why they say it's a manufacturer issue and subaru can't even figure it out
2011 Subaru Outback engine complaints
Page 2 of 4: complaints 11 to 40 of 93, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Vehicle is failing to shift correctly causing low acceleration and road safety issues. Cruise control and manual shift paddles not working, multiple warning lights on.
The car got overheated on 8/20/2022, because of the mechanical and design issue, specifically the coolant pipe and hose connection which got disconnected and blew up with force ejecting hot coolant liquid. The incident almost killed my husband. The hot liquid burned his abdomen and my face. He got transported by an ambulance, got admitted to a hospital, and got a 2nd-degree burner. This entire incident endangered my entire family members while we were far from home on a road trip adventure. My kids are under 10, and they were worried and crying. The incident definitely was reproducible, because, within a 3 hours window, the hose got disconnected 4 times, where the 4th time it hit my husband and me. A Yosemite Park Ranger was helping us inspect the car on the 3rd and 4th failure. For our safety, we have not been driving the car since 8/21/2022. So, the vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer.
A/C Compressor locks up, and serpentine belt flies off and stops power steering. Stalls due to this locking up.
The manufacturer, Subaru, admitted they have an issue with the ECU setting false error codes (P0128) when they issued a TSB, # 11-102-11R, calling for a software upgrade to fix the problem. This is an emissions related issue, in that it turns on various warning lights, including the SES light, making the car impossible to pass the routine smog check. So why should I, the owner, be required to pay the dealer to update the software for a problem Subaru has admittedly identified as a manufacturer error?
My 2011 Outback had a head gasket failure at 98,000 miles. The car overheated which forced me to pull over in heavy traffic. There was no prior warning or symptoms until the engine temperature warning light appeared. The car was repaired by the dealership at a hefty price. They said this problem is common on these vehicles, though no recall has been issued on the part. I filed a complaint with the manufacturer.
I have being experiencing shuddering and a few stalls on the highway and at red lights. While I have been able no maneuver through this, I find it do be extremely dangerous for myself and others, and in one instance it came really close to be a coalition.
While driving on expressway, to avoid a sudden accident, I was forced to hit my brakes. My vehicle turned completely off. I was in a near collision myself. The next day when coming to a complete stop at light, my vehicle again completely shut off.
Our 2011 subaru outback had a radiator leak with no warning signal. The car overheated, the radiator cracked, and we blew the headgasket. Only after the damage was done did a warning light come on. The car only has 100k miles and has been carefully maintained.
Vehicle shudders and stalls when stopping. Subaru admits there's a problem in a service bulletin but refuses to issue a recall.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 subaru outback. The contact stated that while driving 10 MPH approaching at a red light, the vehicle stalled and was almost rear-ended by another vehicle. The vehicle was restarted and driven to the residence. The contact stated that the failure persisted while driving to her residence. An unknown warning light was illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to bowser automotive - power of bowser (1001 clairton blvd, pleasant hills, pa 15236) and was diagnosed with a torque converter failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 97,000.
Occasionally, perhaps 4 times in the last year, when I put my car into 'drive', the engine engages and lurches forward. It feels as though the car with take off forward at a high speed.
Durning hard/quick stops the car will shake just before stopping as if the engine wants to stall. More then half of the time the car will stall. It will start right back up but this is a huge safety issue having your call stall in the middle of the road. Subaru has issued a service bulletin 16-90-13r for this issue. Basically they need to replace the torque converter. They also extended the power train warranty to 100,000mi from 60,000mi. Cars that are outside the extended warranty are out of luck for any no financial assistance from subaru for a known safety issue. My local sabaru dealer just quoted me $2500 to fix a known safety issue. There should be a recall for the estimated 1.5 million subaru's that the service bulletin addresses.
Engine stalling. When stopping at red light, engine shut down a few times. Once I lost all electricity and maneuverability of the car. I also had ignition problems. The car won't start sometimes. I brought to dealership 4-5x and my car spent a month at dealer. They cannot find the cause. I read this could be due to CVT transmission. I bought my car from a subaru dealer two and a half years ago and only drove 7k miles. Current mileage is 95k. Subaru extended warranty of my model to 10 years for transmission. But so far they couldn't do anything. I think this should be a recall. When my car stalled, I had to call police as my car blocked the road and cause traffic jam. This is a road hazard. Thank you.
When stopping the car stalls and dies on streets, highways, etc. I have almost been rear ended and it even died while obstructing oncoming traffic. Subaru issued a technical services bulletin (tsb 16-90-13r) which describes the issue perfectly, however due to milage (40k over 100k) they will not correct the bad part, which is no longer even availaable to purchase through them! Part # 31100ab170. The new part 31100ab171 and 31100ab172 should be issued to all 2010-2012 outback owners as a recall. If they will not even sell the original part anymore because they know it is garbage and then play the feel good best car ever commercials, that is misleading and fraudulent. Help the federal safety agency, you are our only hope.
Head gasket blew, out of nowhere, no issues leading up to this. Car was well maintained. It had around 108,000 miles. Cost close to 2,800 to repair, not worth it. Dealer seemed to know about this issue prior to chase in gasket plate starting in 2012, but doesn't help people who have had this happen. No recall or class action suit, which is sad.
When am driving and I need to stop for any emergency and I hit the brakes the engine will stall due a failure torque converter manufacture, it is really dangerous and after a sudden stop I would not be able to drive away and I was about to involve in a major accident because of this stalling issue.
November 2019, at 115,000 miles the transmission started slipping requiring a replacement. I was told by subaru of america corporate that "subaru doesn't have transmission problems." there is a lot of evidence out there to the contrary. May of 2020 the vehicle started overheating. It was diagnosed by a mechanic that the head gasket was failing and needed to be replaced. This is another known issue with subarus. A $28,000 2011 auto is only supposed to last 120,000 miles?
6 speed manual transmission - when coming to stop quickly from high speed, clutch is fully depressed (and even sometimes in neutral), the engine rpms drop very low causing the engine to shudder. This has been occurring consistently for over 1 year but dealership has claimed they are unable to replicate the problem. This is very concerning due to the fact the engine could stall causing loss of control. This seems very similar to the symptoms of a bad torque converter as recalled on the automatic transmission, however, obviously this can't be the case for a mt.
I have been reporting problems with my transmission since 2012 to my regular dealership, star subaru when the car had just 23,472 miles on it. At this point, I believe that I have been wrongfully denied warranty coverage. Then again, in 2017, while still under warranty, I brought my outback to star subaru complaining that while driving slow, the car tends to 'jump' mid-drive, almost like someone rear ended you. The car at this point was at about 94,467 miles, under the 100,000 mile warranty limit. After numerous complaints I finally received a test drive with a subaru mechanic at star subaru in bayside, queens, ny. He concluded that it needed transmission parts, a torque converter/valve body. At that point I was set to have it replaced once the parts came in. Weeks went by and I heard nothing. I contacted subaru of america who was able to set me up with east hills subaru. The soa person was very helpful with the transition. They performed their own diagnostic, and the condition at the time would not replicate. Unfortunately, when this 'jump/slam' happens, it does spontaneously. We cannot make it happen, nor do we even know when it is going to happen. It was always very sporadic. Sometimes it would happen on the highway going 65, or sometimes less than 5mph. On a long trip back from vermont, there would be a large revving sound, and then it felt as if someone hit us from behind. Once again, I took the car to subaru, only to be told they simply couldn't 'replicate the problem', and therefore would not do anything to help us. On april 3rd 2019, I bring my car in again to east hill subaru. Check engine light on. They do recall. They also troubleshoot the check engine code, which now comes up clearly as p1710 torque converter turbine 2 speed signal circuit malfunction. Now it's not covered under warranty.the price tag is very high, almost $6,000!
Im appalled that the torque converter has not been considered a recall considering all the complaints filed on it. I was quoted $1900 to have this replaced ! This is absurd and I can not afford this repair and believe subaru should be responsible considering the amount of complaints on this. Now I risk accident everytime need to go out .car stalls when coming to a stop .
No incident while driving....yet. Want to report a common and known problem with subaru's, the head gasket. Dealer just quoted me $2000 on this, and most folks know this is due to a poor design. This is definitely a safety issue if the car stops due to oil and coolant issues while traveling fast.
The CVT transmission is defective and extremely dangerous. The vehicle will suddenly stall when decelerating quickly. There is high potential to cause an accident. The manufacturer knows of the issue but will wait for the defect to occur rather than fixing the transmission.
Due to a well-known design flaw the engine had a severe head gasket leak. The leak lead to a foaming of the coolant and a pressure break in the coolant reservoir. The car had a catastrophic failure on the freeway and could have lead to a serious accident. The car was serviced the previous august by a dealer. They have refused to answer my direct question if they did a flushing of the system which could have LED to the damage but, it is a well-known problem that the subaru 4 cylinder 2.5 l engine has had a severe flaw in its design.
Car stalls out when I come to a complete stop, especially if I have to stop short due to being cut off. Car is an automatic, so this is not supposed to happen and is very dangerous when cars are coming behind me. I took it back to the dealer 3 times over the years and each time they said they could not replicate the problem and thus no diagnosis. After reading online, it seems to be a known problem to subaru with a faulty torque converter.
The head gasket blew with only 61,000 miles on the engine while driving on a rural road in oregon at approximately 45 MPH.
My vehicle accumulates a lot of highway miles. These are easy and unstrenuous to and from work. Over the past 3 months I had my vehicle misdiagnosed three times when I was complaining of transmission problems. As I have just broken 125,000 miles my vehicle gets diagnosed with needing a new head gasket and a new transmission. Costing easily more than the vehicle is worth. Subaru it not willing to back their vehicles. The vehicle should be lasting well past 125,000 without major mechanical problems like these that could have ended in serious injury. At this point nothing has been done to rectify what could have been an unsafe situation had I not continually prompted them to properly diagnose the problem. At this time my vehicle is unsafe to drive and has been over the past few months due to these issues.
Coolant is leaking onto top of engine block in two places. It looks to be leaking where the coolant crossover pipe connects to the engine both sides.
The car engine cuts off when suddenly decelerating. My wife and child stalled twice already in traffic, once at a busy intersection. Also water leaks into the center brake light. Parking brake does not work.
We've attempted to resolve the issue with subaru america, but they don't respond. 2011 purchased new subaru outback. All required scheduled maintenance & services performed on time at authorized provider. 2019 the timing belt, water pump and thermostat replaced per mfg stds. Dealer added coolant & bled the system. 3 months later the radiator blew. A chemical block was done & all was fine per dealer. 3 months later engine overheated. Another dealership discovered the head gasket & cat were cracked which should have been discovered by the previous dealer. Subarus are notorious for head gasket & coolant system issues from 100,000 ' 120,000 miles. Subaru slightly redesigned the head gaskets, but the industry as a whole is aware the problem still exists. The problems with the head gasket, cat and radiator are well documented on the internet for 1990 to 2011 models. Issue stems from management decision to utilize a composite for the construction of the head gasket to save money; however, the long term effects of heat on composite metal products would surmise this would lead to warping, cracking or other related product failures. The design & construction of the subaru head gasket was inept at best. The device features a multi-layer steel shim coated with a graphite layer. It was not up-to-the-mark & allowed coolant to leak into the exhaust pressure &/or combustion chamber. There was no subaru head gasket recall but the company redesigned the cylinder heads & configurations of the camshaft. However, it only LED to the coolant a&nd oil leak at the external head gasket. This system defect adds to the coolant system failure noted. We request subaru america reimburse us for the total cost of the radiator, thermostat & head gasket replacement at $4,013.80. Plus other cost associated with the breakdowns at $1,236.20 for a total of $5,250.00
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