2012 Subaru Outback: shudder or vibration when accelerating

Filed Dec 19, 2024 · Transmission · CA

When coming to a stop, the car shudders and often stalls just like if you didn't press in the clutch on a manual transmission. No warning lights or messages. See details in TSB- 16-90-13R. Subaru knows about this issue and it has been reported in many vehicles. My car was at a Subaru dealership at least half a dozen times during 2017-2018 when this issue came to light and no one notified us to have it checked. Fast forward to now and for the last year my car has been shuddering when coming to a stop, and about 2-3 months ago, it started stalling. This is an absolute safety issue and should be a recall. I've been in many situations where it stalls and I am vulnerable to getting rear-ended because it takes time to restart the car and get moving again. This is particularly true in traffic or situations where you need to stop suddenly and others behind you are not anticipating you being stopped in the roadway.

Filed Mar 28, 2023 · Transmission · WA

When braking hard, the engine shudders and quits. When car is put in park or neutral it can be started. At time the entire dash lights all go on before the engine shudders and quits when braking at stop lights. My mechanis said it is the torque converter. This is a know issue with subaru 2012 models. This could cause my car to be rearended by another car with the sudden engine stop. Subaru will not recall these vehicles but does offer an extended warranty. The problem is that, in most cases, the issues happens with more than 100,00 miles on the dodmeter. This seems like it could be a safety issue.

Filed Dec 16, 2021 · Engine, Transmission · IL

I own a 2012 Outback 2.5 Limited, which I purchased new from a Subaru dealer in Evanston IL in June 2012. It currently has about 76000 miles on it. In the last 6 months my car started to shudder when coming to a stop at a traffic signal, or sometimes while being stopped at the signal. The shudder is significant but typically momentary and happens randomly. From the last 2-3 weeks, the car has started to stall and the engine shuts down abruptly when coming to a stop. This is very stressful, but fortunately, so far I have been able to put the car in P and start it again every time. However, this is very dangerous and puts me and my family at grave risk of a serious accident from cars coming from behind as my car stalls abruptly. Again, this happens randomly which makes it even more dangerous and impossible to mitigate as a driver. This has now happened multiple times and I called a local Subaru dealership. They gave an estimate of over $8000 to repair this issue. They also said they will repair the car only if they are able to recreate the problem. I am afraid that they will not be able to recreate the problem as it happens randomly as mentioned earlier. As far as I know no warning lights on my dash are on and the car otherwise runs normally.

Filed Oct 12, 2021 · Electrical, Engine · NY

This summer, my 2012 Subaru Outback began shuddering and stalling when slowing down. This has happened approaching stop signs and stop lights, but has also happened going up steep hills and on the highway as traffic slows. Cars behind me have gotten incredibly close, and it seems only a matter of time before an accident occurs. We brought the car to the mechanic, who told us it was the torque converter, which would cost upwards of $5000 to replace. Subaru extended the warranty on 2010 - 2015 Outbacks because of the faulty torque converter - but the warranty expires at 100,000 miles, which we've surpassed. I'm not sure how this works - the manufacturer had a defect but we're responsible? It's scary when the car stalls out and I'm not sure it's safe to continue driving the vehicle. Our mechanic said the issue would get worse over time.

Filed Sep 16, 2021 · Transmission · UT

Torque Converter issue consistent with Subaru Service Bulletin 16-90-13. Although Subaru issued a service bulletin with extended warranty rather than a recall, I want to document this as an ongoing problem with the model year and still a dangerous one. 08/09/2021 the vehicle shuddered while coming to a stop at a light, like the RPMs were dropping too low. At the next light, the vehicle shuddered and stalled while coming to a stop at the light. I was able to restart the vehicle after I realized the engine was dead and I needed to put the vehicle back into park before it would turnover. I couldn't immediately identify what I needed to do to restart, since the car won't turnover in drive, so I was stalled for a cycle of the stoplight. A few days later, the vehicle again shuddered and stalled while coming to a stop at a light. I had been driving for maybe 3 minutes from a cold start. I was again able to restart the vehicle. The second stall definitely felt like a transmission issue, and matched the description of a bad torque converter (technical service bulletin 16-90-13) for this model year. I had the issue diagnosed at my local Subaru dealership, and they identified it as being consistent with a bad torque converter, possibly requiring replacement of the valve body assembly if torque converter replacement was ineffective. I had the torque converter replaced by a Subaru dealership on 09/15/2021. My vehicle is outside the extended warranty period. I've made several stops without issue since the repair. With this issue, I was concerned what would happen if I was on the freeway and needed to suddenly decelerate, or what would have happened if my first time experiencing the issue, where I was stalled for almost a minute and was unable to restart the vehicle immediately, would have occurred during a freeway slowdown. I would have been a sitting duck. Even being stalled at a busy light could have been dangerous for me.

Filed May 10, 2021 · Transmission · 97,380 miles · CA

The vehicle stalled a few times in 2017 and 2018 while shifting from reverse to drive; and while coming from a stop, on steep hill, and releasing brake to get moving in traffic. It also shuddered randomly while transitioning gears from park to reverse/drive or reverse to dive and vice versa. I took it to the dealer who we purchased it from and they identified it as a transmission issue that can be resolved via an extended warranty. At the time the vehicle had about 70k miles. They replaced the torque converter, valve body and strainer in 2018. The car randomly shudders slightly between shifts from reverse to drive and vice versa, but the dealer who replaced the parts could not identify it. I took vehicle to another dealer who could also not replicate the issue. There was one time where it shook noticeable after exiting the freeway and coming to a stop but the car did not stall. In 2021, with the car approaching 97.5k in miles, stalled when I shifted from reverse to drive getting out of a parking spot on a busy street. It restarted after I put into park and was able to change gears and get out safely. I noticed it shudders when the engine is warm. Sometimes it feels unsafe when I am trying to get out of a parking spot on a busy street or on a hill. I took it back to dealer who made the warranty repair. They could not replicate the issue. They cleaned the throttle body and found no codes on the ecu. They said they felt a slight shudder but that this is normal. They said I could take it for a second opinion but I did that already at another dealer previously. I spent hundreds of dollar to try to get a diagnosis but to no avail. I have properly maintained the car as recommended. It feels very strange that this continues to happen but the dealer cannot replicate and identify. Sometimes we feel unsafe or worried that it will stall at the wrong time.

Filed Oct 11, 2020 · Transmission · 112,000 miles · NV

Vehicle has been stalling/shuddering while pressing on the brakes coming to a stop, engine has shut off twice during this. No pattern has been recognized, appears to be "random". Will slow down at a stop light and right before the complete stop, the engine shudders then completely dies with no warning. All the lights pop up on the dashboard, brake/gas pedal quits working unless I put the car in park and restart the vehicle. Very dangerous as it is random and without warning... Dealership states torque converter needs to be replaced. This should be recalled and paid for by subaru

Filed Apr 9, 2020 · Engine, Transmission · 114,000 miles · OH

Vehicle shudders and stalls when braking hard. It will not stall on a gradual stop but will stall in any situation when stopping quickly. Does not have to be a panic stop to stall, just hard braking. Resulting stall means loss of power brakes and steering. Have to shift into park and restart vehicle. Has no issues when running or driving. Engine runs vey smooth and has been well maintained as I am the original owner. It is an ongoing issue and repeatable in every circumstance. No computer codes set for this issue. Yet it happens every time there is hard braking which is every time it is driven. This is very dangerous and I am afraid to have my wife and son drive it much less myself.

Filed Nov 13, 2019 · Transmission · 70,000 miles · GA

I've been experiencing intermittent issues with the transmission where the vehicle would shudder like it was about to shut off when braking. I've also experienced issues where after starting the vehicle and placing the vehicle into gear, the vehicle would lock up. I took my vehicle to a certified mechanic back in september 2018 who pointed me to a technical service bulletin addressing the same issues I was having: tsb 16-90-13r, and recommended I go to a subaru dealership for diagnostics, and repair potentially under extended warranty. I did take my vehicle and get a transmission flush which seemed to alleviate the issue. However, after taking my vehicle to my local subaru dealership, I was told they could not reproduce the issue, or see any related codes; there doesn't appear to be any record of this issue recorded except for a related warranty request for seat repair. Now that I am experiencing this issue again, I took my vehicle back to the dealer. They gave me the same response and I escalated to soa asking for help getting this transmission repaired. Their response was the same as the dealership's response - that they could not reproduce the issue, and they will not perform the repair. I feel this is a serious issue that could lead to injury or death while operating the vehicle. However, I am still experiencing the issue from time to time, and I do not feel that this vehicle is safe. My wife primarily drives this vehicle to take my children to and from school and other activities. The last time this issue occurred, the vehicle would not start at the gym, and I had to drop everything to go pick up my child from school. My wife was able to restart the vehicle after turning off the vehicle, waiting for a minute, and starting again. This issue seems to occur at low rpms regardless if it is parked, or on city streets or highways.

Filed Oct 2, 2019 · Transmission · 130,000 miles · MI

My vehicle has been stalling when coming to a stop, it starts to shudder when slowing then stalls at stop. Safety is becoming an issue when in traffic, or on highway in stop and go. There has not been a recall for torque converter issues or CVT transmissions just extended warranty. Unfortunately there were not issues when this was extended. This is on a 2012 subaru outback, with 130,000 miles

Filed May 30, 2019 · Transmission · 146,000 miles · AR

Vehicle shudders when coming to a stop and will stall when going from stopped to motion. Subaru replaced the torque converter 2 years ago and told us this would fix the issue and it did for a little while. The vehicle is now doing the exact same thing--stalling out is a safety issue. Subaru determined that it was once again a faulty/bad torque converter--so this seems like an issue with subaru torque converters. The first time, they admitted their mistake and paid for the repair. I asked them again to cover it and was even told on the phone by a subaru representative that the torque converter in a vehicle should not have gone bad the first time, much less the second time...but since my mileage is over their "goodwill" limit for the warranty extension, they will not fully cover the repar/replacement of the torque converter a second time (after having the new one for 2 years, only 45,000 miles.) I know that we are not the only consumers that this is happening too and as it is a known problem with their torque converters and a definite safety issue, my hope is that this will prompt a recall or in some way, have subaru fix their mistakes and not put it off on the consumer, as if we just happened to purchase a lemon or something.

Filed Mar 18, 2019 · Transmission · 90,000 miles · FL

As many other owners have reported, I have been told that the torque converter on my 2012 subaru outback has to be replaced (at a cost of nearly $1800). This is because of the shuddering and/or stalling of the car when coming to a stop. This issue is, and has been, very inconsistent which is why I never brought it to the attention of the service department before the end of the revised warranty option provided by subaru (100,000 miles or 7/31/2018 cutoff date). My car currently has 110,000 miles on it. The problem with the way this whole matter has been dealt with by subaru is that, despite the fact I brought the vehicle in for regular service prior to the mileage/date deadlines, I was never asked if I was experiencing any of the problems related to the torque converter. Had the issue been explained to me, I would have said that I was indeed having issues and would have had the part replaced under the warranty. This sort of behavior clearly demonstrates that subaru is not "dedicated to customer satisfaction." subaru should be more proactive than reactive to dealing with the torque converter problem. In fact, subaru should replace the torque converter whenever it becomes a problem. It is absolutely shameful that subaru and the federal safety agency has not done more to address the matter. I guess it is going to take someone getting injured or killed before the problem gets escalated to a point that there will be a recall or subaru voluntarily replaces the torque converter regardless of time or mileage.