I was pulling into a parking space very slowly when the car went into overdrive and suddenly accelerated at a high speed. It plunged down a slight decline and hit a large tree. My airbag failed to deploy although I was thrown violently forward, and the car sustained severe front end damage. The car is considered a total loss and I spent a day at a hospital emergency room. The sudden unexpected acceleration and the lack of airbag inflation is going to be assessed by Subaru on 10/24/23. I understand that there are two class action lawsuits against Subaru (in NJ & CA) for this same unanticipated acceleration issue.
2013 Subaru Outback: sudden unintended acceleration
11 of the 297 complaints about the 2013 Subaru Outback describe sudden unintended acceleration.
- owner complaints
- 11
- of this car's complaints
- 4%
- typical mileage
- 25,000
- recalls
- 0
Is there a fix? 1 service bulletin covers this area of the car. See below
Sudden unintended acceleration by model year
What owners say
I experienced a sudden unintended acceleration of my 2013 Subaru Outback while braking to make a left hand turn at a stoplight on Federal Road in Brookfield, CT. I was able to squeeze the brake hard while shifting into neutral to avoid slamming into the car in front of me while the engine raced. The car would have gone out of control had I not been able to press very hard on the brake pedal. This incident was not the first time this unintended acceleration of the vehicle occurred. About a month ago, I was in a similar situation on the road when I was decelerating and applying the brake that the car had a rapid unintended acceleration that caused me to press very hard on the brake pedal to keep the car from lurching forward. I’ve owned the vehicle since December 2012 and this situation has probably occurred less than 5 times over the 10 years of operation. Each time I thought it was perhaps my error for somehow touching the accelerator with my foot while the brake was applied. After the recent November 22 incident, I now realize that there is likely a systemic problem with the accelerator. I plan to have accelerator inspected by the dealer.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 subaru outback. The contact stated that while at a red light, the engine revved up. The contact turned off the vehicle. The vehicle was restarted however, the failure recurred. The contact restarted the vehicle and drove to the residence. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration. There was no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and later was towed to schumacher subaru located at (3021 okeechobee blvd, west palm beach, fl 33409) and was diagnosed however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 87,145.
Subaru outback self-accelerated (unintended acceleration) on march 22, 2018 as I was attempted to park the car in a parking lot. Due to the self-acceleration the car hopped over the curb in the parking lot and ran over a bush. My foot was no where near the accelerator and even when applying the brake, I had to press extremely hard on the brake to stop the vehicle. While it self-accelerated the engine made a loud revving sound. On march 23, 2018 the car self-accelerated again with my husband driving on the open road. After this incident we had the car towed to our car dealership. Subaru has had the car since march 23 and denies any problem with the accelerator or car.
Cruise control bug. If I decrease my speed by 3 or more MPH in rapid succession, the cruise control resets to the original speed, I.e. The cruise control speed changes from 60 to 59 to 58 to 57 to 56 to 60. This seems like a dangerous bug since it causes unintended acceleration. I have a video that I can share for documentation.
Sudden unintended acceleration wned pulling into parking space. The vehicile suddenly accelerated and ran into store front.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 subaru outback. The contact stated that while the vehicle in the driveway, it accelerated without warning and crashed into the garage door. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact sustained head injuries, but did not require medical attention. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 8,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 subaru outback. While accelerating from a complete stop, the vehicle lunged forward and stalled. The dealer was unable to diagnose the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 2,500.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 subaru outback. The contact stated that while depressing the brakes, the engine rpms increased as the vehicle suddenly accelerated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 28,000. The VIN was not available.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 subaru outback. The contact stated that while braking to a stop, the engine rpms increased excessively as the vehicle suddenly accelerated without warning. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure and current mileage was 12,000. The VIN was not available.
I have had 2 incidents since buying new outback in april 2013. I was at a complete stop while vehicle was in drive. When I lifted my foot from brake to accelerate, the car revved up and lunged forward on its own. Both times I was able to slam on the brake and avoid an accident. Now I feel that I cannot trust the car whenever I come to a stop. I am waiting to hear from dealer about this 2nd incident, since after 1st time they tested and said "cannot find a problem"...... However, after reading another complaint it could be a malfunction between electronic accelerator pedal and new CVT transmission!!! Also, sometimes I feel the car is maintaining a speed without any acceleration (like on cruise control).
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2013 Subaru Outback sudden acceleration
Is sudden unintended acceleration a common problem on the 2013 Subaru Outback?
11 of 297 owner complaints about the 2013 Subaru Outback (4%) mention sudden unintended acceleration. The model year with the most reports is 2015.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2013 Subaru Outback?
There are 0 recalls and 1 service bulletin for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2013 Subaru Outback
Oil consumption 26Stalling 26Pulling 20Check engine light 14CVT failure 14Transmission failure 13Adaptive cruise 12No deployment 8Sunroof shattered 8Backup camera 7Engine failure 7Jerking 6Overheating 6Headlights 5Hesitation 5Wipers 5
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