2013 Subaru Outback: engine overheating

6 of the 297 complaints about the 2013 Subaru Outback describe engine overheating.

owner complaints: 6
of this car's complaints: 2%
typical mileage: 94,000
recalls: 0

Is there a fix? 105 service bulletins cover this area of the car. See below

Engine overheating by model year

2025
2
2024
2
2023
2
2022
3
2021
2
2020
5
2019
1
2018
2
2016
2
2015
1
2014
1
2013
6
2012
4
2011
16
2010
5
2008
1
2007
1
2006
2
2005
1
2004
3
2003
3
2002
2
2001
3
2000
8
1999
7
1998
16
1997
10
1996
3

What owners say

Filed Jul 21, 2022 · Engine · CA

Head gasket leak with 87,000 miles. All recommended service with the dealer except for routine oil changes. This is a safety issue due to the rapid overheating. Luckily for me it happened a few blocks from the dealership, but this could be deadly if I was driving in the desert.

Filed Nov 26, 2019 · Transmission · 95,426 miles · UT

Cvt transmission many issues including the transmission overheating and causing the car to completely shut off. Problems perseist and dealership can find nothing wrong initially , but the transmission has been becoming worse and worse sicnce these issues started and the transmission stalls the car.

Filed Nov 4, 2019 · Transmission · 181,000 miles · VA

I was driving home from work and a warning light came on. The warning light indicated that the transmission fluid was overheating. I noticed steam was coming from under the hood. The car ceased forward momentum and came to a halt in the middle of the road (curvy and hilly country road). Inspection showed transmission fluid gushing out of the transmission. A large puddle joined what I later discovered to be nearly ten miles of transmission fluid trail. This is the fourth transmission to go into the car.

Filed Jul 27, 2019 · Wheels · 89,967 miles · VA

Rear wheel bearing failures. Both replaced at 89,967 mi. Dealer advises there is some risk if one drove on a long drive, that overheating could allow entire wheel to fall off. Sound is noticeable over 40 MPH so most people would get suspicious and ask a mechanic.

Filed Jan 25, 2017 · Transmission · 94,000 miles · NY

On 11/24/16 while traveling at highway speeds, (60- 65 MPH), on the pa.turnpike my 2013 subaru outback 2.5i, with the CVT transmission and 94,000 miles on the car, suffered a catastrophic transmission failure. With no warning, other than somewhat higher than normal engine rpms, the transmission, with very loud noises and shaking the car, all 4 wheels locked up. This resulted in the car skidding somewhere between 200 and 300 feet. Just before the car stopped skidding, there was one last loud bang/clanging/ shaking of the car. We were extremely fortunate in that there was little traffic at the time, and we avoided any collision damage or personal injuries. The car had to be towed off the highway. While being loaded onto the flatbed truck, the front wheels were locked up, while the rear wheels were turning. This was with the engine running, and the transmission in neutral. I had to have my car towed 300 miles back home to a local subaru dealership. ( not where I had purchased the car new) the initial diagnosis from the dealer was that the transmission fluid had been contaminated by gear lube. They based this on a visual examination of the CVT fluid from my car. This was disproved by my having the CVT fluid analyzed by an independent lab. Their conclusions were that the fluid had been severely overheated, and the viscosity changed to where it no longer provided proper lubrication as of 1/24/17, subaru of america,(corporate offices) has denied my claim of a defective transmission, and will not assist me with any repair costs, or replacement. The local dealer and service department are still amazed with what happened, and the results of the CVT fluid report. They have not heard of this type of failure very often.

Filed Feb 25, 2014 · Acceleration, Transmission · 9,000 miles · TX

While towing a camper well within the towing capacity of the vehicle, the vehicle would not accelerate beyond 60 miles an hour. We (myself, my wife, and 6 dogs) were south of pueblo, colorado going up that very long include towards trinidad. The vehicle's engine would not rev as if it's transmission was failing, but it would absolutely not accelerate beyond 60. We pulled over and contacted the nearest subaru dealership (back in pueblo) and went back to pueblo and had them look it over. They couldn't find anything wrong and their test did not show any problems. They were only able to speculate that it may be a failsafe feature that prevents the engine from becoming damaged when it begins to overheat. We had driven from north of dallas to west of fort collins, with stops, without problems, but this day the temperature was 50 degrees and probably the warmest it had been our entire trip. We had previously stopped for a few hours in garden of the gods, so it had only been back on the road for an hour when this occurred. After the dealership looked at it, we hitched it back up and continued on our trip. They instructed us to just drive slower when going up hills and mountains. We experienced problems again when we got to trinidad, but drove through it since the exits are rather sharp and black ice was a concern. Once we stopped driving up inclines the vehicle drove like normal. After we stopped towing the camper the vehicle stopped having issues.