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2013 Subaru Outback engine complaints

Page 2 of 3: complaints 11 to 40 of 68, newest first, as owners wrote them.

See the summary of 2013 Subaru Outback engine problems: which part fails, at what mileage and related recalls.

Filed Mar 5, 2022 · Engine, Transmission · TN

I bought this car on 3/1/22 from a dealer, and took it for several test drives - everything was great. Carfax report is clean. On 3/3/22, I was driving on a windy road with cliffs and ledges, 45 mph when all of a sudden the brakes slammed, the tires screeched, and I heard grinding. Every alarm went off and the car fishtailed and skidded over to the side - almost going off the side of the road. Every light was blinking and alarms going off. Once I came to a stop, I tried turning the key off and turning it back on. It turned on fine - but it would not go into drive or accelerate, and all the alarms and lights were still going off. I was stranded on the side of a curvy country road where it was not easy to be seen, and easy to be hit. I had to walk 30 min, leaving the car in the middle of the road to the closest store, at which I looked up a tow truck and service station. I had it towed to a service station, and the gentleman ran diagnostics and said that his machine is coming back showing transmission issues. I literally just bought this car - and paid good money for it - I am shocked that this is a known issue and Subaru won't do a general recall to fix this! This is dangerous - because the car LITERALLY went out WHILE I WAS DRIVING. I am calling Subaru dealers today and seeing what they plan to do to fix this, or if I am going to be stuck with paying for it

Filed Feb 19, 2022 · Engine, Fuel system · IN

Vehicle was at a stop light on a 45mph road at which time the car shook very badly, the engine stalled, and almost every dashboard light illuminated. Vehicle was unable to move putting the passengers at extreme risk of a rear end collision on a major thoroughfare. The situation was safely resolved after shutting down the vehicle for a minutes and restarting it. Following the incident, the vehicle shudders often, and the car shakes very badly again if the transmission approaches 4000RPM. Vehicle will be taken in for service next week and it is suspected that Subaru will be required to replace the transmission under the extended warranty offered to all customers because of high transmission failure rates observed on this make/model of car. the federal safety agency needs to require a recall on all Subaru CVTs due to unreliability and stalling putting passengers and the public at risk.

Filed Jan 6, 2022 · Engine · CO

Valve spring broke dropping a valve into the engine and causing engine to seize. This is the same problem as the recall that was issued for other 2013 Subaru models, but it doesn't cover the Outback at this time. Instead, there's only a TSB (#10154425) that they've changed specifications for the valve springs.

Filed Jun 17, 2021 · Electrical, Engine · IL

While driving near my home on June 5, 2021, the vehicle simply shut off and simultaneously all the warning lights flashed. I was unable to restart the vehicle after two or three tries. I called a tow service. About an hour later, before the tow truck arrived, I turned the key again, and the car restarted. This occurred in the middle of the roadway and I was lucky no vehicle was being behind me, as a collision could have happened. A local auto repair shop looked at the computer code and found one for a cracked gas cap. The mechanic replaced the gas cap, but stated that it could not have caused the car to cease running. I took the car to a Subaru dealer on June 14, 2021, but the service consultant stated that looking for the problem would be like "going down a rabbit hole" and told me to continue to drive the car until another incident happened.

Filed Jun 13, 2021 · Engine · WI

Last summer I was driving on the interstate. I would say I was on the road for about 1.5 hours, it was a very warm day. I was going about 75 miles an hour and I had sudden total loss of power to the engine. Radio never stopped playing , no check engines lights came on and I could also maneuver the steering wheel. I thankfully was able to get to the side of the road(traffic was heavy). Once my car was almost at a stop the engine regained power. I was able to drive to my destination. No check engine lights ever came on. I took the car to Subaru dealership the next week. They could find nothing wrong with the car. They did notice a speck of debris/fuzz on the mass flow air sensor, they did change that part. Now about one year later I’m having catalytic converters issues and that needs to be changed. I wonder if it is all connected, and I also worry the loss of engine power will happen again. Thank you, [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

Filed Jan 12, 2021 · Engine · 117,000 miles · CA

At 95,000 subaru replaced my transmission which was covered under an "extended warranty". It is now 1.5 years later, I have 117,000 miles and they say I need another new transmission but because it is over 100,000 miles they will not cover it. I have since found countless other people with the same problem

Filed Oct 2, 2020 · Engine · 78,000 miles · MI

The motor blew on my 2013 subaru outback with only 78k miles on it. There were no warnings there was anything wrong just stopped working and shut down. The 2013 subaru outback has known issues and had multiple recalls. This shouldn't happen on a vehicle that was fully maintained and had less then 100k miles on it.

Filed Sep 23, 2020 · Engine, Fuel system · 109,000 miles · CO

On a freezing day in november 2019, while running an errand first thing in the morning, my 2013 subaru outback revved and tried to accelerate when I was driving that I had to push the brakes down all the way to control the speed. I put the car in neutral while pulling up to a stoplight. It quit revving so much, so when the light turned green, I put back in drive and was controllable. I let the car sit for an hour and drove again towards our local subaru dealership. While en route, it revved and accelerated as before. I was able to put in neutral and it quit revving. When I arrived at the dealership, the car wasn't revving any more. The service tech said unless it was doing it when I brought in, they wouldn't be able to identify. The car has not revved since. However, I read an article about this problem in other year outbacks and wanted to make the federal safety agency aware.

Filed May 16, 2020 · Engine, Transmission · 159,000 miles · TN

This car guzzles oil, like a quart every thousand miles making it a [xxx] car for road trips. I bought this for road trips so thanks subaru. It has CVT issues that subaru won't acknowledge or repair, dangerous ones too such as loss of power while idling, and feeling the engine is going to die when in stop and go traffic. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).

Filed Mar 15, 2020 · Brakes, Engine · 153,000 miles · VA

Use more than a quart of oil a week and just change brakes and they shimmy and jolt

Filed Mar 5, 2020 · Engine · 87,145 miles · FL

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.

Filed Mar 2, 2020 · Engine · 90,000 miles · OH

For the last 50k miles, oil consumption has gotten worse and worse. Now it needs a qt of oil every 600 miles.

Filed Feb 11, 2020 · Engine · PA

This car is an extreme oil burner. We have to add oil every 1,000 miles. There was a lawsuit and subaru is offering to replace the engine block, but our dealership says the car continues to pass the oil consumption test. Also, the clutch just went out at 58,000 miles. After an online search, I am seeing this is typical of this car.

Filed Jan 13, 2020 · Engine · 228,000 miles · WA

Date of event: 01/11/2020 time of event: 14:00 while attempting to merge onto interstate 84 our 2013 subaru outback chugged then completely stalled, requiring an emergency lane shift onto the shoulder to avoid entering the busy freeway with no engine power. Luckily the car started up again (albeit very roughly) and we were able to limp it to the next exit to a location to be towed. This was a very intense and scary situation that thankfully ended in no incident. Upon researching the problem it appears this stalling issue is not uncommon yet subaru does nothing to correct it. This was a near miss that I attribute to a recall that should have already occurred voluntarily by the oem.

Filed Jan 3, 2020 · Engine · TN

I need to put a quart of oil every 250 miles. I did an oil check with grayson subaru knoxville tn, and they told me that the car was fine.

Filed Nov 26, 2019 · Engine · 131,485 miles · UT

Excessive oil consumption. The car goes through a quart of oil about every 700-800 miles despite regular oil changes and maintaince

Filed Nov 15, 2019 · Engine · 81,000 miles · ME

The car looses power to the point where it occasionally stalls when I decelerate and come to a stop or just before the stop. I replaced the battery as it was on its way out anyway and the problem persists. I don't think it has anything to do with the alternator and I haven't brought the car to a dealer or mechanic yet. But want to raise the flag on the issue I'm having because I've seen lots of forums where other folks are experiencing a similar issue.

Filed Oct 25, 2019 · Engine · 30,000 miles · CO

Tl* the contact owns a 2013 subaru outback. The contact stated that the vehicle consumed an excessive amount of oil and additional oil had to be added by the contact. In addition, the low oil warning indicator was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to autonation subaru arapahoe (9955 e arapahoe rd, centennial, co 80112, (303) 578-6119) where it was determined that an oil consumption test and oil change were needed. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was contacted and provided case number: 1-35088528581. The manufacturer referred the contact to the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

Filed Sep 12, 2019 · Engine, Transmission · 91,000 miles · IN

I have a 2013 subaru outback and it stutters driving between 20-40 MPH. It seems to loose power when driving on city streets. Doesn't happen every time

Filed Sep 4, 2019 · Engine · 133,000 miles · CA

While going up over the grapevine on I-5 southbound, I noticed the air conditioner stopped working and the temperature gauge started creeping upward. When I got to the top, everything returned to normal, but I was concerned. After returning home from so. Ca, and after several attempts by subaru of sonora to rectify our repair costs issue, it was suggested that I call subaru of america in new jersey. Later that day, I received an email offering a 50/50 cost coverage of the $3,636 repair bill. In other words, I would pay half and half would be paid by subaru of america in nj. Soa then authorized subaru of sonora, ca to replace the cylinder head gaskets once again (first replaced at 95,000 miles) and related items/parts. The work was started on 7/15/19 and completed on 9/3/19 with 133,336 miles on the car. I have a 2 page receipt from subaru of sonora for this work, along with an email from soa.

Filed Sep 4, 2019 · Engine · 95,007 miles · CA

Oil was leaking from the engine area. Subaru of america authorized subaru of sonora, ca to replace the cylinder head gaskets and related items/parts. The work was started on 8/2/17 and completed on 8/29/17 with 95,007 miles on the car. This repair work was completed under an extended warranty. I have a 3 page receipt from subaru of sonora for this work.

Filed Aug 20, 2019 · Driver assistance, Electrical · 40,000 miles · HI

2013 outback limited 3.6r bought new and has 40k miles. On 3 occasions over the past 5 months, the vehicle can't catch 2nd gear and revs high and then a heavy jolt physically felt and a loud clunk. Have taken it to subaru service 3 times and they cannot reproduce the problem. Even after flushing transmission fluid and relearning the transmission, and vehicle did it the same day driving home after picking the vehicle up from relearning the transmission. This is aggravating, stressful, and dangerous. Subaru needs to own up and address a known issue, and do a recall.

Filed Jul 24, 2019 · Engine, Transmission · 10 miles · TX

116,700 miles and need to replace valve body. Concern raised at 83,000 miles but was advised to flush transmission. Automatic transmission temperature warning light comes on every summer, and concern raised but was only advised to pull over and let it cool. Also having problem with low engine oil warning and need to add 1 - 2 quarts between 6000 mile oil change. This is a known issue and the short block may need to be replaced to repair this

Filed Jun 20, 2019 · Engine · 145,000 miles · IA

Vehicle uses oil excessive amounts of oil and this year of outback has had recalls but said VIN # has not had a recall for excessive oil consumption.

Filed Mar 19, 2019 · Acceleration, Engine · 93,000 miles · MO

Issue is ongoing for the last 6 months. Vehicle intermittently stalls when at idle and placed in gear. Hesitation when accelerating while driving (acts as if it not getting enough power.) I have taken the vehicle to 3 different dealerships and contacted subaru of america and I am not getting anywhere. Dealerships can't duplicate the problem, so therefore can't diagnose the problem. I have video records of this issue occurring.

Filed Nov 28, 2018 · Engine · 63,000 miles · MN

Leaking seal on engine

Filed Nov 8, 2018 · Engine · CA

The engine makes a pinging type noise while driving. The dealer has not been able to fix. I guessing its a possible bad valve spring.

Filed Apr 24, 2018 · Acceleration, Brakes · 69,000 miles · VA · crash

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.

Filed Feb 27, 2018 · Engine · 52,000 miles · NC

Tl* the contact owns a 2013 subaru outback. While driving at an unknown speed and approaching a stop, the engine stalled. Upon accelerating, it took three to five seconds for the vehicle to move. The dealer and manufacturer were not notified. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was 52,000.

Filed Jan 17, 2018 · Engine · 70,000 miles · OR

Excessive oil consumption, oil light illuminates every 3000 miles instead of purported 7500 miles. Problems started in 2016 at about 70,000 miles. Dealership did test , confirmed excessive oil consumption and is replacing short block in vehicle. Dealership states extended warranty on this problem.

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