Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING | |||
| 01/02/2013 | 140000 | 1 | |
| I see the same complaint several times on this site. this was not the first instance for us either, it has been going on since we bought the vehicle with only 17,000 miles. it has been checked by both subaru and private repair shops several times. the car wonders / ghost walks / swerves unexpectedly on slippery road conditions, you drop real fast from 65 to 40 - 45 mph or you feel as though you will go out of control off the road, intermittent slippery conditions are the worst. we have had numerous alignments done - 4 wheel alignment perhaps helps only slightly. we have had new tires etc. we are tired of being told there is nothing wrong with the car, its an accident waiting to happen, probably has. where otherwise in good shape it is a car that we cannot even transfer to our children. *tr | |||
| 01/02/2013 | 140000 | ||
| I see the same complaint several times on this site. this was not the first instance for us either, it has been going on since we bought the vehicle with only 17,000 miles. it has been checked by both subaru and private repair shops several times. the car wonders / ghost walks / swerves unexpectedly on slippery road conditions, you drop real fast from 65 to 40 - 45 mph or you feel as though you will go out of control off the road, intermittent slippery conditions are the worst. we have have had numeroous alignments done - 4 wheel alignment perhaps helps only slightly. we have had new tires etc. we are tired of being told there is nothing wrong with the car, its an accident waiting to happen, probably has. where otherwise in good shape it is a car that we cannot even transfer to our children. | |||
| 12/30/2010 | 59500 | ||
| After slowing to a near stop at the bottom of an interstate highway exit ramp, my car suddenly, and without warning, died and i lost all systems, including engine and power steering. all i was able to do was drift to the side of the road. subaru initially believed that the ecm had failed. after replacing the ecm, it became apparent that that was not the issue. subaru ultimately determined that the wiring harness housing had melted against the coolant crossover pipe, exposing wiring which was then shorting out. subaru could give me no explanation as to why the wiring harness was installed against a hot component of my engine such that it would melt. had this happened 1 minute earlier, i would have been on interstate 95 during rush hour traffic with a dead car. given the suddenness with which my car died, it is likely i would have been involved in a serious accident. | |||
| 11/23/2010 | 91500 | ||
| 2006 subaru outback auto trans. on many occasions the vehicle's rear-end side-steps, fishtails or oscillates on icy road conditions. this has also been described as ghost-walking where it feels like the awd system in the rear is over compensating, leading to the vehicle being uncontrollable. the behavior seems to happen in the 40-60mph range. you must slow down to unsafe speeds, even for the weather, to maintain control. other non-awd vehicles driving on the same roads are not having this problem and are able to maintain safe control at higher speeds. it is frightening when other 2wd cars and trucks are passing you going 20mph faster and it's difficult to keep your car on the road or in a straight line. this happens when driving on straight flat roads without braking, accelerating or turning with fairly new all season tires - no more than 15,000 miles on them (regularly rotated). | |||
| 12/15/2009 | 69000 | 1 | |
| I have a 2006 subaru outback limited wagon. driving on wet roads, not even icy, the most minor bump in the road, or frost heave, will send the vehicle's rear end swaying, almost out of control. this is supposedly known as ghost walking. this is extremely dangerous, as it happens at highway speeds, on straight roads, and causes the vehicle to sway back and forth across the lane. tires have been replaced as well as subaru dealership performing a full alignment. this is supposed to be awd, so rain should not be a factor. i also notice this swaying happen on dry pavement, but not as threatening. seems like there is play in the rear end, but car was fully safety checked by subaru and passed all points. seems to be a major flaw in the awd, namely the limited slip differential in the rear end. i'm afraid to drive this vehicle in winter conditions, yet that's what subaru's are known for. *tr | |||
| 08/17/2009 | 60000 | 1 | |
| Front end tie rod defective. oem part. caught by mechanic fixing chronic alignment issue with 2006 subaru outback wagon. i was told was dangerous condition, and front end was shimmying. replaced part at my expense. *tr | |||
| 12/24/2008 | 67000 | 1 | |
| I am in my third season driving my 2006 subaru outback to lake tahoe for winter ski season. i've always felt confident driving on snowy or icy roads until my last two trips--christmas 2008, and new year's 2009. on these trips, i experienced very disturbing fishtailing that everyone in the car noticed, and i had to fight to compensate for. this occurred even on long straight sections. each time i had to slow down well below the flow of traffic, and the speed of previous trips. this issue made me wonder about improper tire inflation pressure, so we called the tire dealer, who confirmed this was not the cause. it felt as if the rear wheel traction was overcoming front wheel traction, that made me also wonder whether the all-wheel drive was functioning properly. i also considered weight as a cause, because one day i drove from reno to tahoe with only one passenger, and little cargo, and did not experience the problem. but, the fully loaded vehicle was no different than many trips the previous two seasons, when the fishtailing did not occur, and i could maintain sufficient speed to stay with the flow of traffic. same vehicle, same tires, same loads, same road, same conditions, yet much different performance. i noticed other similar complaints, some of which refer to ghostwalking. please work on identifying the cause and solution for this issue, to prevent serious accident/injury. thank you. *tr | |||
| STEERING - WHEEL AND HANDLE BAR | |||
| 01/17/2011 | 47655 | ||
| I own a 2006 subaru outback 2.5 with a manual transmission. this vehicle is an early warning indicator for black ice on the road surface. the outback vehicle has a stability control problem in certain conditions. while driving at constant speed (constant and low throttle position) on a flat road, the back end of the vehicle tends to oscillate from side to side in icy conditions. the vehicle feels like it is going to spin out, although that hasn't happened to me yet. other vehicles on the road at the same time seem to have adequate traction (2wd, awd, 4wd). the problem is not traction while: 1) cornering under slippery conditions, 2) hard acceleration on ice, or 3) braking on ice. road conditions that i have experienced the oscillation on are very thin ice (black ice). i suspect there is something wrong with the rear suspension design on my outback. the problem is more prevalent and pronounced when the vehicle has occupants in the rear seats. the stability of this vehicle seems to be marginal and it only takes certain conditions (road and vehicle parameters) to be on the edge of disaster. subaru released technical service bulletin 05-36-07 which eliminated the positive side of the original toe tolerance for rear tire alignment. i think the vehicle experiences large rear tire toe in when weight is added. i suspect this large rear tire toe in when weight is added contributes to the stability problem in icy conditions i have brand new (jan 2010) hankook ipike w409 studless winter tires. its not the tires. those who have not experienced this situation naturally respond by saying it is ice, what are your expecting, just slow down. i have lived in colorado since 1981 and consider myself a competent driver in all weather conditions. please respond as i would like to get this problem fixed if possible...the car just turned 50,000 miles. | |||
| 01/02/2011 | 60000 | ||
| When driving on poor traction roads (ice or compacted snow), the rear of the car is very unstable and shifts left to right by as much as 2-3 feet - while going in a straight line, straight road - maintaining a constant speed (no acceleration or braking). this happened several times, over a 3400 mile road trip this winter - sometimes lasting for hours, making for very difficult and unsafe driving, almost going out of control on several occasions - even at very slow speeds (20-30 mph)! there were two people in the car, but a lot of luggage - probably exceeding 400 lbs of weight in the rear, but nothing excessive, and well within the specified limits for this car. i had my alignment adjusted 3 months ago to factory specs. it however appears that when the car has any weight in the rear, the toe-in adjustment changes significantly to cause rear steering which leads to the unstable behavior on slippery roads, and uneven wear of tires (that i have also noticed). there appears to be no way to keep the alignment stable - different loads should not affect the geometry in this way. i really hope subaru can help us solve this problem, it is very unsafe and this car is advertised as an awd snow vehicle! i would be happy to provide more information. | |||
| 11/23/2010 | 91500 | ||
| 2006 subaru outback auto trans. on many occasions the vehicle's rear-end side-steps, fishtails or oscillates on icy road conditions. this has also been described as ghost-walking where it feels like the awd system in the rear is over compensating, leading to the vehicle being uncontrollable. the behavior seems to happen in the 40-60mph range. you must slow down to unsafe speeds, even for the weather, to maintain control. other non-awd vehicles driving on the same roads are not having this problem and are able to maintain safe control at higher speeds. it is frightening when other 2wd cars and trucks are passing you going 20mph faster and it's difficult to keep your car on the road or in a straight line. this happens when driving on straight flat roads without braking, accelerating or turning with fairly new all season tires - no more than 15,000 miles on them (regularly rotated). | |||