A Subaru class action lawsuit alleges certain vehicles have defective electrical systems which cause premature car battery failures.
The Subaru class action lawsuit targets the Subaru Outback (2016-19 model years) and Subaru Ascent (2019-20).
According to the Subaru class action lawsuit, plaintiff Dustin Dalen purchased a new 2017 Outback in March 2017 from a dealership in Oregon.
The original battery reportedly failed in April 2018 with only 12,000 miles on it, stranding Dalen’s wife and two children at a park. When he took the vehicle to the dealership for inspection, the technician could not diagnose the problem, the filing states.
“From then on, Mr. Dalen was required to regularly charge the battery at home to keep it from failing again,” according to the Subaru class action lawsuit.
It did fail again during a business trip to Seattle, where Dalen had to hire an Uber late at night to take him to buy a portable charger and cables so he could jump-start his vehicle and drive home the next morning, the Subaru class action lawsuit states.
During a February 2020 oil change at the dealership, techs reportedly discovered that his battery – which at this point had less than 36,000 miles on it – had low voltage, and they replaced it.
According to the Subaru class action lawsuit, sport-utility vehicle batteries usually have a lifespan of four to six years.
Dalen’s Outback and other vehicles targeted in the Subaru class action lawsuit allegedly have a specific defect that makes this a recurring problem.
“The Defect arises from Subaru’s decision to install batteries with insufficient capacity to power the Class Vehicles’ electrical components when the vehicle is turned off,” reads the Subaru class action lawsuit.
“Absent a repair to the vehicle that reduces the demand on the battery, drivers whose batteries are replaced with the same battery are substantially certain to experience the Defect again.”
The plaintiff also claims the company has known about the issue for at least three years.
“That Defendant has long known about the Defect is clear based on a related service bulletin in 2017 specifically describing the Defect, and by the large numbers of consumer complaints, including those made to Defendant’s authorized dealers,” the Subaru class action lawsuit states.
Complaints going back as far as 2016 cite the same issue, with some vehicle owners and lessees reporting they had to purchase portable chargers to avoid being stranded multiple times. One person claimed to being stranded “five times, including once in a remote part of Canada.”
And yet, according to the Subaru class action lawsuit: “After three years of mounting complaints about the Defect in Outbacks, Subaru knew about the Defect before it launched the Ascent, which was new to Subaru’s lineup for the 2019 model year.”
The alleged defect may also be present in the upcoming Outback model, according to the filing.
“An internal report dated April 26, 2019, from Subaru’s Quality Improvement Committee noted that Subaru was already concerned with battery failure problems in the 2020 Outback, which was set to enter production in the summer,” states the Subaru class action lawsuit.
The plaintiff says no reasonable person would expect this kind of problem from a new vehicle, nor would they knowingly choose to buy or lease a vehicle with a defect that would render it inoperable, posing a serious safety risk.
“Subaru had a duty to disclose the true quality and reliability of the Class Vehicles because the knowledge of the Defect and its details were known and/or accessible only to Subaru; Subaru had superior knowledge and access to the relevant facts; and Subaru knew the facts were not known to, or reasonably discoverable by, Plaintiff and Class Members,” according to the Subaru class action lawsuit.
The plaintiff is suing for breach of warranty (both express and implied, under federal law); breach of written warranty (under Oregon state law); fraudulent concealment; unjust enrichment; and violation of Oregon’s Unlawful Trade Practices Act.
Dalen is demanding a jury trial to stop Subaru from continuing its alleged illegal practices and to order Subaru either to institute a recall or free replacement program, or to buy back the defective vehicles. The plaintiff also seeks punitive damages and restitution for related expenses and court costs.
The Subaru owner is represented by Bradley K. King, Tina Wolfson and Ruhandy Glezakos of Ahdoot & Wolfson PC.
The Subaru Battery Class Action Lawsuit is Amy Burd, et al. v. Subaru of America Inc., et al., Case No. 1:20-cv-03095, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
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123 thoughts onSubaru Class Action Alleges Battery Defect
2016 Outback 3.6L 6Cyl. I’m about to be on my third battery. Have brought it to dealership several times. Once they replaced the battery. Once they replaced some supposed faulty door sensor. Each time I go through this the car dies. Had to call At home service to jump it once. Have bought a battery jump pack and trickle charger. Have paid for new battery twice and possibly a third as it goes in on Monday for same issue. Drove car yesterday for 30 minutes because of cold weather and slow crank. Charged it up. Checked with voltage meter. 24 hours later, battery completely was. Charging it again and bringing in for service on Monday.
Please add me. I have owned a 2015 Subaru Outback Limited for 2 years now. Brand new battery only lasted 6 months. Brand new Die-Hard battery just went dead today. I have to purchase a jumper box for future incidents.
I would like Subaru to fix this problem for me for free.
2015 Subaru Impreza in the Subaru service now for its 5th battery. One battery lasted 3 yrs and 1 month, the others all under a year. They are trying to sell me something to plug into my batter to keep it charged. The car now has around 39,000 miles and was to be my retirement car. I don’t want to buy another car at this point. What does the replacement consist of and what does the remedy buy back the car mean? How does one join this class action?
Our 2020 Subaru Outback has been dead in the dirt twice now. Today is the most recent time. It has been towed to the dealership. Its just barely scraping 10,000 miles. Biggest pile of garbage $35000 has ever bought. I am super disappointed in Subaru and their dealerships’ haphazard attitude about it.
Bought new Outback 2020 on Dec. 2, 2019. Have had at least 4 jump starts, and suspect more will come. Have 2002 Sienna which I drive all the time now because it is at least reliable. I was told I need to drive car more often because electronics are constantly drawing on battery. But I’m reluctant to drive it more often because it is not reliable. Hope class action lawsuit is a resounding success.
I have the same issues with My 2019 Forester Sport
I bought an Impreza in 2016 and a Forester in 2017. If the key is left in the ignition, even though the car is turned off, the electrical system is still “on”. That seems to cause an unusual and elevated draw on the battery. Combine that with the fact that those cars were sold with a Panasonic battery with only 390 Cold Cranking amps and you have a recipe for multiple electrical failures. It is difficult to imagine that a.) the engineers at Subaru would not have predicted such a problem, and b.) this was done without the knowledge that many car owners would return to the shop to purchase new batteries, which is one of the few items, along with tires and brakes, not covered by the warranty.
I bought an Impreza 2016 and had to put in 3 batteries plus there were issues with 3 other items in the car to the point that I hated the car and turned it in for a 2018 Outback with 22, 000 miles. However, I bought it in July 2020 and before that month was over, I had to replace the battery with a brand new one. Recently 3 months later as of yesterday, I was waiting for my son to come out of surgery in my car, I had the car turned off and guess what, my car battery was dead…I took the car in yesterday to the dealership service dept. Today I was told by the service manager that they can’t find anything wrong and the battery is holding a charge. I told the manager I wanted a new battery or money to buy my own battery.
How do I get to be on the Class action lawsuit, I live in WA. Please let me know
I have a 2018 Subaru Outback that I purchased new in the fall of 2017. I only have 18k miles on this lemon, and I have run into issues with a dead car at least ten times! Several times a year, in all climates and altitudes, without any solid pattern or warning, it has gone completely dead on me. I’m talking no lights, no clicking, no dinging, the door remote won’t work, and as of yesterday, the trunk won’t open despite all the other doors opening, AND it wouldn’t respond to a jump start. On the third attempt to jump it, we left the jumper cables attached to my husband’s truck for 30 minutes before it started. When I took it to the dealer last year (a 3-hour drive), they put in writing, “the battery was extremely low upon arrival,” and they “charged it” but didn’t replace it. The oddest thing is the first time it went dead on me about two months into owning it- I let it sit in my driveway in “time out” for 2 hours and tried it again, and it started up as nothing happened. I feel this issue extends further than the battery, too, as I’ve experienced problems with lacking transmission power (which the dealer, of course, didn’t experience when I brought it in.) The lack of power nearly got us in an accident in So Cal while on a road trip. The car was running awesome, we stopped for gas, got back on the road, and I couldn’t get it above 40mph getting on the freeway in Southern CA!!!
When the car starts and is driving correctly, it is great, but the whole point of my getting rid of my last car was to avoid the headache of repairs. Yet here I am. I bought my prior vehicle new from the dealer, a 2006 Xterra Off-Road, and even at 110k miles, it was far superior in performance and reliability to my 2018 Outback with 18k miles. I live in Mammoth Lakes, CA, and purchased the Outback at the disappointing Reno, NV Subaru dealership. Sign me up for the lawsuit, please!
2016 Outback – I’m on my third battery.
I’m interested in joining the class action lawsuit but don’t know what the steps are.. We bought a 2019 Subaru Outback and had the battery jumped once and replaced by the dealer a day ago. The car was purchased in San Diego.
Will this problem qualify under California’s “lemon law”?