2020 Subaru Legacy Complaint Log

Driver's seat structurally unstable due to factory-installed welded nut shearing off the seat rail anchor at approximately 32,000 miles. Confirmed by Napleton Subaru technician on video. Physical component in owner's possession. Failure is consistent with prior Subaru seat rail weld recalls. This affects seat stability, occupant restraint geometry, and crash protection.

One hour into traveling on the highway smoke began to come from under the hood so we pulled off to the side of the road. Upon opening the hood, after the smoke cleared, a fire was observed. At that point the passengers exited the vehicle and called 911. There was no warning lights or sounds indicating any problems prior to this. The car burned very quickly and the firefighters extinguished the fire but not before the entire car was burned to ashes. The car is wrapped and in the possession of the insurance company pending investigation.

Defective Cam Carrier Seal

in inclement weather the windows will not roll up, especially heavy rain events. The window will attempt to go up and then go into the fully open position. You have to wait a minute before the window will allow you to attempt again of reset the windows. This happen to me on the highway in a heavy rain. It has happened several times. Subaru knows of this problem and has a technical bulletin about it to change the motor and window tracks. They all should be changed before a fatality occurs

Power window driver side intermittently fails to function, leaving window partly or completely open. This is an ongoing problem. Often I have to restart the car to get the window to operate properly. Difficult to drive when weather conditions change suddenly and window won’t close.

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Legacy. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V227000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that during inclement weather, the front driver and front passenger’s side power windows failed to automatically roll up as intended. The contact was forced to hold the power window button to slowly roll the windows up. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where the contact was informed that there was debris in the slides inside the windows, causing the windows to fail to retract. The contact stated that the driver’s side window retractor was replaced; however, the failure returned soon after the repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 29,000.

I have had two spontaneous window cracks within 6 to 9 months apart. I had a full windshield replacement and the windshield has just cracked again. The second incident, the vehicle was parked overnight so it wasn't caused by a rock or from following a car.

Windshield On 3/5/24 I drove to work,...the windshield was intacted as of 8AM.. after my shift at 4PM mysteriously there was a line (crack in the window on the drivers side) around 6 inches....haven't been to my car since Wednesday 3/6/24... today 3/11/24 that crack has expanded to 12-14 inches across the drivers side The car is parked in my driveway

The Thermo control valve is faulty and my friends is too. There is a class action lawsuit concerning this part. I replacement part was designed in 2021 and Subaru is aware of this issue, but refuses to do a recall. So far 2019, 2020 and 2021 models are affected.

Sunroof exploded spontaneously while traveling down freeway. No one was within 3/4 of a mile in all directions.

The engine thermo control valve has been defective and Subaru has known this issue since 2022 and has tried to do some software update but it is defective [XXX] ) despite multiple tries. This can overheat an engine, result in the front collision warning system (eyesight) and rear auto-braking not working. Specific to my case, the front and rear collision warning systems are off, auto lane departure avoidance system is off, the engine can overheat and has had reduced performance, and the check engine lights are also on. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The coolant bypass valve was defective. You would have to ask the dealership to inspect it, they kept it when they changed it out. It is unsafe because the engine could have overheated and exploded. The problem has been confirmed Subaru of Little Rock. They replaced the valve and some other parts. The check engine light came on when I started the car the night of Dec 22, 2023. At this time, the heat was struggling, the vents were barely blowing, and the thermometer would only work sometimes. I want to upload the Subaru dealership paperwork I received when I picked up the car, but the upload function is not working. Please send me an email if you would like a copy.

We recently purchased a used 2020 Subaru Legacy sedan with ~33,000 miles on it. It has a salvage title due to previous owner hitting a deer, (no air bag deployed, just minor body work) and it was professionally repaired to "like-new" condition. Last weekend, when starting the car, the check engine light and a bunch of other warning lights came on. An OBDI scan showed a code of "P263A" indicating a problem with the Thermo Control Valve. As a result of the defective TCV, several major functions of the vehicle were automatically disabled: adaptive cruise control, eyesight system with lane keeping, automatic braking, as well as all cabin heating, windshield defrost function, and the engine temperature gauge. Without these systems properly working, the drivability of the vehicle is greatly impaired, especially in a Minnesota winter without a functional windshield defrost and engine temperature monitoring gauge. When taking the car into the local Subaru dealership for full diagnostics, they confirmed that indeed the TCV was bad, and quoted me a cost of $1135 to replace it. They claimed that since the car has a salvage title, Subaru's warranty will not cover any part of this repair. However, there is a known wide-spread failure of this Thermo Control Valve in the 2019-2021 cars as listed in Subaru Technical Bulletin [XXX] which clearly states that there is a redesigned TCV that replaces the defective earlier part and fixes the earlier design flaws of the one installed in 2019-2021 vehicles. I spoke with the Subaru of America Client Advocacy representative, and he was adamant that the salvage title negates any responsibility for Subaru to fix this know defectively designed Thermo Control Valve. My thinking is that the defective TCV is both a drivability and a safety issue, and due to the wide-spread early life failure of this part, Subaru should be compelled by a recall to replace the defective car in all customer cars. All ADAS is affected by a bad TCV. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

While driving on freeway the tire pressure warning light came on. I started to slow down and pull over and I felt the car wobble. I pulled to the side of the road and the tire had completely failed. The sidewalls, inside and out, had square chunks completely gone along the complete sidewall.

The front door window regulator of our 2020 Subaru Legacy is not working properly. It fails to raise and lower correctly and reliably which can be a safety issue especially in an emergency. The problem occurred without any prior warnings or messages. I am told by the dealership (Bob Moore Subaru of Oklahoma City) that it is part #61041AN00A that requires replacement.

At approximately 30k miles we had noticed the vehicle sounded loud, like a Turbo. It got worse and after returning from our vacation trip to Maine, it was noticeable louder but couldn’t place a finger on the problem. We brought the vehicle in to Victory Subaru in Morristown and they diagnosed the two rear failed wheel bearings. My question is how can both wheel bearings fail at only 20k and is there a potential for a system wide recall? Thanks

Thermo Control Valve failed. Caused a short which affected all electrical components on its circuit. The car became inoperable in traffic.

This past Sunday evening, I drove to the convenience store 4 blocks away. As I returned, I noticed a crack in the windshield starting in the middle from the left edge and was about 12 inches long. No gravel marks were found, it had cracked for no apparent reason. Sitting the next night in the garage, the crack increased about 6 more inches by the next morning. Filed claim with my insurance and was subsequently replaced by Safelite here in Knoxville Tn. This cost me $100 out of pocket and no telling how much my insurance had paid. I just found the class action today.

Thermo Control Valve has malfunctioned. It disables all driver assistance, like lane assist, blind spot, RAB, collision braking, etc. I have seen on many forums that this is a known issue, across multiple vehicles from Subaru from 2019 to about 2021. The was a TSB put out about a new and improved part to fix this known issue.

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact stated that several unknown warning lights illuminated, and the gear shifter was inoperable. The contact stated that the transmission failed to shift as needed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 69,738.

Center console/head unit will regularly lock up and eventually reboot when Apple CarPlay is in use, cruise control, lane keep will turn off, and car will warn that ADAS is not available, backup camera does not work during this time. HVAC controls are not accessible during this time as well

windshield crack in lower part on passenger side for no apparent reason.

Check engine light came on at 55,500 miles on exactly the third anniversary of purchase. Local mechanic determined the code related to Thermo Control Valve failure. Apparently an ongoing issue with many Subarus since replacing the thermostat with this in their cars. Lost all eyesight features, including cruise control and high beams, as well as cabin heat in the midst of winter in the northeast. A simple google search reveals MANY instances of this subpar part falling on Subaru cars. $1,066 later, I feel a recall or coverage under powertrain warranty is warranted.

2020 Subaru Legacy Touring XT - Windshield cracked for no apparent reason. No stone or rock chips visible. Had same issue on previously owned 2015 Subaru Legacy. The crack starts at the base of the passenger side where heat strips are located to keep the wiper blades from freezing. The cracked windshield may cause the Subaru EyeSight safety system to malfunction, putting all passengers at risk for a potential accident. I had it inspected at a Subaru dealership. The service technician confirmed that this was a know problem. He suggested I call Subaru of America for assistance. I'm still within the 3 year warranty period but windshields are not covered. He said Subaru dealerships do not repair windshields. They will engage a 3rd party repair shop if needed. My vehicle is included in a pending class action lawsuit against Subaru for this issue. Safelite Autoglass estimated my windshield replacement at $1,035.00 (without insurance).

Windshield cracked for no apparent reason. May cause the Subaru EyeSight safety system to malfunction. Crack started at the bottom of passenger side windshield where the heat strips are located for wiper blades not to freeze.

A crack appeared in the windshield overnight while parked in the driveway with no sign of impact or other causes. This seems to be an ongoing problem with Subaru since they changed to acoustic glass for their windshields.

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that there was a crack on the front windshield that was not caused by an impact. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and the front windshield was replaced; however, the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the contact would receive a callback. The failure mileage was 8,000.

Windshield spontaneously cracked at top. I came outside in the morning after a temperature fluctuation and there was a crack at the top with one piece of the glass sitting lower… it has since grown. I have been forced to drive with the crack as Subaru will do anything to not honor a warranty, ever. The eyesight I am learning is necessary for the vehicle to avoid front end collisions and to properly deploy the airbag. The crack started in November, it’s almost August, and I cannot get it replaced under the warranty I paid. I see many people have the same problem. You can even see where the windshield cracked where an iPass was mounted from a temperature change. The wipers also cannot keep up with moderate rain, causing rain blindness in moderate precipitation and the lightest rain will turn off the eyesight causing a malfunction that will not assist in avoiding a collision. In addition, I will be complaining with the CFTC for the warranty issues. I cannot even get records of my warranty or service. Example: window regulator was a problem off the log, and salesman used it as an example, service won’t repair. I regret buying a Subaru, they claim to be safe and reliable with great service, I am only having problems that affect the safe operation of the vehicle and I paid all this extra for full bumper to bumper and they tell me that it doesn’t exist. In addition, that vehicle claims to get close to 30mpg, I am being completely honest when I say I had about the same mileage in a 1995 Cadillac Deville, and the mileage I got in a 2009 BMW twin-turbo far exceeded the mpg. I tried to get it repaired today under warranty. I was yelled at that it was an impact, and I wish I knew… would have said, “is it more likely that I’m lying or the company that’s been successfully sued 4 times for this exact problem is at fault?” Perhaps there was a light impact in the months AFTER it broke parked in a unheated garage.

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that while in a parking space with her foot on the brake pedal and the transmission in drive(D), the vehicle independently accelerated without warning. The contact stated that the vehicle drove over the parking median; however, she managed to stop the vehicle before accelerating up a hill. Due to the failure, the contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer but the mechanic found no defect with vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a complaint was filed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 45,000.

Front Windshield has broken last year without any sign of impact. This year front windshield has broken after very light impact. Front windshield is very weak and is not reliable even after replacement.

For the second time in 2 months my windshield spontaneously cracked while the car was parked.

The windshield developed a crack that started at the right A Pillar center of glass and is about 18" long. There are no visible "impact" points from anything hitting the glass. There is no "star" either. I did not hear anything hit the glass. The fissure just appeared one day.

Cracked Right passenger side WINDSHIELD. Crack begins at windshield right passenger side bottom and is moving upward and towards drivers side of windshield. Crack is presently about 8" on length and spreading. Vehicle is not driven often. Vehicle has NOT hit any potholes, bumps, curbs. NO pebbles, stones, objects have hit windshield via roadway, other travelling vehicles whatsoever. No ice storms, hail. Crack is causing a dangerous visibility and a heavy cost to repair.

The battery discharged to the point where I was unable to start the car. I had been driving all day and was waiting for my wife for half an hour with the radio on. This left us stranded about 15 miles from home. I had to call to have someone take my wife home while I waited for a tow truck. My battery also discharged to the point where I couldn't start my car after the car sat overnight. I needed to take my son to a doctor's appointment, and I had to cancel the appointment. And no, I didn't leave the lights on or a door open.

Since last October when a software update was performed on the vehicle I have had multiple(8-10) instances where the EyeSight system caused the emergency braking to activate when no other vehicles were nearby and a crash was not imminent. Usually it has been when entering a left hand gentle curve with a guardrail nearby, but it has also happened going straight ahead. The audible and visual alerts appear and hard braking occurs. The braking is severe enough that on rain or snow covered roads a crash might occur. The dealer inspected the vehicle and claims they found the calibration was off but the problem has occurred 3 more times since the calibration. I have contacted the dealer again but they have refused to acknowledge the problem further.

cracked windshield

Windshield cracked starting in the lower middle of the windshield. Crack started from underneath the rubber edge and grew straight up, then out to either side within a matter of days.

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated while driving approximately 25-30 MPH on a smooth residential road, the windshield started cracking. The contact stated that there was no external cause for the failure. The contact stated that the horizontal crack was located at the base of the windshield and was 7-inches long starting on the driver’s side. The contact stated that the crack was extending. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that he would be responsible for the cost of the repair. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 9,000.

At a stop, the vehicle shut off, which required a jump start. The vehicle is fairly new, so a discharged battery shouldnt have been an issue.

My front windshield has cracked 2 times within the last year. The first time my wife was driving and thought she heard something hit the windshield but wasn’t sure. It created a crack across the whole windshield and Subaru replaced it free of charge. Last week I’m driving 01/20/2022 and I do see a very small object hit the windshield and creates a crack again. I spoke with the service advisor and does mention their windshields are made a little thinner and could see that being an issue. I haven’t spoke with the Manager yet but I am going to give him a call and see if I could get it replaced again. I have been driving for 23 years and have not had a windshield crack on me once. Also after the second crack I did some research and realized they have been having issues with the windshields since 2015 on various models.

Brake pedal of my Subaru Legacy 2020 stopped working suddenly. It kind of gets stuck. It happened to me twice and that is why I am reporting it now. Luckily it happened when I was starting the car not while driving on the road. But I am a little afraid to drive the car on roads now thinking that brake may get stuck again.

The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that upon entering the vehicle, he discovered a vertical crack had formed on the lower center section of the windshield without incident. The contact stated that the crack then spread horizontally and was obstructed his vision while driving. The contact took the vehicle to a dealer where the windshield was inspected and pictures were taken; the contact was informed that the pictures would be sent to the manufacturer for final approval for repair. The contact had not yet received a response from the dealer. The manufacturer was not notified by the contact about the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 27,000.

A very small chip in the windshield has now turned into a large crack. The chip is 1-2mm in depth. I have never seen such a small chip turn into a crack like this.

In a class action lawsuit filed against Subaru of America, it is alleged that several models have defective Controller Area Network (CAN) modules that cause premature battery drainage. New Jersey Judge [XXX] arbitrarily dismissed two models, Forester and Legacy, from the lawsuit even though they have the same problem because none of the plaintiffs owned either of those model vehicles. I own a 2020 Legacy that has stranded me and my wife on two separate occasions due to a low battery. Once the car died in the middle of a major intersection when I stopped to allow oncoming traffic to pass and the auto start/stop turned the car off. When I attempted to restart the car the battery was dead. This left me in a very unsafe condition. I had to exit my car, dodge traffic and physically move my car from the middle of the intersection. I have had my car inspected by a Subaru Service Dept. and told nothing is wrong. I want Subaru to fix their mistake. What is my recourse? Sincerely, [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) chain may slip and/or break. NHTSA recall 21V955000 Subaru recall WRK21 A software issue in the transmission control unit (TCU) may allow the continuously variable transmission to engage before the drive chain is properly secured, the automaker says. This could result in the chain slipping and breaking, leading to a loss of power and a risk of a crash. Component has not been inspected by the manufacturer. NHTSA reported this recall Dec. 9th, 2021. Received Subaru recall notice in mail Feb. 2022, stating the remedy is expected to be available in April 2022. I have contacted the Subaru dealer 3 times since April 2022 and each time they say "waiting for parts, we will notify you". It is now Oct. 9th, 2022 with no response or resolve. Driving 10 months since NHTSA reported this issue should be considered a huge safety violation by the manufacturer.

The contact's wife owned a 2020 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated while his wife was driving approximately 3 MPH in a parking lot the vehicle suddenly accelerated and jumped the curb into woods and collided with a tree. The contact said his wife was not aware of any warning lights being illuminated. The vehicle front bumper and hood hit in the center and were both crumpled back about six inches. The contact hit the top of his head severely damaging the windshield on the passenger side and sustained minor cuts. Due to the sudden acceleration he had not been able to buckle his seat belt, additionally the airbags did not deploy. The contact was transported by ambulance to a hospital. The police were called, a report was written and the vehicle was towed to a holding lot. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact's insurance provider declared the vehicle a total loss. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 16,200.

This vehicle is equipped with the Subaru "Eyesight" system which is a number of safety features like automatic cruise control, lane keep assist, and others. About once a week on average while driving the entire system will shut down and the screen will go dark. You lose the radio, bluetooth, navigation, and all the Eyesight systems. After about 30 seconds it will reboot and things will come back online but this is a major safety issue because you loose systems that help with safety. The dealership said it's a known software issue and there's nothing they can do until an update is available. I called Subaru USA customer support in September and they said an update would be available by the end of October and nothing was released. I called in early November and they said they were still working on it but had no release date.

This is in regard to the thin and fragile windshield subaru has decided to put into their vehicles of which there are already several civilian class action lawsuits which should have already warranted an investigation into the glass. In my particular case, the windshield is so soft whenever the slightest rock hits it, big chips come out of it. The vehicle has 5,100 miles on it and has a windshield that is worse than my 2007 subaru with 95,000 miles. Yesterday a small pebble struck the lower right corner of my windshield initially putting a chip that then cracked sitting in the garage overnight. In all my years I have had other strikes happen such as a huge rock falling off of a gravel truck (I have this on dash cam video) striking my windshield with minimal damage. Anything that touches this new 2020 subaru windshield results in a chip and or a crack compromising the rigidity of the structure, impairing visibility, and thus jeopardizing the safety of the driver. I do not feel safe driving this vehicle as I feel if a large enough rock would ever strike the windshield that it would result in catastrophic failure.

I purchased a 2020 Subaru Legacy Sport in March of 2020. On August 25th 2020, while on the freeway a small rock chipped the upper passenger side of the windshield. By the next morning it turned into a crack which spanned almost half of the windshield directly in front of the Eyesight cameras. Once the glass was replaced with an OEM windshield, I noticed the new glass appeared to have defects. During peak glare times, the windshield appeared "pitted" as if it had been sand-blasted and was nearly impossible to see out of. I had a professional technician inspect the windshield and a new one was ordered and installed. This took months to be resolved. Next was on July 15th 2021, a small rock caused a bullseye chip in my windshield too large to be fixed. Another OEM windshield was installed. On October 21st 2021 another small rock hit the windshield on the freeway and caused a chip immediately. Within a minute the glass made a loud cracking sound and a crack over a foot long instantly appeared. In 1 year 8 months, I've had the windshield replaced 4 times. The glass is brittle and/or defective. It's dangerous and costly and needs to be addressed.