Subaru CVT

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Looking at 2017 or 2018 Forester or Outback. Are there still any issues with the CVT transmission, or has Subaru got that issue solved? Thank you for any opinions or information.
 
LoneRanger- I have heard that there were problems a few years ago. Subaru extended engine powertrain warranties for affected vehicles.
 
I had read about subaru cvt issues from 2010-2013 (?) or maybe even the 2014 as well. Has been resolved from what I understand.
 
Ended up with a 2012 Legacy sedan for a Wyoming trip. At first I did not care for it but after a few hours of driving I found it to be super smooth, easy to drive. It seems to do a great job of picking the right ratio for most scenarios, The acceleration seems more motivated since there’s no shifting involved, though I did find the M mode paddle shifters kind of nice for bleeding off some speed and saving brakes for several long down hill grades we encountered, but most of the time I just prefered to keep it in D. It seems like the computer is pretty good at shifting the CVT according to conditions up hill down hill, or a need for passing power or a quick slowdown. I had to learn to take a few lbs off of my leadfoot though as the CVT is quite responsive with minimal foot pressure. From what I hear they can be expensive to repair, but then again so are regular automatics. If I were in the market for another vehicle I would not hesitate at all to get a Subaru with CVT.
 
BJD78-If your Legacy was the 2.5i, did it seem to have enough power on the highway and also for the mountains.
 
A friend had the CVT trans die in a '15 Outback with 25k. My dad has the Crosstrek thing with CVT, so far so good, but he doesn't drive much.
 
I just received a letter from Subaru for a car I traded in stating they were upping the warranty on the CVT to 100,000 miles. You tell me if they still think they have issues.
 
Well, the Legacy CVT and that boxer type engine 2.5 handled US 14 through the Big Horn Mtns very well and had no issues walking up those grades. I did elect to use the paddle shifters at times, just because I could and it was kind of fun to do on those roads, but the CVT is smart enough to select the gear and rpm that is appropriate. I had not driven in twisty mountain roads for a long time but had no traction issues or lack of power. As I said earlier I had to learn to bleed down my lead foot a bit. The slightest punch into the gas pedal and you can go slingshot mode. I had to adjust to that a bit and increase following distance in city driving. Our trip was good weather, no snow , ice or rain,but it seemed to grip the road welland it had Cooper tires as I recall, CS3 or 4. Not sure with CVT if it is always in AWD or if it is mostly in FWD mode and kicks into AWD as needed. I also recall it had heated seats, (cloth seats) which I had never seen before.... I always thought heated seats had to be leather. Also did not have a temp guage, just an idiot light which I did not like. I would think Forester and Outback would have them. Anyway no problems with power as I could tell, and the Big Horn Mtns of Wyoming are a good test for that and it would have got an A plus from me. CVT does take a while to get used to though.
 
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IMHO, manufacturers do not arbitrarily increase warranties (especially past the "golden" 60k) when they know their engineering is not up to snuff. You're trying to tell me that Kia has 10/100k warranties because they have issues? They just managed to nab best quality on JD Power or something like that, topping all manufacturers for fewest problems. To me, upping the warranty says they have faith in their product.

Subarus have always been a little different, and there have been some issues (Phase II head gaskets), but especially since then they seem to be fairly swift about resolving any current issues and making sure rolling changes are implemented in production. They wouldn't have just posted their 58th straight month-over-month sales increase if they were selling piles of poo. I'd buy any new Subaru today and bet my yearly salary that any of them make it to 200k with just recommended maintenance if you don't drive batshit crazy (my next one will be Subaru #5, and the costliest repair on any of them was replacing both rear wheel bearings on my 01 Forester at $440).
 
Originally Posted By: FFFEMT
CKN-What year was that Subaru you traded in? Just curious.



It was a 2012 Legacy Limited.
 
Originally Posted By: SubieRubyRoo
IMHO, manufacturers do not arbitrarily increase warranties (especially past the "golden" 60k) when they know their engineering is not up to snuff. You're trying to tell me that Kia has 10/100k warranties because they have issues? They just managed to nab best quality on JD Power or something like that, topping all manufacturers for fewest problems. To me, upping the warranty says they have faith in their product.

Subarus have always been a little different, and there have been some issues (Phase II head gaskets), but especially since then they seem to be fairly swift about resolving any current issues and making sure rolling changes are implemented in production. They wouldn't have just posted their 58th straight month-over-month sales increase if they were selling piles of poo. I'd buy any new Subaru today and bet my yearly salary that any of them make it to 200k with just recommended maintenance if you don't drive batshit crazy (my next one will be Subaru #5, and the costliest repair on any of them was replacing both rear wheel bearings on my 01 Forester at $440).


Yea right.They are leaving themselves open to repair liability on the CVTs because they are just a "feel good" company and not that they are trying to make a "good will gesture" on something they know is inferior.

I owned on of these cars for 4 years and I can tell you they leave a lot to be desired.
 
Originally Posted By: HondaRULZ
Is the WRX's styling too polar to consider the CVT turbo?


He should get the Forester XT (also a Turbo) in Premium trim. Hard to find in Premium but there are some in captivity. Forester XT Premium is about the best bang for the buck buy you can get in the compact SUV class. Top rated against most competitors in it's class, both on road and off. Only competitor in it's class that does better off-road is the Jeep Cherokee but on-road the XT rates better.
 
My wife and I just traded in her 2014 Crosstrek. Subaru increased the warranty on the CVT to 10 years/100k miles recently. That wasn't very confidence inspiring to me, but that's not why we traded it in. We just needed a bigger vehicle. The Subaru had 57k on it and we never had any issues with it.
 
Yes, Subaru just warrantied their CVTs for 10 years or 100,000k miles. Out of the blue too.

Why? Well that made the Subaru Forums curious as there has been minimal discussion that there is a problem.

It could be Subaru doing a 'advertising' exercise in good faith or it is a Mazda Rotary warranty issue where failure is coming. Not sure which way to take it. Made a lot of folks jumpy, but could also be a mechanism to get more "used stock" into the dealers. I never put a lot of stock into it.
 
My points of reference are a 2017 XV Crosstrek and 2015 Accord Sport. Honda and Subaru have the best CVTs currently available by all accounts. I believe Subaru purchases theirs while Honda's is an in-house design. I find that the two function similarly well and aren't really objectionable in the way CVTs have been characterized in the past. Main difference in normal driving is the Subaru does have some whine at higher RPM that is not present in the Honda unit. I don't own one so I can't comment on reliability.
 
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