Subaru Quality Strikes Again!!!

Joined
Apr 9, 2008
Messages
16,443
Location
Central NY
Absolutely fed up with this car and it's air conditioning system constantly failing.

I bought this car in October of 2017 with 180 miles. AC system failed in 2018, 2019, 2020.

I had it fixed back in March and I got a new AC compressor. Worked great for a few weeks, but now I have no AC again. Just as we're going into a heatwave. The compressor engages, but it runs nonstop and grinds. So it's either burnt itself up from having low refrigerant or the expansion valve is bad and causing it to run constantly.

Just a rant I guess. At this point, I have come to the realization that this car will never have working air conditioning. It's frustrating because that also means I can't bring my dog anywhere in the summer; she can't take the heat.

I will NOT buy another new Subaru. Period. SoA doesn't deserve another dime of my hard earned money after providing me with a sub par product and being unable to repair it. I'm tempted to just sell it now and walk away from it and buy a quality automobile, which is clearly not a Subaru.

It doesn't burn a drop of oil, so I have that going for me I guess.
 
I am sorry your experience has been so negative and can understand why you feel the way you do. Have you attempted to go to alternate dealers or above the dealership level for relief?

My family has six Subaru's, including two Foresters, and all six have been bulletproof. I replaced my AC compressor on mine at about 130k miles, but we are in South Texas, and it has black paint and interior so it works really hard down here.
 
When I was researching what vehicle to buy last year, when I researched Subaru it was the complaints about the AC breaking often that ruled them out for me. OP, you are not the first one to experience multiple failures of the AC system on a Subaru, that is what they are known for.
 
Sorry you're having problems. This is why I always research vehicle quality immensely before buying when it pertains to a daily driven vehicle. Sounds like it's best to keep your sanity by selling it and moving on.
 
Originally Posted by Miller88

It doesn't burn a drop of oil, so I have that going for me I guess.

Considering it's a Subaru, ya gotta count your blessings as you see 'em!

Seriously though, just dump it.
It's not going to get any better as it ages and you've already been soured by the experience.

Originally Posted by PowerSurge
Sorry you're having problems. This is why I always research vehicle quality immensely before buying when it pertains to a daily driven vehicle.

+1

More information is always better in helping you make an informed decision.
 
Originally Posted by Chris142
I have not had many major AC failures on subies ). A few bad hoses,an o-ring here and there. Thats all.


Sounds like they're still under warranty. Get ready for next summer!
 
When researching before buying this car, the only real issues that were coming up were oil consumption and bad wheel bearings. Neither of which really bother me.


Originally Posted by MoneyJohn
Have you considered searching the Forester board and reaching out to SOA. That's too frequent.


It's quite common on the Forester forums. Unfortunately, the people who have AC problems never get them fixed. For some reason, if you car has AC problems early on, the AC will never work ... ever. They all have had tons of parts thrown at the car while under warrant, but the minute the warranty expired .. it's all out of pocket and they still can't get it working.
 
I wasn't aware of the AC issues. Is this for all Subaru models or particular to the late model Foresters? I'm at 75k with my 17 Outback 3.6 and phew so far the AC works well. Incredible that OP has had the system replaced multiple times and still does not work.
 
Just take it back sorry.

Frustrating but a repair can go bad. Take it back and don't let emotions take over logic despite how frustrating it is.

Interestingly enough Consumer Reports which people think is bad information etc reports one reliability attribute as being way below average and troublespot, AC with 2017! The balance of reliability are above average.
 
we boughht a toyota this year, Subie was 2nd choice but based on the head gasket problem years ago also oil burning, , I thought subie was slow to fix "pattern failures" and also uncomfortable seats, and did not buy one
 
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My Forrester has developed the compressor constantly cycling on and off problem. It is also loud and has developed a whine. I took it to the dealer and they claim that they found and repaired a bad O ring and recharged the system and the noise is "normal", It is amazing how many problems are now "normal" to dealers. I have experienced this with my VW, Honda and now Subaru dealer. So far my 1st Subaru experience is a train wreck. An oil burner from day one, the engine blew at 80,005 miles. Replaced under extended warranty, the new engine is still burning 1.2 qts per 1,000 miles. I have also had the AC problem, MAF failure and bad wheel bearings. My [censored] GTI was more reliable than this POS.I thought I did my research and the oil consumption was supposed to be fixed by 2017 MY. It seems that Subaru is very slow to respond to known issues. I almost have this paid off and was looking forward to a rest from payments, but it looks like I may have to dump this turd and get a Toyota..
 
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My brother was a Honda guy having bought a new 1986 Accord LXI w/ 5speed MT ( an awesome car that was eventually crashed).
He then bought a new 1991 Accord SE (another awesome car that I wish I bought when he eventually sold it with 140K). Those were two of Honda's best
years for Accords. Based on his good experience...I bought a new 2001 Accord....it wasn't nearly as good as his 2 because of the BAXA transmission...but at least
Honda extended the warranty. I sold it right after the extended warranty expired.

My brother assumed that all Japanese cars were great so he bought his wife a brand new 1993 Subaru Legacy wagon....top of the line model.
He HATED that car and got rid of it in a few short years. It wore tires like crazy was one issue...I can't remember the others but he swore off Subaru after that.

PS: The OE Bridgestone 92s on that Legacy were toast in under 10K....terrible tires...
 
Originally Posted by Miller88
When researching before buying this car, the only real issues that were coming up were oil consumption and bad wheel bearings. Neither of which really bother me.


Originally Posted by MoneyJohn
Have you considered searching the Forester board and reaching out to SOA. That's too frequent.


It's quite common on the Forester forums. Unfortunately, the people who have AC problems never get them fixed. For some reason, if you car has AC problems early on, the AC will never work ... ever. They all have had tons of parts thrown at the car while under warrant, but the minute the warranty expired .. it's all out of pocket and they still can't get it working.

Did you open a case with SoA?
 
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