Looking to purchase a 2019 Outback

[Eli]

Hello, I wanted to ask a question on this forum as I just test drove a 2019 outback premium with 23,600 miles. I have never driven or owned a Subaru before… So I am new here.

I have a few questions which I also intend to ask my mechanic during the pre-purchase inspection. I was informed that the CVT is a sealed unit however, there is a way for them to inspect the fluid every so often.

My concern is the CVT. I have never driven a car with a CVT before.

Also… A friend of mine who owned two Subarus mentioned that the routine maintenance is more costly on Subarus than many other car brands.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated… About the CVT reliability. I drive 19K miles per year and would like to drive the next car that I purchased for a decade… the way I have done with my current one.

 

[Jeff]

Hello. We have a 2019 outback. We have had battery issues for a few years - basically started around year 3. Even after a new battery and several trips to Subaru. If we leave the car for 4 days without starting it, the battery drains. This has happened several times. So - we can’t leave it at the airport if we take a trip longer and gain 3 days. There was a class action lawsuit over the issue but for some reason - we where not included in some of the fixes.

I guess what I’m saying is - check it out on this car.

Good luck.

 

[Eli]

Hello. We have a 2019 outback. We have had battery issues for a few years - basically started around year 3. Even after a new battery and several trips to Subaru. If we leave the car for 4 days without starting it, the battery drains. This has happened several times. So - we can’t leave it at the airport if we take a trip longer and gain 3 days. There was a class action lawsuit over the issue but for some reason - we where not included in some of the fixes.

I guess what I’m saying is - check it out on this car.

Good luck.

Thanks for your response. Yes, I have come to find out that there seems to be some kind of manufacturing defect with the Outback batteries. When my mechanic realized that they had put in a new battery during the inspection, he advised me to think twice before purchasing, because of this. I have a friend who bought a used 2018 Outback 2 years ago and has already had to change the battery 3 times! The mechanic also noticed a couple of other things which he did not “like”…they only replaced one tire, instead of both front tires. He advised me to only purchase if the extended warranty would cover up to 100k miles. Being that the car is already 5 years old and only has 23k miles, that is not happening. So I asked for my deposit to be refunded from my local Subaru dealer, and so the “newer” car search continues.

 

[guthrie]

Hello. We have a 2019 outback. We have had battery issues for a few years - basically started around year 3. Even after a new battery and several trips to Subaru. If we leave the car for 4 days without starting it, the battery drains. This has happened several times. So - we can’t leave it at the airport if we take a trip longer and gain 3 days.

I had a similar experience, but just got a new battery which has newer technology (Absorbent Glass Mat -AGM), and then added a small 10w solar panel trickle charger for long airport trips.
We were just gone for 5.5 weeks, and it was still fully charged on return.
(For plug-in solar chargers, you have to get an adapter and plug it into the utility socket under the dash, not the "cigarette lighter", as the later disconnects when the car is off. Lots of notes in the forums about how to do this.)
I just set the solar panel aside unless parking for long periods.
Newer cars have so many electronics, it is a challenge.

 

[guthrie]

I had a similar experience, but just got a new battery which has newer technology (Absorbent Glass Mat -AGM), and then added a small 10w solar panel trickle charger for long airport trips.
We were just gone for 5.5 weeks, and it was still fully charged on return.
(For plug-in solar chargers, you have to get an adapter and plug it into the utility socket under the dash, not the "cigarette lighter", as the later disconnects when the car is off. Lots of notes in the forums about how to do this.)
I just set the solar panel aside unless parking for long periods.
Newer cars have so many electronics, it is a challenge.

However, when I was first having the problem get worse, I had a local shop do a parasitic electric drain test, and they confirmed that it was the DCM module which is commonly reported in these forums as a cause for battery drainage. I had it replaced, and that also was a part of the overall solution - not sure if that alone would have been enough, but I doubt it, since I live in Iowa and cold weather also makes battery charge maintenance more difficult. (It was not used for ~6 weeks, and temps were down to -17).
It was an expensive repair - $600 for the part and $250 to install. (A local repair place would get the part for $450, but said only a dealer could install as it needed some calibration that only a dealer can do. ??)