V
Victor Roberts
The front power windows of my 2006 Forester make unusual
noises when they go up and down. There is an unusual noise
when the window opens completely, sort of like a "scraping"
sound or the sound of something moving that should not be
moving . Then, when the window goes up, the mechanism seems
to catch and then release, and there is a "thunk" type
sound. It seems that one of the gears or levers may be
catching.
I took the car to a local dealer last week. When I picked
it up the service writer told me it was OK. However, the
noises and jerky motion were still there. I invited the
service writer to see and hear this for himself, but he
decided he should send out the mechanic who worked on my
window.
The mechanic saw and heard the problem and told me he has
seen a number of 2006 Forester's with this problem. he
confirmed that nothing was lose or misadjusted and he had
lubricated everything. So, I now believe there is a problem
with the design of the window system.
I called Subaru of America to see if there was a Service
Notice for the power windows. They refused to tell me! They
said I need to ask my dealer.
I asked if there was a process to request an extended
warranty for this part of the car since it was obviously
malfunctioning though it had not yet failed. They read me
the terms of the warranty - which was a basic no. As long
windows work, no matter how bad the noise or the jumping,
they would not be replaced under warranty - and if the
windows failed after the warranty period I would be stuck
with the repair cost, even though the malfunction is obvious
right now, six months after I purchased the car.
I mentioned the New York State Lemon Law, which could
require Subaru to replace the car if they can not or do not
fix a problem with a new car. That may have gotten their
attention, though they will argue that the window is not
defective since it still moves up and down.
They suggested that they would contact the dealer to hear
their side of the story.
On Friday I received a call from the service manager at the
dealership how asked to see the car. I took the car in
today and the service manager was able to easily replicate
the problem, many times. He asked for time to research the
problem before asking me to bring it in again for service.
So, has anyone else had problems with the power windows on a
new Subaru or am I the only one?
noises when they go up and down. There is an unusual noise
when the window opens completely, sort of like a "scraping"
sound or the sound of something moving that should not be
moving . Then, when the window goes up, the mechanism seems
to catch and then release, and there is a "thunk" type
sound. It seems that one of the gears or levers may be
catching.
I took the car to a local dealer last week. When I picked
it up the service writer told me it was OK. However, the
noises and jerky motion were still there. I invited the
service writer to see and hear this for himself, but he
decided he should send out the mechanic who worked on my
window.
The mechanic saw and heard the problem and told me he has
seen a number of 2006 Forester's with this problem. he
confirmed that nothing was lose or misadjusted and he had
lubricated everything. So, I now believe there is a problem
with the design of the window system.
I called Subaru of America to see if there was a Service
Notice for the power windows. They refused to tell me! They
said I need to ask my dealer.
I asked if there was a process to request an extended
warranty for this part of the car since it was obviously
malfunctioning though it had not yet failed. They read me
the terms of the warranty - which was a basic no. As long
windows work, no matter how bad the noise or the jumping,
they would not be replaced under warranty - and if the
windows failed after the warranty period I would be stuck
with the repair cost, even though the malfunction is obvious
right now, six months after I purchased the car.
I mentioned the New York State Lemon Law, which could
require Subaru to replace the car if they can not or do not
fix a problem with a new car. That may have gotten their
attention, though they will argue that the window is not
defective since it still moves up and down.
They suggested that they would contact the dealer to hear
their side of the story.
On Friday I received a call from the service manager at the
dealership how asked to see the car. I took the car in
today and the service manager was able to easily replicate
the problem, many times. He asked for time to research the
problem before asking me to bring it in again for service.
So, has anyone else had problems with the power windows on a
new Subaru or am I the only one?