My car doesn't experience that, but there was a TSB about improperly constructed springs and I seem to recall that some springs weren't correctly seated in struts - these are for different year Subarus but it could be related to the issue:

https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2019/MC-10166952-0001.pdf

https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2016/MC-10140502-9999.pdf

 

interesting, I’ll take a look at those when I get a chance. Hopefully it’s not something like that for the 21’s

 

My 21 touring XT is quiet and i drive dirt rural roads big pot holes with it 90% of the time. Highway it so quite hits hard to judge how fast i am going off the sound. I gripe more about the computer systems then anything mechanical related. Hopping my dealer calls about a software update.

 

There have been a few posts about “clunking” noises coming from the front struts in Gen 6 Outback’s in recent weeks and this seems like it may be another one.

Seagrass

 

oh really? I haven’t seen those other posts, sounds like something similar for sure.

 

2020 outback limited knocking noise in front suspension

Recently after a service( could be coincidence) there is a knocking noise in the right front. Took it in to dealership. Drove with tech. He heard it. Looked at everything and couldn’t find anything wrong. Tightened some stuff but it is still knocking. Any ideas. 21k miles. I literally...

www.subaruoutback.org

 

I have a mystery popping noise too. It's very soft and low volume. I hear it at low speed while turning. I uploaded a short, two second sound file of it here Mystery Sound. You'll need to download the file and rename the extension to .mp4 for it to play. I mentioned it at the dealer during routine maintenance and their tech said he could not duplicate the sound on a test drive.

 

I have a mystery popping noise too. It's very soft and low volume. I hear it at low speed while turning. I uploaded a short, two second sound file of it here Mystery Sound. You'll need to download the file and rename the extension to .mp4 for it to play. I mentioned it at the dealer during routine maintenance and their tech said he could not duplicate the sound on a test drive.

There is a thread on this somewhere around here. People compare it to an empty plastic soda bottle bouncing off something . It was only happening at low speed turns as I recall but a search might get you better info.

 

Sorry to hear about this issue with your new XT. Hopefully they get it fixed up quick!

 

Update

Well little less than two weeks later and my dealership couldn't figure out the source / cause of the noise. Got it back last friday and went up to the mountains this weekend for some skiing/snowboarding without issues. They had a SOA tech on it too. The initial request from SOA was to get a replacement XT strut to replace the one they thought was making the noise, but there weren't any available at my dealership and it would take a while to ship one.

Dealership removed my Nameless strut first since it's an aftermarket part. Drove it around and it was still making the noise.

Removed the front sway bar. Still made noise

Put the front sway bar back in...and the noise went away.

Ordered new replacement front sway bar, installed that. Still no noise.

I didn't hear or notice anything on my mountain drives (about 6 hours worth) last weekend.

They asked me to keep the Nameless strut off for 1k miles to see if the issue comes back, if it doesn't, they'll put the strut back on for me and see if that makes the noise come back.

Anyways, I doubt it's the Nameless bar causing the issue since others have installed it w/o issues, but I'll keep it off for a month to see what happens.

 

Hmm. Well. Maybe there is really a Chrysler underneath all that Subaru skin

 

end links???

 

i think they mentioned replacing the end links or at least checking them out.

 

I too am experiencing creaking and popping noises with my new Outback that I purchased on Nov. 30th. I thought perhaps it is a new car thing, all nice and tight. All it needs is some time out on the road to stretch and loosen up. So I put 500 plus miles on it and the noises did not go away. In fact, the popping noise was more noticeable. I took it into the dealership and they diagnosed the popping coming from the front struts. They ordered the struts, sent me and my car home, called me back 5 days later, and replaced the front struts. It seems the popping noise may have gone away, but I have driven less than 100 miles since the repair. I need to put more miles on the odometer before saying for sure the popping noise is gone. The metal creaking noises is still heard. I hope these noises don't become an eternal issue. SOA if you're paying attention, please find the solution.

 

Update

My wife and I took the Outback out for a drive to Point Reyes National Seashore to watch the sunset. It was incredible!

The drive was fun and enjoyable. No "popping" noise, that is until we were about 30 minutes from home. I (and several cars ahead of me) had to brake hard to avoid a collision. I felt the "Electronic Brake Distribution" (ABS system) kick in as the brake pedal pulsated under my foot and the "Collision Warning" row of red lights flashed on my windshield. Thankfully there was no collision. However, when I let off the brake and accelerated (slightly aggressively) back up to the speed of traffic (~55 mph), a loud "POP" was heard from the front passenger side. My wife commented, "Isn't that the noise you had fixed?" Needless to say, that was the noise and it has now returned.

I called the dealership and scheduled it for repair (Jan 5th). I will mention end links to them and have them recheck SOA Bulletin Service for any recent updates. Any other suggestions?

 

I think Subaru still has not figured out the strut clunking on the WRX s. With new struts the noise just came back soon after.

 

I heard a pop noise twice. Once from the right front during an aggressive left-hand turn. And once from the left front during an aggressive right-hand turn. I believe in my case, it might have been the strut springs setting to where they really want to go. Everything seems tight on the front since those two "Pops". They sounded like someone hit the strut's spring with a small hard hammer. (kind of a "knock-pop" sound.

I only have about 1000 miles on the car now and will post if the noise comes back. I'm thinking it was the springs twisting a bit in their mounts and finding their forever position.

 

Beautiful photo. The emergency braking followed by a pop on the passenger side when accelerating should give a clue to which suspension parts might be involved. Everything should be re-torqued if they can't identify the cause. It could even be related to high load on the front followed by lift from acceleration. Thanks for the update!

 

Yes thanks for the update! Sorry the noise has come back for you though. Mine is still quiet for now with another 1k miles on, debating if I should reinstall the nameless strut

 

Did you notice any improvement with the nameless strut brace? If so, put it back! If not, sell it! There is no way in the world that it caused your suspension noise unless it was under-torqued to the point where the strut itself was moving around. Mine is at 20 foot pounds on all three nuts - no noise.

 

Haha yes I liked it! It’s the paranoia from the dealership I think that’s making me hesitant, I know it has no effect on the part that got replaced.. but I’m still cautious. I think I’ll put it back on and if for some crazy reason the popping comes back, I’ll remove before I bring it back to the dealership haha

Mine is at 20 foot pounds on all three nuts - no noise.

guessing you meant four, right? 😉

 

Experiencing the same thing with my '21 XT Limited. I had a similar issue with my 2013 BRZ, which took some more time to show up. The solution ended up being retightening everything in the front suspension and front subframe. The issue was most likely an undertorqued subframe bolt.

 

interesting, I didn't have any issues with my 13 FRS... I miss my manual so so much
if it is an undertorqued subframe bolt, it's gotta be something they must have reinstalled when putting my car back together. shrug

 

I had a really hard time letting go of my 08' Outback XT 5spd, especially for a CVT....but I have other manual vehicles and this is really a great versatile daily. I'm trying to decide if it's worth scheduling an appointment with the dealership or if it's easier just to get under there and torque everything myself.

 

For documentation purposes under warranty I would have them do it, but if you do it and document your 'fix' and whether it worked or not, it would be more helpful to the community. You'd still have the option of taking it to the dealer if you went under there and discovered everything was torqued properly.

 

to echo @SilverOnyx definitely take it to the dealership while under warranty, let them deal with it and anything that might be wrong with it. They can document it and put it in their database for future issues

 

It will probably take me less than an hour to do it myself and I don't have to coordinate with anyone, so I'll probably start there. Does anyone have a good resource for the torques specs?

 

I think I fixed it....

Put the car up on ramps and got under there with a torque wrench. I didn't have the proper specs for a 2021, so I used the rough numbers I could find from last gen to give me a starting point. I also tried shaking and pulling endlinks, tie rods ends, sway bar mounts and cv joints to see if I could find any play.

Everything seemed tight with the exception of six 15mm bolts that seem to connect the subframe to mounting points from the front A-arm on the passenger side. These took a fair bit of movement to register 30 ft-lbs of torque, while the driver side was for the most part right around 30 ft-lbs to start.

I did a brief test drive, deliberately hitting bumps at low speed and braking at the same time, and so far so good. I'll report back after an extended test drive later.

I'm sorry I didn't take a pic under there, it's cold out.

 

Do you think it moved enough to need an alignment?

 

When I say "movement" I mean I had to rotate the bolts anywhere from one half to one and one half times to reach 30 ftlbs.