[dhtwalden]

Battery just died. Won‘t start. Original equipment battery. It’s in my garage, so no immediate sense of urgency. However, it is Saturday afternoon, and I’m leaving town (hopefully in my Subaru) on Monday. Local Subaru service is closed.

I have a 48 month, 60,000 mile Subaru manufactuer warranty. Encountered some issues when I purchased the Outback, so SOA fixed me up with the 48mnth/60K warranty.

I could go to a local auto parts store and have it replaced within a couple of hours. I would hate to do that if Subaru will replace it for free. Anyone on this forum have any insight if the battery is covered by the SOA warranty?

thanks in advance for the assist.

dht

2017 Outback 3.6 Limited
purchased August 2016
currently has 43K miles on it

 

[ammcinnis]

Anyone on this forum have any insight if the battery is covered by the SOA warranty?

Yes, it is ... provided that the dealer can confirm it's defective. Just being dead (i.e. fully discharged) alone isn't enough. Is it possibly leaking electrolyte around the terminal posts or along a case seam? That will be sufficient to justify warranty replacement.

 

[Danver]

Good chance it would be covered but I personally wouldn't be all that interested in another wimpy battery from Subaru as a replacement. When my 2017 was about 8 months old and the battery when dead twice I just went and bought a bigger and better battery with specifications that made more sense.

 

[asolo]

Battery just died. Won‘t start. Original equipment battery. It’s in my garage, so no immediate sense of urgency. However, it is Saturday afternoon, and I’m leaving town (hopefully in my Subaru) on Monday. Local Subaru service is closed.

I have a 48 month, 60,000 mile Subaru manufactuer warranty. Encountered some issues when I purchased the Outback, so SOA fixed me up with the 48mnth/60K warranty.

I could go to a local auto parts store and have it replaced within a couple of hours. I would hate to do that if Subaru will replace it for free. Anyone on this forum have any insight if the battery is covered by the SOA warranty?

thanks in advance for the assist.

dht

2017 Outback 3.6 Limited
purchased August 2016
currently has 43K miles on it

My two bought-new Subarus ('16 Impreza and '18 Outback 3.6) both had battery failures at 20 months. Dealer replaced free under warranty. 390cca Impreza and 490cca Outback OEM batteries replaced with 550cca 30-month-free-replacement alternatives. I regard each and all as inadequate for the cars. When it's my money, I will upgrade to better non-Subaru battery, probably 700+cca AGM.

I have Solar BA-9 tester and was able to determine that both batteries were on the verge of failure before they left me stranded. The dealer, of course, also has a device that can make this determination very quickly (takes less than a minute) and their test results matched mine. Clearly dealer will replace based on these test results alone without any song/dance about it. No need to wait until total failure to make this determination. The testing procedure is so brainlessly quick and easy for them, I wouldn't hesitate to ask them for the service any time you have the least suspicion.

 

[Brucey]

I bought a battery from Wal-Mart and Subaru reimbursed me under warranty.

 

[N4HHE]

I called this summer and no matter my extended genuine Subaru warranty, the battery was only covered for 24 months.

The Outback is notorious for randomly discharging its perfectly good battery. You need to try to charge your battery but a smart charger will probably refuse if less than 8V or 9V. Mine was under 5V but resurrected and lasted another 3 years. Sometimes it would set for 3 weeks without use and be fine but when it failed it had sat for only 3 days.

 

[dhtwalden]

Thanks for the input.

Took Outback to dealer on Monday. Service writer said 3 year / 36 month on battery, not 4 year / 48 month.

Went down the road and purchased an Interstate battery.

 

[Sparkland]

The battery died on my 2018 Outback 3.6R with 25,000 miles today. The vehicle was difficult to start for the past two days before it would not start at all today. If I take the battery out of my vehicle and take in to Subaru will they still give me a free replacement, assuming the battery has failed? Or will they make me bring the car in with the bad battery? Thanks.

 

[stfsubaru]

The battery died on my 2018 Outback 3.6R with 25,000 miles today. The vehicle was difficult to start for the past two days before it would not start at all today. If I take the battery out of my vehicle and take in to Subaru will they still give me a free replacement, assuming the battery has failed? Or will they make me bring the car in with the bad battery? Thanks.

The problem could actually be the alternator is not charging the battery properly. I imagine they would definitely want the vehicle and battery. Do you have a voltmeter? Can someone provide you with a jump?

 

[ammcinnis]

If I take the battery out of my vehicle and take in to Subaru will they still give me a free replacement, assuming the battery has failed? Or will they make me bring the car in with the bad battery?

Why not call your dealer and ask? You're probably going to need drive the car in if it will run at all. First, Subaru warrants the vehicle, not its individual components. Second, the dealer has to verify the VIN (which establishes the purchase date) and mileage to confirm warranty status. Finally, there's always the possibility that something else is wrong, and the dead battery is only a symptom.

That said, there are people who have been reimbursed by SOA after they purchased a replacement battery (on an emergency basis) from a third party. YMMV.

 

[dhtwalden]

Why not call your dealer and ask? You're probably going to need drive the car in if it will run at all. g

ammcinnis,
I posted the question on the weekend and the dealership was closed. I had plans for an out of town trip on Monday, so was seeking some input. Thanks for the response.

 

[ammcinnis]

I posted the question on the weekend and the dealership was closed.

I was responding to member Sparkland, who posted today (a Friday morning).

 

[Sparkland]

I was responding to member Sparkland, who posted today (a Friday morning).

I jumped the Outback and drove it over to the dealer. Another strange situation arose after I started the vehicle. I could not open the hatch and the beeping alert was blaring the entire time I drove to the dealership. Thankfully, it was only two miles from my house. I guess the hatch could have discharged the battery, but that would not explain why the battery barely started the vehicle for the past three days. We used the hatch yesterday with no issues.

 

[Brucey]

I bought one at Wal-Mart on a Sunday and sUbARu corporate reimbursed me.

 

[stfsubaru]

I am confident there is a use scenario that results in the Body Control Module never going into a low current standby state.

It might be something stupid like all doors are sensed shut, so the car locks, then a limit switch opens up and the BCM wakes. Or someone shuts the car off in neutral, realizes the mistake and places it in park, and exits the vehicle (radio still on) vehicle still with ACC on, or the FOB is too close to the parked vehicle in the garage, and the system is awaiting contact of door handle, or press of hatch button...

 

[Sparkland]

The dealer did replace the battery, as it was defective. As far as the rear hatch, they were saying there was no power to the body control module. The tech asked if I ever connected any electrical device to it. I had not. He messed with the wiring a little and the hatch began to work after they replaced the latch and actuator. In the process, they scratched up two black trim pieces on the inside of the hatch when the push rod (after being disconnected) scraped the inside of the hatch. They are going to replace the trim pieces.

I agree with @stfsubaru , that it may have been the dead battery that caused the strange behavior of the body control module.

 

[Sparkland]

My wife's 2018 Outback had a dead battery again today, after having it replaced 2 months ago. My wife is so upset with this vehicle, she is ready to switch back to her ultra-reliable Toyota Camry. We don't have any options on the vehicle that were not on the vehicle when manufactured.

Seems quite a few owners have charging issues on their Outbacks, Ascents, etc.

 

[z28dug]

My wife's 2018 Outback had a dead battery again today, after having it replaced 2 months ago. My wife is so upset with this vehicle, she is ready to switch back to her ultra-reliable Toyota Camry. We don't have any options on the vehicle that were not on the vehicle when manufactured.

Seems quite a few owners have charging issues on their Outbacks, Ascents, etc.

Gotta stop mucking with the factory batteries and replace it with a better battery.....which isn't hard, even Walmart sells batteries that are better than the Subaru battery.

 

[msub]

On my 2015 3.6 OB the was dead one morning probably about a year after I got it new. Called Subaru roadside service. They came, jumped it & said that they jumped quite a few Subarus.
I then took it to the dealer, they put a new one in (better battery), no charge & said that the OEM was too small for the 3.6.

 

[DR Arnold]

There is a Class Action settlement for this issue. Home | Subaru Battery Settlement