2015 Subaru Legacy Brakes Problems

Incident ~ 5:40 pm, Geneva NY Weather ~ 10 F, not snowing. Background. On or shortly after being started, the vehicle had exhibited prior incidents of extremely rapid engine acceleration not initiated by the operator. Most recently the day before. The incident: I was in the process of very slowly parking the vehicle in a narrow laneway, and positioning the vehicle behind and in line of one other, both parallel to the laneway, in a small area that had been cleared of snow, leaving the laneway open. First, I stopped the vehicle opposite of the parked vehicle's driver side door. Second, I reversed and backed up and positioned the vehicle behind that vehicle. This involved firmly stepping on the brake to stop the vehicle once well behind the parked vehicle. Third, while keeping my foot firmly pressed on the brake pedal, I moved the shift from reverse to forward. At that time, the front wheels were still fully turned to the left. Immediately on completing the shift to forward, my vehicle made a very rapid acceleration. My foot had remained firmly on the brake and had not touched the accelerator pedal. Despite my foot being firmly pressed on the brake pedal, my car surged forward, retracing the path that I had followed while backing up. I could hear the noise of the accelerated engine, and feel the fighting of the brake as the car surged uncontrolled for about four feet and then finally stopped. My foot had been fully depressed as hard as possible on the brake the entire time and did not touch the gas pedal at all. The owner of the parked vehicle observed the incident and expressed concern since the surge was dramatic, and stopped with the right corner of the front bumper of my car within a couple of inches of the left corner of the parked vehicle. The driver's car mat was in the correct position and did not interfere in any way with the operation of the vehicle. I did not inadvertently step on the accelerator. No warning lamps or messages. Cause Unknown.

NHTSA ID

11714652

Incident

Jan 30, 2026

The contact owned a 2015 Subaru Legacy. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the contact opened and closed the trunk, triggering the alarm system. The alarm system failed to deactivate immediately. The vehicle then failed to restart as needed, and the "Shift to Park" message was displayed while the transmission was in park(P). The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where the brake fuse was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The contact replaced the brake fuse for a second time, but the failure recurred. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer, where an unknown repair was performed. The contact later sold the vehicle. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 175,000.

NHTSA ID

11615990

Incident

Jan 1, 2024

Mileage

175,000 mi

As I pulled up behind a car that was stopped at a stop sign, I took my foot off the gas pedal, and put it on the brake pedal. The moment i put my foot on the brake pedal, my car surged forward. I had a moment to think, and I confirmed that my foot was on the brake pedal, I had felt the brakes trying to resist the surge. I put the car into neutral, and it jerked to a stop. No one was hurt, I stopped the car in time, but I wondered if this had happened in other settings, what danger it would have posed. This has previously occurred rarely and intermittently when, starting out on some cold mornings, i shifted from reverse to neutral to drive, when backing out of my driveway in the morning.The car surged forward and I had to be quick on pressing the brake pedal hard to get it to stop before hitting a mailbox post. No warning lights went on, in any of these incidents. I called a Subaru dealer, who said there had been no recall history re this uninitiated surge behavior.

NHTSA ID

11561489

Incident

Apr 2, 2023

Right front wheel started to wobble a bit when braking, as if a rotor started to warp. I purchased a new rotors and pads from Subaru to change the rotor when convenient. I had to stop driving the vehicle because the shaking got so violent when breaking that I thought it was going to damage the vehicle. The rotor had split into pieces along all of the fins. I ended up removing two rings of casting.

NHTSA ID

11543782

Incident

Aug 19, 2023

Driving 55 on a major highway, my car displayed a warning sign “electronic parking brake” and the “brake” light started to blink. It came out of nowhere so I pulled over and tried to figure out what the issue was. Nothing seemed wrong so I drove home. Later that night, the parking brake was fully engaged and did so by itself. I did not engage and it would not disengage. Apparently, this happens to many other Subaru drivers on the internet. This is a major issue

NHTSA ID

11482985

Incident

Sep 3, 2022

I have experienced two separate occasions where my vehicle accelerated even though my foot was on the brake pedal. Once, I was slowing down on a main street for a stop light behind several other cars. My vehicle began to accelerate and would have rammed the car in front of me if I had not been able to swerve into an empty turn lane. Due to the acceleration, I figured I must have accidentally hit the gas pedal, so I lifted my foot and hit the other pedal--which was the accelerator, and naturally just accelerated the vehicle more. I then put my foot back on the brake and the car came to a stop. The second time, my son was backing into our driveway. He had the brakes on. The car was slowing down. Then it suddenly accelerated backward. My son said his foot was still on the brake pedal when the car accelerated, and he did the same thing I did when I had the issue: he moved his foot to the other pedal, thinking he had made some kind of error, but found that the switch only made the car accelerate more, so he switched back to the brake pedal and the car stopped. In both of these instances, the car was initially braking when the brake pedal was applied, then began to accelerate without a change in foot positioning. The accelerator was not touched in either instances because the vehicle was going slow enough not to need much pressure, and the accelerator is positioned far enough away from the brake as it is impossible to touch both pedals at the same time. The floor mats were properly secured at both times (as they always are) and could not possibly have interfered in any way. Thankfully no one has been hurt or experienced any property damage during either of these episodes, but I am worried that one of these days, something horrible will happen if this problem is not corrected! I will give the date of the most recent occurrence in the information included with this report.

NHTSA ID

11424191

Incident

Jul 6, 2021

THE AT OIL TEMP AND BRAKE LIGHT RANDOMLY START FLASHING AND KICK YOUR CAR OFF CRUISE WITHOUT ANY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT THE TRANSMISSION FLUID AND OIL TEMP ARE NOT HOT BUT CAUSES THE CAR TO LOSE POWER. ALMOST BEEN REAR ENDED ON THE FREE WAY DUE TO THIS HAPPENING DEALERSHIP DOES NOT KNOW WHAT CAUSES THIS DUE TO IT NOT ALWAYS HAPPENING AND THE LIGHTS GO OFF AFTER SHUTTING THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON AGAIN MULTIPLE PEOPLE HAVE THIS PROBLEM WITH NO RESOLUTION. I AM A HUGE SUBARU FAN BUT WILL LOOK ELSE WHERE IF SUBARU DOESN'T START FIXING THEIR MISTAKES,

NHTSA ID

11306247

Incident

Jan 25, 2020

Mileage

188,000 mi

MY VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT YESTERDAY. WHILE PULLING IN TO A PARKING SPOT AND ALMOST COMPLETELY STOPPED WITH MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE ABOUT TO PLACE THE CAR IN PARK, IT SUDDENLY ACCELERATED. THE RESULT WAS A FRONT END COLLISION WITH THE SIDE OF A RESTAURANT AND THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. I'M GRATEFUL THAT THERE WERE NO INJURIES BUT I'M WORRIED THAT THERE MAY BE SOMETHING SERIOUSLY WRONG WITH THIS VEHICLE AND POSSIBLY OTHERS LIKE IT. I'M NOT SURE HOW TO START AN INVESTIGATION OF THIS NATURE SO I'M TURNING TO YOUR ORGANIZATION FOR GUIDANCE. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME IF YOU HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS.

NHTSA ID

11152454

Incident

Nov 18, 2018

Mileage

76,000 mi

AFTER TURNING ONTO MY INCLINED, SOMEWHAT LONG DRIVEWAY, AND APPLYING A SOFT BRAKING WHEN ENTERING MY GARAGE, THE CAR SUDDENLY SPED UP TO A HIGH SPEED AND CRASHED INTO THE WALL WHICH HAD TWO LAYERS OF PLASTIC STORAGE BOXES IN FRONT OF IT. THE BOXES PUSHED THE WALL INTO MY HOUSE WHICH PUSHED MY DINING ROOM HUTCH FORWARD CAUSING THE TOP PART TO FALL BACK AND BREAK JUST ABOUT ALL THE CRYSTAL AND HEIRLOOM ITEMS INSIDE IT. THE TOP PART OF THE HUTCH IS UNREPAIRABLE. MY CAR WAS DAMAGED, MY HOME IS DAMAGED, AND MY HUTCH IS RUINED. I AM NOW AFRAID TO EVER PARK IN MY GARAGE AGAIN WITH THIS VEHICLE. I AM ALSO AFRAID OF THIS HAPPENING ELSEWHERE WHERE I MIGHT POSSIBLE INJURE OTHERS OR MYSELF.

NHTSA ID

11078561

Incident

Feb 23, 2018

Mileage

60,000 mi

MAY 8TH 2015 WE PURCHASED OUR 2015 SUBARU LEGACY 2.5I PREMIUM. #1. VERY PROMINENT COOLANT SMELL FROM PASSENGER SIDE ENGINE AREA. LOOSING COOLANT. #2. 600 MILES- TRANSMISSION/ ECU /THROTTLE DELAY , A 3-5 SEC DELAY IN THE RESPONSE WHEN GOING FROM (R) INTO (D) AND THE SAME 3-5 SEC DELAY IS DUPLICATED WHEN GOING FROM A STOP TO ACCELERATING THE CAR. CONCERNING. #3 3000 MILES, LOUD WIND NOISE IS HEARD FROM ALL WINDOWS. WINDOWS WERE REPLACED BY DEALER, BUT NOISE STILL EXISTS. #4 THE GAS DOOR WILL NOT RELEASE AND CONTINUES TO GET STUCK. #5 8,500 MILES- EXCESSIVE WATER ENTERING INTO ENGINE BAY. WHILE DRIVING THE ENGINE BAY GETS COMPLETELY SOAKED WITH WATER. STANDING WATER IN THE BATTERY TRAY, A RIVER OF WATER RUNNING DOWN THE INNER FENDER WALLS INSIDE THE ENGINE BAY AND WATER IS ENTERING INTO THE FUSE BOX. WHEN ENGINE GETS WET IT HAS A BURNING ELECTRICAL SMELL. WATER HAS ALSO BEEN FOUND ON THE DRIVERS SIDE FLOORBOARD AN IN THE SPARE TIRE AREA OF TRUNK. #6 2,200 MILES STARTING/MOTOR CONCERNS. THE CAR WILL CRANK OVER, BUT DOESN'T START. THE SECOND ATTEMPT THE CAR STARTS UP AND DIES IMMEDIATELY. 3RD ATTEMPT CAR FIRES OFF AN ASSOCIATED WITH BAD GAS SMELL/ ROUGH RUNNING. THE MOST RECENT TIME THIS HAPPENED TO US (12/12/15), 1ST ATTEMPT THE CAR WOULDN'T START, 2ND TIME TRYING TO START THE CAR IS FIRED UP THEN DIED. 3RD ATTEMPT CAR STARTED UP RUNNING ROUGH W/ A BAD GAS ODOR. IT'S ASSOCIATED W/ BACKFIRING / POPPING SOUND THROUGH THE EXHAUST. RECENTLY HAS DEVELOPED A LOW END SOUND/KNOCK IN MOTOR BETWEEN 1800 AND 2200 RPMS. #7 11,500 MILES BRAKE PEDAL GOES TO FLOOR. PEDAL ISN'T HOLDING PRESSURE. VEHICLE PULLS TO THE RIGHT AN ASSOCIATED WITH A CLUNKING SOUND COMING FROM THE RIGHT FRONT WHEEL.

NHTSA ID

10810556

Incident

May 20, 2015

Mileage

200 mi

I WAS DRIVING IN THE HIGHWAY WHEN MY CAR HAS AND ISSUE WITH THE BRAKES, I SAW THE BRAKE BUTTON WAS (THAT'S NOT NORMAL) ON AND MY CAR WAS STARTING TO SLOW DOWN QUICKLY BY THAT TIME I HAD A TRUCK BEHIND ME THAT ALMOST HIT ME FROM THE BACK DO TO THE BRAKE PROBLEM WITH MY CAR. I LEAVE MY CAR AT THE DEALER (BETERA SUBARU HARTFORD CT) SINCE SEPTEMBER 3, 2015 THEY JUST CALLED ME ONCE SAYING THAT THEY KNOW WHAT IS THE PROBLEM AND THEY ARE GOING TO FIX IT, BUT AT THIS TIME I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT IT. THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEMS WITH MY CAR WITH THE BRAKES.

NHTSA ID

10776602

Incident

Sep 3, 2015

ELECTRONIC PARKING BRAKES WILL NOT RELEASE. EYE SIGHT SYSTEM ERROR LIGHT ON -- SAYS TO SEE DEALER. VEHICLE IS IN LOW CLEARANCE PARKING GARAGE - FLATBED TOW TRUCK CANNOT ENTER. BRAKES ARE STUCK ON. FRONT OF VEHICLE FACING GARAGE WALL, WHICH IS PARTIALLY OPEN (LOOKING THROUGH TO ANOTHER LEVEL). VEHICLE IS ON A SLIGHT DOWNWARD INCLINE FACING WALL. SEEMS LIKE ALL 4 BRAKES ARE LOCKED EVEN IN NEUTRAL. CAR STARTS FINE AND RUNS, CAN ENTER R N & D, BUT WILL NOT MOVE. NEW VEHICLE -- TOW TRUCK OPERATOR DOES NOT KNOW HOW TO RELEASE BRAKES FOR THIS MODEL YEAR, SINCE IT IS DIFFERENT FROM PREVIOUS YEAR. VEHICLE RECEIVED EYE SIGHT RECALL NOTIFICATION RECENTLY, BUT VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN SERVICED YET. SUSPECT EYE SIGHT IS TO BLAME, AS IT HAS BEEN BEHAVING IN ERRATIC FASHION OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS. (TURNS OFF IN EXTREMELY LIGHT RAIN, WHEN IT SHOULD NOT, STAYS OFF FOR A WHILE, THEN TURNS ON IN HEAVY RAIN)

NHTSA ID

10747971

Incident

Aug 11, 2015

Mileage

8,140 mi

DRIVING ON FREEWAY WITH CRUISE SET AT 72MPH, REACHED DOWN TO THE CENTER COUNCIL TO GRAB AN ITEM, AND PULLED UP ON THE ELECTRONIC PARKING BRAKE BUTTON. THE BUTTON IS LOCATED TOO CLOSE TO REACHABLE PLACES. THE CAR CAME TO A SCRATCHING HALT, LUCKY THE VEHICLES BEHIND ME WERE ABLE TO SWERVE OUT OF THE WAY IN TIME. *TR

NHTSA ID

10667636

Incident

Dec 21, 2014

Mileage

7,000 mi