2000 Subaru Outback Transmission Problems

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 SUBARU OUTBACK. WHEN THE CONTACT STARTS THE VEHICLE AND ATTEMPTS TO CHANGE GEARS, THE VEHICLE JERKS VERY STRONGLY. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WAS THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE TRANSMISSION FLUID WAS CHANGED, BUT THE FAILURE PERSISTED. THE DEALER RECOMMENDED THAT THE TRANSMISSION BE REBUILT. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 83,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 93,000. UPDATED 4/23/09 *CN UPDATED 04/27/09*JB

NHTSA ID

10260473

Incident

Jun 2, 2008

Mileage

83,000 mi

2000 SUBARU OUTBACK, TRANSMISSION SLIPS UNTIL WARMED UP. STARTED AT 60,000 MILES AND GETTING WORSE. WEB RESEARCH INDICATES A COMMON FAILURE OF PISTON SEALS AND A KNOWN PROBLEM AS SUBARU HAS REDESIGNED. WHAT ABOUT US PAST CUSTOMERS? *TR

NHTSA ID

10225943

Incident

Mar 1, 2007

Mileage

60,000 mi

TRANSMISSION WILL INTERMITTENTLY FAIL TO GO INTO DRIVE FROM PARK OR REVERSE. HAPPENS AT RANDOM. ENGINE CAN BE COLD OR WARM AND IT STILL HESITATES. SOMETIMES TAKES OVER A MINUTE TO GET THE TRANSMISSION TO ENGAGE. ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE WE GET STRANDED. TOOK CAR TO DEALER AND THEY TOPPED OFF THE TRANSMISSION FLUID AND SAID THE DELAY WAS NORMAL. ISSUES BEGAN AT 65K MILES AND HAVE PROGRESSIVELY GOTTEN WORSE. CAR NOW HAS 77K MILES AND ONLY OPTION GIVEN HAS BEEN TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION. *TR

NHTSA ID

10214233

Incident

Jan 10, 2007

Mileage

65,000 mi

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 SUBARU OUTBACK. THE VEHICLE WOULD JERK WHEN IDLING. WHEN THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED, THERE WAS A DELAY AND THE VEHICLE WOULD JOLT FORWARD. THE DEALER STATED THAT INTERNAL TRANSMISSION PARTS FAILED AND THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. AT 64,000 MILES, THE CONTACT SMELLED ROTTEN EGGS WHEN DRIVING 35 MPH. THE DEALER REPLACED THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER. WHILE DRIVING BETWEEN 25- 60 MPH WITH THE AIR CONDITIONER ACTIVATED, SHE SMELLED SOMETHING BURNING INSIDE THE PASSENGER COMPARTMENT. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE HEAD GASKET FAILED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE HEAD GASKET FAILED AT 55,000 AND 80,000 MILES. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 55,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 95,000.

NHTSA ID

10213696

Incident

Nov 7, 2004

Mileage

55,000 mi

TRANSMISSION IS GOING OUT OF 2000 OUTBACK BEFORE 70,000 MILES. IT IS STATED ON THE INTERNET THAT OTHER PEOPLE ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THIS YEAR OF OUTBACK. I BOUGHT THIS CAR BECAUSE IT WAS SUPPOSE TO LAST FORA LONG TIME WITH LOW MAINTENANCE. I DON'T FEEL THAT I OR ANYONE ELSE SHOULD HAVE TO REPLACE A TRANSMISSION IN A CAR THAT HAS LESS THAN 70,000 MILES ON IT. I DON'T EVEN HAVE THE CAR PAID FOR AND IT WILL COST ME $2700.00 TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION WITH A REBUILT ONE THAT COULD STILL HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM. *TR

NHTSA ID

10209673

Incident

Apr 21, 2007

THERE IS A DELAY IN THE TRANSMISSION WHEN SHIFTING FROM PARK OR REVERSE TO DRIVE. THE CAR HAS ALREADY BEEN INVOLVED IN A MINOR ACCIDENT BECAUSE OF THE PROBLEM. THE CAR WAS TAKEN TO A SUBARU SERVICE CENTER AND I WAS TOLD I NEEDED A NEW REBUILT TRANSMISSION AT $3600. *NM

NHTSA ID

10170614

Incident

Mar 5, 2003

Mileage

67 mi

THE CLUTCH ON MY SUBARU OUTBACK 2000 IT'S BEEN A PROBLEM SINCE DAY ONE I PURCHASED THE CAR IN 2000. AT TIMES RANDOMLY IT WOULD SLIP OR THE PEDAL WOULD NOT RETURN UP. SLIPPING OF THE CLUTCH OR THE PEDAL BEING STUCK MULTIPLE TIMES ALMOST CAUSED ME TO GET INTO ACCIDENT WHEN CHANGING LANES OR MERGING INTO TRAFFIC. *JB

NHTSA ID

10144727

Incident

Dec 2, 2005

Mileage

1,000 mi

VEHICLE WILL NOT ENGAGE INTO DRIVE FROM PARK, OR VEHICLE WILL DISENGAGE FROM DRIVE WITHOUT WARNING, PUTTING THE CAR INTO NEUTRAL. ALTHOUGH NO ACCIDENT HAS OCCURRED VEHICLE HAS FAILED TO ENGAGE INTO DRIVE IN SEVERAL HIGH TRAFFIC SITUATIONS. THE VEHICLE ONLY HAS 67,000 MILES. *NM

NHTSA ID

10143097

Incident

Nov 17, 2005

Mileage

67,211 mi

AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION HAS DELAY IN ENGAGING FROM A STOP INTO ANY FORWARD GEAR FROM ANY GEAR. *NM

NHTSA ID

10139775

Incident

Sep 1, 2005

Mileage

92,000 mi

THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION HAS DELAYED ENGAGEMENT WHEN CHANGING FROM PARK TO DRIVE. THE TRANSMISSION WILL NOT ENGAGE FOR UP TO 10 SECONDS THEN IT WILL ENGAGE ABRUPTLY CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO LUNGE FORWARD UNCONTROLLABLY IN AN UNSAFE MANNER. SUBARU HAS DEEMED THE PROBLEM A TRANSMISSION FAILURE REQUIRING A NEW TRANSMISSION. PROBLEM HAS OCCURRED AT 74,000 MILES DESPITE REGULAR MAINTENANCE. THIS SITUATION HAS BEEN DESCRIBED IN COMPLAINT# 10074032, 10090065, 10106683, AND 10122566. SUBARU OF AMERICA DENIES THAT THERE IS A PATTERN OF COMPLAINTS/PROBLEMS.

NHTSA ID

10125449

Incident

Jun 10, 2005

Mileage

74,191 mi

VEHICLE APPROXIMATELY 9 MONTHS AGO WAS EXPERIENCING A SLIGHT DELAY IN ENGAGING AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FROM ANY GEAR INTO DRIVE. HAD DEALERSHIP LOOK AT IT AND DO A TRANSMISSION FLUSH OF ALL FLUID. THE PROBLEM REALLY DIDN'T GET BETTER UNTIL FINALLY ON 3/19/05 AT ONLY 51,800 MILES THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NO LONGER ENGAGE IN DRIVE AT ALL. A TRANSMISSION SHOP LOOKED AT IT AND SAID AN 'O' RING FAILED CAUSING THE ENTIRE TRANSMISSION TO NEED TO BE REBUILT AND CATALYTIC CONVERTER TO BE REPLACED. COST WAS $2,644 AND WAS ONLY 6 WEEKS PAST EXPIRATION OF THE WARRANTY.

NHTSA ID

10122566

Incident

Mar 19, 2005

Mileage

51,800 mi

CONSUMER COMPLAINED ABOUT A TRANSMISSION PROBLEM. VEHICLE DELAYED WHEN IT WAS PUT INTO DRIVE. ALSO, CONSUMER WOULD BE DRIVING AND SUDDENLY THE TRANSMISSION WOULD GO INTO NEUTRAL WITHOUT CHANGING GEARS. CONSUMER CONTACTED THE DEALER, WHO RECOMMENDED THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. *AK......INITIALLY, DEALER COULD NOT FIND A PROBLEM. AFTER 2 MOR EVISITS TO DEALER, IT WAS DETERMINED THAT TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. *AK

NHTSA ID

10106683

Incident

Jun 1, 2004

Mileage

58,000 mi

TRANSMISSION WILL NOT GO INTO GEAR. WHEN DRIVER APPLIED THE GAS VEHICLE WILL NOT MOVE. CONSUMER WAS TOLD BY THE DEALER TO WAIT UNTIL IT FAILED COMPLETELY. DEALERSHIP WILL NOT ACKNOWLEDGE THE DEFECT UNTIL IT HAPPENED PERMANENTLY. *AK

NHTSA ID

10090065

Incident

Jun 29, 2004

Mileage

58,500 mi

BURNING SMELL EMINATING FROM TRANSMISSION. *AK

NHTSA ID

10086312

Incident

Jun 28, 2003

Mileage

35,000 mi

DRIVING NORMAL SHIFTED THE CAR AND THE CLUTCH FELT SOFT AND THE RETURN TO NORMAL POSITION WAS SLOW. I CALLED THE DEALER REPAIR AND EXPLAINED THE SITUATION. I WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS A SERVICE BULLETIN ON THIS TYPE OF INCIDENT, HOWEVER THERE WAS NO RECALL. I TOOK TO DEALER FOR REPAIR. IT COST ME $216.00 TO REPAIR SOMETHING THAT THE MANUFACTURER KNEW WAS DEFECTIVE AND IT WASN'T COVERED BY MY EXTENDED WARRANTY.*AK

NHTSA ID

10081184

Incident

Jul 12, 2004

Mileage

34,000 mi

INTERMITTENTLY, THE GEAR POSITIONING LEVER STICKS IN GEAR. THE CONSUMER DEPRESSES THE BRAKE PEDAL SEVERAL TIMES AND PLAYS WITH THE LEVER TO UNSTICK IT. THE DEALERSHIP HAS REPLACED A PART IN THE GEAR POSITIONING LEVER, BUT THE PROBLEM STILL EXIST. ALSO, THE CONSUMER WAS UNABLE TO REMOVE THE KEY FROM THE IGNITION WHEN THE VEHICLE IS IN THE PARK GEAR. *LA

NHTSA ID

10076248

Incident

Jun 6, 2004

Mileage

20,000 mi

CONSUMER STATES THAT VEHICLE IS UNABLE TO SHIFT INTO DRIVE INTERMITTENTLY. THE DEALER INDICATED THAT TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED DUE TO AN INTERNAL FAILURE. *AK WHEN THE COMPUTER DIAGNOSTIC WAS DONE NO CODES REGISTERED, ACCORDING TO THE DIAGNOSTIC MACHINE THE VEHICLE WAS NOT IN NEED OF REPAIR. *NM

NHTSA ID

10074032

Incident

May 19, 2004

Mileage

69,258 mi

THERE CURRENTLY HAS BEEN SEVERAL TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETINS REGARDING 2000-2002 MANUAL TRANSMISSION SUBARU OUTBACKS. THESE BULLETINS REFER TO A DEFECT IN THE CLUTCH THAT CAUSES A PREMATURE WEAR OF THE CLUTCH AND YOKE DUE TO AN IMBALANCE IN CAUSING THE CAR TO "JUDDER" OR SHUDDER WHEN ENGAGING INTO GEARS. I HAVE HAD AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, GLEN OWNER OF OAKLAND AUTO WORKS STATE THAT HE COULD NOT WARRANTY THE REPAIR OF CLUTCH BECAUSE THE RECOMMENDED REPAIR BY SUBARU DOES NOT RELIABLY FIX THE PROBLEM AND MANY PEOPLE END UP HAVING TO HAVE THE CLUTCH REPLACED NUMEROUS TIMES IN A SHORT TIME SPAN. SUBARU IS AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM BECAUSE THEY HAVE CHANGED THE CLUTCH KIT SEVERAL TIMES AND THE METHOD OF REPAIR TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM YET HAVE FAILED TO PERFORM A RECALL. I AM CURRENTLY UNSURE ON HOW TO PROCEED IN THE REPAIR OF MY VEHICLE AS THE REPAIR COST IS $1350.00 AND IF THE UNIT FAILS OUTSIDE OF WARRANTY I MAY BE SUBJECT HAVING TO PAY THIS AMOUNT AGAIN. SOME OTHER PROBLEMS WHICH ERRUPT FROM THIS DEFECT INCLUDE THE CLUTCH CATCHING FIRE. THE CLUTCH PEDAL STICKING AND NOT RELEASING DUE TO THE YOKE BEING WORN FOR THE CLUTCH "JUDDER". LAST, PREMATURE OF THE CLUTCH WITH ONLY HAVING A LIFESPAN OF 30,000 MILES OR LESS. *AK

NHTSA ID

10074933

Incident

Jun 1, 2004

Mileage

67,000 mi

CLUTCH SHUDDERS & REQUIRED REPLACEMENT. HINDSIGHT BEING 20/20, I REALIZE THE CLUTCH APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN DEFECTIVE FROM DATE OF DELIVERY. MY OWN REVIEW OF AUTOMOTIVE WEBSITES INDICATES THAT OTHERS HAVE EITHER HEARD OF OR HAVE HAD THIS PROBLEM AND SUBARU OF AMERICA HAS BEEN OF NO ASSISTANCE. I HAVE HAD NUMEROUS DISCUSSION IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS WITH SOA ABOUT THIS AND THEY REFUSE TO ACKNOWLDGE THEY HAVE A PROBLEM. *AK

NHTSA ID

10049658

Incident

Jul 1, 2000

Mileage

54 mi

PREMATURE CLUTCH FAILURE ON SUBARU OUTBACK WAGON 2000. ORIGINAL CLUTCH REPLACED AT 7500 MILES AND FOUND TO HAVE A MANUFACTURERS DEFECT, BENT FORKS.EW CLUTCH PLACED IN CAR. SHORTLY AFTER, SMELL OF BURNING, ESP. WHEN BACKING UP OR IN COLD WEATHER, WHICH LASTED FOR 1 MONTH. CLUTCH THEN FAILED PREMATURELY AFTER 40,000 MILES. MY HYPOTHESIS IS THAT THE CLUTCH LOST A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF ITS LINING AND LIFE SPAN WHEN BURNING UP IN THE FIRST MONTH OF USE. NUMEROUS POSTING ON EDMUNDS.COM REGARDING PREMATURE CLUTCH FAILURE, BURNING SMELL, AND CLUTCH SHUDDER IN SUBARU OUTBACKS. MY EXPERIENCE, AND THE EXPERIENCE OF OTHER OWNERS, SUGGESTS THAT THERE IS A GENERAL DEFECT PRESENT IN SUBARU CLUTCHES FROM 2000-2002. LEASE INVESTIGATE THIS DEFECT AND CONSIDER A RECALL.*AK

NHTSA ID

10043615

Incident

Oct 16, 2003

Mileage

51,000 mi

THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED A DELAYED RESPONSE WHEN CHANGING FROM ONE GEAR INTO ANOTHER. THE VEHICLE WAS STOPPED ON A STEEP SLOPE AND PUT INTO REVERSE. THE DRIVER TOOK HIS FOOT OFF THE BRAKE AND ONTO THE ACCELERATOR THEN THE VEHICLE ROLLED FORWARD. THE CONSUMER BELIEVES THIS PROBLEM IS CALLED SHIFT LAG. *AK *NLM

NHTSA ID

10038080

Incident

Aug 31, 2003

Mileage

67,000 mi

WE EXPERIENCED PROBLEMS WITH OUR 2000 SUBARU LEGACY OUTBACK AS SIMILARLY REPORTED IN COMPLAINT # 766462 (TRANSMISSION LEAKING FLUID, SMOKING, FAILURE). SUBARU DEALER REFUSED TO PROVIDE WARRANTY SERVICE FOR THE TRANSMISSION WORK (2 INCIDENTS BETWEEN AUG 2002 AND MAY 2003), AND ONLY A LETTER BY US IN JUNE 2003 (NOTING PREVIOUS REPORTS IN NHTSA WEBSITE & ELSEWHERE) FINALLY CONVINCED SUBARU USA HEADQUARTERS TO INVESTIGATE THE PROBLEM FURTHER. THE FIX SUBARU PERFORMED WAS REPLACEMENT OF A SEAL BETWEEN THE TRANSMISSION AND DIFFERENTIAL HOUSING, WHICH SEEMS TO LARGELY RESOLVE THE PROBLEM (ALTHOUGH A SLIGHT SMOKE ODOR STILL OCCURS WHEN DRIVING AT HIGH SPEEDS). SUBARU USA ALSO REFUNDED ALL OUR PREVIOUS CHARGES BY THE DEALER FOR PRIOR UNSUCCESSFUL REPAIRS (WHICH SHOULD HAVE BEEN FREE UNDER THE WARRANTY). THERE APPEARS TO BE AN INHERENT DEFECT IN THIS TRANSMISSION (4EAT MODEL) UNDER HIGH HEAT CONDITIONS, WHICH HAS A LONG HISTORICAL TRACK RECORD IN THIS REGARD. IN ONE INCIDENCE, WE ALMOST INCURRED A SEVERE FIRE ON THE ROAD AND THIS COULD BE A POTENTIALLY FATAL HAZARD. NHTSA SHOULD EXAMINE THIS PROBLEM CLOSELY WITH SUBARU.*JB

NHTSA ID

10039227

Incident

May 10, 2003

Mileage

27,164 mi

"FUZZY LOGIC" TRANSMISSION CONTROLLER IS DANGEROUSLY SLOW, INCONSISTENT, AND UNPREDICTABLE. SCANNING 19 INPUTS IS EXCESSIVE OVER-KILL AND REMOVES MUCH OF DRIVER'S CONTROL AND PEACE OF MIND. *NLM

NHTSA ID

10014334

Incident

Mar 10, 2001

Mileage

5,000 mi

CLUTCH AND FLYWHEEL CAUGHT FIRE WHILE DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY. CAR HAS 36000 MILES ON IT AND IS SERVICED BY THE DEALER REGULARLY. DEALER CHARGED ME $1200 TO REPLACE THE CLUTCH AND SAID THAT IT WAS MY FAULT, THAT I MUST "RIFE THE CLUTCH" OR HABITUALLY OVERLOAD THE VEHICLE, NEITHER OF WHICH IS TRUE. I SUSPECT THE CLUTCH WAS FLAWED TO BEGIN WITH. *JB

NHTSA ID

10010914

Incident

Mar 20, 2003

Mileage

35,500 mi

THE TRANSMISSION FAILED, WHICH CAUSED THE VEHICLE NOT TO ACCELERATE, THE TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED 3 TIMES.*JB

NHTSA ID

10009135

Incident

Feb 22, 2003