Subaru Solterra Complaints (2023)

42 consumer complaints on file.

#11643441February 18, 2025
VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2023 Subaru Solterra. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the heating system became inoperable. The contact stated that the heating system failed to function properly and was blowing out cold air instead of heat. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the failure was duplicated by the dealer; however, the dealer was unable to retrieve a fault code. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 16,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11641214February 6, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
A/C Air compressor failure resulting in no heat. Report as very common problem on internet but no recall or other fix. $3000 repair in a car approximately 2 years old.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11639850January 31, 2025
STRUCTURE:BODY, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Driving vehicle during rain storm at 10mph through standing water approximately 1 foot depth while exiting freeway in San Francisco caused front bumper components to loosen/crack, front fender liners to tear off, thereby exposing the electrical components of the battery drive unit and electricals under the front hood, including high voltage cables to be exposed to water intrusion. We can see the bright orange high voltage cables through the wheel well, along with electrical wires that appear to be grounds! Safety concern of exposing electrical high voltage system to water if driver was not aware that fender liners detached while driving. We are concerned this may pose potential risk of electrical malfunction as car is driven on wet roads due to water intrusion, reaching sensitive parts, potentially causing sudden electrical or mechanical issues and affecting vehicle safety, causing sudden malfunction given electric vehicle. Other similar reports in bz4x and Solterra - similar models badged by Toyota/Subaru partnership: Google search of "bz4x fender liners damage" [XXX] [XXX] We stopped driving due to front bumper damage, concerns with the electrical system exposed, fender liner hanging off and in contact with tire, filed insurance claim and completed repairs. The fender liner appears to be made of a very soft pliable composition with questionable integrity which may contribute to liner ripping off attachment points. The charging port door also opened AFTER driving through the standing water causing warning light to come on. Video of damage morning after incident: [XXX] Toyota specifications on wading depth: [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11632912December 28, 2024
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Vehicle stopped dramatically at low speed in snow while sensors were freaking out and flashing reverse breaking sensor problem. Car has been in shop for 6 weeks. My concern is the breaks auto/over corrected and caused my car to slide in snow.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11631223December 17, 2024
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN
I must express my disappointment and concern regarding the actual range performance of the ELECTRIC vehicle 2023 Subaru Solterra. Subaru claims that the Solterra has a range of 228 miles, but I am consistently getting only around 160 miles. This significant discrepancy suggests that Subaru may have falsified the range information, misleading customers about the vehicle's capabilities. Moreover, it is highly frustrating that customers like myself are left at the mercy of retailers who lack the necessary knowledge to properly service Subaru EVs. This situation is unacceptable, and I urge you to address these issues promptly. If you have any further questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11618264October 5, 2024
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, VISIBILITY/WIPER, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
During any precipitation, primarily rain, the adaptive cruise control fails to sense vehicles in front of it. This became alarming as the vehicle began to speed up and get alarmingly close to the other vehicle, causing driver to slam brakes. When looking at the cruise control display, the vehicle never showed another vehicle in front of it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11609539August 19, 2024
ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Leased the vehicle in November 2023, the Air Condenser failed at the beginning of August, it no longer blows cold air. I have a 1year old baby, it’s California in the summer and it gets 105+ outside, in the car is even hotter. This is a safety hazard, my daughter can no longer be in the vehicle, and my wife is also pregnant driving it to work every day. The vehicle is still waiting to be repaired since August 4th when the issue was identified, and the date of August 12th since the manufacturer has identified the issue at their repair shop. The air condenser has not come in yet.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11602700July 16, 2024
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Subaru states that the vehicle will dc fast charge at 100KWh. My Solterra and others(complaints on Subaru Solterra Forum) takes on average 1 hour and 40 minutes to charge 80%, with an additional 40 minutes to get to 100%. This is a major EV safety concern whern travelling---especially at night. In addition the milage range of the vehicle falls way short of wht SUBARU ADVERTISES TO CONSUMERS. They say 220---but I max out at 208 on a d2 charge. When the weathewr drops below 65F my range has fallen to 169(verified by dealer service records---154 miles. Bottom line from Subaru after having the vehicle in shop for over 30 days was: "performing as designed" Please help.......I am not alone---this issue is pervasive among 2023 Subaru Solterra owners
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11572241February 15, 2024
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
problem with milage range and charging rate . The vehicle will not charge above 24Kw--no fast charing possible "the vehicle has been found to be operating as designed and no repairs are being recommended" Leased vehicle in October 2023
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11572031February 15, 2024
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Slow DC charging of Subaru Solterra 2023 at low temperatures is unsafe for toddlers and babies. The battery pack of Subaru Solterra 2023 has a slow charging rate at DC, and with low temperature( 32 F), it becomes even slower; what makes the matter worse is that if you use air conditioning, the charging rate becomes ten times slower. We were with our toddler driving on the i80 and we had to charge the car to get us to our destination, We have stopped at 50 kw DC charger. The vehicle only pulled 35 kw, the temperature outside was 34 F, and we wanted to keep the air conditioning because our toddler was on board, but the car was taking an insane amount of time to charge, 1000 minutes from 40% to 100%. Toddlers can't stay that long in a car, you can't turn off the AC at the risk of hypothermia, and you can't wait in the nearby building because the DC charger, like most DC chargers, is in the middle of nowhere. We turned off the AC for 10 minutes while sitting in the back with our toddler's body, warming him to get enough charge to reach our next destination. I would expect if the weather was worse, the DC charger would have been slower, and even 10 minutes without AC could have had severe adverse health consequences on the car passengers, kids, and adults. Other EVs have battery conditioning that makes DC chargers faster at low temperatures, thus decreasing the risk of toddler discomfort and hypothermia.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11567461January 24, 2024
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM
Started the car, dash had multiple warning lights for "drive start control system", "ev system malfunction" and "systems not available" (all safety systems were off). Took car to dealer, they said the car stored no codes, reset the car, took it home. Two days later- same thing happened but also this time the car had NO HEAT. Luckily the heated seats worked but it was 20 degrees F and I had to drive my mother and sister home (which was 90 minutes- a VERY long time to be without heat). Thankfully it did not snow which would have made the car undriveable due to the inability to defrost the windshield. Car went back to dealer (ziegler subaru of Kenosha WI), they have stated (thus far) two valves are bad and need replacing. i am in several online forums with other Solterra drivers, some of which are experiencing the same issues and being told the cause is the same valves, or the compressor. Lead times to acquire these parts are 2+ months. I have had my car since April 2023 and it has 9000 miles and to have it fail, with no heat or safety systems, is a danger to myself and others on the road.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11566469January 19, 2024
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
The S pedal regenerative breaking shuts off randomly, causing the vehicle to stop breaking, and the need for an immediate use of the brake pedal.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11561166December 20, 2023
EXTERIOR LIGHTING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
We hit a stationary deer at night. Afterwards, we found an open recall: WRG23-1: Forward recognition camera reprogramming 2023 Subaru Solterra, but Subaru refused to investigate as they claim animals (suddenly appearing) are a carve out on their liability. However, the deer wasn't leaping, it was already frozen in the road. The headlights only illuminated its knees, too late for the driver to stop before impact. It could have just as easily been a person, or other heavy road debris. The incident was on a dark highway bypass, with slight left curve, so poor headlights hampered the driver & automatic systems from stopping in time. The headlights angle down (tilts & dims from brights automatically for oncoming cars) instead of illuminating the road properly, neither the driver nor the braking system can detect an object. The regular lights have an abnormally short distance. Only the brights setting illuminates a sufficient braking distance, & those can't be used with oncoming traffic. The headlights have a hard limit on the top, instead of 2 circles of light. The driver, also an engineer, said that the camera needs a certain level of lighting to detect objects, & they probably didn't test these systems together on a dark country road. Normal illumination could have prevented or lessened the damage/danger, swivel headlights would have been best. A driver needs a certain distance illuminated for braking distance at speed, unless the camera is radar or infrared: it needs light too. The front 1/3 of the car was peeled off, causing over $15k in damages. Several body panels ripped off, the wiring harness was ripped out. There were no warnings before the impact. No automatic braking occured. No airbags were deployed. There is a police report. Road was dark, clear and dry. The driver was sober, attentive and going the speed limit. A camera reprogramming without a headlight fix will not solve this safety issue, & we told Subaru as much. This situation may apply to Toyota.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11550158October 16, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Under certain circumstances when using adaptive cruise control the car can accelerate towards a stationary vehicle. The last time that it occurred I was using the adaptative control at 35 mph and was approaching a stop light with the car correctly detecting a car in front which my car had detected and was slowing to allow adapt to the speed of the car that was ahead. The car entered a turn lane on the left and there was another car directly in from of mine and it was stopped at the light. My car began to accelerate to the speed which is was set at and didn't detect the car in front which was stopped at a traffic light. I had to quickly apply my brakes to avoid a collision. My car had recently been updated with an update to it's software. An update had been applied to the front camera's software.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11547383September 29, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER, STRUCTURE:BODY, STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS:UNDERBODY SHIELDS
9/29/2023, driving through 4-5 inch of flood water on the road at around 10 miles per hour, the undercover piece under front engenie area fall fall and both front mud guard liners ripped off and broken. Brand new vehcile only been dirving for 1 month with only 775 miles. Went to Subaru dealership, and dealership said those broken parts are not under warranty. This undercover piece & both front mud guard liners are very poorly design and super bad quality. I would like to file a cliam and request Subaru/Toyota (car was made by Toyoto) to recall & provide free repair to the car owner who has experience this issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11544506September 14, 2023
STRUCTURE:BODY, STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS:UNDERBODY SHIELDS
Left and right wheel well liners , front undertray and rear undertray came off while driving at slow speed on a street that had about 8 inches of water during heavy rain. I took the car to the Subaru dealer to get fixed under the guarantee as the car was just 6 months old and 7,553 miles but the dealer said they could not apply the guarantee on this situation because it was consider and act of nature. However , a car that is marketed as an SUV with a 8.3 inches of ground clearance and cannot handle a low speed pass over slightly deep water, shows that the car is not performing as it should. I am sure that day a lot of other cars were on the road and this didnt happen to them . I have a video of that day while driving and another car was also on the same road. I really question the quality of those parts and maybe it should be looked into in case that this has happen to a lot of other Solterra and BZ4Z ( which shares the same platform with the Solterra. The other issue is that according to the Subaru dealer, the replacement parts are not available they don't know when they will become available , and I have read that driving the car without those liners it can damage other components on the car due to debris that can be thrown by the tire against the unprotected critical parts.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11538316August 14, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Subaru Solterra - Sudden unexpected acceleration with no ability to brake or steer. Message appeared "System Malfunction" Crashed into woods; small trees slowed and stopped car; airbags did not deploy. no injuries but great risk if car had headed to nearby highway instead of trees. car now at dealer undergoing inspection by Subaru.Police report made; copy not yet available. Michigan State Police report 75-2169-23
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11533554July 20, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Subject: Safety Concerns with Subaru Solterra - Urgent Attention Required I hope this message finds you well. I am writing to express my serious concerns regarding the safety issues I am experiencing with my newly purchased Subaru Solterra 2023 Touring. Despite my enthusiasm for the vehicle, the problems outlined below have caused me considerable distress and are posing significant risks to both myself and my beloved pet. Safety Issue 1: Bluetooth Connectivity and Remote Climate Control The Bluetooth connectivity features in the vehicle, including driver detection, load profile, locking/unlocking, and remote climate control, are currently non-functional. The dealership has acknowledged this issue but has been unable to provide an estimated timeframe for a fix. This problem alone presents multiple safety concerns: 1.1. Risk to My Pet's Safety: I frequently leave my pet in the car during extreme weather conditions to ensure their safety. The inability to operate the remote climate control due to the connectivity issue can lead to a life-threatening situation for my pet, as the car automatically shuts off after 20 minutes. 1.2. Inability to Lock the Car: Additionally, the inability to lock the car from the app exacerbates the safety risks, as it compromises the security of both my pet and the vehicle's contents when I am away. Safety Issue 2: Discrepancy in Mileage Reporting The mileage displayed on the Subaru Connect App and the car itself shows a significant discrepancy. While the app indicates a range of 240 miles on a full charge, the car's display only shows 179 miles. This disparity is not only disconcerting but also raises serious safety concerns: 2.1. Uncertain Range Reliability: As an electric vehicle owner, knowing the accurate range is crucial for planning my journeys. The discrepancy between the app and the car's display leaves me unsure of the actual remaining range, potentially leading to battery depletion and a complete shutdown while operating.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11530346July 4, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, UNKNOWN OR OTHER, SUSPENSION
The Toyota bz4x have a large crash rate, because the Car Computer System is different from the Driver mind on the Highway. Cars cannot be a Driver or Substitute on Streets for Now. Any Changes of the lines on the Highway need Signals before, If you don't, your Car bz4x can't changed your line. In the work zone, the bz4x have a large probability of crash, because of NO STRAIGHT LINE IN THE WORK ZONE, that means the bz4x need assistance in work ZONE before driving, if you don't have any intention of changing the line, you will need your Signals Sign to keep moving straight. Signals before any changing of the lines, any Exits or Merging is the Best things for the Drivers to do on the Streets. IF THE DRIVERS CANNOT SHOW THEIR INTENTIONS ON THE HIGHWAY, ISN'T THE CARS JOBS TO DO IT. ALL THIS, IT'S ABOUT SAFETY.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11524281May 29, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Black piano plastic blinds driver when it is sunny outside.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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