2000 Subaru Outback from North America
Summary:
It's get up and go has gotten up and left
Faults:
We had a hesitation problem. If you were stopped and had to pull out somewhat quickly (i.e. pulling out onto a busy road) while the wheel was turned, the car would hesitate, as if it wasn't receiving gas. Although we complained about this numerous times, nothing was ever fixed. We then moved, switched service/dealer and suddenly discover the O2 sensor was bad. We were told this should fix the hesitation problem. Unfortunately we had just come out of warranty and Subaru (main office - not either dealer) has refused to cover the cost of the part (~$300) saying we did not document the problem enough prior to going out of warranty.
We have also had break issues which surprises us because we have over 100,000 miles on our Toyota and have not had to put in the amount of money that we already have to on the Outback.
General Comments:
We will not purchase another vehicle from the original dealer or Subaru.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know
Review Date: 19th February, 2004
14th Jun 2004, 08:55
I purchased a 2004 Outback Ltd in November 03. I have had this hesitation problem as well. It is an issue that some people may not notice, but to me is very noticeable, and annoying. It is the only problem I have found with this otherwise remarkable vehicle. The dealer, to date, has not recognized the problem during a test drive.
It appears that the vehicle computer retards the timing or otherwise deprives the engine of fuel when it is needed most. Typically this occurs when starting from a stop (but also is noticable when going through 2'nd and 3'rd gear). The accelerator is pressed, clutch is engaged, and as rpms begin to climb, around 2000-2400 rpms, there is a "glitch", or "hiccup", and power is briefly unavailable. This results in a mild to moderately-strong "lurch". Acceleration is otherwise acceptable if you are not performance-oriented, but only marginally. This is a relatively heavy vehicle and the 4 cylinder engine design has probably been pushed to great lengths to allow it to power the vehicle.
It is frustrating that Subaru continues to allow buyers to purchase the H-6 motor only as part of the LLBean "foofy" (and probably very profitable) trim package.