2019 Subaru Ascent Engine Problems

The Y pipe that connects the exhaust from the engine to the turbo charger, has cracks from poor welds. It happened 8-12 months ago we started to notice that during warm up our Ascent would sound real loud then quiet down once it warmed up. We didn’t know there was an issue as there were no lights that came on and we had no loss of power or MPG. The safety issue would be that we finally took the car in once we started to smell exhaust fumes coming from the car that we would start to smell from inside the car. We had to start to air out the car after warming up if we couldn’t immediately drive away once started. We contacted Subaru and they offered a partial credit for a repair but after researching I have seen they have had recalls in the past regarding similar cracked Exhaust manifolds on another model car.

During an inspection at the dealership in December 2023, the tech found the oil pan to be leaking. It was resealed during the same visit. Approximately 8 months later, the same problem was found again at the dealership. It was again resealed. Upon further research, this appears to be a recurring problem on similar vehicles.

Clouds of smoke at startup scince car was new.

Battery draining problem

Transmission slipping especially while climbing an incline though it’s happened while on flat surface accelerating

They have not have remedy for a long time!

Trying to pass an 18-wheeler on PA Turnpike. Weather 68-degrees, sunny day, no precipitation. When accelerating, the vehicle began shaking. There was a stutter in engine, shaking the vehicle. Suddenly a loud bang jolted the car and the Crash avoidance system applied breaks (I was the left passing lane, at a speed of 70 mph, with more than a dozen vehicles close behind). Emergency collision warning, EyeSight warning, check engine, RAB, and numerous dash error alterts illuminated. The parking brake turned on and off without human intervention (it's computer-controlled). The engine shut off and a multiple car fishtail began behind me. Fortunately, no one was hurt. I put the car in Neutral, lurched to the side of the road, and called OnStar. Calls to the dealer have not been returned. I drive elementary children to scouts and sporting events. I can't imagine the horror had they been harmed or worse.

Huge plumes of smoke on startup. Complained to the service department on multiple occasions and even left the car with the dealer service department. They said they could not duplicate my complaint. They said I should take pictures. Can't take pictures when it happens three or four times a month. I think there is something wrong with the engine am afraid of fire or failure of the engine.

Driving from Tehachapi, CA toward Las Vegas towing our camper at about 45-50 mph, we started hearing a knocking that sounded like valve flutter. We drove for about 1 minute looking for a safe place to pull over, but then the knocking grew louder and the oil temp started to rise, so we immediately braked and pulled into the sand (no shoulder). There were no warning lights at any point until we actually pulled over (oil light). After the tow to Subaru Las Vegas, we noted that the battery was dead. On 6-14, Subaru of America told us on a recorded line that the two investigations had concluded and the cause was towing excessive weight. We shared our camper registration and specs with them, showing a dry weight of 4130 pounds, 100 less than the airstream used in Subaru's marketing materials (we tow with empty tanks and less than 100 lbs. of cargo. We also indicated to Subaru of Las Vegas and SOA that on our few previous trips with the camper, we noticed the Ascent revving hard on slight inclines and that it sounded like it struggled to find a gear towing. SOA has not shared a copy of either report. We are asking SOF to repair under the warranty (car has 39K miles). We will asked for the defective engine whenever we are able to pick up the vehicle. We spent over $1000 between towing, flights home from Vegas, renting a substitute vehicle, etc.. Most importantly, this sudden catastrophic failure could have killed us-the failure was so swift (the time from hearing the noise to being stationary was less than a minute and a half) and without warning that we didn't have time to react well and had to pull off into deep sand with no shoulder- a semi truck almost rear-ended us as we pulled over. Then we had to wait in the Mojave heat, arm's length away from traffic whizzing by with my toddler and puppy while the tow truck arrived. The Ascent is the vehicle we purchased to be able to evacuate our family from our wildfire-prone home, so every day we are without it poses risk.

THE ENGINE KEEPS STUTTERING WHEN DRIVING AND SLOWING DOWN TO STOP AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT. COUPLE OF TIMES, IT SHOULD SHUT DOWN AND I HAVE TO RESTART THE CAR. I DO ENSURE THE CAR IS WARMED UP TO A MINIMUM OF 7-10 MINUTES BEFORE STARTING. IT ONLY STARTED RECENTLY BUT I AM WORRIED THAT THIS WILL HAPPEN MORE AND SUDDENLY STOP WHEN DRIVING AND ME GETTING INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT.

My vehicle smokes when starting it. A lot of white smoke that can fill a parking lot. The smoke has a strong chemical smell.

The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Ascent. The contact stated that while the engine was idling, exhaust fumes entered the cabin of the vehicle. Additionally, immediately after starting the vehicle, there was a loud ticking sound coming from the exhaust system. The vehicle was inspected by the local dealer, and it was determined that the exhaust manifold lines were faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 120,000.

MY FUEL PUMP WAS REPLACED (ACCORDING TO THE DEALER) BASED ON THE MOST RECENT RECALL. HOWEVER NOW IT IDLES AND RUNS ROUGH JUST A SHORT TIME AFTER THIS SERVICE. I RECENTLY READ THERE IS ANOTHER LAWSUIT OR ISSUE WITH THIS FUEL PUMP AND THE SYMPTOMS ARE THE SAME.

VEHICLE BLOWS OUT WHITE SMOKE UPON START UP, THIS IS A HIT AND MISS PROBLEM. THIS IS AFTER THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN PARKED OVER NIGHT, BUT HAS OCCURRED AFTER PARKED FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS, IT HAS BEEN SENT TO THE DEALER SEVERAL TIMES

MY WIFE AND I PURCHASED A NEW SUBARU ASCENT IN FEBRUARY OF LAST YEAR. SINCE THEN INTERMITTENTLY THERE IS A LARGE BLUE/GRAY CLOUD OF SMOKE THAT COMES FROM THE EXHAUST WHEN THE CAR IS STARTED. HAVE TAKEN THE CAR TO THE LOCAL DEALER FOR REPAIR 4 TIMES AND THEY REPLACED A PART THE FIRST TIME BUT SINCE THEN SAID THAT THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. ACCORDING TO THE ASSISTANT SERVICE MANAGER AT THE DEALER THEY HAVE SEEN THIS PROBLEM BEFORE AND SUBARU AMERICA IS ALSO AWARE BUT HAVE SAID "(THAT THERE IS NO FIX FOR THIS PROBLEM)". AT THE SECOND AND THIRD VISITS THEY HAD SAID "(THEY WERE GOING TO CHANGE A PART IN THE CAR BUT THEN DECIDED NOT TO BECAUSE THE REPRESENTATIVE FROM SUBARU OF AMERICA SAID IT WOULD NOT HELP)". THE SERVICE REPORTS FOR THESE VISITS ONLY STATE THAT THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. THE DEALER THEN SAID THAT ANY SOLUTIONS WOULD HAVE TO COME FROM SUBARU OF AMERICA. ACCORDING TO SUBARU OF AMERICA THEY HAVE NOT SEEN THIS PROBLEM BEFORE AND THEY OFFER NO REMEDY. FROM WHAT I HAVE LEARNED THIS PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE KNOWN TO SUBARU. I KNOW OF ONE PERSON THAT STATES HIS "ENGINE BLEW" (A2002SLP@YAHOO.COM) AFTER HE HAD HIS CAR EVALUATED BY SUBARU, AFTER MANY MONTHS THEY AGREED TO REPLACE HIS ENGINE. HERE ARE SOME COMMENTS FROM OTHERS EXPERIENCING THIS PROBLEM HTTPS://WWW.ASCENTFORUMS.COM/THREADS/NEW-ASCENT-UNEXPECTED-BLUE-SMOKE-FROM-EXHAUST-AT-START-UP-AND-ACCELERATION.8920/ HERE'S A LINK TO VIDEOS OF MY CAR: HTTPS://WWW.DROPBOX.COM/SH/FTDE39F4RSZ3V5E/AACLJXFUCHHFBRAB-JKSEFHIA?DL=0 AS WELL AS A LINK TO A YOUTUBE THREAD WITH OTHERS STATING A NEW ENGINE WAS NEEDED. HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=E8CN3D4EJIC I BELIEVE THIS PROBLEM MIGHT POSE AN IMMINENT RISK TO ANY DRIVERS OF THIS VEHICLE AND WOULD WELCOME ANY HELP ENCOURAGING SUBARU TO TAKE THIS MATTER SERIOUSLY. THANKS

CAR SHAKES WHEN IT IS NOT IN MOTION. WHEN THE CAR IS STOPPED ON THE ROAD, OR BRAKES ARE ENGAGED THE CAR WILL VIOLENTLY SHAKE. WHEN THE CAR ENGINE IS STARTING THE CHECK ENGINE LIKE FLASHES.

FRESH FUEL SMELL FROM THE VEHICLE (ENTERING THE CABIN WHILE DRIVING AND UPON PARKING). UPON ARRIVING HOME YESTERDAY, THE SMELL WAS STILL VERY STRONG. I WENT A STEP FURTHER AND PULLED THE OIL DIPSTICK TO CHECK THE LEVEL AND TO SEE IF THAT'S WHERE IT WAS ORIGINATING FROM. SURE ENOUGH, THAT IS WHERE I AM SMELLING IT. I WENT SO FAR AS TO WIPE OFF THE DIPSTICK AND CHECK ONCE AGAIN WITH THE SAME RESULT. I ALSO NOTED THAT THE OIL LEVEL IS WELL ABOVE THE HIGH MARK. MY MAIN CONCERN IS THE RISK FOR DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE GIVEN THAT IT APPEARS THAT FUEL IS MIXING IN WITH THE OIL.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2019 SUBARU ASCENT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 10 MPH, THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL NOISE AND THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS RESTARTED AND FUNCTIONED AS INTENDED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO NAPLETON SUBARU DEALER (505 N PERRYVILLE RD, ROCKFORD, IL 61107 (877) 403-5984) ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS AND WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE OVERHEAD UNIT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE VEHICLE WAS ALSO TAKEN TO BE DIAGNOSED AT JAMESVILLE SUBARU DEALER (3519 RYAN RD, JANESVILLE, WI 53545 (608) 743-9595) WHERE THEY DIAGNOSED THAT THE STABILIZER BAR NEEDED LUBRICATION. IT WAS UNKNOWN IF THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED AND TWO CASE NUMBERS WERE OPENED UNDER 144125212915 AND 1-459841535478. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 3,801.

DARK GRAY-BLUE SMOKE FROM THE EXHAUST ON START-UP, LASTING FOR SEVERAL MINUTES. LARGE PLUMES WITH STRONG NOXIOUS ODOR. SMOKE AND FUMES HAVE TRIGGERED SEVERAL SEVERE ASTHMA ATTACKS. NOTED ON MOST DAYS, SINCE VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED NEW IN APRIL 2019. FUEL EFFICIENCY IS FAR LOWER THAN THE 21-27 MPG CLAIMED BY SUBARU. ACTUAL AVERAGE IS 14 MPG.

RAW GAS SMELL WHEN VEHICLE IS AT IDLE OR AFTER BEING DRIVEN FOR A BIT AND PARKED IN THE GARAGE. THE SMELL COMES THRU THE VENTS AND FILLS THE GARAGE AFTER I PARK THE VEHICLE. GAS MILEAGE IS ALSO BEING EFFECTED IT SEEMS, AND IS LOW.