There are 2 stored owner reports matching the brakes leading-label group for the 2004 Subaru Outback in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 2 of 2 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)AUTOZONE SOLD ME (VIA WARRANTY EXCHANGE) AFTERMARKET BRAKE PADS THAT SUPPOSEDLY WERE THE SAME PART #D929 AS THE BRAKE PADS AUTOZONE HAD PREVIOUSLY SOLD ME AND WAS REPLACING UNDER WARRANTY. HOWEVER, THE BRAKE PADS THAT THEY PROVIDED TO ME TODAY AS WARRANTY REPLACEMENTS WERE TOO LARGE FOR THE BRAKE CALIPER AND WOULD BE UNSAFE IF INSTALLED AND FORCED TO FIT IN THE CALIPER. SPECIFICALLY, THE INNER SHOULDER DIMENSION ON THESE PADS IS TOO LARGE TO FIT PROPERLY IN THE CALIPER. I VERIFIED THE PROBLEM BY PURCHASING BRAKE PADS FROM A DIFFERENT AUTO SUPPLY STORE AND INSTALLING THEM WITH NO DIFFICULTY. THIS PROBLEM OCCURRED WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY, BECAUSE IT HAPPENED DURING BRAKE PAD REPLACEMENT.
MY SUBARU, FORESTER XT HAS HAD NUMEROUS PROBLEMS SINCE IT HAD 5000 MILES. THE ENGINE PERFORMANCE IS INCONSISTENT. THE CAR HAS AN INTERMITTENT MISS AT IDLE, CRUISE CONTROL THAT DISENGAGES AT WILL, IS DIFFICULT TO START INTERMITTENTLY; SPITTING AND SPUTTER FOR 30 SECONDS, ACTS AS IF IT WILL STALL OCCASIONALLY WHILE BRAKING, AND THE CLUTCH DOES NOT GRIP THE FLYWHEEL PROPERLY. WHILE PASSING ON 2 LANE ROADS, I HAVE NEARLY HAD NUMEROUS HEAD-ON ACCIDENTS; THE CAR DOES NOT ACCELERATE CONSISTENTLY. THE CRUISE CONTROL DEFECT HAS NEARLY CAUSED MANY OTHER ACCIDENTS IN DISTINCT CONDITIONS: 1. WHILE ASCENDING HILLS, I HAVE NEARLY BEEN REAR-ENDED BY OTHER CARS WHEN MY CAR LOSES SPEED WITHOUT WARNING 2. WHILE DESCENDING HILLS, I HAVE NEARLY LOST CONTROL AS THE CAR ACCELERATES WHILE CRUISE CONTROL HAS DISENGAGED I HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THE CAR WHEN I MUST TAKE OFF HARD, ESPECIALLY WHEN CROSSING A BUSY STREET. WHEN LAUNCHING HARD, THE CLUTCH WILL SLIP EXCESSIVELY. THE CAR WILL NOT ACCELERATE; IT WILL ONLY BURN THE CLUTCH CREATING A LARGE CLOUD OF SMOKE. IT DOES NOT MATTER WHICH GEAR I SWITCH TOO OR HOW MUCH THROTTLE I APPLY; THE CLUTCH WILL NOT GRIP UNTIL IT COOLS DOWN. I HAVE NEARLY BEEN HIT NUMEROUS TIMES BECAUSE OF THIS. I AM EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS WITH THE BRAKE PEDAL. AFTER BRAKING TO A STOP, WHEN THE ENGINE IDLES DOWN, THE BRAKE PEDAL WILL SINK AN ADDITIONAL HALF AN INCH. I HAVE BROUGHT MY CAR TO 2 DIFFERENT DEALERSHIPS, AND INVOLVED SUBARU'S REGIONAL SERVICE MANAGER. ALL EFFORTS TO REPAIR MY CAR HAVE BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL OR IGNORED. THE DEALERSHIPS HAVE ONLY ADJUSTED SWITCHES AND REPLACED AN OXYGEN SENSOR. THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOW CLAIMED THAT THEY WILL NOT ISSUE A REPAIR ORDER, SINCE THE PROBLEMS ARE INTERMITTENT, EVEN THOUGH THE LEAD TECH HAS EXPERIENCED THE PROBLEM, AND THEY CAN'T REPLICATE THE PROBLEMS. I AM STUCK WITH A DEFECTIVE VEHICLE THAT IS GOING TO CAUSE A SERIOUS ACCIDENT, AS I DRIVE 1500 MILES PER WEEK THROUGHOUT A 6 STATE REGION.*AK
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: Apr 28, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.