2017 Subaru Crosstrek Transmission Problems

While slowly pulling into a parking spot, you lightly pressed the gas pedal to move forward a few feet, but your car suddenly accelerated rapidly instead of responding normally to the light throttle input. You applied the brakes, but the car hit a concrete wall before the brakes could stop it, causing damage to the bumper, hood, and light assembly bracket. You're now concerned that unintended rapid acceleration could happen again without warning while driving.

While driving on the highway at 70 mph, your car suddenly lost all power — the radio shut off, the engine shut down to zero RPM, and everything went dead for about 2.5 seconds before restarting on its own. This happened multiple times as you exited the highway, with warning lights appearing on your dashboard. Since then, your car has continued to experience similar power shutdowns at irregular but recurring intervals. This is a serious safety concern that requires immediate diagnosis to identify whether the issue stems from the electrical system, fuel system, or engine controls.

Your 2017 Crosstrek's manual transmission shift fork failed at 62,521 miles, leaving you unable to shift gears while driving—a serious safety problem. The complete transmission replacement cost $10,000, even though your vehicle was worth only $11,000 and you maintained it meticulously. Subaru acknowledged similar shift fork design flaws in later model years through a technical bulletin but offered you only $1,800 in coverage. Fixing this issue requires a complete transmission replacement or shift fork rebuild.

Your car is making a loud whining or humming noise from the rear, which you believe is related to a wheel bearing and backing plate design issue outlined in a Subaru service bulletin. You're concerned this is a widespread problem affecting many vehicles globally and should be addressed through a recall rather than just a service bulletin. Fixing this will likely involve inspecting and possibly replacing the rear wheel bearing assembly and backing plate.

Your engine's cam carrier is leaking oil, which drips onto the catalytic converter sensor and causes it to malfunction, triggering a warning light on your dashboard. This oil leak poses a safety hazard and environmental risk. The Subaru dealer has confirmed this is a known issue affecting multiple Subaru models. Fixing this will likely require resealing or replacing the cam carrier and cleaning or replacing the affected sensor.

When I put the car in park the key would turn off the car but not come out of the ignition. The only way to get the key out was to turn the car back on and try again, sometimes 5+ times. When I took the car in for repair at a Subaru dealership they said this was a constant Subaru problem and that my shifter plate guide would need to be replaced. They charged me $600 but after searching Subaru forums I found that Subaru will sometimes pay for this repair because it is a known issue with a repair bulletin number (16-112-18). I believe this is a widespread defect and Subaru should pay for all repairs, not simply the repairs of consumers who have the resources to know to call the company.

I WAS OPERATING MY 2017 SUBARU CROSSTREK ON UNION ST IN BRAINTREE MA. I STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT. THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN. I THEN DEPRESSED THE GAS PEDAL. I HEARD A BANG AND THE VEHICLE STARTED TO ROLL BACK. THE TRANSMISSION HAD CEASED TO OPERATE. I LUCKILY WAS ABLE TO NAVIGATE TO THE CURB BACKWARDS. THE TRANSMISSION DID GO INTO PARK BUT WOULD NOT OPERATE OTHERWISE. I HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP,CLAY SUBARU, NORWOOD MA. THEY LATER INFORMED ME THAT THE TRANSMISSION CONTROL MODULE HAD BLOWN. THAT ALONG WITH SOME OTHER ELECTRICAL WIRING NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. BUT THEY SAID THIS WOULD NOT BE COVERED BY THE EXTENDED WARRANTY BECAUSE IT WAS NOT COVERED. IF THIS HAD GONE FIVE MINUTES SOONER I WOULD HAVE BEEN ON THE CROWDED HIGHWAY GOING 55 TO 60 MPH I FIND OUT THAT SUBARU AND THE NHTSA KNOW ABOUT THE PROBLEMS WITH THE TRANSMISSION BUT ARE NOT WILLING TO DO ANYTHING UNTIL SOMEONE IS KILLED. I REALLY DON'T WANT MYSELF OR MY WIFE TO BE TEST CASES. I AM NOW INFORMED BY SUBARU THAT IT WILL COST ME OVER 2000 DOLLARS TO FIX THIS PROBLEM. SINCE IT IS ELECTRICAL IT COULD BE JUST BE THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG.

VEHICLE LOSES POWER AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS AND THROTTLE IS COMPLETELY UNRESPONSIVE/NON-FUNCTIONAL. ENGINE REMAINS ON BUT WILL NOT DELIVER POWER OR ACCELERATE. NO DASH INDICATION LIGHTS ARE DISPLAYED. CAR SLOWS DOWN RAPIDLY UNTIL THROTTLE RE-ENGAGES AT IRREGULAR INTERVALS WHICH CAN BE A FEW SECONDS UP TO THIRTY SECONDS. HAPPENS MOST FREQUENTLY AFTER DRIVING FOR APPROXIMATELY 20-30 MINUTES. HAPPENS REPEATEDLY AFTER IT INITIATES. HAVE HAD TO PULL OVER SEVERAL TIMES TO GET OUT OF THE WAY OF OTHER MOTORISTS. THIS HAS BEEN VERY DANGEROUS.

MY WIFE WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY GOING 45MPH IN A STRAIGHT LINE WHEN THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY LOST ALL POWER AND TURNED OFF. AS A RESULT MY WIFE WAS REAR ENDED BUT SUFFERED NO MAJOR PHYSICAL INJURY. WE BROUGHT THE CAR TO THE MANUFACTURER AND THEY INSPECTED IT. HOWEVER, THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO FIND ANY PROBLEMS WITH THE VEHICLE. A FEW MONTHS AFTER THE ACCIDENT, THERE WAS A RECALL FOR THIS VEHICLE MAKE AND MODEL FOR SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER BUT MY VIN IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. *TR

KEY GETS STUCK IN IGNITION AFTER VEHICLE PARKED. KEY CANNOT BE REMOVED. SENSOR DOES NOT RECOGNIZE THAT THE CAR IS IN PARK. PROBLEM CORRESPONDS TO SUBARU SERVICE BULLETIN 16-112-18R. *TR

I LEASE A 2017 SUBARU CROSSTREK. THE CAR HAS BEEN FAITHFULLY MAINTAINED AS PER MANUFACTURER SPECIFICATIONS AND HAS NEVER BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT/EXPERIENCED ANY BODY DAMAGE. THE REAR WHEEL BEARINGS HAVE FAILED THREE TIMES PRIOR TO 48K. THE LEFT WHEEL BEARING WAS REPLACED TWICE BETWEEN 48K AND 55 K AND THE RIGHT WHEEL BEARING WAS REPLACED AROUND 52K. APPARENTLY, THIS IS A COMMON DEFECT AND THE DEALER NOTED THAT ALL WHEEL BEARINGS ON EVERY SUBARU FAIL PRIOR TO 50K. FOR A RATHER PRICEY CAR, THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE AND A HUGE SAFETY HAZARD. IF THE WHEEL BEARINGS FAIL, IT COULD LOCK UP ONE WHEEL AND CAUSE THE CAR TO FLIP UNEXPECTEDLY WHILE DRIVING ADDITIONALLY, YOU WILL DRIVE THE CAR ONE DAY WITHOUT ANY ISSUE AND LITERALLY, THE NEXT DAY, YOU WILL START TO HEAR A LOW GROANING NOISE. I WOULD LIKE THE NHSTA TO OPEN A DEFECTS INVESTIGATION AS THEY CAN FIND THE SAME PROBLEM ACROSS EVERY SUBARU MODEL FROM 2013-FORWARD WHEN THE WHEEL BEARING DESIGN WAS CHANGED. DEALER RECORDS AND WARRANTY REPAIRS CAN INDICATE THIS. THE DESIGN ALLOWS FOR WATER AND ROAD DEBRIS TO GET INSIDE OF THE BEARING, CAUSING PREMATURE WEAR AND FAILURE. IT IS UNACCEPTABLE TO HAVE TO REPLACE WHEEL BEARINGS ON CARS EVERY 50K. MY LAST VEHICLE (2007 HYUNDAI SONATA) DROVE FLAWLESSLY UNTIL 277K AND I NEVER HAD TO CHANGE A WHEEL BEARING IN THE 10 YEARS I OWNED THAT VEHICLE. SHAME ON SUBARU!

THE WINDSHIELD ON MY 2017 CROSSTREK CHIPS TOO EASY. I HAVE NEVER HAD CHIPS ON ANY OTHER VEHICLES WINDSHIELD. THE GLASS MUST BE TOO SOFT. THIS HAS HAPPENED TO MY CROSSTREK A FEW TIMES WHILE IN MOTION. MY TRANSMISSION FEELS LIKE IT SOMETIMES SLIPS, AND SHUDDERS WHILE THE VEHICLE IS IN MOTION.