[John4287]

No they turn off

 

[Robert.Mauro]

No they turn off

Excellent. That's a good sign. If you want to get really into it, you can use a DC clamping meter to test (after the 20 minute timeout) by clamping around all of the negative cables at the battery (and avoiding walking by the car with the FOB).

The other key power gremlin seems to be malfunctioning amplifiers.

 

[SonnyAK]

We purchased a new 2019 Ascent 12/27/2019 ($50,000). In the first week, the car battery died without cause. Subaru Road Care came and gave me a jump. I immediately took it to the dealer who replaced the battery. Two months later ... same thing happened. I purchased a lithium car jumper which jumped the battery without issue. Took it back to the dealer who said (you guessed it) there was nothing wrong with the battery. Of course there were multiple RECALLS which were all fixed by the dealer. In June 2020 .... Battery dead again. Jumped it and everything was fine. Same thing in November 2020.
In August 2021 we went on a trip from New Jersey to Mass, drove 7 hours, next morning DEAD BATTERY. When I jumped the tailgate was inoperable, AND, beeped continuously while driving. Went to a Subaru dealer three miles away, who told me he had to reprogram the car ($125). Next day drove from Mass to Maine. One day later (wait for it....) DEAD BATTERY. Went back home top NJ ... no issues. IN September went to the Outer Banks (NC) and the tailgate wouldn't work. Pulled the fuse and put it back in ... fixed this issue. Two weeks ago went to Cape Cod and the AC failed (47,000 miles). Took it to a local Subaru dealer in Mass who diagnosed the issue ... defective compressor ($1,200 repair bill). Drove back to NJ without A/C broke the camels back. On 9/27/21 traded in the Ascent for a 2021 Buick Enclave. THANK GOD I AM DONE WITH THIS CAR!!!!

Yeah, I would've been done with that one too! Hope you have great service from the Buick!

Wasn't every repair under warranty. Covered ?

Even if it was all covered, that was pretty ridiculous...No one wants to live at a dealership, or continuously be stranded in a parking lot.

 

[rtraister]

My OEM battery had this issue. I resolved it permanently simply by replacing it with an EverStart battery for under $100. The OEM battery has a poor Reserve Capacity and should never have been used on a vehicle with such a demanding electrical system.

I only wish my dealer would have suggested that. They denied it was a known issue. It would have saved me a lot of anguish and would have let me keep the Ascent.

 

[Ponch]

diagnosing problems can be beyond those that only know how to scan the computer. The problem is that sometimes non computer problems, like a short or parasitic drain can be outside of OBD2 diagnosis. Then there's the overall dislike for warranty issues that kill flatrate. Figuring out the problem could exceed the book rate value of what it is that needs to be fixed. It's hard to find good help these days.

 

[rtraister]

I'm sure you won't have any problems with the Buick.

Problems I can deal with as all cars have them. But having an unreliable car that may or may not start ... not a safe situation.

 

[Shoe]

We purchased a new 2019 Ascent 12/27/2019 ($50,000). In the first week, the car battery died without cause. Subaru Road Care came and gave me a jump. I immediately took it to the dealer who replaced the battery. Two months later ... same thing happened. I purchased a lithium car jumper which jumped the battery without issue. Took it back to the dealer who said (you guessed it) there was nothing wrong with the battery. Of course there were multiple RECALLS which were all fixed by the dealer. In June 2020 .... Battery dead again. Jumped it and everything was fine. Same thing in November 2020.
In August 2021 we went on a trip from New Jersey to Mass, drove 7 hours, next morning DEAD BATTERY. When I jumped the tailgate was inoperable, AND, beeped continuously while driving. Went to a Subaru dealer three miles away, who told me he had to reprogram the car ($125). Next day drove from Mass to Maine. One day later (wait for it....) DEAD BATTERY. Went back home top NJ ... no issues. IN September went to the Outer Banks (NC) and the tailgate wouldn't work. Pulled the fuse and put it back in ... fixed this issue. Two weeks ago went to Cape Cod and the AC failed (47,000 miles). Took it to a local Subaru dealer in Mass who diagnosed the issue ... defective compressor ($1,200 repair bill). Drove back to NJ without A/C broke the camels back. On 9/27/21 traded in the Ascent for a 2021 Buick Enclave. THANK GOD I AM DONE WITH THIS CAR!!!!

I get the frustration with the car and downtime, but why are you quoting repair bills. Isn't this all under warranty?

 

[rtraister]

I get the frustration with the car and downtime, but why are you quoting repair bills. Isn't this all under warranty?

No. When the last two issues occurred I had excess of 45,000 miles on my vehicle. Truthfully, I liked the Ascent when it was operational and probably would have kept it if it didn't have the dead battery issues. Mechanical issues happen with vehicles, however, it was its unreliability (not starting up) that broke the camels back and forced us to buy a new and more expensive vehicle.

 

[pro10is]

I only wish my dealer would have suggested that. They denied it was a known issue. It would have saved me a lot of anguish and would have let me keep the Ascent.

Never rely on the dealer for information. I make it a habit for whatever vehicles I own to always find and read the online forum dedicated to it. There really is no more complete source of information on any vehicle than the thousands of owners who use it every day. You need to take the good with the bad, but overall, a vehicle's online forum will tell you virtually everything you need to know about it down to the last detail.

In your case, the issue with the battery was well known and a topic of much discussion. Through trial and error, I and many others posted workable solutions to successfully mitigate the problem. Subaru was even known to reimburse owners for aftermarket battery replacements.

 

[Graves]

We purchased a new 2019 Ascent 12/27/2019 ($50,000). In the first week, the car battery died without cause. Subaru Road Care came and gave me a jump. I immediately took it to the dealer who replaced the battery. Two months later ... same thing happened. I purchased a lithium car jumper which jumped the battery without issue. Took it back to the dealer who said (you guessed it) there was nothing wrong with the battery. Of course there were multiple RECALLS which were all fixed by the dealer. In June 2020 .... Battery dead again. Jumped it and everything was fine. Same thing in November 2020.
In August 2021 we went on a trip from New Jersey to Mass, drove 7 hours, next morning DEAD BATTERY. When I jumped the tailgate was inoperable, AND, beeped continuously while driving. Went to a Subaru dealer three miles away, who told me he had to reprogram the car ($125). Next day drove from Mass to Maine. One day later (wait for it....) DEAD BATTERY. Went back home top NJ ... no issues. IN September went to the Outer Banks (NC) and the tailgate wouldn't work. Pulled the fuse and put it back in ... fixed this issue. Two weeks ago went to Cape Cod and the AC failed (47,000 miles). Took it to a local Subaru dealer in Mass who diagnosed the issue ... defective compressor ($1,200 repair bill). Drove back to NJ without A/C broke the camels back. On 9/27/21 traded in the Ascent for a 2021 Buick Enclave. THANK GOD I AM DONE WITH THIS CAR!!!!

I do not blame you for getting rid of it, i had a similar experience with a brand new Ford Explorer, while my wife was driving it it would just shut off, happened twice and Ford could not figure it out, went to two different dealers, we got rid of the Explorer and bought our first Subaru, we are on our 4th Subaru a 2021 Ascent we bought before inventory and prices went crazy, i hope you have good luck on you Buick as i have on our Subaru's

 

[Robert.Mauro]

diagnosing problems can be beyond those that only know how to scan the computer. The problem is that sometimes non computer problems, like a short or parasitic drain can be outside of OBD2 diagnosis. Then there's the overall dislike for warranty issues that kill flatrate. Figuring out the problem could exceed the book rate value of what it is that needs to be fixed. It's hard to find good help these days.

Yep! And, as someone who's studied the electrical diagrams for the Ascent, I can say that finding a parasitic draw can be a daunting process, considering the sheer number of wiring harnesses and controllers and sensors everywhere in the Ascent. 😞

I'd love to see a tech that specialized in it. That'd help at least part of the issue.

 

[rlb81]

I'd love to see a tech that specialized in it. That'd help at least part of the issue.

"I specialize in mentally torturing myself"

 

[Robert.Mauro]

LOLOMG, yes, it would indeed be!!! 🤣

 

[Ascentlover4me]

Yeah, I would've been done with that one too! Hope you have great service from the Buick!



Even if it was all covered, that was pretty ridiculous...No one wants to live at a dealership, or continuously be stranded in a parking lot.

The reason I said what I said is because he gives out money amounts that he shouldn't have had to pay for. Reprogram computer ? My dealer wouldn't even charge me for that.

 

[Chuckd53]

Yes according to my dealer but I haven’t checked it with an ammeter. 2020 Touring built in Dec 2019 I think. First battery tested bad and second just wouldn’t hold a charge. No problems with the odyssey battery even with leaving the tailgate up for an hour or more.

The dealer service tech should have checked for the level of voltage drain before and after replacing the liftgate controller. Before to confirm the source of the problem and the actual amount of parasitic voltage drain versus the maximum allowed by spec, and then after to confirm the replacement resulted in voltage drain reduced to within spec. My service report from the dealer gave the before and after values. (of course I did have to tell the dealer I would not consider just replacing the battery as an adequate resolution, and that they needed to diagnose the root cause per the TSB on parasitic voltage drain (which I had researched previous to the issue actually happening), and then do any additional repair/replacement action to fix the true root cause of the problem. If I'd just left them to their own devices, I'd have simply gotten a replacement battery doomed to fail prematurely again.