Took my Ascent in yesterday to have the battery replaced, investigate excessive brake noise, and have the PCV recall done, and the service guy said that a new recall had just released. I guess the fuel pump is garbage too. So they also replaced that. If you have a 2019 built between June 2018 and February 2019, expect to receive the recall. I am a bit shocked at all the pieces and parts that are garbage on this vehicle, new model or not, I expect better from a manufacturer with safety at the forefront.
My battery lasted less than two years, clearly it's underrated for this vehicle or it's a piece of junk. If the replacement one goes in under two years I'm thinking I'll just bite the bullet and spring for a high quality battery that will last. The brake issue was apparantly a backing plate that had shifted and needed to be put back in place. I'm not convinced it really solved the issue but the noise is less. I still hear what appears to be an oscillating noise, especially when next to another vehicle. It's kind of annoying and it's still there after their backing plate repositioning.
Lastly the CVT is still a disaster in my opinion. My loaner Forester was so much smoother and more like an actually CVT. The CVT in the Ascent sucks and shifts like a poor operating geared transmission. Slow hesitating shifts, herky jerky operation, it's just terrible. I can honestly say at just over 27K miles that my two Foresters were more enjoyable to drive. I never even thought about the CVT in them. Ever time I accelerate in the Ascent I am reminded of the piece of garbage between the engine and the wheels. They need to code an entirely new program for the Ascent CVT and make it available to anyone who wants their Ascent to act like a true CVT. I'm over these terrible fake shift points and the crappy performance of this CVT.
My battery lasted less than two years, clearly it's underrated for this vehicle or it's a piece of junk. If the replacement one goes in under two years I'm thinking I'll just bite the bullet and spring for a high quality battery that will last. The brake issue was apparantly a backing plate that had shifted and needed to be put back in place. I'm not convinced it really solved the issue but the noise is less. I still hear what appears to be an oscillating noise, especially when next to another vehicle. It's kind of annoying and it's still there after their backing plate repositioning.
Lastly the CVT is still a disaster in my opinion. My loaner Forester was so much smoother and more like an actually CVT. The CVT in the Ascent sucks and shifts like a poor operating geared transmission. Slow hesitating shifts, herky jerky operation, it's just terrible. I can honestly say at just over 27K miles that my two Foresters were more enjoyable to drive. I never even thought about the CVT in them. Ever time I accelerate in the Ascent I am reminded of the piece of garbage between the engine and the wheels. They need to code an entirely new program for the Ascent CVT and make it available to anyone who wants their Ascent to act like a true CVT. I'm over these terrible fake shift points and the crappy performance of this CVT.