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Top Three Things You Do Not Like - But You Love Your Ascent Anyway

48K views 156 replies 81 participants last post by  magus 
#1 ·
1. The radio displaying the volume level. When I am listening to a song it is fairly loud, then I want to change the channel so I turn the volume down and try a different channel. BUT the volume level screen comes up and delays you from channel changing. Its just a second maybe two but it drives me crazy!

2. Cheap felt instead of carpet on the floor. Might as well have been vinyl or rubber, would not look any cheaper.

3. When you stop and get out and try to open the rear door to get your package out of the back seat the door is still locked. You have to unlock with the switch on the door or fumble for your key.
 
#2 ·
1) My hood vibrates too much it looks like it will fly off. Speed limit here is 70.

2) Rear cargo light should of been on top not side blocked when full of cargo.

3) Radio volume display is a nuisance more than a help especially when using navigation.

3.5) Sorry had to squeeze this in, 19 cups holders but the one in the console I need the most should have an adjustable padding like Dodge Caravan so drinks stay put and not spell all over.
 
#3 ·
3. When you stop and get out and try to open the rear door to get your package out of the back seat the door is still locked. You have to unlock with the switch on the door or fumble for your key.
Change your settings to unlock the doors when you put it in park. I never have to unlock the doors unless I forget to put it in park.
 
#6 ·
1). CVT Simulated Shifting - Eliminate or make this a user selectable option.

2). Radio plays after turning off car - Why?? Very annoying. The owner should control the radio, not the car.

3). Squeaks and Rattles everywhere. Fix one, two more pop up.
 
#7 ·
1. No hidden away USB ports to permanently connect pen drive, SD card or iPod without a mess of cables over your console. Solved using an extremely tiny micro-SD card reader, can barely see it. USB charging ports also too exposed in the console, you can put the phone hidden in the space provided for that, but the cables have to come out. I solved it with a USB charger into the 12V outlet that actually is properly hidden in that same spot for the phones.


2. No 12V outlet in the middle row? That's where my cooler used to go plugged in previous vehicle. Now I'll need wires hanging all across the vehicle.


3. The step up in the floor between the captain chairs.
 
#17 ·
1. No hidden away USB ports to permanently connect pen drive, SD card or iPod without a mess of cables over your console. Solved using an extremely tiny micro-SD card reader, can barely see it. USB charging ports also too exposed in the console, you can put the phone hidden in the space provided for that, but the cables have to come out. I solved it with a USB charger into the 12V outlet that actually is properly hidden in that same spot for the phones.
1. Right now this is my biggest criticism. I'd like a 12V and 2 USB inside the center console storage compartment for all the little things I'd like permanently connected but out of the way. I'd also like the center dash cubby (where the 12V is now) to be bigger -- about 25% wider, 50% deeper and twice as tall so my phone could slot nearly completely in.

Some of the cell phone storage could be mitigated if we had a USB port on the left side of the dash where the shelf is. Seems kind of ideal for a phone, but with no USB jack nearby you've got no way to plug it in.

Maybe a USB port near the rear view mirror/cabin light area would be nice, too, for plugging in dash cams mounted to the sun visors.

2. No keyless entry/locking on the rear doors. My last car, a 2007 Volvo, did this. I could just open the rear doors when locked and then close and lock them on the door handle without a key or switching to the front doors.

3. Stop EyeSight from taking over the center dash top display when on cruise control. That display is nearly worthless from an information perspective (it doesn't even indicate your distance setting). A related center dash display gripe is the "favorites" option has a widget for oil pressure, but not one for coolant temperature or battery voltage.
 
#10 ·
I'm wondering if they modified the programming a bit on later models. I picked my Ascent up in Sept and it seems to exhibit CVT behaviour (RPMS stay steady) under mild acceleration and only do a "fake shift" under hard acceleration, but my fake shifts are still smooth.


I've done 0-60 with the RPMs staying almost steady at 2200 rpm. Not fast of course, but reasonable city driving fast.


Maybe can ask the dealer if there's updated firmware for the CVT?


My 3 things:
1) Disabling typing on the infotainment screen while in motion. My son can type while I'm driving!

2) Not being able to unlock all doors with one click on the remote. I don't have push start so don't get that option. (Will ask the dealer tomorrow)
3) "Ugly" look when the trailer hitch cover is removed.
 
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#9 ·
1. To echo zulater: "CVT shifting". The transmission in this vehicle is just terrible at shifting. Not smooth at all.
2. Front door window glass waviness
3. Fix front console cup holders to actually be useful (I still have no clue what "cup" or bottle they used to model the design of them after)
 
#19 ·
When volume is moved to 19, the 'dial' is at 12 o'clock - 50% of the available 'dial' filled, however 20 is what would make sense to be 50% and at 12 o'clock position... Thoughts?

I don't consider myself OCD, but my kid also has the same level of disgust (we say this very tongue in cheek.

I'd rather it just topped out at 11 (spinal tap reference)
 
#20 ·
1. radio, a) when adjusting the volume, the volume indicator should not take over full screen and prevent you from changing stations, b) screen is large enough that various presets for radio could fit on bottom of screen, even while navi is showing c) overall sound quality is poor (have H-K system in Touring model) in most instances. The H-K in my old GL450 was much better, and the THX certified system in my Lincoln is incredible.



2.Seats: a) Heated seats and steering wheel are sloooowww to heat up. b) vented seats are incredibly loud. Every car I've owned has had ventilated seats, and these are the only ones that I can not only hear, but are intrusively loud


3. CVT shudders at low speeds sometimes when cold. Overall, I don't mind the CVT at all except in this specific instance. Also, gas mileage is terrible, still averaging 17.5 or so, and I am easy on the gas, use adaptive cruise on the highway, and drive with A/C off in most instances in the wintertime.


4. Sunroof does not fully close when you push the button forward.



OK, that's four. Sorry.
 
#21 ·
1. Poor placement of cargo area light. It should be on the ceiling shining down, not on one side blocked by, well... cargo.


2. When the headlights are off, you cannot dim the interior lights. When I'm sitting parked in my car, I keep the headlights off as to not bother people around me and increase bulb longevity. However with the headlights off, the interior lights are stuck at full brightness.


3. When I use remote start via the MySubaru app, the front AC is turned on no matter what temperature I set. I tried every adjustment available from the app, but every time the AC light is illuminated and the heater is blowing lukewarm air until I manually turn off the AC.
 
#23 ·
1). Every now and then I will try to open the rear doors or the rear lift gate and it won’t respond. I have my ascent set to all doors unlock (but I have to double check to see if it’s set to park or drivers door open). The only thing that I can kind of connect to it is if I happen to open my door before I turn off the car.. even weirder is the rear lift gate one. Very rarely I’ve come back to a locked car and will try to open the rear lift gate (I have a limited) but the rear lift gate just won’t open. I have to fish out the key fob from my pocket and unlock the car to open it. Dunno if it’s a key fob reception issue??

2). Would it have been so hard for them to design little spring levers into the center console cup holders to better fit cups? I don’t typically have much of an issue with this or cups tipping / leaning over though.

3). Power folding side mirrors (or lack thereof). At least I would have expected this to be available for the touring model..
 
#24 ·
2). Would it have been so hard for them to design little spring levers into the center console cup holders to better fit cups? I don’t typically have much of an issue with this or cups tipping / leaning over though.

3). Power folding side mirrors (or lack thereof). At least I would have expected this to be available for the touring model..
Some cars have a little silicone fingers in their cupholders. Not so much spring tension that they "hold" whats in there very tight, but enough tension that the grip of the silicone fingers helps hold whatever's in there. I keep thinking there must be some way to roll your own insert that does the same thing.

The lack of power folding mirrors is kind of surprising on a larger SUV. At least you can manually fold them.
 
#25 ·
More of the same

1. Fake CVT shifting and poor CVT management in general. In addition to the fake shifts others have mentioned I have serious frustration with a weird 'overspeeding' where the revs will go up to over 3,000 when going up a very slight incline. This is especially frequent when cold.
2. Radio volume high on restart
3. Silly center screen when using eyesight. Should not have to actively change to mpg screen every time!
 
#27 ·
To thoroughly describe my top three dislikes, I need to break them down between Subaru Corp./Dealer and the Ascent

Subaru Corp./Dealer:

- Response from Subaru Corp./ Dealer, "That's normal operation". As an example, shift into forward gear on my Ascent Touring and it chirps loudly. If I decelerate, the transmission whistles like a teapot. When I test drove my Ascent these unique sounds were not present but developed after 3,000 miles. These sounds are not in the manual or in any service or tech bulletins as normal operation for the Subaru Ascent. My point, I would rather Subaru Corp./Dealer tell me they do not know why this occurs but will continue to keep me informed as they work through possible resolutions. The "That's normal operation" routine is difficult to rationalize and keep me feeling confident driving when other Ascents with similar mileage or new on the lot do not provide the romper room sounds.

-Full synthetic oil/ synthetic blend / higher price for Subaru synthetic oil. Most, if not all new cars require full synthetic oil. So why is it that I'm being charged more for Subaru full synthetic vs. regular synthetic that meets Subaru's specifications (wait for it, it gets better) and I'm being told by one Subaru dealer that there is no difference in the synthetic blend oil at the same price of Synthetic but when pushed the Subaru manual recommends full synthetic (unless availability is an issue) for my Ascent they ignore it but WILL NOT cover any warranty issues based on their recommended oil? Well, let that poorly structured sentence set in for a moment. We know its all about profit and what bulk oil the dealer purchased this week pushing to unsuspecting trusting customers. Subaru Corp regional service managers need to do a better job verifying and making sure the dealers are following protocol. Longer intervals between oil changes makes no sense when the quality of oil being placed in your car may be highly questionable. So ask lots of questions when getting an oil change at a Subaru dealer.

- Subaru Corp. firmware communication. This is in reference to WiFi updates. Glad to see we have the ability to update firmware through our radio head set. But I would appreciate knowing what the version updates include and any differences that I may experience.


Ascent

- Upper center dashboard display screen. The temperature and clock being displayed in the upper right and left hand corners are difficult to see for most tall drivers. I would like to have to ability to place clock and temperature in the lower left and right hand corners.

- Front passenger seat adjustments. As family hauler, it is highly likely that adults will be sitting in the front seats. I cannot understand why Subaru who went to a great deal of effort to quickly forget the misgivings of the Tribeca, is not providing the same comfort level for the front passenger.

- Telescoping steering wheel. Similar observation, if you're a taller driver the Ascent provides outstanding leg room. Unless you wish to drive the Ascent or are sitting in the front passenger seat. With the driver seat adjusted to take advantage of the leg room, unless you're used to riding a bike with monkey bars - forget it. Your arms are stretched and is very uncomfortable for any period of time. More extension is needed at the wheel.
 
#28 ·
1. Transmission REALLY doesn't know what to do when going up a hill. I often have to manually shift the thing into a higher "gear." Actually, the transmission in general. It's bad at being a CVT and bad at being an automatic. They should have gone with one or the other.


2. Clunky brakes.


3. The frickin' sunglass holder does not have any kind of raised area to fit the bridge of the sunglasses on. As a result, my sunglasses just flop around in there with nothing to keep them still.
 
#30 · (Edited)
1. No boost gauge as a option period. WTF? No way to ever know if your WG is going to chit, if you're underboosting, spiking excessively, or even making any fucking boost at all, ect...

2. Subaru All Weather floor mats.
What a waste of money those giant rubber coasters were.
No lip to catch any sort of water?
The floor mat stops well before the Gas pedal, so any mud, snow, water, dog chit, or whatever you have on your shoes, is now directly dripping onto the uncovered carpeted area.
The WeatherTechs are 1000x better.

3. 6000 Mile oil change intervals. LOL. Smoke another doobie.
Since when did synthetic oil become resistant to THERMAL BREAKDOWN...Never will anyone be able to convince me that ANY oil is good for 6000 miles. 3000 or BUST, especially on turbocharged engines.

@TheLex: Turn off Lane keep assist, I absolutely hated how the car drove with that on. The steering wheel felt like it had so much freeplay when I would go to correct it myself, was the worst feeling on a steering wheel i'd ever felt before. Sucks balls IMO.
 
#32 ·
My deal breaker would have been the back hatch. Don't get an Ascent if you have dogs! You can't leave the back hatch open for any appreciable time without draining the battery. Mine is in the shop right now, where the Tech guys are trying to figure out a way around it. I just made a >$40,000 mistake!
 
#37 ·
Love my Ascent BUT...
1) the rear hatch can't be left open for any appreciable time without draining the battery, what about tailgating for hours at a game? Can't do it! Went to the dealer to see if there is a way around this and told by service guy to disconnect the battery. REALLY!

This is perplexing to me, as it's not a problem with my 2016 Outback. How is the Ascent different from the Outback in wiring do you think? I *regularly* leave my hatch open for 4 to 6 hours at dog events and have never had a problem, so it's weird that the Ascent can't do that.
 
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