2019 Subaru Forester

4 days ago my Check Engine light came on. In my car, when this happens, it disables all Eyesight features - collision warning, lane departure warning, etc. Work hours being what they are, I drove home that night and back to work the next day with it on. I managed to get it scanned when it popped a code for the Coolant Bypass Valve. Searching that code online lead me to DOZENS AND DOZENS of forums, posts, stories of the same code popping up on other 2019-2020 Subaru's. They all had to take it in for a hefty repair. It also led me to a Service Bulletin issued last year, which showed that Subaru had rebuilt the TCV so it could withstand corrosion, unlike the previous version. So naturally I took it into my local dealership to have it looked at, and sure enough - the TCV needed to be replaced. WHY HASN"T THIS PART BEEN RECALLED YET??? Given there is no thermostat on my cars dash, I would have no clue whether my car was overheating due to this faulty valve, until its too late. It seems like this is a big potential safety issue that Subaru needs to address, and someone needs to force their hand.

The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Forester. The contact stated while driving at 45 MPH the RBD warning light stated off, as well as the Lane Keep, Eyesight, ABS off, and check engine warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated he noticed that several unknown safety features became inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the gasket for the heater control valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired because the parts were not available at the dealer. The manufacturer was contacted and a voicemail was left. The failure mileage was 47,500.

I recently bought this vehicle (used) with ~1900 miles. After 1.5 months of owning the vehicle, I suddenly had several warning lights as well as systems disabled within the vehicle. The first time this occurred I was about 2 hours into a drive, and suddenly my eyesight disabled, check engine light came on, cruise control disabled, lane departure disabled, collision warning and automatic braking disabled. After pulling over to inspect, I also realized my trunk would no longer open. I took it to a dealership who said it was due to low battery voltage—despite there being no spectacular incidents to drain the battery since I purchased the vehicle. They recharged the battery and the problem was temporarily fixed. However, once I retrieved my vehicle from the dealership the check engine light and disabled features were still prevalent. I once again had them recharge the battery—despite there again being no events causing the battery to drain—to which the problem was solved. Again, about an hour into my drive back home, the check engine light and features suddenly disabled. This is detrimental to my safety as a driver—as every safety feature suddenly disables without warning during my drive.

I NOTICED A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WITH SUBARU'S LANE KEEP ASSIST SAFETY FEATURE: WHEN DRIVING ON A BUSY HIGHWAY OVER AN AREA WHERE THE DOTTED LINE HAD BEEN PAINTED OVER WITH DARK PAINT (BY ROAD WORKERS TO COVER IT UP FOR A NEW LANE TO BE PAINTED) LANE KEEP ASSIST REGISTERED IT AS A LINE THAT STILL EXISTS AND FORCEFULLY STEERED ME INTO THE LANE ON MY LEFT. TO AVOID HITTING THE CAR IN THAT LANE, I FORCEFULLY TURNED TO THE WHEEL IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION. LUCKILY I AM A HEALTHY MAN WHO WAS ABLE TO STEER MYSELF BACK INTO MY LANE, BUT IT TURNED MY WHEEL WITH ABOUT THREE TIMES THE FORCE OF REGULAR LANE ASSIST: I THINK MANY PEOPLE INCLUDING YOUNGER PEOPLE AND THE ELDERLY ARE AT AN EVEN HIGHER RISK LEVELS IF THEY ARE UNABLE TO TURN THE WHEEL LIKE I DID. IT WAS A MUCH MORE FORCEFUL TURN THAN SUBARU'S REGULAR 'NON-URGENT' LANE KEEP ASSIST. THERE WERE NO VISUAL OBSTRUCTIONS PRESENT THAT THE EYESIGHT CAMERA WAS PICKING UP: IT WAS REGISTERING THE OLD LINE THAT HAD BEEN PAINTED OVER. THIS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT BECAUSE NOT ONLY IS THIS A SAFETY RISK FOR ANY TYPE OF ROAD WORK THAT PAINTS OVER LINES DURING CONSTRUCTION OR REPAINTING, BUT THIS ALSO POSES AN IMMEDIATE DANGER TO LIFE AND HEALTH TO PEOPLE DRIVING ON ROADS WITH LINES THAT HAVE BEEN PAINTED OVER AND LEFT IN THAT CONDITION. THE COMPUTER REGISTERED THE DARK LINE, MEANT TO VISUALLY COVER UP THE OLD PAINT, AS A WHITE LINE! I CONFIRMED THAT THIS IS A SYSTEMIC ISSUE AND NOT JUST INCIDENTAL WITH ME. I FOUND A POST ON A SUBARU FORUM WHERE TWO PEOPLE DESCRIBE THE SAME SITUATION I HAD. I WILL LINK THAT BELOW. HTTPS://WWW.ASCENTFORUMS.COM/THREADS/LANE-KEEP-ASSIST-MALFUNCTION.9530/ I TRIED REACHING OUT TO SUBARU BUT THEY DID NOT REPLY. I BROUGHT THIS UP TO MY SUBARU DEALER WHO ONLY CHECKED FOR RECALLS. I NEED THIS TO GET THE ATTENTION IT DESERVES, PEOPLE ARE GOING TO DIE HERE. THEY PROBABLY ALREADY HAVE.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2019 SUBARU FORESTER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT ALL THE AUTOMATIC SAFETY FEATURES FAILED ON THE VEHICLE. WHILE DRIVING BETWEEN 50-55 MPH AND CHANGING LANES, THE LANE DEPARTURE WARNING FAILED. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT REAR ENDED ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED A FRACTURED STERNUM THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO EXIT THE VEHICLE BEFORE IT CAUGHT FIRE AND BURNED TO THE GROUND. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT EXTINGUISHED THE FIRE. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A TOW YARD AND DEEMED DESTROYED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND DID NOT ASSIST. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 14,000. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN.