Battery Goes Dead

[YeuEmMaiMai]

^

 

Dekka

Napa Legend Gold

 

or any other East Penn Manufacturing battery

[aki334]

how to do the parasitic drain test yourself

 

Engine must be off for this test!

 

tools needed: multi meter AKA DVOM, 10mm socket or wrench

 

1. move the red lead plug to the Ampere socket on your meter to be able to measure Amps

2. set your multi meter to read mA

3. disconnect negative battery cable

4. connect red lead to the negative battery post and black to the disconnected negative battery cable.

4. check the reading. If you see <70mA you are good, if >70mA something is draining battery

5. continue holding if you do not have alligator clips and ask your friend to start removing fuses one by one.

6. if you remove fuse and no changes in reading, put that fuse back in, go to the next one until number drops.

7. when number drops stop and read on the cover what that fuse controls and post your findings here I will let you know what to check next

[bbplayer133]

2019 legacy here with a dead battery - getting towed to the dealer for them to look at it. Car only has 4k miles on it. Garage kept.

[jMeG]

Battery troubleshooting:

 

1. Clean the contacts and replace the stock battery. The OEM batteries are terrible. I recommend buying an AGM battery (around $150 at PepBoys), or if you want something fancy, a Redtop Optima (around $230).

2. Before installing the battery, have it charged a AutoZone, PepBoys, or another auto parts store. It's free and takes 8-12 hours. Unless you're going on a road trip right away, you'll likely not charge up the battery with short jaunts around the neighborhood.

3. If you're having chronic problems with your battery at home, skip calling the tow guy, and buy your own Battery jumper. Most jumpers use batteries that don't like being left in the cold, so make sure it stays indoors or it won't be able to jump your car.

 

 

Note: I recommend Pep-Boys for battery service because they'll both charge and install the battery a not additional cost. Costco, WalMart, and may other stores sell batteries. Unfortunately, they won't charge or install them.

[ammcinnis]

The OEM batteries are terrible.

The OE batteries are clearly "adequate" for most owners, but they don't offer much more. Subaru's original onboard "battery management system" programming, starting in MY 2015, proved insufficient in short-trip service; that deficiency was addressed in 2017 with an ECM firmware update per TSB 11-176-17.

 

For owners concerned about battery performance and longevity, I highly recommend purchasing an inexpensive "smart" battery charger (a.k.a. battery maintainer, battery tender, etc.). Connecting a smart charger overnight every few months will really help to maintain the battery in top condition.

[gathermewool]

If you REALLY want to make your battery last, connect a cheap smarter-charger every moment you're not using the vehicle.

 

For me, I weekly connect a DC power supply to the vehicle and maintain a 14.4VDC (nom) charge for < 24 hrs.

[tornichoe]

Had the car sit in the garage for a month in freezing temps while I was traveling. 30 days later, it started with no hesitation using the remote start.

 

I was debating if I should get a new battery before this winter, but this factory one is holding strong I'll be leaving it alone for now.

 

Not all batteries are made equal and I'm lucky to get the good one!

[bbplayer133]

2019 legacy here with a dead battery - getting towed to the dealer for them to look at it. Car only has 4k miles on it. Garage kept.

 

Ha - Previously had the car towed to subaru and they said to drive it more... well 2 months later and the battery is dead again. Throwing in an AGM group 34 battery.

[bgm1911]

My '18 Legacy started developing weak/dead battery problems within about a year, at 12,000 miles. Cold weather has the worst impact to the battery to the point I've had to put a battery charger on it.

 

I drove the car to a car wash, and 1 hour later the car wouldn't start. Had the car jumped then drove .5 miles to Subaru. They couldn't find a problem, go figure.

 

4/14 the car won't start while sitting on the road. Called the 800 assistance, as I wasn't dragging the charger 45 feet to the street. While chatting, the dude is telling me about Subaru battery problems, and his phone goes off. He shows me his screen and the call is for a Subaru Crosstek dead battery.

 

My 3rd and last Legacy; there are 100s of other car models that won't leave you stranded for such a simple problem.

[WILLINH]

Call subaru and explain the problem to them. They took great care of me when my Legacy was out of warrenty. Read my earlier post.

[DuboisLJ]

I didn't follow the procedure in post number 3 to the letter but an amp clamp on the wire, either positive or negative results in around .65 amps which is about 10 times the suggested limit of .070 amps. I'm going to try to run through that test as suggested but it's written extremely poorly, especially on the part with the buss bar which my car has.

 

 

The battery also still tested as failed after 18 hours on a trickle charger. Did only slightly better, 280 amps at 9 volts.

 

A friend was charging his phone in my car an left a USB deal plugged in to the 12v socket, that could also be a part of the draw, remembered it just now.

 

A draw down test, will have to look that one up.

 

What did you find what your issue was? I have a similar draw of ~0.6 amps. When I pull DCM (data communications module) fuse the amps drop within spec ~0.05 amps

[Steev]

I'm also having problems with dying batteries in my '16 Legacy. I replaced my OEM battery with an Odyssey Extreme Group 25 that lasted a little over 2 years. I put a voltage data logger on the battery, and found that there is a seemingly random, periodic parasitic draw when the car is off that lasts anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 hours and drops the battery voltage about 0.1V for each occurrence, 2-3 times per night. After 2 days, the battery charge is pretty low. Compounding that issue, I found that when the car is running, the alternator is off about 1/3 of the time, and the battery drops down to ~12.2V. The battery usually comes back from short trips at a lower state of charge than when I left. I fully charge the battery every week or two with a Victron charger, but that's apparently not enough.

[Brisvegas]

The OE batteries are clearly "adequate" for most owners, but they don't offer much more. Subaru's original onboard "battery management system" programming, starting in MY 2015, proved insufficient in short-trip service; that deficiency was addressed in 2017 with an ECM firmware update per TSB 11-176-17. For owners concerned about battery performance and longevity, I highly recommend purchasing an inexpensive "smart" battery charger (a.k.a. battery maintainer, battery tender, etc.). Connecting a smart charger overnight every few months will really help to maintain the battery in top condition.

 

ammcinnis, I apologise for being very "late to the party" ... but obviously I have been living under a rock (or perhaps this class action didn't make the news here in Australia) but I have only just stumbled onto the following article, and I'm wondering if it has anything to do with this "battery goes dead" thread? I have tried looking for updated reports, but July 2021 are the latest reports I can find. Has there been any resolution?

 

https://www.torquenews.com/1084/new-lawsuit-filed-against-subaru-more-defective-batteries-surface

[ammcinnis]

I don't really follow class-action lawsuits. Here in the U.S., at any given time you will typically find dozens class-action suits in progress against just about any automobile manufacturer you choose. Many such lawsuits seem to me to border on frivolous, and usually the only significant "winners" are the plaintiffs' lawyers.

 

Personally, I own both a 2015 Legacy and a 2016 Outback, and I haven't received any formal notification of a class-action lawsuit (or lawsuits) concerning the battery in either vehicle.