Odd Head Unit Audio Issue

[DittySubie2020]

I wanted to notify the community of an odd behavior I experienced with my 2020 Legacy Touring XT. I have owned this car for about 4 months without any head unit issues like this one.

 

It all started when I used the My Subaru app to remote start my car (as I usually do) to go to a store that is about 30mins away. Everything functioned as normal until I first got into the car and noticed that there was no radio audio, no chimes, no touchscreen "boops" and "beeps"... nothing. The touch screen functioned fine, and visually there was no sign of malefaction other than no audio. The following is a list of settings and systems that I checked which did not fix the problem.

• Checked volume with vol knob - range from 0 to 20, no audio
  
• Checked EQ - normal, no audio
  
• Checked Fade - normal, no audio
  
• Checked My Subaru app - all systems were listed as normal (green)
  
• Checked for system updates via WiFi - system was up to date, no updates to install
  
• AM radio - no audio
  
• FM radio - no audio
  
• Sirius radio - no audio
  
• Bluetooth from my phone - no audio
  
• Android auto - all apps worked but no audio
  
• Navigation - no audio
  
• CD - didn't check (who carries a CD anymore)
  
• Driver monitoring system - no boops or beeps
  
• Checked audio/nav system fuse - unbroken, normal
  
• 
  

 

So as you may think, none of this was making sense. Given that there were no warning or alert messages anywhere on any screens, I then thought well maybe I will try turning off/on the different car systems to see if that will "fix" what was wrong with the head unit. So I tried the following:

• Turning off/on the head unit manually - still no audio
  
• Turning off/on the ignition - still no audio
  
• Turning off/on the ignition with a 30sec pause in between - still no audio
  
• Turning off/on the ignition to "acc" - still no audio
  
• Turning off/on the ignition to "on" without starting the engine - still no audio
  
• 
  

 

I was super perplexed and decide to make the silent drive to the store while I was thinking of other ways to troubleshoot. While in the store parking lot I was trying to read through the many troubleshooting guides and forums to see if there were similar issues before I performed a hard reset on the head unit because the thought of setting up all of the settings they way I liked it was very unappetizing .

 

At that time, my wife (who was in the car with me at the time of this use) thought that since the issue occurred after I used the My Subaru app to remote start, that maybe we should try and remote start again using the app to see if the system "fixes itself". I turned the car off, waited for 30secs, then used the My Subaru app to remote start the car again and... voila... all audio came back and the systems were normal once again . I have not encountered this issue since but I am thinking it could somehow be tied to the My Subaru app remote start feature? No sure how or why though.

[svxy]

I have an Outback base model with the 2 screens and it has blanked out both screens twice, leaving me with no functions. The dealership is replacing the unit (not the screens) under warranty. Just took a 5 hour trip in my Legacy with the 11", and it blanked out for 30 seconds at about 4 hours into the drive. The dealership is now prepared to replace it as well. Doesn't look good for these units.

[Jp1975]

The audio going dead is one of the common occurrences with the older software - 502 - that most of the 2020s came with. We’ve experienced it along with various other issues. With some of these just turning the car off and then immediately back on doesn’t resolve it, leaving the car off for 20-30 minutes will generally fix it. Sometimes the immediate off/restart will fix some of the issues, temporarily. The new/current software release 504 deals with a lot this but some dealers are not yet up to speed on this since it was released toward the end of June.

[Zack Spec B]

Just experienced this with my 20XT.

 

Only thing to add was that the 'my Subaru' app on the screen was greyed out.

Did the same thing you did, double checked the car from my phone but nothing.

 

After 15 mins of playing with it I gave up. Started it the next day and it was back to normal. Annoying for a 5 month old car.

 

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

[Max Capacity]

Just saying, have you verified the battery terminals are tight and clean ?

 

Back in the Fall of 2004, my 2005 GT wagon began to have radio issues. In Mid Oct, when I do my Winter Prep on the cars, one thing I do is clean the battery terminals. I found mine loose. I tighten them and the issues stopped.

[svxy]

The audio going dead is one of the common occurrences with the older software - 502 - that most of the 2020s came with. We’ve experienced it along with various other issues. With some of these just turning the car off and then immediately back on doesn’t resolve it, leaving the car off for 20-30 minutes will generally fix it. Sometimes the immediate off/restart will fix some of the issues, temporarily. The new/current software release 504 deals with a lot this but some dealers are not yet up to speed on this since it was released toward the end of June.

 

My Legacy has the 504 update and the audio still vanished. Add to that when you shut down the car, you can't simply turn it off/on to reset the unit, you have to open and close the drivers door as well. Guess I should be happy that Subaru doesn't make you stand on your head and squawk like a chicken as well.

[Jp1975]

you have to open and close the drivers door as well. Guess I should be happy that Subaru doesn't make you stand on your head and squawk like a chicken as well.

I didn’t think about the opening and closing the drivers door, after turning the car off. What we had to do as well as others was shut the car down for some extended period of time, for us it was usually when we got home, parked and checked it the next morning. But maybe just the opening and closing would have done the same thing. Either way this software is going to be a nightmare for dealer service departments. Most of their customers do not follow auto forums to get some idea of what’s wrong and how to deal with it. I’ve always kept up with phone and tablet forums, never thought I’d have to do the same with my car.