New Subaru Forester, Outback Score Low In J.D. Power Most Appealing New Vehicles

The same JD Power owned by XIO Group? The same JD Power influenced by millions of General Motors' dollars? Are we talking about the very JD Power that contributes those fine awards to dependable vehicles such as the Cruze and Equinox? They really know their stuff, so we should base our purchases on what they say...

JD Power is garbage

We bought a used 6 cyl Subaru Outback last year. It's top of the line.
The awd is fantastic whether the pavement is snow covered or dry. The Eyesight Driving is out of this world and has saved my bacon several times. Ours is a stock 6 cylinder. No turbo. Plenty of pick up but the milage in town is not like our old 4 cylinder. Averages about 16.5 mpg. We do have traffic lights every block and they are long lights but our old car got 20mph. Highway averages 26 mpg. The car is rated at 22 and 29. Not happening on ours. But other than that we love the car. Hint Subaru, put some charging ports in the rear. We have 3 up front.

We just bought a 2019 subaru forester sport edition from servco subaru on Maui and it has been such a disappointment. 2,995 miles in the check engine light came on and the eyesight started mishandling (braking when it wasn't supposed to, over correcting when we weren't even near the road lines). The service department told us the thermostat was bad and just shut off the eye sight feature saying they couldn't fix it until they fixed the thermostat. It has been almost a month and they still have not received the part to fix it despite repeatedly calling, showing up, and asking for reassurance that it is in fact safe to drive the car in the interim. A failed thermostat this early on doesn't make me optimistic for the future handling of this vehicle, do yourself a favor and go with a different brand. We should have bought a toyota or honda.

Let me tell you something, J.D. Power doesn't know what they are talking about. Subaru has one of the best safety records of any brand, and also more tech now than most ! My new Outback in white gets a lot of attention ! It is a beautiful wagon/small SUV or what ever you want to call it. Just because Subaru might not have quite the lines as some others, it is a solid vehicle, and very safe, and has one of the best AWD in the market. I personally like the Outback because it doesn't look like every other car out there on the road, accept you see one on every corner now days ! I pay little attention to J.D. Power, and quite frankly, i think they get paid to bad mouth Subaru just as Motor week does. Very bias towards the brand, and that's fine. I for one ignore.....I have had four Subaru's, and none have given me any major problems. The first month I owned a brand new Lexus, I had to have the differential replaced ! The first month I had a new Highlander, the nav, radio, went out, and never worked well, and the JBL system was horrible. Yep, people can gripe all they want, I'm proud to own a Subaru, and will buy another in the next few years. I'll keep on smiling when others are in the ditch in the winter, and I keep moving along :)

I would never buy another Subaru The company his the fact that many of their cars burned oil and they knew why but didn't admit to it until they were sued.Also it was poor quality body parts and didn't hold it's value

All your opinions and anecdotal
evidence aside, Subaru’s following is there because they have a fantastic marketing campaign.

Most Subaru owners truly believe their car is something unique and next level, instead of just “quirky”. In reality, a Subaru isn’t much different from any other brand on the market. They have poor ethics, they cheat owners and hide mistakes like everyone else. AWD isn’t a novelty and theirs, frankly, isn’t as great anymore. They’re difficult to work on if you’re used non-H engines and traditional transmissions and they’re less fuel efficient. Most owners think cars don’t change much over time, but oh they do... a lot. They go up and down in quality, performance and subsequently, reputation every few years. Good marketing keeps the reputation up, even when it shouldn’t be. Subaru succeeds at that.

We love our 2018 legacy and will be ordering the 2020 outback tomorrow