Glad I came across this…
Glad I came across this article and hoping for some info/reassurance I didn't get overcharged by a dealer.
I've got a 2019 Subaru Forester with 49K miles and I keep up on the maintenance. Most miles put on are short "errand" trips with about 3x/year road trips of 1000 miles.
This last month, drove the family up to Canada (500 miles there) and after gassing up, the battery wouldn't crank. No slow wear down. Just refused to turn over. It had been driving fine otherwise. Got a jump and drove it the rest of the way, making sure not to turn off engine (and turning off the kill-idling feature, which I hate). Got to the in-laws and called a dealership and was able to get the car in for a check up. The forester failed the battery test. The new battery cost 600 Canadian plus 200 in labor/diagnostics, so 800 Canadian (about 550 U.S. dollars).
I read that the Subaru batteries are more expensive because they have to deal with the extra stress of turning on more often due to the kill-idling feature (did I mention that I hate that feature? ). Still, $550 for a new battery replacement sure seems expensive.
Also, the battery was about 5.5 years old but had given only the barest indication it was dying (a few times it was slow to crank in the morning) with no battery light indicator lighting up on the dash except when it started.
Can you tell me if that price was excessive and if my battery lasted a standard amount of time?
I specifically went to a dealership while it's still under warranty so if something goes wrong, they can't blame it on lack of proper maintenance.
Thanks!