2020 Subaru Ascent Exterior lighting Problems

“The audio died two days prior to the entire car dying completely. We charged the battery, and most of the car began working except for a few random electrical areas. Seems to be a short somewhere. I have under 10,000 miles and a dead battery... Highly problematic.”

“Subaru has a known problem/design with their LED daytime running lamps on the Ascent model. Dealerships are seeing a high failure rate of these LED lights, and it is always with the left side headlamp assembly. The LED strip quits working. In my case my car has about 42,000 miles on it with estimated 1,500 hours of operation. LED lights are designed to last a minimum of 30,000 and up to 100,000 hours. I see these models all the time with their left daytime lamps out. These lamps are provided for safety reasons and to bring visibility to other drivers. …”

“When vehicle was 3.5-4 years old, the LED halo around the headlight assembly went out. This part is a fixed part of the assembly and unrepairable and requires the owner to replace the entire headlight assembly. An LED headlight should not be going out after only 3.5-4 years. I have noticed this is a common complaint on online forums for the Subaru Ascent. …”

“The contact owns a 2020 Subaru Ascent. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the left turning signal and driver’s side daytime running light failed to illuminate as needed. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact also stated that he was given a ticket for the failure. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the turn signal and drive’s side headlight needed to be replaced; however, the parts for the repair were not available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. …”

“The driver's side headlamp assembly (one complete piece, LED lighting) has a thin strip at the top that is used for daytime running lights. These are automatically on when the vehicle is on and it's not yet dark. In early 2024, this driver's side thin strip daytime running lights stopped working entirely. I've learned that the entire headlamp assembly must be replaced, rather than being able to just change out the daytime running component or replace a light bulb like one used to be able to do. …”