I own a 2022 Subaru Outback Onyx XT. The Infotainment system has been a little broken since the date of purchase. I mentioned this to the seller from whom I bought the car when I took it in for service. They are not willing to do anything unless an issue can be repeatedly reproduced. Unfortunately, the issues I’ve seen are inconsistent and more annoying versus catastrophic failures. For example, the infotainment screen has gone blank a few times while driving, but I can’t get it to play consistently. Always returns after engine stop/start.
Beyond that, I found Subaru Service Bulletin Number 15-261-20R [Reprogramming File Availability for Optimization of Gen 4 Denso CP1 Infotainment Systems] which highlights new versions of software compatible with my Outback This SB says that these files fix a number of problems and even provide new functionality.
I asked my dealer if they would update the software. They stated absolutely not unless I can repeatedly reproduce one or more of the issues highlighted in SB. They claim this is a warranty issue and their hands are tied by Denso and Subaru. In an effort to reconcile with the dealer, I’m going through this SB in detail to see if I can pinpoint a specific reproducible issue. I also asked the vendor if they would give me the software files so I could update myself. The answer was ABSOLUTELY NO! I understand there are websites out there to get updated software, but it’s a little scary to download something from an unverified source.
Finally, I updated this software via WiFi. The machine tells me there are no further updates. But Subaru Service Bulletin Number 15-261-20R clearly states that newer revisions are available that are compatible with my model (to the dealer, but not to me).
So my question is this…
I see posts on this site where Subaru owners claim they went to the dealership, requested software updates, and the dealer performed the update. So is this just my dealer being difficult or is it a consistent Subaru policy that a problem MUST be reproduced at the dealer before they will update this software?
