[OhYou'reWithThatCompany]

Original battery dies at 5,709 miles. Replaced with Subaru OEM.
Second battery dies at 8,077 miles. Replaced with Subaru OEM.
Third battery dies at 8,842 miles. Replaced with Subaru OEM.
Fourth battery dies at 10,145 miles. Not yet replaced with Subaru OEM. (This time I was able to jump-start the car.)

Dealership performs useless test: "HAS NO DRAW OVER 70 MAMP." We know why.

"Have you considered a battery maintainer?" I park far away from any buildings or power sources.
"Why don't you drive a lot more?" I already drive more than my life requires; I take the car for a spin every few days for no other reason than to keep the battery from dying.
"How about investing in an AGM battery?" That won't fix the problem, yanno.
"Do you keep the keyfob far away from the car?" Yes—and in a RF pouch, no less.

At my company—which shan't be named—no one has seen anything like this in any other manufacturer.

I had to sign up just to add to the usual battery rants. 😁 Thanks.

 

[MagikAram]

At 13,000 miles and I haven't had any issues with my battery - in fact had actually tried to use it to help a neighbor jumpstart their car a few times. Something makes me think your car has an issue maintaining a charge on the battery - potential faulty Alternator/parasitic drain?

 

[Subarik]

You have a lemon, have Subaru buy it back and get another car. Look into lemon law in your state.

If you don't want to do that, maybe a solar battery trickle charger would delay or mitigate the issue.

Amazon.com: Renogy 10W Solar Trickle Charger Portable Battery Maintainer with Lighter Plug/Alligator Clips/Battery Cables for Car Boat Marine Motorcycles Truck : Automotive

Amazon.com: Renogy 10W Solar Trickle Charger Portable Battery Maintainer with Lighter Plug/Alligator Clips/Battery Cables for Car Boat Marine Motorcycles Truck : Automotive

smile.amazon.com

 

[BlueImp]

Schumacher SC1300 1.5A 12V Battery Maintainer https://a.co/d/cXOgN28

I replaced 2 oem batteries myself before I crammed a 800cca agm in, with the above charger it's holding on for about 4 yrs and 80,000kms...i did test mine for parasitic loads and there were none ...yours sounds to have a few tho ...

 

[OhYou'reWithThatCompany]

Thanks, all. I'll look into the solar trickle charger. (Having said that, the car is always parked with a car cover. Hmm.) As I originally wrote, there's no AC anywhere near my parking place, so a battery maintainer is out of the question.

 

[cbidwell91]

If you only did 10K miles in four years, then this doesn't really seem to be a battery issue. Your car has over 30 ECU's in it, some of which don't fully go to sleep. The dealerships questions seem to be valid, as all vehicles have a dark current rating when its fully asleep (not a useless test, as there is an actual specification range on for these vehicles. This test tells the dealership if you have other issues going on preventing the car from fully shutting down).

1. Battery Maintainer question is valid, unfortunately doesn't seem like it works for you.
2. Why don't you drive more? Also a valid question, as low mileage vehicles tend to have the highest rates of "low battery" issues.
3. AGM batteries are much better than the OEM flooded and enhanced flooded batteries. This could help your issue but won't solve it. I wouldn't totally write this off, especially one which has high ratings for deep cycle.
4. The car key question is also valid, as said systems will stay awake as long as the key is within range. This is common for people who have countertops on a wall directly behind where the vehicle is parked in the garage.

My .02, this isn't a battery issue. Your car likely isn't a lemon, you just don't drive it. I wouldn't expect any modern car to be able to sit much longer than a month without the battery getting severely low. When you do drive, I recommend turning your headlights to the "On" position (Not auto) as this automatically places the alternator in its highest charging mode.

 

[OhYou'reWithThatCompany]

cbidwell91, thank you for your input—and thanks for the recommendation to change the setting for the headlamps; that would have never occurred to me.

BTW, I don't drive more just because my current situation doesn't require it: I telecommute, and I live within a few minutes of pretty much everything I need—hence my frequent drives around the area mostly to keep the battery charged (but admittedly a bit for the pleasure of driving).

 

[BruceP]

Original battery dies at 5,709 miles. Replaced with Subaru OEM.
Second battery dies at 8,077 miles. Replaced with Subaru OEM.
Third battery dies at 8,842 miles. Replaced with Subaru OEM.

Seems to me the common denominator here is "Replaced with Subaru OEM."
Have you considered another source for battery? (I have been using "Interstate" batteries for over 20 years in my equipment)

no one has seen anything like this in any other manufacturer.

This has never happened on any of my Subaru either. If you are confident that your charging system is up-to-snuff, a battery should last over 6 years.

I understand you do not have access to electric power. FWIW, I second the suggeston of trying a solar-charger which sits INSIDE the vehicle behind the windshield... just make sure it is plugged into LIVE socket which is not turned off with the key.

 

[Subarik]

+1 for interstate batteries. They come very cheap with Costco card. Although for my next battery I'm going to do some research and find the biggest one that will fit not this group 35 crap.

 

[cbidwell91]

cbidwell91, thank you for your input—and thanks for the recommendation to change the setting for the headlamps; that would have never occurred to me.

BTW, I don't drive more just because my current situation doesn't require it: I telecommute, and I live within a few minutes of pretty much everything I need—hence my frequent drives around the area mostly to keep the battery charged (but admittedly a bit for the pleasure of driving).

No problem. I think if this is something you'd like to slow down then an AGM battery may be your best option. Batteries, like other parts of a car, are meant to be used. Maybe joy ride the car a little bit more?

 

[Nakajima Homare]

Fwiw all my neighbors swear by Deka batteries

 

[Harriska2]

My March 2017 Impreza still has the OEM battery. I’m waiting for it to die but it seems to keep on chugging. Will replace it with a Costco battery more than likely.

 

[deenka048]

the problem with your car is not the battery per se (yes, Subaru batteries are crap), it's as "cbidwell" said, you are not driving the car enough. I have the exact same problem as you, my 2019 is 4 years old and only has 15k kms which is just about 10k miles and I have taken it in twice to get the battery replaced, first time it was pretty well dead and the 2nd time they were able to recharge it and the advisor said the same things - need to drive the car more and not just take it around the block for 5 mins, I would say at least a 20 min drive. I ended up buying a trickle charger for about $30 and have not had an issue since. I don't leave it on all the time, just charge it up every 7-10 days when not using the car and it normally gets a full recharge within 24 hours. I know you said you don't have access to a power outlet so maybe disconnecting your negative battery terminal might be an option - a bit of a PITA but might save you trouble elsewhere!!

 

[j.feneck2013]

Original battery dies at 5,709 miles. Replaced with Subaru OEM.
Second battery dies at 8,077 miles. Replaced with Subaru OEM.
Third battery dies at 8,842 miles. Replaced with Subaru OEM.
Fourth battery dies at 10,145 miles. Not yet replaced with Subaru OEM. (This time I was able to jump-start the car.)

Dealership performs useless test: "HAS NO DRAW OVER 70 MAMP." We know why.

"Have you considered a battery maintainer?" I park far away from any buildings or power sources.
"Why don't you drive a lot more?" I already drive more than my life requires; I take the car for a spin every few days for no other reason than to keep the battery from dying.
"How about investing in an AGM battery?" That won't fix the problem, yanno.
"Do you keep the keyfob far away from the car?" Yes—and in a RF pouch, no less.

At my company—which shan't be named—no one has seen anything like this in any other manufacturer.

I had to sign up just to add to the usual battery rants. 😁 Thanks.

There are solar battery maintainers if that's no power source near where you park. They're pretty inexpensive.

 

[Nakajima Homare]

It's not Subaru batteries but rather Clarios (formerly Johnson Controls makers of Interstate and Die Hard batteries) who supplies the batteries to Subaru. 2 neighbors with Foresters have had them replaced, finally one neighbor said to heck with this and secured a Deka battery. That was 2 years ago and said Deka battery is still in place. Said neighbor driving habits have not changed one iota. What has changed is a much higher quality battery powers things now.

 

[cbidwell91]

It's not Subaru batteries but rather Clarios (formerly Johnson Controls makers of Interstate and Die Hard batteries) who supplies the batteries to Subaru. 2 neighbors with Foresters have had them replaced, finally one neighbor said to heck with this and secured a Deka battery. That was 2 years ago and said Deka battery is still in place. Said neighbor driving habits have not changed one iota. What has changed is a much higher quality battery powers things now.

I may be wrong, but I'm pretty sure Foresters use Panasonic batteries, not Clarios.

 

[Nakajima Homare]

Didn't know Panasonic made auto batteries. Going to dig further on that

 

[MagikAram]

Didn't know Panasonic made auto batteries. Going to dig further on that

They also made the original AGM battery for the Miatas, which like the Foresters, are also built in Japan. Unfortunately it's hard to get those batteries here because they're not usually sold at Mazda dealerships, the batteries are quite heavy to ship and expensive for that reason. As for Subaru, I haven't checked getting a new battery since I've yet to go through even three oil changes.

 

[Nakajima Homare]

Both my neightbors foresters are built in W Lafayette indiana and had Clarios batteries. My impreza also has a Clarios battery so unless Clariors/Subaru figured out the issue, I suspect I will replace mine sooner rather than later. At least the Denso dynamo kicks out 136 AMPS!

 

[MagikAram]

Both my neightbors foresters are built in W Lafayette indiana and had Clarios batteries. My impreza also has a Clarios battery so unless Clariors/Subaru figured out the issue, I suspect I will replace mine sooner rather than later. At least the Denso dynamo kicks out 136 AMPS!

Foresters are built in Japan and shipped to the US - denoted by the J prefix in their VIN. Every vehicle Subaru manufactures is in Gunma Prefecture, Japan. Some models for the North America Market are made here at SIA:
Legacy
Outback
Impreza
Ascent

Models made in the Gunma Plant:
WRX
Forester
Crosstrek

It is likely that similar to the SoA sales of the Blue Filter is similar to the contracts for the batteries sold by SoA, where Subaru of Japan has different sources for those components.