Oil change place drained CVT.

billc108 · 2025-10-06T01:28:31-0400

My wife took our 2016 hybrid crosstrek to an oil change place on Friday afternoon. As soon as she went to leave she knew there was something wrong. Turned right around and they didn't find anything out of place. Took it to the Subaru dealer about 2-2.5 miles away, who quickly discovered that they'd drained the CVT instead of the oil. (She might have stopped at the auto parts store on the way to have the codes read).

Dealer says a new CVT is going to be around $14,500. Probably high, but we're talking new and a dealer. Of course they don't recommend attempting to repair it.

I looked up the blue book which is well below that (~132k miles), so I suspect their insurance is going to total the car.

First question: I did a quick check on the 'net and see a bunch of used 2016 CVTs for somewhere between $1000 and $2000. Assuming I can get one in decent shape from a wreck, what's a reasonable price to install it? Any pointers on what I should watch out for? Are there rebuilt CVTs out there for this model?

Second: would I be crazy to do so?

Third: If I were to buy a newer Crosstrek which one would you go for? My preference would be for a plug-in hybrid. Anyone with experience with the Crosstrek plugin hybrid? They were only offered 2018-2023... did they suck, or were they just pulled because of poor sales?

subyrubyroo · 2025-10-06T04:24:22-0400

How did they address overfilling the engine? Assuming it was since the oil was never drained.

What happens if you get the CVT refilled? How do the know it is trashed without even trying it?

billc108 · 2025-10-06T10:24:05-0400

Details on that are unclear, though the dealer shop said it wasn't overfilled when it came in.

Maybe they overfilled and drained the excess, or maybe they checked before filling and saw it was already full. That should have been a red flag of course.

scubasteve61086 · 2025-10-06T07:42:48-0400

Have you addressed this with the oil change place? They should be the ones covering the fix/damage.

MA Subie · 2025-10-06T08:58:05-0400

^^^This. The oil change place should be paying for a new transmission, not your insurance.

To answer your question about Crosstrek hybrids, they took a hiatus and there will be a new Crosstrek hybrid for 2026.

sanghill · 2025-10-06T08:49:32-0400

I spray painted my engine oil drain plug orange. Then tell the oil change place. Give them a new crush washer and the correct drain plug torque spec, 18.4 ft lbs.

billc108 · 2025-10-06T10:25:47-0400

Too late for that on this debacle. But yes for the future!

Montanan · 2025-10-06T09:51:52-0400

From my reading of this, the OP has already gone after the oil change place, and it's their insurance that's likely to total the car. That said, this is the sort of situation where a lawyer might be able to get some additional recourse.

As to the original question: I'd say the car is definitely worth repairing if you can find a decent used transmission, but that might take a little searching, since those cars were pretty rare beasts. And it's the sort of job few mechanics are going to be familiar with. As a wild guess, I'd expect the labor cost to be between 1 and 2 thousand.

billc108 · 2025-10-06T10:30:31-0400

Ok, so that's not impossible, and less than a new replacement. Just talked to the dealer's shop guy and he said they can get refurb/rebuilt CVT if we need to go that route.

Would anyone here happen to know if other model year CVTs can be cleanly swapped into the 2016 hybrid crosstrek?

Montanan · 2025-10-06T10:44:36-0400

The donor transmission would obviously need to be from a first-generation hybrid, since the hybrid's electric motor is integrated into the CVT. But any hybrid CVT from the 2014-2017 period is likely to work.

Note that if you have the dealer do the work, it's almost certainly going to cost more. I'd look for an independent shop with Subaru experience.

MA Subie · 2025-10-06T11:36:30-0400

I think we may be getting ahead of ourselves here. At least in the states I've lived in, if an insurance company totals your car and you accept the insurance money, the insurance company owns your car. You cannot buy back the car at scrap value and repair it.

ferret · 2025-10-06T11:47:58-0400

As far as TOTALED goes, I have been involved in a few of these either myself a few times and family members. I have seen this go BOTH WAYS described below. This may also be state dependent.

If a vehicle is totaled, the owner has 2 options, either to accept the totaled AND scrapped value from the insurance company. In this case, you sign over the title, accept payment and no longer own the vehicle.

The other case is if the owner wants to KEEP the vehicle, they accept the value ( Totaled minus scrap value, a lesser amount ) and keep the vehicle. State dependent, the vehicle either becomes a SALVAGE or RECONSTRUCTED title and loses a good amount of it's resale value.

Others can chime in with their experiences, but this is what our family has experienced.

Edit: I really feel for the owner in this case, as an otherwise good vehicle was damaged by a service establishment that they trusted, unlike the accidents family members were in.

piste · 2025-10-06T11:55:45-0400

If someone elses insurance were paying for it I would push for a brand new OEM CVT installed by a dealer..with warranty on the work.

Etcher · 2025-10-06T13:40:59-0400

At that cost the shops insurance company will likely "total" the car rather than fix it. That's the dilemma for the OP. Or at least that's the concern as we don't know yet for sure.

sanghill · 2025-10-06T13:48:33-0400

I didn't paint my engine oil drain plug for my benefit, I did it so when I have my local ma and pa repair shop change my oil I can tell them to only remove the orange drain plug. They won't let me in the shop so I wanted a foolproof way of making sure they do it right. I will give them the oil and parts and torque specs they need to do the job properly.

piste · 2025-10-06T14:33:12-0400

And i know a shop or two that would still F that up!!

sanghill · 2025-10-06T14:40:03-0400

Murphy is winning, still.

Besttec · 2025-10-10T00:10:14-0400

I rarely trust anyone with things i can do myself. With my physical limitations I am down to oil changes, brake jobs...and a few other minor replacements. Nobody cares about your stuff like you do... and I dont have time to fool around with other people's screw ups. JM2C...

Oil change place drained CVT.

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