Sirius XM radio in 2018 Forester loses Siruis subscription when car is shut off

Asked by Subaru_Forester_owne... Jan 20, 2019 at 11:44 PM about the 2018 Subaru Forester

Question type: General

I bought a 2018 Forester in June 2018 and had my existing Sirius XM service transferred to the Forester.  My Sirius subscription is active through March 19, 2019.  Until 5 days ago, all has worked great with the Sirius service in my Forester.  Now, when I turn off the car and then start the car, the radio loses my Sirius subscription.  When I go to a Sirius XM station, the radio displays "Channel unsubscribed." This happens even after doing a refresh of the Sirius service, which has been done multiple times.  I've verified that the correct radio ID is associated with my Sirius account. Took the car to the Subaru dealership yesterday to have Technical Service Bulletin 15-205-16R firmware update applied to the radio as I was told that TSB should fix the issue, but that did not correct the issue.  Dealer said next step will probably be to replace the radio. I've been on the phone with Sirius customer support multiple times to ensure all is ok my account, which they say it is, and they say  this is a problem with the radio and not with my Sirius account / service .  Any ideas, suggestions would be greatly appreciated as I'm at my wits end on this one.  

6 Answers

Joanne answered 5 years ago

I am having this very same problem. It just started around the time yours did. I am taking mine in tomorrow but it doesn't sound like it will be helpful.

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Subaru_Forester_owne... answered 5 years ago

The dealership replaced the radio and the issue isn't occurring anymore; however, when I try to use the Info part of the radio, I still receive a message that a Sirius XM subscription is needed. I've verified that the new radio ID is associated with my Sirius XM account. At least I'm able to listen to my Sirius XM stations again.

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80

GuruSGKS7 answered 4 years ago

You will not like this answer. It CANNOT be fixed. It is because SIRIUS added more channels than your radio can handle. I am having the exact same issue with my 2017 Forester XT. I have had my radio replaced and the unit has been "updated" 6 times. Still not fixed. SUBARU blames SIRIUS, SIRIUS blames Subaru. Quite the vicious circle. No one can fix it or is willing to take responsibility. They both are more than happy to take their money, but sure don not want to do anything about a problem they are both well aware of.

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GuruQK9RK answered 4 years ago

I have just experienced the same problem with my 2018 forester but haven't called subaru yet. Doesn't sound hopeful. Hope it is covered under warranty!

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Guru9DG3KL answered 3 years ago

It is 11/22/2020 and I have them same problem. When I press list I do not get a list of all the SiriusXM stations. There is a workaround but i would have expected a fix that would allow me to use this radio as the manual states. Get to work Sirius and fix this.

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Guru95W7XF answered 3 years ago

Would you mind sharing the workaround as my Sirius is 100% dead to me. I was driving with Sirius on then it switched to an FM preset and when I go to home and press Audio it shows symbols for all the options, but when I press Sirius it just goes to the preset FM station, like Sirius isn't available on my radio. I'm 4 months past end of warranty.

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