2025 Subaru Ascent Lemon Law Buyback in Connecticut
Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Our client leased a new 2025 Subaru Ascent in Connecticut. The CVT transmission slipped, was replaced, slipped again, was replaced again, and then, by the owner's account, sent the SUV back to the dealer a third time. After 55 days out of service, Subaru repurchased it in a buyback valued at $55,696.
The vehicle and its defects
This 2025 Subaru Ascent was leased new in April 2025 with 30 miles on the clock. By 8,444 miles the transmission had started to slip.
Every visit in the record concerns that one system. The owner described slipping under acceleration and trouble moving into the next gear, then slipping on highway on-ramps. The continuously variable transmission (CVT) was replaced in full twice, and the owner reports the problems continued after that.
| Vehicle | 2025 Subaru Ascent |
|---|---|
| State | Connecticut |
| Purchase | Leased new, April 2025 |
| Repair visits | 3 |
| Mileage at first repair | 8,444 |
| Days out of service | 55 |
| Resolution | Buyback, settled September 2026 |
| Total | $55,696 |
The repair record
The record shows 3 repair visits for the transmission and 55 days out of service, with the first visit at 8,444 miles.
- November 3 - 13, 2025
The owner reported that the transmission felt like it slipped when accelerating and sometimes struggled to shift into the next gear. Technicians found a stored fault code and replaced the CVT assembly.
- April 2, 2026 – May 6, 2026
Slipping returned, this time when merging onto the highway. Technicians found the chain inside the CVT was slipping. They replaced the transmission again, with its related gaskets.
- May 11, 2026 – Present
According to the owner, the Ascent went back to the dealership around May 11, 2026 for continuing transmission problems. It had been there since.
Connecticut Lemon Law and federal warranty law
The Connecticut Lemon Law, Conn. Gen. Stat. §42-179, applies to new vehicles bought or leased in Connecticut for personal, family or household use. Owners can get a replacement, a refund or money damages when the same defect has been through 4 repair attempts (2 if the defect could cause death or serious injury), or when the vehicle has spent 30 or more calendar days out of service in total. Defects must be reported within 2 years or 24,000 miles of delivery, whichever is earlier. Claims go through a state-run arbitration program at the Department of Consumer Protection, and under Conn. Gen. Stat. §42-180 a court may award fees and costs to a consumer who prevails.
The Ascent was delivered in April 2025, every visit fell between November 2025 and May 2026, and the odometer stood near 16,000 miles, so the reports came inside both limits. The record showed 3 transmission visits and 55 days out of service, which is the sort of history the statute's 4-attempt and 30-day tests are written for. The record lists 55 days out of service, above the 30-day figure. The federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2301 et seq., can provide a parallel warranty claim and may allow attorney fees for an owner who prevails.
- Statute
- Connecticut Lemon Law, Conn. Gen. Stat. §42-179
- Repair test
- 4 repair attempts for the same defect (or 2 for serious safety defects), or 30 cumulative calendar days out of service
- Time limit
- Not set by the lemon law itself (defects must be reported within 2 years or 24,000 miles from original delivery, whichever is earlier)
- Federal law
- Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2301 et seq.
More on Connecticut: Connecticut lemon law attorney page and how to file a lemon law claim in Connecticut.
How RockPoint built the claim
This was a single-defect case, and that made it clear. All three visits involved the same CVT, two of them ended with a new transmission, and the owner reports the transmission problems continued after the second replacement.
The time out of service mattered too. Fifty-five days is close to two months without the SUV, on a lease that began in April 2025, and the third visit was still open.
The outcome
Subaru repurchased the Ascent, and the matter settled in September 2026. The total value of the resolution was $55,696, or $55,696.68 exactly, and it covered the lease payoff, the amount paid to our client and attorney fees.
Questions about this case
Connecticut generally looks for 4 attempts on the same defect, or 2 for a defect that could cause death or serious injury. A vehicle out of service for 30 or more calendar days in total can also qualify. This Ascent had 3 transmission visits and 55 days in the shop.
Yes. The statute covers new vehicles bought or leased in Connecticut for personal, family or household use, and this Ascent was leased new.
The lemon law does not set its own filing deadline. The defect must be reported within 2 years or 24,000 miles of original delivery, whichever comes first.
Connecticut runs a state arbitration program through the Department of Consumer Protection, and the statute calls for using it. This Ascent case was resolved as a Subaru buyback in September 2026.
Subaru bought the SUV back. The total value of the resolution was $55,696, covering the lease payoff, the payment to our client and attorney fees.
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