Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - COOLING SYSTEM | |||||
| 99 | 02/01/2004 | 10006149 | Engine cooling system conditioner.*mr | 04/22/2004 | |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | |||||
| 029605 | 09/09/2005 | 10016869 | 2.5l remanufactured sohc short block release. *tt | 10/13/2005 | |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE | |||||
| 010302 | 03/01/2002 | 631014 | Customer complaints of a growling noise from the engine area. *tt | 04/30/2002 | |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE - BELTS AND ASSOCIATED PULLEYS | |||||
| 02 | 02/01/2006 | 10019343 | Rubbing mark on timing belt. subaru. *tt | 03/09/2006 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | |||
| 04/10/2008 | 48700 | 1 | 11/30/1998 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 1999 subaru forester. while coasting, the vehicle began to accelerate on its own. the vehicle was towed to the dealer. the current and failure mileages were 48,700. updated 05/06/08 *bf the consumer stated dreyer & reinbold checked engine, transmission mounts speed control and found no problem. 05/06/08 *tr | |||
| 07/28/2006 | 108750 | 1 | 04/15/1999 |
| We have a 1999 subaru forester with a 2.5 l engine. we got a recall notice 2-2004 regarding external coolant leaks at the engine cylinder head gaskets. this recall covered vehicle years 1999-2002 or 4 years of vehicles. we took the vehicle in and had the specific (special conditioner) installed as required by subaru. unfortunately for us it took subaru 5 years to acknowledge the problem as we are on the front end of the model years in question. last week the head gaskets failed and with it a large repair bill. subaru will not honor the extended warranty as we are outside it by less than 10% in mileage but within the specified 8 years in age. we live in southern california and it is our opinion the mileage amounts allowed do not represent this part of the country and are not real world. we have discussed the issue with 2 extremely experienced mechanics including a nissan mechanic (noted throughout the country) who indicated the conditioner was merely a band-aid, a way for subaru to make a temporary fix, and not make a proper repair by replacing the defective head gaskets in question. *jb | |||
| 05/25/2005 | 0 | 02/14/2003 | |
| Loud clunking noise coming from engine. my mechanic diagnosed as a cracked cylinder or piston. took the car to local subaru dealership to repiar - hoping that subaru would cover part of the cost (no longer under warrantee.) have been told by dealership after a rep. from subaru looked at the car - that the engine will need to be replaced. when i asked what happened. i was told that the pistons in this car do not have a skirting. therfore when they go up and down in the cylinder they have more room than normal and can move around more. (sounds like an engineering flaw to me.) subaru says that they are willing to cover 40% of the cost to repair. i feel that i bought a car that wasn't designed very well - and i should not have to pay for their mistakes. i have called subaru's costumer service hotline and am waiting for them to reply. they also told me that because i was the 2nd owner of the car - i was probably not going to get any more help. really makes you want to buy a used subaru! | |||
| 03/18/2004 | 86700 | 1 | 12/20/2002 |
| While driving at 70 mph, suddenly there was a clicking noise from the engine and then it stalled. the vehicle was towed to a dealership. the dealership stated, there was internal engine damage. this occurred because water seeped into the engine because of a faulty gasket. *jb | |||
| 06/01/2004 | 5 | ||
| Problems with tensioner, front belt cover and head gasket. *mr the front belt cover and tensioner failed two months after the head gasket was repaired. the mechanic did not torque down the tensioner bolt and caused it to come loose. the valves were bent even though the motor is considered noninterference. two recalls were applied to the vehicle without the consumer's knowledge (recall wwg90 & wwp99). the seal on top of the tensioner failed. the mechanics had given two results; 3 cylinders with no compression. the vehicle was losing oil before the head gasket problem in december 2003. the consumer also noticed changes in the oil level between changes. the consumer requested a new engine. *sc *jb | |||
| 05/13/2004 | 53400 | 1 | 09/17/1998 |
| At 53,500 miles engine oil began leaking. all seals had to be replaced including watre pump seals wich had also failed.*ak | |||
| 12/15/2001 | 30600 | ||
| Engine seized and blew at 30,000 - i provided subaru with all receipts for oil changes that complied with warranty. subarua denied warranty writing that ohio has such severe weather that the warranty provisions did not apply. i have since learned that subaru has no such warranty policy. subaru destroyed my engine oil, after receiving a certified letter directing that the oil be preserved for testing, charged me for the oil's disposal, tore down my engine, destroyed the defective parts, charged me for the engine tear down, and has refused to cooperate in discover - i sued - court ordered subaru to comply with discovery, and subaru admitted that it's letter denying my warranty was based on a false reason. my trial against subaru is in september - trying to find other information that might help. | |||
| 03/24/2004 | 77848 | 2 | 10/10/2002 |
| I bought a 1999 subaru forester s less than 2 years ago. in december 2003, at approx. 71,200 miles, the car began loosing antifreeze. i discovered that i needed a head gasket job. now i find they have a recall on this. shortly thereafter i discovered the mysterious vanishing oil problem with this engine. at 75,775, i checked the oil and found it mostly gone! i returned to my mechanic, who found no external leak and no sign of oil burning on the spark plugs. after doing some research (see nhtsa complaints), this appears to be a chronic problem with these engines. i continued to monitor the situation and add oil as necessary. i seem to need 1 quart per 1500 miles, approximately. now, the final problem. on 3/24/04, at 77,848, i was driving at 65 mph, heard a strange noise and the check engine light came on. i immediately turned off the engine and coasted to a safe turn out. after towing the car to my mechanic, he discovered that the top of the timing belt tensioner had popped off, releasing the hydraulic and of course the timing belt. he has never seen a tensioner fail, and out of the hundreds of new timing belts he has done, he only had to replace about a dozen that were out of specs. we debated a course of action and, since it is a non-interference motor, i decided to replace the tensioner and not the entire motor. he also did a hand crank to check for resistance or other head damage. after waiting nearly 2 weeks for parts (due to subaru's part ordering method), he replaced the tensioner. when testing the engine, it did not sound right. he did a compression test and found no compression on 3 cylinders! so now i had the shocking prospect of needing a new engine!i decided i better get help from the dealer, as this all appears to be a quality issue that should not be happening to this engine at this mileage. the car is now at stohlman subaru in vienna, va. *ak | |||
| 01/09/2004 | 82000 | 1 | |
| While driving at 45 mph temperature gauge suddenly went into the hot zone. consumer pulled off the road to inspect the vehicle. checked the fluids level, added water, and got back on the road, and temperature gauge immediately went back into the hot zone. consumer pulled off the road, and had vehicle towed to the dealership, who determined that engine head gasket was leaking antifreeze.*ak | |||
| 06/13/2003 | 102000 | 1 | |
| Vehicle continues to run hot. dealer notified.*ak | |||
| 05/16/2003 | 12/18/1998 | ||
| Chronic engine and oil leakage of a 1999 subaru forester. no satisfaction from 2 dealerships (bald hill subaru and pilgrim subaru). i have noted the last date of service, but the problem has been constant and chronic. i have lost time from work, had breakdowns on 2 vacations, and have constant anxiety about the situation. *nlm | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - COOLING SYSTEM | |||
| 12/01/2003 | 71200 | 1 | |
| 1999 subaru forester has a leak in the driver's side head gasket. (nar). *mr *cb | |||
| 60000 | 1 | ||
| Consumer complained about engine head gasket leaking coolant and mixing with the oil. instead of replacing the head gasket dealer was offering a liquid conditioner, and holding the consumer responsible for maintenance. *ak | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | |||
| 05/30/2008 | 99000 | 1 | |
| Head gasket/engine failed while on highway. car stalled, unable to be driven. *tr | |||
| 07/12/2005 | 144539 | 1 | 10/30/1998 |
| Head gasket failure. *jb | |||
| 02/05/2005 | 113000 | 1 | 01/22/2001 |
| Subaru forrester 1999 w/113,000 miles has blown head gasket i am interested in participating in a class action lawsuit to recover damages. *jb | |||
| 01/01/2003 | 1 | ||
| Since the purchase of the vehicle, it burns well over a quart of oil when it traveled 1000 miles. hence having to replace 3 to 4 qts of oil between oil changes. the dealer insists that this is ?normal.? i thought that they should be required to put this on the sticker information of all new cars while others are documenting the same information. *la | |||
| 06/02/2003 | 96000 | 3 | 03/27/1999 |
| 1999 subaru forester s. at 40,000 new transmission. at 45,000 speed odometer sticking needs to be replaced. now at 96,000 miles leaking head gasket needs to be replaced. all major problems requiring major money to be replaced.*ak | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE | |||
| 04/15/2002 | 2 | 12/01/2098 | |
| I took my subaru in for an oil leak problem and was informed that my right bearing was bad. the oil seal was under warrenty, however the bearing cost nearly 500.00. drove it a month and started hearing a roaring noise. i took it in again and the bearing had caused the hub to go bad. i was not charged this second time. i was told they had other all wheel drive vehicles in with this problem. | |||
| 1 | |||
| Oil pump seal oil leak, fixed under warranty. still loosing oil found head gasket leak, will fix under warranty. dealer said engine still using oil, but they will not fix it as they say 1 quart every 1000 miles is normal. but dealer want to check the vehicle every 2000 miles. *yh | |||
| 01/01/2001 | 01/01/1999 | ||
| Vehicle is losing aproximately one quart of oil every 1000 miles. the vehicle does not appear to be burning oil nor is it leaking. this amount of oil loss appears high to me. i called subaru international in new jersey and they said this is normal for a subaru. i find this very hard to believe that a vehicle can lose 1 quart of oil every 1000 miles. i asked the dealer (marzolf subaru) to fix it, and they said no as it was not un-normal for a subaru to lose this much oil. thankyou for looking into this problem.*ak | |||
| 07/29/1999 | 07/23/1999 | ||
| Ongoing problem with engine hesitating intermittently whenever vehicle sits for more then two days. vehicle been in dealer shop, and problem still occurring. *ak | |||
| 2 | 10/01/1998 | ||
| Engine rebuilt due to failure, had to be completely replaced due to failure of rebuilt unit. mjs | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - EXHAUST SYSTEM - EMISSION CONTROL - CATALYTIC CONVERTOR | |||
| 03/23/2004 | 100000 | 2 | |
| While driving, the engine light illuminated. the mechanic repaired the catalytic converter once, but the consumer continued to have the same problems. *jb the converter was replaced once and the #02 sensor was repaired forced. two dealers suggested that this model vehicle had a problem with this component when the vehicle was at or below 100k miles. *sc *jb | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - EXHAUST SYSTEM - MANIFOLD/HEADER/MUFFLER/TAIL PIPE | |||
| 10/15/2005 | 1 | 09/01/2005 | |
| Dt: the contact stated since purchase of the vehicle there has been antifreeze smell. he would periodically check the reservoir, and once he noticed it was leaking. he took the vehicle to a mechanic, who determined the head gasket was leaking. there was manufacturer recall wwp-99, for this problem, but when he took the vehicle to the dealership they stated there was no problem with the vehicle. they told the contact he probably filled the reservoir too high, causing the leak. the manufacturer was contacted, and suggested he keep an eye on the problem. if it persists, they will fix the vehicle under the recall. the vehicle has not been repaired. *ak | |||