Recalls
| Campaign | Manufacturer | Manufacturing date | Type | # of units affected | Date Owner notified Mfg | Recall Initiated by | Manufacturers of recalled vehicles/products | Report Recieved Date | Record Creation Date | Regulation Part Number | FMVSS Number | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - CONTROL ARM - LOWER ARM | ||||||||||||||||
| 11V464000 | SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. | from 09/05/2000 to 11/26/2007 | V (Vehicle) | 295123 | 12/31/2011 | ODI | SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. | 09/06/2011 | 09/08/2011 | |||||||
| Defect Summary | Subaru is recalling certain model year 2002-2007 impreza, model year 2003-2008 forester, and model year 2005-2006 saab 9-2x vehicles manufactured from september 5, 2000 through november 26, 2007 originally sold, or currently registered in, massachusetts, maryland, michigan, new hampshire, new york, pennsylvania, vermont, wisconsin, connecticut, delaware, iowa, illinois, indiana, maine, minnesota, missouri, new jersey, ohio, rhode island, west virginia and the district of columbia. the front lower control arms may break at the hanger brackets due to corrosion if the hanger bracket is exposed to salty and humid environments such as roads containing snow melting agent. | |||||||||||||||
| Consequence Summary | A broken control arm can result in the loss of control of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash. | |||||||||||||||
| Corrective Summary | Subaru will handle their vehicles and saab will handle theirs. dealers will inspect the degree of corrosion of the front lower control arms, and will either rustproof or replace them. this service will be performed free of charge. the safety recall is expected to begin during december 2011. owners may contact subaru at 1-800-782-2783. | |||||||||||||||
| Notes | This is subaru's safety recall number wvx-34.owners may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov . | |||||||||||||||
Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUSPENSION | ||||||
| PE11011 | SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. | 04/07/2011 | 09/23/2011 | Front suspension control arm failure | 11V464000 | |
| On september 6, 2011, fuji heavy industries usa, inc, on behalf of subaru of america, inc notified the office of defects investigation (odi) it would be conducting a safety recall of certain model year (my) 2002 through 2007 subaru impreza, my 2003 through 2008 subaru forester, and my 2005 through 2006 saab 9-2x vehicles originally sold or currently registered in one the salt belt states including the district of columbia (dc). for the purpose of this investigation, salt belt states include connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, wisconsin and dc.odi's analysis of consumer complaint data identified 11 reports alleging failure of either the right or left lower control arm due to excessive corrosion. all of these complaints were associated with vehicles currently registered or originally sold in a salt belt state. through a similar analysis of complaint and warranty data submitted to odi by subaru, odi identified 18 consumer complaints and 6 warranty claims associated with failure of the left or right front lower control arm due to excessive corrosion. all of these consumer complaints associated with vehicles either currently registered of originally sold in a salt belt state.accordingly, this investigation is closed. | ||||||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT | ||||||
| PE11011 | SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. | 04/07/2011 | 09/23/2011 | Front suspension control arm failure | 11V464000 | |
| On september 6, 2011, fuji heavy industries usa, inc, on behalf of subaru of america, inc notified the office of defects investigation (odi) it would be conducting a safety recall of certain model year (my) 2002 through 2007 subaru impreza, my 2003 through 2008 subaru forester, and my 2005 through 2006 saab 9-2x vehicles originally sold or currently registered in one the salt belt states including the district of columbia (dc). for the purpose of this investigation, salt belt states include connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, wisconsin and dc.odi's analysis of consumer complaint data identified 11 reports alleging failure of either the right or left lower control arm due to excessive corrosion. all of these complaints were associated with vehicles currently registered or originally sold in a salt belt state. through a similar analysis of complaint and warranty data submitted to odi by subaru, odi identified 18 consumer complaints and 6 warranty claims associated with failure of the left or right front lower control arm due to excessive corrosion. all of these consumer complaints associated with vehicles either currently registered of originally sold in a salt belt state.accordingly, this investigation is closed. | ||||||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - CONTROL ARM | ||||||
| PE11011 | SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. | 04/07/2011 | 09/23/2011 | Front suspension control arm failure | 11V464000 | |
| On september 6, 2011, fuji heavy industries usa, inc, on behalf of subaru of america, inc notified the office of defects investigation (odi) it would be conducting a safety recall of certain model year (my) 2002 through 2007 subaru impreza, my 2003 through 2008 subaru forester, and my 2005 through 2006 saab 9-2x vehicles originally sold or currently registered in one the salt belt states including the district of columbia (dc). for the purpose of this investigation, salt belt states include connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, wisconsin and dc.odi's analysis of consumer complaint data identified 11 reports alleging failure of either the right or left lower control arm due to excessive corrosion. all of these complaints were associated with vehicles currently registered or originally sold in a salt belt state. through a similar analysis of complaint and warranty data submitted to odi by subaru, odi identified 18 consumer complaints and 6 warranty claims associated with failure of the left or right front lower control arm due to excessive corrosion. all of these consumer complaints associated with vehicles either currently registered of originally sold in a salt belt state.accordingly, this investigation is closed. | ||||||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - CONTROL ARM - LOWER ARM | ||||||
| PE11011 | SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. | 04/07/2011 | 09/23/2011 | Front suspension control arm failure | 11V464000 | |
| On september 6, 2011, fuji heavy industries usa, inc, on behalf of subaru of america, inc notified the office of defects investigation (odi) it would be conducting a safety recall of certain model year (my) 2002 through 2007 subaru impreza, my 2003 through 2008 subaru forester, and my 2005 through 2006 saab 9-2x vehicles originally sold or currently registered in one the salt belt states including the district of columbia (dc). for the purpose of this investigation, salt belt states include connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, wisconsin and dc.odi's analysis of consumer complaint data identified 11 reports alleging failure of either the right or left lower control arm due to excessive corrosion. all of these complaints were associated with vehicles currently registered or originally sold in a salt belt state. through a similar analysis of complaint and warranty data submitted to odi by subaru, odi identified 18 consumer complaints and 6 warranty claims associated with failure of the left or right front lower control arm due to excessive corrosion. all of these consumer complaints associated with vehicles either currently registered of originally sold in a salt belt state.accordingly, this investigation is closed. | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| SUSPENSION | |||
| 01/10/2013 | 80000 | 1 | |
| Lower control arm separated at weld due to rust through and caused car to loose control and crash. both front airbags deployed. minor injuries were sustained. the control arms were inspected by dealer approximately six months before the accident due to the recall for this component. they were deemed to be safe after a punch test and rustproofing applied. the recall also provided for replacement, however my car was not determined to need replacement as a result of the punch test. it appears that the testing procedure for this recall may be too subjective and/or ineffective and that continued failures will be forthcoming. *tr | |||
| 01/10/2013 | 80000 | ||
| Lower control arm separated at weld due to rust through and caused car to loose control and crash. both front airbags deployed. minor injuries were sustained. the control arms were inspected by dealer approximately six months before the accident due to the recall for this component. they were deemed to be safe after a punch test and rustproofing applied. the recall also provided for replacement, however my car was not determined to need replacement as a result of the punch test. it appears that the testing procedure for this recall may be too subjective and/or ineffective and that continued failures will be forthcoming. | |||
| 07/20/2005 | 800 | 1 | 06/28/2005 |
| Dt: the consumer stated that 2006 subaru was not driving correctly. vehicle was all over the road, it did not drive straight and it went to the left or to the right. it was more noticeable when going fast. it was doing this all the time. the consumer took vehicle to the dealership, and they said that there was no problem. the consumer insisted vehicle did have enough caster. the dealer told the consumer that all of the subaru did that and could not fix the car, the consumer did not want the car. he paid cash for vehicle, and was upset. the consumer had not called subaru, but planned doing so. the consumer owned this vehicle for 3 weeks. the first 800 miles the car did not do this. it was a 2006 model. the consumer insisted that it was a suspension failure. *ak | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT | |||
| 12/31/2008 | 100000 | 1 | 06/01/2005 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2005 subaru forester. while driving approximately 25 mph, the contact felt as if she struck a bump in the road. the steering wheel felt unusual and when she began to pull away from a stop sign at the bottom of the ramp, she noticed that the steering became difficult to move and to put into first gear. in addition, the vehicle began to shake. the contact pulled into her driveway and noticed that the driver's side front tire was hanging off from the bottom and the top was pointed outwards. furthermore, the coil that she believed to be the strut was hanging out as well. her mechanic inspected the vehicle and stated that the strut had pulled completely out. the dealer and manufacturer were not notified and the vehicle has not been repaired. the current and failure mileages were approximately 100,000. updated 02/19/10. *lj updated 02/19/10 | |||
| SUSPENSION - REAR | |||
| 05/26/2009 | 81000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2005 subaru forester. while driving approximately 65 mph, the contact heard a loud noise outside of the vehicle. the noise was heard whenever the vehicle was in operation. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for inspection and they stated that the wheel bearings failed. the rear driver's side wheel bearings were replaced on two separate occasions. the failure mileage was 81,000 and current mileage was 81,500. | |||