Consumer Complaints


Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
05/15/201054000
 I was driving on a mountain road at about 50-55mph with the cruise control on in 5th gear. when i came to a steep hill the cruise control opened the throttle wide open to maintain the set speed, when the car started to bog down i decided to shift into 4th gear. when i pushed the clutch in, the crusie control shut off but the engine rev'd to 7000rpm and stayed there. i let the clutch out to prevent the engine from being damaged and used my braked to keep the car at about 55mph until i came to a straight stretch of road then i pushed the clutch in and shut off the ignition until the engine stopped. this was at night so when the ignition was shut off the headlights went off too. fortunately the road was lit up enough to see and little traffic. a tow truck was called out and upon inspection the driver noticed a silver clip stuck in the throttle linkage assembly. he removed the clip and the car was back to normal. the clip that was stuck in the throttle linkage was part of a service bulltin/recall that subaru had performed on my 2004 impreza wrx. it was suppose to prevent the cruise control cable from coming out of its track and possible becoming wedged in the throttle linkage causing the throttle to be stuck somewhere in the open position. the clip that was to prevent this condition actually became the problem. this has only happend to me the one time on 5/15/2010. when i got back home i took the car to the local subaru dealer and explained what had happened, they didn't seem too concerned. they would not replace the clip since they had done it under warranty back in 2005. they said i would have to pay for the parts. not a real big deal to me since the clip was only $1.67. the real problem i had was they didn't seem too concerned that the recall fix became the problem that it was suppose to prevent. i still have the old clip that popped off and became wedged in the throttle linkage. this is the recall info i found. nhtsa campaign id number: 04v128000
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES - TRUNK LID - LOCK
09/11/20035651507/19/2003
 I bought a 2004 subaru impreza wrx sti in july 2003 from bob baker subaru in el cajon, california and ever since then i have had one problem after the next. please be advised that all servicing is completed at the lancaster mazda-subaru location where i live. several cosmetic parts were defective when the car was purchased such as: the trunk latch did not function, the back seat was unhooked, the seat lever that moves the seat in half, the cup holder does not function properly, and the head lights fogged up. mechanical failure has also occurred. it has had an odd noise in the engine since the beginning which subaru claims is normal for this car because it is a racecar. the starter sometimes grinds when attempting to start the car, subaru could not diagnose this problem. the left rear chassis makes an odd noise when rolling that subaru could not diagnose. it has gotten progressively worse and now when you turn the vehicle it makes a loud metal against metal screech. as of 6/18/2004 the engine has begun to fail. when the rpms reach between 4000-5000 the car cuts out prior to accelerating and a burning smell is detected. i spoke with the original dealership i bought the car from and they acknowledged that when this car is driven a little bit harder than normal they are noticing that several of the impreza wrx sti's are being brought back in with engine failure. they have noted several problems such as turbo bog, overheating, poor performance, and the catalytic converters burning up. there is obviously a distinct problem with this over $30,000 and i think a complaint should be filed against subaru. when it is out of warranty and it breaks, as it will, it will just sit in a garage because i cannot afford to fix a car that is manufactured poorly. subaru has advised that this car is a race car and it is far from that. they should be held responsible for all problems arising from this car since they obviously manufactured a poorly made vehicle.*ak