Body Problems of Subaru Impreza - part 1

Severe rust on b pillar of passenger door, and each door is rusting in same location. Have seen several reports of this online so reporting that I have experienced the same. Roof is also bubbling in a couple locations and I suspect it is from inside given the noise that comes from the windshield in cold weather since the car was new. Not sure of the date I first noticed, so I am putting today’s date since that’s when I learned about reporting potential safety issues. To NHTSA.

See all problems of the 2013 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

The hood latch system failed and flew open while driving on the highway smashing the windshield. I was unable to see driving, glass shattered everywhere. The car was serviced three weeks prior and there was no notation of an issue with the hood latch. The hood would not latch after the incident either. Police were on scene and viewed the incident and insurance will be investigating. There have been numerous other reports of this happening with other Subaru models including recalls. There are no open recalls on this vehicle and a multi-point inspection was done on the car 3 weeks prior.

See all problems of the 2016 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

The hood latch opens while driving.

See all problems of the 2014 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

It is a case of sudden acceleration when parking the car in battery , goin forward very slowly, the Subaru Impreza accelerate , jump the curve and crash agaings a tree 5 ft away from the curve, the results extensive damage in the left front , airbags did not deploy.

See all problems of the 2018 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

Both rear doors will intermittently not open when unlocked from both the inside or the outside. I am unsure if this is electrical or related to the door components itself. This is a hazard because passengers have been locked in the back of the car, and needed to climb out from the front or needed me to open the door from the outside if it will open—which could be a deadly amount of extra time in an emergency situation where passengers need to quickly exit the vehicle. This issue has been going on over a year, but I did not take it in until two months ago because I rarely had back passengers. That has changed, so I took it in. I have brought the car to the dealership three times for this issue, which is as of now still unresolved, with the following results: 1st visit: they told me child lock was on and turned it off. (I do not believe this, as the doors would occasionally open correctly from the inside—so that would mean child lock is also faulty) 2nd visit: they found weak actuators in both doors and replaced them. 3rd visit: currently still in the shop for other unrelated issues, but they are having a hard time diagnosing the cause since the doors will open for them—but the lady who checked me in experienced the door sticking with me, and she said she could tell something was wrong.

See all problems of the 2020 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

The cowl that fills the gap between the bottom of the windshield and the hood is defective and warps from the heat of the engine. This warping leaves a huge gap that exposes the bottom of the windshield and allows debris and water under the hood of the car. I was told this was a known issue with multiple Subaru models. The auto glass specialist I was sent to did not have a fix other than replacing it whenever it warps, which is prohibitively expensive when it only lasts about a year.

See all problems of the 2019 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

Parts of my undercarriage, rusting and falling off parts of the car are dissolving and falling off like nuts bolts & an exhaust manifold cover & oil valve.

The hood primary latch frequently releases causing me to rely on the safety catch. Re-dropping the hood sets it again only to notice several days later that the hood is again unlatched.

In April 2022 hood latch malfunctioned and caused hood to open while driving on interstate. Caused damage to hood, fenders, windshield and roof. I was able to get stopped safely without injury.

See all problems of the 2005 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

Hood flew open on interstate. After driving around town running errands I drove onto the interstate got like a mile down the road. I was in the left lane going about 60 mph the hood flew open. Smashing directly into the windshield. I thankfully was able to hit my four ways and get to a stop without any collision. I couldn’t say exactly when the hood had been opened last but certainly was not recent to this occurring. Quite severe damage was caused from this happening. Immediate estimate of damages were shown to the hood, fenders, roof, windshield and unknown damage as of yet under the hood or to the eyesight system.

See all problems of the 2015 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

Unknown.

The problem has been recognized as a vehicle that is not meeting manufacturer specifications by the Subaru from pembroke pines. Shifting and harm is visible to frame and vehicle is having clonking and parts are touching.

Windshield cracked in middle for no reason. Crack is 1. 5 feet long. Vehicle was stationary when it occurred.

Driving and hit a small pothole and the entire passenger front headlight fell out of the car. It was not dark out. The car was fine prior to today. I was on a city street just after a snowstorm and roads were plowed.

When depressing the clutch pedal, there is a squeak coming from under the dashboard within the footwell area. Squeak is constant. For Subaru has issued a service bulletin #12-190-15r to fix the clutch & brake pedal assembly for model years 2015-2016 but not before. It is my understanding that a crack in the assembly is causing this issue and if left unattended, ultimately could cause decreased or complete failure of the clutch and/or brake functionality. Subaru has redesigned the original part (#36004fg050) with a new one (#36004fg051) but has not offered to fix under an extended warranty. I feel this should be a lifetime part, which is critical to safely operating the vehicle, and any replacement cost to fix should be paid for by the manufacturer regardless of the vehicle's age. The attached picture is not from my car. I was able to find many of these photos on the internet as this is a very common problem.

See all problems of the 2012 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

Factory clutch and break spot welds weak. Two have completely sheared from firewall and squeak when engaging\disengaging clutch petal. Entire pedal assembly flexes under pressure from the clutch or break pedal press.

My car just broke on me. The shop showed me how the firewall was built on these models and how it was changed from previous models. I shouldn't have to worrry about the firewall breaking on me with only 100k miles on my car. This is dangerous the firewall broke on me while driving and rendered the car undriveable. Luckily I was able to get off the road before potentially causing a major accident. This is a hazard for anyone who buys these cars because the firewall can break anytime really depending on how hard the car is driven although it should realistically never break.

See all problems of the 2009 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

The spot welds under windshield cowl broke causing the bracket holding clutch pedal assembly to break. Because of these issues, I can only engage my reverse gear half the time and while shifting gears in motion, it tends to be a bit difficult. I've almost crashed a couple times because of this issue. My car is a 2008 Subaru wrx sedan with only 74,000 miles and I'm currently making payments on the car. Money is really tight due to me being a full time college student and full time worker so I'm not sure how to go about this really big problem. My car is everything to me right now and if it fails on me, I have no means of transportation. I also have no modifications to the vehicle other than wheels, and a blow off valve. The vehicle tends to give me the most difficulty engaging reverse every morning.

See all problems of the 2008 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

Tl- the contact 2012 Subaru Impreza. The contact stated that they noticed that there was about 3 inches of water on the floorboard underneath the front passenger seat of the vehicle. The contact took the vehicle to a cerified mechanic who stated that the leak was coming from underneath the hood of the vehicle near the wire harnesses and the firewall, however, the exact location of the leak was unidentified at the moment. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000. Gl.

I was involved in an accident on I-10 on 11/27/2019 at 2 pm. I was traveling at 60- to 65 mph and hit a SUV that had stopped in the left hand lane. The airbags did not deploy ( passenger or driver side) I have reported this to Subaru and so far they have not been helpful. I received contusions from my right hip to my left clavicle but no broken bones.

Spot welds on firewall that support the pedal assembly have cracked/broke causing the brake pedal to flex and move while pushing down on the clutch.

Had a clutch repair done on car after the repair was finished the mechanic noted that the firewall on car was cracked. The car was stationary after looking on the internet and noted that the Subaru wrx impriza from 2009-214 had a problem with fire wall fatigue when the clutch and brake were being used under normal operation condition.

When leaving a gas station with a slight dip in the pavement, I inched my vehicle forward as slowly as I could as to not “bottom out. ” this 2015 Impreza model has an overall design flaw; it sits too low to the ground therefore compromising the entire structure of the body. The Impreza in fact bottomed out and my entire front end cracked and fell off as well as the side panel on the front of the vehicle came apart and now hangs off the vehicle. I have seen numerous Subaru Imprezas that appeared to be the same make and model with this same exact problem. I believe this entire car should be recalled as it is structurally flawed, cannot maneuver safely and properly on standard roads and highways which results in body damage that is completely not operator error.

I called Subaru almost 5 months ago when I came across there was a recall on brakes since we were having the issue of the brakes flashing and the vehicle not shifting. Manufacturer recall #: wue90 on 2-28-19. Nhtsa recall #: 19v149000. When I called they said they did not have the parts yet to fix. On 8-29-19 the car was in an accident and brakes light was chiming and flashing earlier and may be related to why it did not stop in time and was involced in a rear end crash when driver in front slammed on brakes. A auto shop then tells me after the car was reported in the accident sommers Subaru called them on 9-4-19 to tell the car had a brake safety recall. I have made a previous complaint about this vehicle on 4-19-19. Complaint # 11197303.

The vehicle started to get rust in the trunk around where the rain water slides down the vehicle. I took the vehicle to the Subaru dealership where I purchased it and tried to claim the manufacturer's 3 year anti corrosion warranty to repair the damage but the Subaru dealership claimed that Subaru of America determined that the rust was caused by "outside influences" and refused to cover it with the 3 year anti corrosion warranty.

See all problems of the 2017 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

After owning the car for a month, I noticed the hood had become uneven where it meets the front end. I also began to notice a wider gap between the hood and the right fender than on the left side. This gap has widened. When I took the car back to albany Subaru, the service manager made some adjustments that made minimal improvements to the hood where it meets the front end, though it is still uneven. The rubber gasket still doesn't fill the gap. This made the gap between the right fender and hood even wider. I took the car back to albany Subaru. The service manager raised the hood pad on one side and lowered it all the way on the other side and documented the car is within Subaru specs. I contacted Subaru. They want me to take the car to another dealer for a second opinion. I am waiting for the second dealer to call me back to schedule an appointment. I have already sent Subaru photos of the problems and my concern that the gap is continuing to get wider as I drive. The other issue is the steering. There have been four times where the steering seems to momentarily disappear. By this I mean I get the feeling the steering wheel is completely loose, no normal tension while holding the steering wheel straight. By the time I can react, the normal tension returns to the steering wheel. The service manager told me this is the lane drift monitoring of the car. I told him I experience a quick vibration of the steering wheel when drifting lanes, not a complete loss of steering. He ignored me and said the steering is fine. Nhtsa web site only let me upload one photo. I have five photos to show measurements on all sides of the hood gaps.

Today (July 10, 2019) I discovered that the driver's side rear door of my 2009 Impreza will not open from the inside even when the child lock is in the free position. I have a similar problem with the same door on my 2014 outback, in that the child lock is stuck in the locked position and the door cannot be opened from the inside. I don't think it's a coincidence that both of my Subarus are having a problem with the child safety locks and I would like this investigated.

2018 sport model noticed front windshield cowl panel warped at 4770 miles and again at 6880 miles after warranty placement. Cowl panel pops up at the center of the panel leaving a 1/8" gap between the rubber seal and the base of the windshield. Upon pressing it down, the gap will return in a few days leaving a larger 1/4" gap. Over time the panel pulls itself completely off the windshield exposing the plastic clips that holds the cowl behind the windshield. This gap exposes the 2 wire windshield heating element to dust and rain along with trapping various dust and debris.

Tl- the contact owns a 2 011 Subaru Impreza. The contact stated that while driving about 35 mph, a popping sound was heard from the rear of the vehicle. The rear passenger wheel turned to the right and caused the vehicle to crash into a wall. Th vehicle dynamic control lights illuminated. The air bag did not deploy. There was no injury and no police report. The vehicle was damaged and was towed to the contact's residence. The contact called the drive time dealer (614- 934-2090, located at 3101 morse rd, columbus, OH 43231) and was told to contact the insurance company. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that there was crack in the rear sub frame, the technician repaired the vehicle. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure . The failure mileage was approximately 100,000. Fe.

See all problems of the 2011 Subaru Impreza 🔎.

3 of 7 spot welds have failed for pedal aseembly support bracket.

About two weeks ago when the first frost hit I noticed there was a windshield crack but it looked unrelated to an impact crack as it came from the side of the windshield and extended towards the center. After getting the windshield replaced one week later while sitting in my car and it is warming up another crack appears in my windshield. It seems as though the windshields and crack but it looked unrelated to an impact crack as it came from the side of the windshield and extended towards the center. After getting the windshield replaced one week later while sitting in my car and it is warming up another crack appears in my windshield. It seems as though the windshields in Subaru's are susceptible to damage when there's is temperature changes. The vehicle was stationary both times when it got cracked in my driveway.

During normal use of the clutch on the street , the firewall welds brake off causing the firewall to bend. Also effects the clutch pedal making it 'click' if not fixed can cause more damage.

The wiper cowl cover separates from the windshield resulting in a gap between the cowl cover and the windshield. This gap allows an abnormal amount of water to flow inside, especially during heavy rainfall, snow, or carwash. In addition, debris such as leaves, pine needles, etc enter through the gap, resulting in clogged drain tubes over time. In the photo below the gap is around 0. 25 in after attempting to push it back in, after driving, the gap grows to an 1 in at the center.

Tl- the contact owns a 2014 Subaru Impreza. The contact stated while the vehicle was idle the hatch fell independently. The failure ocurred without warning. Upon inspection, the contact saw the driverside hatch bolt had fractured in half. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure where they were informed to bring the vehicle to the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000. Kh.

Chassis fatigue and cracking resulting in damage/potential compromise of driver controls. Clutch pedal assembly broke and will no longer dissengage the clutch(drivetrain system). This happened while driving on a local highway at a speed of approximately 45mph. I was forced to drive the vehicle off of the road to avoid a potential collision with another vehicle. The whole assembly is comprised of both the clutch and the brake pedals. Due to the assembly failure the brake pedal has significant play in it as well and doesnt function properly. Upon inspection I found that structural welds on the firewall, where the assembly is mounted, have failed. I called Subaruofamerica about the issue on 08 may 2018. I referenced two different TSB's regarding this issue on my year range of vehicle. 1) NHTSA 10090413 TSB we 2) NHTSA 10090409 TSB 12-184-15 I was told that the extension to the warranty expired in 2013 and there was nothing they could do for me. Even though these TSB's are date 03 February 2017.