Recalls
Recalls

Subaru recalls 80,000 cars in Australia for two separate faults – UPDATE

Subaru is recalling almost 55,000 cars for one issue and 25,000 cars for another – but the batch of 25,000 cars is included in both safety campaigns.


Subaru is recalling 80,000 cars in Australia for two separate technical faults, however 25,000 of them have been included in both recall campaigns.

The recalls also affect 466,000 Subaru cars sold in the US with the same faults.


UPDATE, 4/11/19: The first of these recalls has gone live on the ACCC website. You can access it here.


October 29: The first recall of 54,715 vehicles includes 25,672 Subaru Impreza sedans and hatches made from 2017 to 2019, and 29,043 examples of XV hatchbacks made from 2018 to 2019.

On these models “improper Engine Control Module programming” could cause an ignition coil short circuit.

“Under certain circumstances, the ignition coil may be energised longer than designed, when the engine is switched off, which could cause a short circuit or a fuse to blow, potentially causing restart failure or stalling,” says a Subaru Australia statement.

The recall work requires reprogramming the engine management computer and inspection of the ignition coil. “If ignition coil damage is detected, the coil will be replaced with a new part,” says Subaru.

An update and inspection is estimated to take 30 minutes but if coil replacement is necessary the recall work is estimated to take 1 hour, said Subaru.

The second recall of 25,329 vehicles – 15,010 Subaru Impreza sedans and hatches made from 2017 to 2019, and 10,319 Subaru XV models made from 2018 to 2019 XV – has been issued due to a fault with the Positive Crankcase Ventilation (PCV) valve.

The crankcase vapour recirculation device “may separate and allow engine oil to enter the combustion chamber”, says Subaru.

“If the PCV valve separates and oil enters the combustion chamber, excessive smoke may be released and the vehicle may experience an engine power loss,” the company said, adding that the “likelihood of these symptoms occurring is extremely low”.

If no fault is found, this particular recall – replacing the PCV valve from an aluminium type to steel – is estimated to take just 15 minutes.

However, if the valve is found to be broken “additional work could be required”.

Reports out of the US claim some Subarus may need to have their engines replaced if broken parts have damaged the engine's internals.

However, Subaru Australia does not believe such drastic action will be required here.

When asked about possible engine replacements for Australian customers, a statement from Subaru said: “As with any recall, should additional damage be discovered that is found to be due to the recall issue, this will be covered by Subaru.”

While the Federal Government’s recalls.gov.au website is yet to publish details on the campaigns, owners of affected vehicles will be contacted by Subaru Australia. All work will be conducted free-of-charge by any authorised Subaru dealer.

Customers can also contact the Subaru Customer Service Centre on 1300 550 994.

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Joshua Dowling

Joshua Dowling has been a motoring journalist for more than 20 years, spending most of that time working for The Sydney Morning Herald (as motoring editor and one of the early members of the Drive team) and News Corp Australia. He joined CarAdvice / Drive in 2018, and has been a World Car of the Year judge for more than 10 years.

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