← NHTSA complaints

2002 SUBARU WRX — EQUIPMENT

crash4 injured · 447362 · 2004-01-02

Vehicle

Make
SUBARU
Model
WRX
Year
2002
Manufacturer
Subaru of America, Inc.
Component
EQUIPMENT
Miles at failure
23,000
Speed
35 mph

Severity

Deaths
0
Injured
4
Fire
No
Crash
Yes
Police report
Yes
Medical attention
No
Vehicle towed
No

Narrative

MY 2002 SUBARU WRX SEDAN HAS DISPLAYED UNRELIABLE ABS BEHAVIOR. THIS HAS RESULTED IN MY FIRST ACCIDENT IN 10 YEARS OF DRIVING. THE CAR APPEARS TO LOOSE VIRTUALLY ALL BREAKING POWER WHEN ENCOUNTERING ANY ROAD IMPERFECTIONS. WHILE THE ABS SYSTEM SHOULD ENGAGE IN SUCH AN EVEN, IT SHOULD DISENGAGE AS SOON AS IT CLEARS THE PROBLEM. HOWEVER, WHILE DRIVING, I HAVE NOTICED THE WRX CONTINUES TO LOOSE BREAKING POWER. WHILE DRIVING DOWN A 35-MPH ROAD, I ENCOUNTERED A MINOR COLLISION CAUSED BY A CAR BEING OBSTRUCTED OR CUT OFF. NORMALLY AT THIS SPEED I WOULD ASSUME 5-6 CAR LENGTHS TO BE SUFFICIENT TO STOP THE CAR, BUT WHILE BREAKING I ENCOUNTERED A SMALL DIP IN THE ROAD SURFACE. WHEN THE CAR PASSED OVER THE DIP, THE ABS ENGAGED, AFTER THAT POINT THE CAR CONTINUED TO LOOSE BREAKING POWER UNTIL I COLLIDED WITH THE CAR AHEAD OF ME. DURING THE YEAR I HAVE OWNED THE CAR, I HAVE ENCOUNTERED THIS PROBLEM A NUMBER OF TIMES  NON OF WHICH CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. I INITIALLY ATTRIBUTED IT TO THE BRAKE AND ROTOR WEAR, BUT AFTER REPLACING THE WHOLE BREAKING SYSTEM ABOUT A MONTH BEFORE THIS ACCIDENT, THE PROBLEM RE-OCCURRED. IT APPEARS TO BE SYSTEMIC TO THE ABS DESIGN/PROGRAMMING.*AK

Source

Authoritative
NHTSA ODI Flat-File Downloads
ODI Number
10051505
Machine
JSON-LD · Markdown