Car-and-Safety.com

Subaru Impreza Service Brakes Safety Report | Jan 12, 2013



Reported on Jan 12, 2013


THIS ISSUE HAS HAPPENED TWICE, SO I FEEL IT'S NECESSARY TO REPORT IT TO THE NHTSA. THE FIRST TIME THIS ISSUE WAS HAPPENING, I WAS FOLLOWING ANOTHER CAR GOING SLIGHTLY DOWNHILL AT ABOUT 30MPH. THE POSTED SPEED LIMIT WAS 35MPH SO I FELT LIKE I WAS CONSTANTLY SWITCHING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN THROTTLE AND BRAKE, BUT NOT SO QUICKLY AS TO PRESS THEM AT THE SAME TIME. WHEN THIS ISSUE OCCURED, THERE WERE THREE SOLID YELLOW/ORANGE/GOLD (DEPENDING ON HOW YOU LOOK AT COLORS) LIGHTS LIT UP SOLIDLY IN THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER: THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT, THE ABS LIGHT, AND THE HILL HOLD ASSIST LIGHT. I IMMEDIATELY PULLED INTO THE NEAREST PARKING LOT WHICH WAS ABOUT 15 FEET AWAY. I TRIED EVERYTHING TO GET THE LIGHTS TO GO AWAY BEFORE TURNING THE CAR OFF, AND WHEN NOTHING WORKED I FINALLY JUST CYCLED THE IGNITION OFF THEN BACK ON. ALL THREE MAGICALLY WENT AWAY BY DOING THIS. THE SECOND TIME THIS HAPPENED WAS ONLY A FEW DAYS AGO AND I WAS LITERALLY JUST SITTING IN MY DRIVEWAY ON A LEVEL SURFACE. MY HOUSE IS RECESSED INTO THE GROUND ABOUT 10 FEET FROM THE TOP OF MY DRIVEWAY, WHERE THE TOP IS ACTUALLY LEVEL AND IT IS WHERE I WAS SITTING AT. SITTING THERE, I REVVED MY ENGINE AND SLOWLY ROLLED DOWN THE DRIVEWAY (IN NEUTRAL, SO I DIDN'T GO ANYWHERE). BEFORE THE RPMS WENT BACK TO AN IDLE I STARTED ROLLING DOWN OUR DRIVEWAY (WHICH IS AT LEAST A 30 DEGREE SLOPE DOWNHILL) BUT WHEN ROLLING DOWN I WAS DEFINITELY ON THE BRAKES A LITTLE AS TO NOT GO EVEN PAST 1MPH -- SO VERY SLOW. I NOTICED ALL THREE LIGHTS CAME ON AGAIN. THIS TIME I DECIDED TO LET IT SIT FOR A WHILE SO I CAN TRY EVEN MORE TROUBLESHOOTING. STILL NO RESULTS UNLESS I CYCLED THE IGNITION. I TOOK IT INTO THE DEALER TODAY FOR AN ECM UPDATE THEY SENT ME IN THE MAIL, AND THEY SAID THEY DID SEE A BRAKE SWITCH ERROR FOR CODE HISTORY BUT THERE WERE NO CURRENT CODES. A SIMPLE GOOGLE SEARCH SHOWS HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE WITH THE SAME PROBLEM.
Make: Subaru
Model: Impreza
Manufactured by: Subaru of America, Inc.
Year: 2012
Was a crash reported? N
Was an injury reported? 0 person(s) were injured.
Was a death reported? 0 person(s) died.
Was a fire reported? N
Location: LAKE OSWEGO OR
Vehicle Identification Number (VIN): JF1GV8J63CL
Mileage: 9441 miles.
Speed: 30 MPH
Number of cylinders: 4
Vehicle type:
Vehicle fuel: GAS
Was a police report filed? N
Tire size:
Dealer name and location:
Previous Report:Vehicle Speed Control Next Report:Seats Front Assembly Head Restraint

Join Subaru safety problem discussion



Share, Email, Print