This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
I own a 2004 Subaru Impreza wagon WRX with 67,000 miles on it. I bought the car from someone in nm and I live in Colorado springs, co. It had no issues in the summer and fall but in the winter I had a fuel smell in cabin with heater running during a cold day ~15 degrees F or below. I thought it was just a fluke but it now happens every time I start the car in the morning, evening or when engine has cooled down and it is really cold outside (less than 20 degrees F). I called a local Subaru dealer and they said around $500 to fix issue. Seems the rubber hoses on the fuel rails contract when it is very cold outside. I have seen on the web that this problem has been occurring in 2002 wrxs as well. I can't believe Subaru has not done a recall for this serious issue! the fuel smell gives me a headache and pollutes the environment. I would try to fix myself but getting to the fuel rails requires extensive top side engine tear down.
During cold weather my 2004 Subaru WRX smells of fuel both inside and outside of the vehicle. Using the heat causes the odor to increase and turning off the heat to dissipate the odor causes all of the windows to fog up and/or ice-over. The fumes have caused my eyes to water and have also given me headaches.
Ref PE04002: Subaru Impreza WRX '02/'03 fuel leak 1 ? temp: ~5 deg. F overnight. Started car in am; smelled raw fuel via the vents. 2 - with flashlight could see leakage from both hose clamps noted in Subaru tsb (09-36-03); also took photos. Front clamp: Pressurized stream of fuel; approx. 2 oz. Fuel pooled in recess in the manifold by the time engine shut off. Rear clamp: Rapid drip of fuel; approximately 0.5 oz. Pooled. Fuel accumulation occurred within approx. 3 min. Of starting. 3 - spent 6+ hrs tightening the screws on both clamps. Both leaks diminished to slow drip; not stopped completely; min. Fuel pooling, still there if temp low enough. Tsb fix not implemented yet. Filing complaint against closed PE04002 because: A - no mention of fuel accumulation in the published resolution, only smell of fuel. Numerous instances reported online of noticeable fuel leakage. B - subject vehicles noted for their all weather travel ability; commonly used for winter sports - potentially vulnerable to this problem. C - apparently no reported fires due to this problem, but it seems very possible: Coincidental electrical fault or static electricity discharge. D - if vents closed, fuel accumulation could occur unnoticed. E - if fuel pooled under a leaking junction ignited it seems very possible that the heat generated could burn/melt the hose above and create a far larger discharge of fuel. While the odor of fuel may not be a significant safety problem, I cannot see how significant fuel leakage onto a running engine can be considered anything except a safety issue.
A terrible raw fuel smell is present in the cabin at startup in cold weather. Fuel seems to be leaking and pooling somewhere. This is not the same leak as the tsb for 2002 models.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Colorado Springs, CO, USA