2004 SUBARU FORESTER Complaints

HAVING RECENTLY BOUGHT MY 2004 SUBARU FORESTER XT, IT RAN GREAT FOR THE FIRST FEW MONTHS. THEN, WHILE ON THE HIGHWAY, IT WOULD SHAKE UNCONTROLLABLY, ALMOST LIKE AN EARTHQUAKE. HAVING TAKEN IT TO SUBARU A MONTH BEFORE, I MENTIONED THAT IT WAS DOING THIS A LITTLE, BUT NOT TO THE EXTENT THAT IT DID ON THE HIGHWAY. HE SAID IT WOULD BE $150 TO LOOK AT IT. TAKING IT IN TO A DIFFERENT MECHANIC, THEY HAD TO REPLACE THE LOWER CONTROL ARM. LOOKING TODAY ONLINE FOR RECALLS ON ANOTHER ISSUE I'M EXPERIENCING, I SEE THAT THERE WAS A RECALL ON THIS EXACT ISSUE, BUT ONLY FOR CARS SOLD IN CERTAIN STATES. THIS IS THE EXACT ISSUE THAT WAS WRONG WITH MY SUBARU, AND I BELIEVE THAT OWNERS IN OTHER STATES ARE EXPERIENCING THIS ISSUE AS WELL. HOPEFULLY YOU WILL LOOK AT THIS BEFORE THIS HAPPENS TO SOMEONE ON THE INTERSTATE AND THEY LOSE CONTROL OF THEIR VEHICLE.

DANGEROUS!! I AM THE RECENT PROUD OWNER OF A 2004 SUBARU FORESTER XT. A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO WE GOT OUR FIRST FREEZE. I WALK OUT TO START MY CAR AND IT'S NOT TURNING OVER AND A STRONG FUEL SMELL IS FILLING THE CABIN. I KEEP TRYING THINKING THAT IT MAY TURN OVER. WITH NO LUCK, AND FEARING SOMETHING IS WRONG (OR MAY POSSIBLY BLOW UP), I STOP AND GET OUT. TAKING A CLOSER LOOK HAVING PARKED IT SOME DIRT, I SEE THAT IT IS VISIBLY MOIST UNDER MY CAR. THE GROUND IS SATURATED WITH GAS. LUCKILY IT DIDN'T CONTACT ANY SPARK IN THE ENGINE OR I WASN'T SMOKING, BECAUSE I WOULDN'T BE HERE TODAY TO TELL THIS STORY. IT WAS A TON OF GAS. PLEASE FIX THIS BEFORE SOMEONE DIES OR GETS SERIOUSLY INJURED.

DURING WINTER MONTHS 2004 FORESTER XT EMITS NOXIOUS FUEL SMELL INTO CABIN. SOURCE IS FROM ENGINE COMPARTMENT IN AREA OF TURBO/EXHAUST MANIFOLD AS DISCOVER FROM PUDDLE ON GARAGE FLOOR DURING WARM UP

THE FUEL LINES UNDER THE MANIFOLD ON THE PASSENGER SIDE ARE LEAKING FUEL WHEN FIRST STARTING AND IT IS COLD OUTSIDE(BELOW 50F). THE FUMES AND FILLING THE CAB OF THE CAR WHEN THE HEATER IT ON.

FUEL RAIL HOES CLAMPS/RUBBER LINE IS FAULTY, CAUSING POOLING OF GAS ON THE TOP OF THE ENGINE. MAJOR FIRE HAZARD.

I STARTED THE CAR ON A COLD MORNING AND THE WHOLE VEHICLE SMELLED OF GASOLINE. I'M UNABLE TO DRIVE MY CHILDREN IN THE VEHICLE UNTIL THIS ISSUE IS RESOLVED AS I FEAR THEY MAY BE INHALING FUMES OR MAY SUFFER A HORRIBLE FIERY DEATH I RISK MY OWN LIFE BACK AND FORTH TO WORK AND NOTICE THE SMELL STARTS TO GO AWAY AFTER THE CAR WARMS UP EITHER THAT OR I'M JUST USED TO IT. MY 02 WRX HAD THE SAME ISSUE AND IT WAS RECALLED. WHY HAVEN'T THE XT ISSUES BEEN RECALLED? HADDAD SUBARU IN PITTSFIELD MA TIGHTENED UP WHAT THEY COULD REACH BUT THE ISSUE LIES BENEATH THE INTAKE.

MY CAR HAS A STRONG GAS ODOR SMELL COMING FROM THE AIR VENTS AND FROM THE OUTSIDE OF THE CAR WHILE I'M DRIVING OR EVEN WHILE THE CAR IS WARMING UP AND NOT MOVING. THIS HAS BEEN HAPPENING SINCE LAST YEAR AND I JUST RECENTLY FOUND OUT ANOTHER FRIEND OF MINE WITH THE SAME TYPE OF CAR TOLD ME TO REPORT IT TO THE NHTSA WEBSITE. *TR

IN COLD WEATHER (BELOW 30 DEGREES), FUEL LINES LEAK UNDER THE INTAKE MANIFOLD, CAUSING A SEVERE FUEL SMELL IN THE CABIN, MOST LIKELY ALSO A FIRE HAZARD. DEALER CLAIMS NOT A RECALL ISSUE. UPON RESEARCH A LARGE MAJORITY OF SUBARUS IN MODEL RANGE HAVE THE ISSUE, WITH NO FIX IN SIGHT. *TR

THERE IS A VERY STRONG AND DISTINCT SMELL OF RAW FUEL COMING FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT WHEN THE WEATHER IS BELOW FREEZING (20F OR BELOW). THE SMELL COMES THROUGH THE AIR VENTS INTO THE PASSENGER COMPARTMENT AND IS STRONG ENOUGH TO CAUSE A HEADACHE FOR THE PASSENGERS IN THE CAR. THE SMELL IS WORST WHEN THE CAR IS STOPPED AFTER A DRIVE. IT SEEMS THAT THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH SUBARU WRX 2002 & 2003 CARS AND SUBARU HAS ISSUED A RECALL FOR THEM. THIS ALSO SEEMS TO BE A COMMON ENOUGH PROBLEM FOR SUBARU FORRESTER CARS FROM THE SAME TIMEFRAME. ON THE WEBSITE HTTP://WWW.ABOUTAUTOMOBILE.COM/COMPLAINT/2004/SUBARU/FORESTER, ALMOST 50% OF THE COMPLAINTS OUT OF 154 COMPLAINTS IS ABOUT THIS FUEL LEAK ISSUE. THIS SEEMS TO BE A WELL KNOWN PROBLEM ACCORDING TO DEALERS AND OTHER SUBARU FORRESTER OWNERS AS WELL (HTTP://WWW.SUBARUFORESTER.ORG/VBULLETIN/F87/SMELL-GAS-COLD-STARTS-41319/). IT HAS ALSO BEEN DOCUMENTED BY OTHER OWNERS AT NHTSA: HTTPS://SITES.GOOGLE.COM/SITE/20042005FORESTERXTFUELLEAKS/ SUBARU OF AMERICA SEEMS TO HAVE IMPLICITLY ACKNOWLEDGED THE SYSTEMIC PROBLEM AS THEY HAVE BEEN REIMBURSING SOME OWNERS (BUT NOT ALL) FOR THEIR SERVICE COSTS WHICH CAN BE IN THE RANGE FOR $800 (HTTP://WWW.SUBARUFORESTER.ORG/VBULLETIN/F88/FIXING-LEAKING-FUEL-GAS-LINE-86782/). HOWEVER, SUBARU HAS NOT RECALLED THESE CARS AND IS EXPECTING OWNERS TO FIX THE PROBLEMS WHICH MAY MAY CAUSE HEALTH ISSUES AND GIVEN FUEL LEAKING ON HOT ENGINE PARTS, MAY LEAD TO AN ENGINE FIRE IF NOT FIXED. *JS

HAVING SEEN THE COMPLAINTS FROM OTHER USERS REGARDING THE RELIABILITY OF AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT IN THIS MODEL VEHICLE. RELEVANT TO LET THE PROPER AUTHORITIES KNOW OF A ROLLOVER ACCIDENT IN WHICH NO AIRBAGS (NOR FRONT NOR SIDE) DEPLOYED WITH A RESULTING FATALITY. *TR