Owners of more than 35,000 Subaru Crosstrek and Impreza vehicles in the United States are in for a rude shock after the car manufacturer announced a recall affecting both models.
The recall notice issued through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reveals that impacted vehicles have insufficient clearance around the instrument panel harness. This could allow the harness to contact the steering beam bracket and if this is the case, then the wire insulation could be damaged and/or a wire could short circuit. If this happens while the vehicle is running, it could immediately cut off the engine.
Subaru started investigating the issue in early May when a port operation in the U.S. found a vehicle with an inoperable combination meter. Subaru was able to determine that the clearance between the instrument panel harness and steering beam bracket was poorly designed and variations could allow for contact.
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A total of 35,357 Subarus from the 2024 model year are involved in the recall. These consist of 29,561 examples of the Crosstrek that were built between February 20, 2023 and June 6, 2023 as well as 5,796 examples of the 2024 Impreza manufactured from March 24, 2023 to June 6, 2023.
Subaru will start to notify owners of the recall on October 3 and ask them to bring their vehicles to a local Subaru dealership. Employees will then inspect the instrument panel harness and install an additional clamp on the steering beam bracket. If an inspection reveals that the wire insulation has been damaged, protective tape will be applied to the damaged wire. In the event of the wire core being exposed, Subaru will have to replace the entire instrument panel harness free of charge.
