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Lower Arm recall on Imprezas??

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Old 09 March 2012 | 09:32 PM
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Originally Posted by Don Clark
This is true...........

Here is the list of which JDM Newage Imprezas have steel/alloy front wishbones

("Strutbrace" refers to what the corresponding diagram shows wrt spare parts)

Am I reading that correctly if I say that my '53' plate JDM STI is unaffected?
Old 09 March 2012 | 09:36 PM
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Originally Posted by Major_Sarcasm
Am I reading that correctly if I say that my '53' plate JDM STI is unaffected?
If you have a quick look underneath you'll find your car has alloy ones and shouldn't be affected.
Old 09 March 2012 | 09:37 PM
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Originally Posted by Twin Fields
If you have a quick look underneath you'll find your car has alloy ones and shouldn't be affected.
Thanks. Not owned it very long, not even been underneath it yet
Old 12 March 2012 | 10:45 PM
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Got the letter today - y plate Bugeye Wagon
Old 12 March 2012 | 10:47 PM
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Sorry to ask a muppet-like question but I've booked my '03 Wagon in for the drop-links all-round to be replaced at a garage and today received this recall letter. Question therefore - is the droplink and this lower arm separate items ? ie would a replacement of the arm relate to droplink replacement ? If Subaru are going to potentially replace the arms then I'd await that job before looking to get the links done - that job is already booked for a week today.
Old 12 March 2012 | 11:31 PM
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Originally Posted by andy_rr
Sorry to ask a muppet-like question but I've booked my '03 Wagon in for the drop-links all-round to be replaced at a garage and today received this recall letter. Question therefore - is the droplink and this lower arm separate items ? ie would a replacement of the arm relate to droplink replacement ? If Subaru are going to potentially replace the arms then I'd await that job before looking to get the links done - that job is already booked for a week today.
In a word NO, and anyway if a transverse link needs replacing (which I'd highly doubt) its free of charge on recall.

Steel Transverse Link


Assorted Front Droplinks depending upon vehicle


Old 13 March 2012 | 12:15 AM
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thanks for resolving my simpleness !
Old 10 June 2012 | 06:46 PM
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Alright guys ive just joined this forum due to this thread...

I was travelling at 75mph on the motorway when my lower arm snapped.

luckily I was ok, my mrs and two kids aged 4 and 6 months were in the car and were pretty shaken.

I got the car home and noticed that the bottom arm was corroded and had snapped. It seems to have lost drive so I would say the drive shaft has been damaged and had noticed the drop link has burst.

Do you recommend phoning my local dealer and telling them what has happened?

Im one for fixing my car myself if I can and had already looked at parts to fix this when I was told about this recall. Will Subaru replace the arm and broken parts or will they just replace the arm itself then charge me for everything else?

I havent had a letter stating that the car is included but my car is a 2001 bugeye wagon. some one had previously said they had a 2001 and had recieved a letter.

Any advice on where i stand or where i go with this?
Old 10 June 2012 | 07:42 PM
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I have a 03 Impreza Wagon GX Sport, am I affected by this? I only bought it a couple of days a go.
Old 10 June 2012 | 08:40 PM
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Originally Posted by BaojeeX
I have a 03 Impreza Wagon GX Sport, am I affected by this? I only bought it a couple of days a go.

Should be on the recall list as it has steel lower front arms.............. maybe already done. Check with a dealer.
Old 10 June 2012 | 08:53 PM
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Originally Posted by enneaitch
Alright guys ive just joined this forum due to this thread...

I was travelling at 75mph on the motorway when my lower arm snapped.

luckily I was ok, my mrs and two kids aged 4 and 6 months were in the car and were pretty shaken.

I got the car home and noticed that the bottom arm was corroded and had snapped. It seems to have lost drive so I would say the drive shaft has been damaged and had noticed the drop link has burst.

Do you recommend phoning my local dealer and telling them what has happened?

Im one for fixing my car myself if I can and had already looked at parts to fix this when I was told about this recall. Will Subaru replace the arm and broken parts or will they just replace the arm itself then charge me for everything else?

I havent had a letter stating that the car is included but my car is a 2001 bugeye wagon. some one had previously said they had a 2001 and had recieved a letter.

Any advice on where i stand or where i go with this?
Pm me your chassis number I can check at work and see if yours is part of the on going SU31 Transverse link recall program.

Suspect the drive-shaft has become dislodged due to the arm breaking off.
Old 10 June 2012 | 10:08 PM
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Rob I've sent you an email to the Bt open world email.

Thanks.
Old 10 June 2012 | 10:19 PM
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Originally Posted by enneaitch
Rob I've sent you an email to the Bt open world email.

Thanks.

Cheers Nick, I'll have a look on the system tomorrow morning and let you know if your vehicle is due the recall & take it from there
Old 11 June 2012 | 04:53 PM
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Cars gett
Old 11 June 2012 | 04:54 PM
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Ing transported to eaglesham Subaru for them to replace arms and assess the damage that been caused by the arm snapping. Fingers crossed they fix everything! Thanks again rob!
Old 11 June 2012 | 07:23 PM
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Originally Posted by enneaitch
Ing transported to eaglesham Subaru for them to replace arms and assess the damage that been caused by the arm snapping. Fingers crossed they fix everything! Thanks again rob!
No problem mate, I'm glad your local dealer has been able to assist you
Old 08 July 2012 | 10:59 AM
  #107  
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Default Another 2001 WRX Wagon Fails

Originally Posted by enneaitch
Ing transported to eaglesham Subaru for them to replace arms and assess the damage that been caused by the arm snapping. Fingers crossed they fix everything! Thanks again rob!
Nick

Very interested to hear how you're getting on. I find myself in an almost identical situation to yourself although thankfully not at motorway speeds – that must have been really scary and you did well to keep it all pointing in the right direction. Mine went at parking speeds when loading up the front suspension reversing one rear wheel over a curb. Took me around 2 hours with a jack to get the car off the off-camber road an inch at a time because the wheel wouldn't stay located. Luckily the traffic was light.
.
UK spec 2001 WRX wagon imported from Holland personally (1 owner car – 54k miles). Like you, I do almost all the work myself and am sceptical about dealers given some personal experience & a lot of what I hear. I appreciate there are some good ones out there though – just doesn't seem to be the majority unfortunately. The lower arms have been repeatedly waxoyled by myself over the life of the vehicle but the rust seems to be across the weld and from the inside – very hard to treat and the metal looks woefully thin given the job it's doing.

Have Eaglesham finished the work yet? What kind of service are you getting from them? What was the extent of the damage (had the driveshaft just come adrift or was it worse)? My anti-roll bar end link has sheared as well as a result.

Rob - are you OK if I pm you my VIN for checking?

Thanks
Ian.
Old 08 July 2012 | 01:32 PM
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Hi mate, You can pm me your Vin Number and I can have a look. However the big issue maybe that with the car being an import the likelyhood of it being on the uk database is pretty slim unless it was registered with them at Subaru uk at time of import.
Old 08 July 2012 | 11:29 PM
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Originally Posted by rob84
Hi mate, You can pm me your Vin Number and I can have a look. However the big issue maybe that with the car being an import the likelyhood of it being on the uk database is pretty slim unless it was registered with them at Subaru uk at time of import.
Thanks Rob - just sent by email. I understand your concern over the UK database unless one of the UK dealers who did the first few services (whilst it was under warranty) added it? If it isn't on there, interested to hear your opinion on getting it fixed in the UK under the recall given that the recall is EU wide anyway and Subaru Japan were happy to sell a UK spec car through Holland?
Old 09 July 2012 | 06:14 PM
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Hello new here just to let you know mine snapped yesterday and contacted blue bridge very helpful cars gone for repair there now
Old 09 July 2012 | 07:17 PM
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I have a 2002 wrx wagon which was imported when new from holland with 49000miles on it and have not been contacted,quite alarming hearing about cars with arms snapping,a clear design fault and a potentially lethal one at that.
Old 09 July 2012 | 10:09 PM
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Originally Posted by ob-serve
Thanks Rob - just sent by email. I understand your concern over the UK database unless one of the UK dealers who did the first few services (whilst it was under warranty) added it? If it isn't on there, interested to hear your opinion on getting it fixed in the UK under the recall given that the recall is EU wide anyway and Subaru Japan were happy to sell a UK spec car through Holland?
Hi Ian.

I've checked your vin number today & unfortunately it's not currently registered on the system with subaru uk. Maybe advisable to get in contact with subaru customer services with your vin number & explain about yours being an import & you know about the recall campaign and give them the Vin number & take it from there mate.
Old 10 July 2012 | 03:40 PM
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hi guys,

would a 2002 wrx sti type uk be affected.

regards

shaun
Old 10 July 2012 | 04:07 PM
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Originally Posted by b11fyn
hi guys,

would a 2002 wrx sti type uk be affected.

regards

shaun

Nope you have alloy lower arms...........
Old 13 July 2012 | 09:32 PM
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Originally Posted by rob84
Hi Ian.

I've checked your vin number today & unfortunately it's not currently registered on the system with subaru uk. Maybe advisable to get in contact with subaru customer services with your vin number & explain about yours being an import & you know about the recall campaign and give them the Vin number & take it from there mate.

Hi Rob

Thanks for your advice and sorry for the slow reply - I wasn't getting the emails off this thread for some reason. I've done exactly what you've suggested and Subaru UK will contact Japan to confirm the VIN and add it to some other list of imported vehicles that are still covered by the warranty. Subaru will therefore still pay for all the necessary checks or work (in my case) to be done at a Subaru dealer although the Subaru dealer will need to phone Subaru UK themselves to make sure it's on the imported list. What Subaru UK won't pay for is the transportation cost to the dealer if it's collapsed whereas they would with a full UK car. This is fair enough and most owners of import vehicles will be able to use their own breakdown cover anyway.

So my advice to greylag & all other EU imported vehicle owners is to phone Subaru UK immediately and get their cars booked in for checking. Just to repeat that the corrosion is very difficult to spot because it's from the inside of a box section that joins the main part of the lower arm. It may look perfectly solid from the outside. I'll take some photos of mine and post them here next week before the car goes for repair.

Interested to know which model davy1977 owns and under what circumstances it snapped? This is a potentially lethal accident waiting to happen.

Ian.
Old 13 July 2012 | 09:50 PM
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Hi mine is a 2001 gx wagon and I was lucky because my partner and kids have car all week as I ride my motorcycle in the week and all I did was reverse my car with full lock but the car didn't turn it just draged across so I looked under and seen the snapped arm
Car has been in blue bridge since Monday waiting for arms as they are on back order but this is a real pain no car costing a fortune on taxis
Old 18 July 2012 | 12:23 AM
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Hmmm.... forgot all about this and just remembered it. Never did receive a letter.

Got a '52 plate UK WRX, guess its time to badger a Subaru dealer....
Old 18 October 2014 | 08:21 PM
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Apologies for raising a thread from the grave but ...

I have a 51 plate WRX bugeye wagon. I received the recall notice in March 2012 (as per my previous comment in this thread) and duly booked the car in at Europa Subaru, Sheffield. Europa told me that the lower arms did not need replacing and so "treated" them in line with the recall notice. All sounds well so far - forward 2 and a half years later to this morning ... I reversed onto the drive and whilst manoeuvring the car I heard / felt a horrible crunch; suddenly something felt amiss, especially with the steering. Having managed to get the car stationary on the drive, I inspected the front wheels and instantly noticed the front o/s wheel to be misaligned (the n/s wheel remained completely aligned). I got the torch and start looking under the car and to my despair found this:

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Looks to me like the lower arm has suffered fatally from corrosion even though it was supposed to have been prevented against this (I can poke my finger through it) ??

So I'm here to gauge opinions on what my options are moving forward. The way I see it I have a few:

1. Speak to Scoobyclinic (they are my local, and preferred Subaru garage), ask them if they'll collect the car and repair - not sure what the costs will involve

2. Contact Europa, who supposedly treated the lower arms back in 2012 under the recall notice - although I don't have much faith in them now since they were supposed to have undertaken work to prevent this issue from happening.

3. Contact Subaru UK direct, explain the situation and see if they are willing to move things forward.

Would really appreciate any opinions or suggestions.

Thanks.
Old 18 October 2014 | 11:28 PM
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Originally Posted by Jonnys3
Apologies for raising a thread from the grave but ...

I have a 51 plate WRX bugeye wagon. I received the recall notice in March 2012 (as per my previous comment in this thread) and duly booked the car in at Europa Subaru, Sheffield. Europa told me that the lower arms did not need replacing and so "treated" them in line with the recall notice. All sounds well so far - forward 2 and a half years later to this morning ... I reversed onto the drive and whilst manoeuvring the car I heard / felt a horrible crunch; suddenly something felt amiss, especially with the steering. Having managed to get the car stationary on the drive, I inspected the front wheels and instantly noticed the front o/s wheel to be misaligned (the n/s wheel remained completely aligned). I got the torch and start looking under the car and to my despair found this:



Looks to me like the lower arm has suffered fatally from corrosion even though it was supposed to have been prevented against this (I can poke my finger through it) ??

So I'm here to gauge opinions on what my options are moving forward. The way I see it I have a few:

1. Speak to Scoobyclinic (they are my local, and preferred Subaru garage), ask them if they'll collect the car and repair - not sure what the costs will involve

2. Contact Europa, who supposedly treated the lower arms back in 2012 under the recall notice - although I don't have much faith in them now since they were supposed to have undertaken work to prevent this issue from happening.

3. Contact Subaru UK direct, explain the situation and see if they are willing to move things forward.

Would really appreciate any opinions or suggestions.

Thanks.
I would contact your local dealer and have them investigate the issue. they should have been assessed and a tool used to check for corrosion then if all ok treated internally and externally with NOX products to try and prevent corrosion continuing.
Old 19 October 2014 | 12:48 AM
  #120  
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Lucky this only happened on the drive ! can you imagine if it was on the open road. I personally would contact Subaru uk and complain that the issue hadn't been dealt with properly and ask them to arrange collection of the car to a designated garage.
I personally watched them doing the test on my arms with a tool which resembled a sliding hammer with a punch on the end. Mine passed the test but as there was some slight rust marks they replaced them anyway.
I'm sure Subaru uk will sort this out for you



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