What NHTSA investigated
The design of the fuel line (metal rail/rubber hose interface) is susceptible to fuel odor and/or seepage in extreme cold temperature conditions.owners most often noticed fuel odor in the occupant compartment area during initial cold engine start-up.once the engine is warmed, the odor/seepage issue dissipates.from subaru's data, odi notes that the incident rates are higher in states with colder temperatures.there was one allegation of a fire incident in which the owner had reported that he noticed fuel odor a few days earlier, but odi could not confirm the origin of the fire. To address this issue, subaru will replace the fuel line with a longer rubber hose segment version/design on 5,724 my 2002-2003 vehicles built through september 12, 2002 in 16 states (ak, CO, ia, ID, me, mi, mn, mt, nd, ne, nh, ny, sd, vt, wi & wy).in addition, subaru will extend the warranty coverage to 12 years/unlimited mileage on vehicles in the remaining 34 states.this engineering analysis is closed (see recall campaign 09V-468)
The recall that followed
Vehicles covered
| Make | Model | Model years |
|---|---|---|
| Subaru | IMPREZA | 2002–2003 |
| Subaru | WRX | 2002–2003 |
Source
From NHTSA’s investigation file, rebuilt daily. To report a problem with your own vehicle, go to nhtsa.gov/report-a-safety-problem. All open investigations.