- Vehicles
- 76,000
- Built between
- Dec 1988 – May 1990
- Models
- 3
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- 5 July 1991
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between December 1988 and May 1990. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1990-1991 Subaru LegacyBuilt December 1988 to May 1990
- 1989-1990 Subaru LoyaleBuilt December 1988 to May 1990
- 1989-1991 Subaru XTBuilt December 1988 to May 1990
What the defect is
Under certain load conditions, the park gear may not disengage immediately when the transmission lever is moved from park to reverse.
What could happen
Delayed release of transmission from park causes delayedand possibly abrupt vehicle movement that could result in loss of vehiclecontrol and an accident.
What gets fixed
INSTALL A MODIFIED PARKING BRAKE PAWL TO PREVENT DELAYED RELEASE INTO REVERSE GEAR.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtDecember 1988 to May 1990
- Recall reported to NHTSA30 May 1991
- Owners notified5 July 1991
Your rights
A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.
That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 30 May 1991.
To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.
- Recall initiated by
- ODI
Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Additional notes
System: transmission park gear.vehicle description: passenger cars with electronically controlled automatictransmissions (4EAT).
Check your own vehicle
This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.
A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.