Posted on 03/01/2019 11:29:42 AM PST by billorites
If you drive a Subaru, you may want to avoid wearing perfume or a sweater treated with fabric softener—they could prevent the engine from starting.
Subaru Corp. said Friday it plans to recall as many as 2.3 million Impreza and Forester vehicles world-wide after discovering that certain chemical compounds released by everyday products such as cosmetics, fabric softener or car polish could cause parts to malfunction.
These malfunctions could affect a brake-light switch that is also involved in starting the engine or cause a vehicle-stability warning light to flash unnecessarily, the Japanese auto maker said.
No accidents related to the problems have been reported, the company said.
If all the affected vehicles were to be recalled it would be the second-largest such action by Subaru, after the recall connected to faulty air bags made by Takata.
Subaru, which generates two-thirds of its sales in the U.S., has been plagued by a series of quality-related issues since late 2017, including falsifying fuel-efficiency data and conducting quality checks improperly. In January, the auto maker shut down its two Japanese factories for nearly two weeks over trouble with the power steering in Forester, Impreza and Crosstrek models.
The problems have contributed to a sharp fall in profitability. Operating profit, which peaked at about $5 billion in the year ended in March 2016, is expected to reach only about one-third of that level in the current fiscal year ending in March.
Subaru filed a recall notice Thursday covering around 300,000 vehicles in Japan made between 2008 and 2017. Nearly two million additional vehicles affected by the latest problem could also be recalled, but the company said Friday it is still weighing its options in the U.S. and other countries.
The auto maker said it received complaints about the issue as early as 2013s.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
It’s not 1 April...
What about patchouli oil?
Any connection to the head gasket problem?/s
I wonder how long it took to figure this one out?
What about farts?
“...bally-hoo’d alcohol sensors demanded by well intended liberals...”
Interesting point!
One would think that it would have to have something to do with some sort of sensor - and inside the car, not a sensor for the air-intake or the engine. I can’t imagine the tiny molecules from a vapor interfering with an electrical connection of chip.
I’m surprised the “new car smell” didn’t cause the engine not to start.
IO can see it as a plot device in a horror movie. The young couple flees the monster, and the climb in the Subaru. The guy realizes that the monster is closing in on the car, and exclaims, “We gotta strip, or we’re dead!”
Wow, how do you troubleshoot that issue and figure out the common denominator?
LOL
All seriousness aside, though — I was not allowed to read the bulk of the article so I still don’t know what sensor is detecting aromas, nor what interlock is causing malfunctions.
This is bizarre. I wonder if farts bring the thing to a screeching halt.
I’ve fixed a few of these by replacing a taillight bulb.
Strange cars.
“Wow, how do you troubleshoot that issue and figure out the common denominator?”
Somebody out there is BRILLIANT, and should get a raise.
I think it would be harder to prove this to the board. How many people in the process simply said “No.. Come on.”
Hahahahaha!
Just imagine what all those fake scents are doing to people - Oh, the children! Oh, the poor environment!
I am on my third Forester...love them. They handle and accelerate well, can carry lots of stuff in it, and to me, are an ergomic joy to drive.
I usually sell my car when it gets to 100K miles and buy a new one. I sold my 2005 Forester to my brother, and it has around 300K on it now...he loves it.
I only had one quality issue that irritated me because it was the nature of it could strand you on the side of the road, and that happened once, the other time I was able to drive it to a dealer.
They use an electronic throttle sensor connected electrically to a servo on the engine that reads the position of the throttle pedal sent by a transducer on the pedal. It went bad twice. The first time we had to get towed, the second time I was able to limp to a dealer. Both times they got me a loaner.
Other than that, I have a job where I have to get to work through snow, and it is great in the snow. I highly recommend them to people who ask me. Getting ready to buy my fourth one in the Spring...I hope.
Well, that causes failure in all KINDS of things.
I think that is one of the most nauseating things a woman can put on her body.
And I admit, I have never known a conservative woman to wear it!
They were getting reports back in 2013 so easy on the smell-pretty.
One of the earlier adopters of the sodomites as a market share companies....
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