The contact owns a 2002 Subaru Impreza ts. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for unrelated maintenance when the contact was advised that the entire sub frame was corroded and required replacement. The vehicle was repaired at the contact's expense of $712.18. The manufacturer was notified of the defect. The approximate failure mileage was 196,863. Updated 02/13/12 updated 04/26/12

- Columbia, CT, USA

2.5 ts with 49,093 miles. Wagon was always given best of preventative maintenance. Driving slowly on city street. Clunking sound from right front wheel area. Some difficulty with braking and steering. Assumed it was ice buildup on brakes/suspension. After about 10 minutes increased speed on country road and became much worse, almost lost control of steering but got off the road safely. Lower control arm had broken and caused rust-riddled front subframe to collapse. Replaced lower control arm, front stabilizer link and front subframe. $1218.02.

- Ithaca, NY, USA

The contact owns a 2002 Subaru Impreza. The contact stated that water penetrated the radiator causing it to fail. The front subframe, front driver lower control arm, bushings, and ball joint were all corroded due to the water damage. The control arm broke in multiple pieces and resulted in loss of vehicle control. The vehicle was taken to a repair shop where the mechanic recommended that all of the parts be replaced. The contact called the manufacturer. The current and failure mileages were approximately 139,000. Updated 12/01/10. The consumer stated the water/puddle shorted out the engine fans which caused the vehicle to overheat and was not the cause of the rotted subframe. Updated 12/08/10

- Somerville, MA, USA

I was just informed that the sub frame on my vehicle is rotted and that my car is no longer safe to drive. This vehicle is only a 2002 with less then 94,000 miles. To correct the problem, I would need to spend around $2000 to replace the entire front and rear subframe. If this problem wasn't noticed and I had continued to drive the car, the consequences would be serious injury or death. The car would crumble if it was involved in an accident. Or I could just be driving along the interstate and it could basically fall apart, causing an accident.

- White River Junction, VT, USA

I was driving down us rt 2 in bolton vt when had sudden steering wheel wobble. Car then veered to the right and off the road. Car went about 20 feet off the road. I was very lucky that a field was to the right. After getting out, I noticed that the left side front wheel was sitting several inches too far to the rear, rubbing against the body. My mechanic indicated that a lower control arm was severely corroded and broke off of the front subframe. The subframe itself is also corroded. This is only on the left side; the right side is fine. The car's body is generally in good shape. I would not have expected this part to be at all weak or corroded. I have the old control arm. My mechanic is going to replace the corroded portion of the subframe. Updated 01/13/11 updated 02/14/11 updated 03/11/11 updated 03/14/11 updated 03/30/11

- Bolton, VT, USA