IllustrationTHE WHEEL BEARINGS FAILED PREMATURELY.*JB
1998 Subaru Impreza
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1998 Subaru Impreza do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 56.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Impreza years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 6 of 30 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Suspension. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 9 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 7 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
1 crash reports0 fire reports1 injury reports
Suspension complaints
11 reportsBOTH THE LEFT AND RIGHT REAR BEARINGS ON THIS CAR FAILED BEFORE IT REACHED 60,000 MILES. NO INJURIES -- I'M CAREFUL AND HEARD THEM FAILING -- BUT REPAIRS WERE VERY EXPENSIVE. MR
THE WHEEL BEARING HAS FAILED THREE TIMES. NLM
WHILE DRIVING THERE WAS A NOISE COMING FROM REAR OF VEHICLE. MECHANIC STATED THAT WHEEL BEARINGS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. HAS HAD THIS PROBLEM CONSTANTLY, AND HAD DEALER SERVICE VEHICLE ON SAME MALFUNCTION 9 TIMES.*AK
REAR WHEEL BEARING FAILED TWICE. I BELIEVE THAT THIS A POTENTIALLY A SERIOUS SAFETY PROBLEM. SUBARU IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. THEY QUIETLY SUPERSEEDED THE OLD BALL BEARING USED IN IMPREZAS AND FORESTERS WITH A NEW ROLLER BEARING FROM THE LEGACY. PLEASE SEE THIS URL FOR MORE INFO: HTTP://WWW.I-CLUB.COM/FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?S=&TH…
Read full complaint
REAR WHEEL BEARING FAILED TWICE. I BELIEVE THAT THIS A POTENTIALLY A SERIOUS SAFETY PROBLEM. SUBARU IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. THEY QUIETLY SUPERSEEDED THE OLD BALL BEARING USED IN IMPREZAS AND FORESTERS WITH A NEW ROLLER BEARING FROM THE LEGACY. PLEASE SEE THIS URL FOR MORE INFO: HTTP://WWW.I-CLUB.COM/FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?S=&THREADID=110396&PERPAGE=25&PAGENUMBER=1. *AK
CONSUMER STATES THE CLUTCH HAS BEEN REPLACED FOUR TIMES.*JB
CONSUMER HAS EXPERIENCED NUMEROUS FAILURES OF LEFT REAR WHEEL BEARING, CONSUMER STATES VERY NOISY AND JUST FAILED WITHOUT WARNING WHILE DRIVING AT HIGH SPEED THE CAR BEGAN TO VIBRATE QUITE VIOLENTLY, CAUSING SOME DIFFICULTY IN MAINTAINING CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE, CONSUMER WAS ABLE TO BRAKE AND MOVE TO EMERGENCY LANE. *JB
NOISE FROM REAR STRUTS. DEALER SAID THAT THEY NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. *AK
THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED REPEATED WEAR/FAILURE OF THE REAR WHEEL BEARING ASSEMBLY (29033, 44724, 54813, 58637) WHICH CAUSED NOISE IN THE REAR WHEEL ARER AND VIBRATION WHILE DRIVING. NLM
FAULTY REAR WHEEL BEARINGS MAKE NOISE AND CAUSE THE VEHICLE TO DRIFT TO THE RIGHT WHILE DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. NLM
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.