IllustrationTHE SECONDARY AIR INJECTION PUMP FAILED TO TURN OFF AND NEARLY CAUGHT FIRE. SUBARU HAS RECALLED THIS PART AND THE RELATED RELAY SWITCH FOR 2008-14 IMPREZAS, BUT THIS PROBLEM ALSO EXISTS WITH 2006 IMPREZAS. MY MECHANIC SAYS THIS IS VERY COMMON FAILURE POINT FOR MY MODEL.
2006 Subaru Wrx
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Limited comparison data
There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Wrx 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: 13 of 14 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.
- Power Train. Review the 4 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 3 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Fuel/propulsion System. Review the 3 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
0 crash reports0 fire reports1 injury reports
Engine complaints
2 reportsVEHICLE WAS BEING DRIVEN ON A PUBLIC ROAD AT 30 MPH. ENGINE OIL PRESSURE LIGHT CAME ON SO VEHICLE WAS PARKED IN A BUSINESS PARKING LOT TO CHECK OIL LEVEL. OIL LEVEL WAS FULL. OWNER CHECKED ON INTERNET FOR POSSIBLE CAUSES OF THIS SYMPTOM AND DISCOVERED NUMEROUS REFERENCES TO A BROKEN OIL PICK UP TUBE. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDE…
Read full complaint
VEHICLE WAS BEING DRIVEN ON A PUBLIC ROAD AT 30 MPH. ENGINE OIL PRESSURE LIGHT CAME ON SO VEHICLE WAS PARKED IN A BUSINESS PARKING LOT TO CHECK OIL LEVEL. OIL LEVEL WAS FULL. OWNER CHECKED ON INTERNET FOR POSSIBLE CAUSES OF THIS SYMPTOM AND DISCOVERED NUMEROUS REFERENCES TO A BROKEN OIL PICK UP TUBE. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT SHOP FOR EVALUATION. SHOP INFORMED OWNER UPON REMOVAL OF OIL PAN THAT ALUMINUM SHAVINGS WERE DISCOVERED IN THE OIL AND THAT INDEED THE OIL PICK UP TUBE WAS BROKEN. SHOP INFORMED OWNER THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM SEEN ON CERTAIN MODEL YEARS OF SUBARU VEHICLES. FAILURE OF THIS PART CAUSES OIL STARVATION AND CATASTROPHIC MOTOR DAMAGE REQUIRING REBUILD OR REPLACEMENT OF SHORT BLOCK AND OTHER RELATED INSPECTIONS AND CLEANINGS OF PARTS THROUGH WHICH OIL FLOWS. PART IN QUESTION IS NOT A NORMAL WEAR AND TEAR PART. AFTERMARKET MANUFACTURERS SUCH AS KILLERBEE HAVE ENGINEERED A BETTER PRODUCT AND CONDUCTED INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION OF ISSUE WITH OEM PART AND EXPLAIN THAT THE BRAZING PROCESS USED TO JOIN THE BRACKET AND THE TUBE IN FACT WEAKEN THE TUBE. IN ADDITION, THE FLUX USED DURING BRAZING IS NOT PROPERLY CLEANED ON SOME PARTS WHICH LEADS THE MANUFACTURER TO BELIEVE THIS IS A QUALITY ISSUE THAT SUBARU HAS OVERLOOKED. OWNER CONTACT SUBARU REQUESTING ASSISTANCE WITH REPAIR COSTS AND WAS DENIED WITH THE EXPLANATION THAT VEHICLE IS OUT OF WARRANTY. COST TO REPLACE SHORT BLOCK WITH LABOR IS $6500. OWNER HAS EXPERIENCE AS AN AUTOMOTIVE TECHNICIAN AND UNDERSTANDS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FAILURE DUE TO OWNER NEGLIGENCE AND FAILURE DUE TO A NON WEAR AND TEAR PART THAT IS NOT IN SUBARU REGULAR SERVICE PROCEDURES. FAILURE OF PART AT A HIGHER RATE OF SPEED CAN CAUSE SEVERE ENGINE DAMAGE AND A POSSIBLE UNSAFE CONDITION IN WHICH THE MOTOR CAN LOCK UP AND CAUSE VEHICLE TO COME TO A SUDDEN STOP. NUMEROUS OWNERS HAVE REPORTED SIMILAR ISSUES.
Official recalls
320V001000 · Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module
Jan 2, 2020
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (STI included), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy: Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators with alternate inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020. Subaru Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Saab owners may contact the Saab Customer Assistance Center at 1-800-955-9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKA-20.
20V002000 · Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module
Jan 2, 2020
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy: Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020. Subaru owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Saab owners may contact the Saab Customer Assistance Center at 1-800-955-9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKB-20.
20V003000 · Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module
Jan 2, 2020
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy: Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020. Subaru owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Saab owners may contact the Saab Customer Assistance Center at 1-800-955-9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKC-20.
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.