The reputation of Japanese companies for manufacturing economic vehicles with low maintenance costs is not unknown to the world. It is one of the reasons Subaru WRX earned the reliability of global buyers with a starting price of $27,645 which is quite lower than the Mercedes Benz CLA, the Honda Civic Si, and the Audi A3 in the market. The outstanding reliability of the WRX would have suitably helped Subaru to place it in the category of a dope car unless the vehicle’s faulty fuel pump issues incorporated trust issues among the respective sports sedan owners. The faulty display touch screen, problematic battery issues, and troublesome structure of the windshield were added to the complaint list registered by the Subaru owners on the NHTSA website along with 19 other complaints. Apart from these, a faulty fuel pump and the problematic rearview camera display due to inadequate software update compelled the brand to issue 2 recalls according to the NHTSA website. These issues could be a suitable bypass for rival brands like Mercedes Benz, Honda, and Audi to claim their popularity as a replacement for WRX in the respective year.
User Complaints and Problems
Engine and Mechanical Problems
- Multiple instances of engine stall- A number of owners have complained about the faulty engines of Subaru. Engine-related malfunctions like sudden reduction of power forcing the engine to stall show up in the vehicle when the faulty fuel pump fails to flow in adequate fuel input due to some leakage. That often compels the car engine to stall. The Subaru had to issue a recall for this issue and the dealership is expected to repair the faulty fuel pumps soon or replace them with newer ones.
Electrical Problems
- Issue with the display touch screen- Most of the 2019 Subaru cars have an issue with the touchscreen display. The reason behind one such problematic display is either a bug in the operating system or maybe a short circuit affecting the power supply system, due to which the display screen turns black and unresponsive. The dealers should be instructed by the brand so that they can resolve the problem.
- Battery issues- A significant number of Subaru owners have found problems with the Subaru's battery, which often denies power supply to the major electrical components like the cluster gauge. Dead cluster gauges might keep the drivers in darkness by preventing the cluster to display the current fuel level and other important driver’s assistance features. Subaru must inform the dealers about the problem and ask them to replace the battery with newer ones.
- Problematic rearview camera display- Subaru owners have often complained about the problematic display of rearview cameras along with the absence of backup lights. Such issues can possibly mislead vehicle owners while reversing the vehicle. There are chances for the drivers to ram or hit an object at the rear back in absence of rearview lights and cameras. Lack of software updates can be a reason for the rearview cameras to stop working normally. Therefore the dealers should update the software to ensure that the rearview camera display and the rear lights function normally again.
Structural Issues
- Defective windshield- The windshield of Subarus are quite prone to acquire crack marks. Sometimes, it can be either due to any pebble, chip, or stone that struck the windshield that the owner must have overlooked somehow, or it can be due to a structural defect. It's the responsibility of the dealers to find the issue after inspecting it and repair it or replace it with newer ones.
2019 Subaru WRX Recall
|
S.No |
Date |
NHTSA ID |
Issues Noticed |
Additional Remarks |
Remedy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
July 21 20222 |
22V522000 |
Unresponsive backup lights and the absence of rearview camera compromising drivers’ visibility |
Inoperative backup lights and absence of rearview camera display can be an issue for the driver while reversing the vehicle. |
Dealers are going to inspect and replace the backup light switch for completely free. The recall number for the issue is WRE-22 |
|
2 |
July 29 2021 |
21V587000 |
Fuel pump failure compelling the car engine to stall |
Low pressure in the fuel pump might lead to inadequate fuel supply in the engine compelling it to stall |
Dealers are going to replace the low-pressure fuel pump issue without claiming any additional charge. The number issued for the recall is WRG-21 |
Should you Buy a 2019 Subaru WRX?
Despite multiple complaints raised against the market goodwill of the 2019 Subaru WRX, finding a suitable replacement for the sports sedan can’t be easy. The decent reliability score of 69 out of 100 as per J.D. Power’s rating somehow made it difficult for some of the prime competitors of WRX to replace the faith it earned from the customers. On the other hand, it is difficult to deny the fact that the car’s faulty fuel pump system, problematic backup lights, and inadequate software update compromise prevented the rearview camera display to function normally. Since the brand had to take quick action, Subaru instantly issued a recall on those malfunctioning parts which challenged the sedan’s market reliability, and asked the dealers to replace those faulty parts with newer ones. The revived versions of WRX didn’t take much time to grab its popularity with a resale price tag. So, if someone is interested in buying the vehicle at a resale market value, it would be ideal for them to pick a model that’s free from the issues it had earlier.
