Recall Register

2002 Subaru Legacy: recalls and complaints

NHTSA lists 4 recall campaigns for the 2002 Subaru Legacy. The newest campaign is 04V128000. NHTSA received the report on 16 Mar 2004. The NHTSA record gives the component Vehicle Speed Control / Cables. NHTSA has 35 complaints on file for this model year.

The NHTSA recall file shows no do-not-drive advisory and no park-outside advisory on these campaigns.

This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.

Remedy of the newest campaign, 04V128000, in the NHTSA record

Dealers will install a cruise control cable retaining clip to the cruise control lever tab on the throttle shaft in order to prevent the cruise control cable from coming out of its track. Owner notification began on april 12, 2004. Owners should contact subaru at 1-800-782-2783.
NHTSA VIN lookup

Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.

NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on . Complaint file through . Recall file through .

Since the last update

No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks

All updates to the register

Recall campaigns

4 campaigns, newest first. 471,396 units in total.

  • 04V128000Vehicle Speed Control / Cables
  • 03V153000Suspension / Rear
  • 02V282000Power Train / Automatic Transmission
  • 02V079000Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Foundation Components / Master Cylinder

  1. 04V128000Received . 127,580 units.

    Vehicle Speed Control / Cables

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    On certain passenger sedans, wagons, and sport utility vehicles, the cruise control cable could come out of its track on the cruise control lever and lodge on the control lever tab when the accelerator pedal is released. If this condition occurs, the throttle will not return to the idle position and will remain in an open position.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    If this occurs during vehicle operation, the driver could lose control of the vehicle, which could result in a crash.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Dealers will install a cruise control cable retaining clip to the cruise control lever tab on the throttle shaft in order to prevent the cruise control cable from coming out of its track. Owner notification began on april 12, 2004. Owners should contact subaru at 1-800-782-2783.

    Report filed by SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.. Manufacturer campaign number WWQ-01. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  2. 03V153000Received . 170,000 units.

    Suspension / Rear

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    This recall applies to certain passenger vehicles originally sold in or currently registered in the states of connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virginia, wisconsin, and the district of columbia. Certain rear suspension subframe components were produced with poor paint quality which, after continued exposure to corrosive road salts for a period of several years, could result in rust-out of the component and possible breakage of the subframe.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    If such breakage occurs while the vehicle is being operated, control of the vehicle could be affected, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Dealers will clean and rust-proof the rear suspension subframe. Owner notification began july 14, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact subaru at 1-800-782-2783.

    Report filed by SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.. Manufacturer campaign number WWM-96. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  3. 02V282000Received . 172,564 units.

    Power Train / Automatic Transmission

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    Certain sport utility and passenger vehicles equipped with automatic transmissions were produced with an improperly manufactured transmission parking rod. When the transmission selector lever is placed in the "p" (park) position, the transmission park mechanism, that is intended to hold your vehicle, may not engage.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    The vehicle could then move/roll without prior warning, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Dealers will replace the automatic transmission parking rod assembly. Owner notification january 8, 2003. An interim owner notification will be sent during november 2002. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact subaru at 1-800-782-2783.

    Report filed by SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.. Manufacturer campaign number WWK-94. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  4. 02V079000Received . 1,252 units.

    Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Foundation Components / Master Cylinder

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    On certain passenger vehicles, the brake master cylinders may not function properly in ambient temperatures below freezing 32 degrees fahrenheit and lower).
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    At these temperatures, the brakes may not release after being applied, even when the driver's foot is no longer on the brake pedal. This can occur withour prior warning, possibly resulting in a crash.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Dealers will replace the master cylinders. Owner notification began march 21, 2002. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact subaru at 1-800-782-2783.

    Report filed by SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.

Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.

Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.

Complaints by component

35 complaints, 43 component mentions.

A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. This model year has fewer than 50 component mentions, so the table shows the number of mentions only.

2002 Subaru Legacy: component mentions in complaints
ComponentMentions
Engine and Engine Cooling9
Power Train7
Fuel System, Gasoline7
Service Brakes, Hydraulic6
Tires5
Vehicle Speed Control3
Unknown or Other1
Visibility1
Suspension1
Wheels1

The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 12.

Complaints that report a crash
4
Complaints that report a fire
0
Injuries in the complaints
2
Deaths in the complaints
1
Date of the newest complaint
13 Oct 2010

These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.

Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.

Complaints about the 2002 Subaru Legacy, by the year NHTSA received them. The largest year is 2003, with 9 complaints.

Investigations

The NHTSA investigation file has no investigation that names this model year.

Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.

Other model years

The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.

  1. 19870
  2. 19880
  3. 19890
  4. 19904
  5. 19913
  6. 19922
  7. 19931
  8. 19940
  9. 19952
  10. 19963
  11. 19975
  12. 19984
  13. 19993
  14. 20003
  15. 20017
  16. 20024
  17. 200314
  18. 200410
  19. 20059
  20. 20067
  21. 20079
  22. 20089
  23. 200913
  24. 201018
  25. 201116
  26. 201216
  27. 201312
  28. 201410
  29. 20153
  30. 20163
  31. 20172
  32. 20183
  33. 20193
  34. 20206
  35. 20213
  36. 20222
  37. 20232

A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.

Official channels

Cite this page

Recall Register. 2002 Subaru Legacy: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/subaru/legacy/2002/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through .

Sources

Source
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Licence
US government work, public domain
Recall file through
29 Sep 2026
Complaint file through
29 Mar 2018
First complaint in the file
1 Jan 1995
Manufacturer in the recall file
SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC.

The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.

Questions

How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 2002 Subaru Legacy?
471,396 units in 4 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
How many recall campaigns does the Subaru Legacy have for all model years?
NHTSA lists 81 recall campaigns for the Subaru Legacy, model years 1987 to 2023. 4 of them name the 2002 model year.
Which component do the complaints about the 2002 Subaru Legacy name most often?
Engine and Engine Cooling: 9 of 43 component mentions.
Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2002 Subaru Legacy open?
The NHTSA investigation file has no investigation that names this model year.