The vehicle stopped responding to throttle pedal input, resulting in having to pull off the road, across lanes of traffic. Engine light comes on and cruise control light flashes. After restarting 3 times the lights go away. Dealer couldn't replicate so would not cover under warranty. This has happened on several occasions since, usually only in summer. Code is p2138 and appears to be a consistent problem with subaru vehicles.
2006 Subaru Legacy fuel system complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 16 of 16, newest first, as owners wrote them.
I was driving my well maintained vehicle in the left lane of the highway during rush hour at 65mph when the car suddenly decelerated. Nothing happened when I pressed the gas pedal. The engine continued to run. The check engine light came on. Traffic was very heavy and aggressive. Somehow I managed to get across the lanes and off the road. I turned the car off and waited at least 5 minutes. I turned it back on and the check engine light was still on. I drove it to the dealership (over 20 minutes) without incident. When the car was serviced the check engine light was out, but there was a record of p2138 which is a throttle position sensor error. The technical couldn't find any failure or connection issues. No repairs or replacements were made. After reading numerous accounts of the same dangerous problem, I believe my car is unsafe.
While traveling at approximately 55mph, my legacy's throttle became unresponsive, the check engine light came on, and the cruise light began to flash. I was able to safely coast off the road and a subsequent code check revealed a code 2138 (throttle position sensor). In the ensuing months I replaced the tps, which didn't help, then reseated the connection on the throttle itself, which worked for about six months. The problem has recently recurred and seems to be a common problem.
After driving for about 30 minutes, the acceleration pedal suddenly became completely unresponsive. I attempted to accelerate by depressing the pedal twice but, to no avail. At this point, I was coasting but, the car was idling at exactly 2k rpms. Luckily, the road I was on wasn't too busy and I was to safely pull off the road, into the grass. After which, killed the engine. I waited about five minutes, started the car, tested my accelerator, and it worked again. So, I waited five more minutes, tested again, and drove home. No other incidents thus far. I'm going to test the throttle position sensor's (and accelerator pedal sensor's) seating, clean the connectors and, if necessary, replace one or both of the sensors.
Complaint pertains to a 2006 subaru legacy 4dr sedan. In 2009, we experienced several instances of where the vehicle shut off completely when the driver stopped at a light or stop sign. Could not re-start for a minute or two. Multiple trips to the dealer over 9 months until finally diagnosed as a defective crankshaft sensor. Replaced by dealer (n/c). My reason for the report is that this could of occurred (but did not) on a major highway when a driver would come to a stop due to traffic. A stall on a major highway could put the driver in an unsafe situation.
(1) fuel system ceased to operate while vehicle in motion. This was the second occurrence of this problem (supposedly, servicing corrected the problem after the first time) (2) car was stuck inside a nature reserve that has limited access. Although I have the full warranty package, I could not get appropriate service to tow the car out for 1.5 days, and so missed 1 day of work. (3) the first time this happened, the fuel pump and related parts were replaced. This time, I found and replaced a burnt-out fuse for the fuel pump, and the new fuse immediately burnt out when I tried to start the car. It has now been towed to my dealer (1.5 hours away from where the problem occurred). (4) I have no faith in the safety of this particular (brand new) vehicle. If this had happened on the freeway, I would likely have been hit by vehicles from behind. I do not know whether this problem has occurred with other cars of this same model.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2006 Subaru Legacy?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history