2002 Subaru WRX brakes problems

Filed Dec 3, 2013 · Acceleration, Brakes · NY · crash · 1 injury

I work as a valet attendant. I have parked a large number of vehicles. I had to park this vehicle in a parking spot. To park in this spot I had to make a right to line up for the spot. The car accelerated suddenly. I had all my weight on the brakes to avoid slamming into a wall,I turned hard right and crashed the car against the corner of a concrete column. The airbag deployed during the accident, then I heard a purge and multiple clicking noises. The brakes did not stop the car at all. The breaks felt rock hard before the accident. Again"the brakes did not stop this car from crashing" I suffered a severely fractured hip socket injury. This accident leaves me with the likely hood of needing hip replacement due to hip arthritis. If it wasn't for the airbag I would have suffered severe head and chest injury. I also no longer work as a parking attendant, and having a hard time finding a job. I am not a teenager joyriding . I am an adult, parking cars for a living. I have driven high end vehicles with way more power, but have never experienced any thing like this. Now I have difficulty driving, and I afraid to get behind the wheel. I am a male driver with 20+ years of driving experience, but I am looked at as a reckless driver for wrecking this car.

Filed Dec 8, 2010 · Brakes · 120,000 miles · CA

Tl*the contact owns a 2002 subaru wrx. While driving approximately 30 MPH the contact attempted to apply the brakes and the ABS activated. He was unable to bring the vehicle to a rapid stop. He stated that it was luck that the vehicle in-front turned left; and he was able to avoid a crash. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that they would not assist with the repair, because the ABS failure warranty expired at 36,000 miles. The failure mileage was 119,000 and the current mileage was 120,000. Updated 02/09/11*lj updated 02/28/11

Filed Feb 12, 2010 · Brakes · 85,000 miles · WA

Several times (about once a year on average) since I purchased my subaru wrx in 2001 the brakes briefly fail. The description seems identical to that of the 2010 prius in that there is no braking for a brief time when going over bumps, railroad tracks or simply going downhill on a wet road. The most recent incident I would guess happened in the fall of 2009 when going down a hill with sudden braking required on a wet surface. Within the first year of ownership I alerted our subaru dealer of the problem and they did "a firmware update". I don't think this made a difference but since it is a rare but scary occurrence I really could not tell.

Filed May 11, 2008 · Brakes · 60,000 miles · NJ

The brake pedal on my 2002 subaru sometimes gets soft (looses brake pressure), specially when it's cold and the sits parked for several hours. The dealer has changed an expansion valve( ? ), but the problem comes back on occasion. This problem makes me feel insecure about my brake system. The dealer says everything is ok, but the problem persists.

Filed Mar 18, 2007 · Brakes · 44,000 miles · MD

On my 2002 subaru impreza wrx sedan whenever I go over a bump or imperfection in the road (no matter how big or small) the ABS kicks in and if I hit the brakes directly afterwards the pedal goes to the floor and I have severely weak breaks for 2-3 seconds then they come back. Ive replaced the brake rotors, pads, and brake fluid and the issue still happens. Subaru of america claims it is not a problem but have never had this issue with any other car with ABS. Im very familiar with ABS and know how it works the problem is after it engages if you brake again 2-3 seconds after it engaged the pedal goes to the floor as if theres only 20% brakeing force. Ive almost been in several accidents due to this one time I was pulling into a parking spot going 5mph and this happened and I almost drifted into a parked car. Please look into this. Please view this website http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=102893 many 2002 and up subaru owners are experienceing this. The ABS isnt the problem again its the loss of brakeing after the ABS was engaged maybe the ABS computer isnt working correctly/fast enough? Thank you

Filed Oct 11, 2005 · Brakes · 40,000 miles · IL · crash

Driving during very light rain in left lane about 30 MPH, car in front (about 2-3 car-lengths ahead) starts braking. I pressed the brakes and ABS came on without any reason, the car did not slow down almost at all, forcing me to switch the lane quickly to the right. While switching lanes, car started skidding and diving the nose to the right/tail to the left, I tried to correct the nose to the left, but that caused a more dangerous skid to the left, toward oncoming traffic. I turned the wheel right again, trying to regain control, but the car spun out and hit a tree on right side of road with the driver's door. I was taken to a hospital and stayed there overnight for observation, released next day. Nobody was injured, the tree had a few very small scratches. I am still waiting to find out if the car will be repairable or totaled.

Filed Jul 26, 2005 · Brakes · 39,000 miles · MA · crash

If I try to brake over rough or slippery pavement in my 2002 subaru impreza wrx, the ABS system shuts off the brakes. Potholes, manhole covers, frost heaves, icy patches, any of these cause this behavior. Also, in november 2004, while driving downhill at about 30 to 35 MPH on dry and mostly clean pavement, a truck driving in front of me braked gradually. I hit my brakes to maintain a distance, but it was a section of rippled pavement and the ABS system shut off the brakes so completely for about 10 seconds. My car was actually picking up speed due to the downhill. I am sure than in any other car I've had, I wouldn't have had any trouble slowing down. I avoided rear-ending the truck by slowing the car with aggressive engine braking. I also steered towards the other side of the road, where there was no traffic at that moment and the pavement was cleaner, so I could slow down. Another time I rear-ended a vehicle that stopped in front of a pothole, although damage was minor. I've also had a large number of scary near - misses with rear-ending other vehicles, and on a few occasions slid out into intersections with frost heaves leading up to a stop sign or stop light, because my braking space estimate was far less than I actually needed. I recently replaced all brake pads and discs. The rear pads fit in the calipers so tightly I had to pound them out with a hammer and punch. Both pads and rotors were worn very unevenly. Replacement rear pads fit in the same way. Then I realized something was wrong with the fit, so I ground down the tabs to get a good snug fit rather than an interference fit and jamming, so they slipped into place normally. After making this change to my brakes, they work very well. I nearly sold the car due to this issue, but instead drove it for a while with the ABS system disabled. My local subaru dealer told me this is how ABS systems are supposed to work, even though there is clearly a big problem.

Filed May 16, 2005 · Brakes · 60 miles · CA · crash

While driving on a residential street, well within acceptable speeds, approaching a right hand turn with no traffic I slightly moved left on the road (over the bump strip, but not into the other lane) to get a smoother angle into the turn.upon braking, the drivers front tire squealed/slid, no ABS pulse and brake pedal was far closer to the floor than normal.I let off and downsifted to no avail.I hit the curb (only, thankfully) but did extensive damage to my car rendering it undrivable.I now have no faith in my once cherished car and once it is repaired am contemplating replacing it.why havent they fixed this???????!?!?!?

Filed Dec 14, 2004 · Brakes, Electrical · 35,500 miles · WA

Traveling on a damp, bumpy asphalt road in seattle (tempurature was in the mid-40's). Light ahead turns red - I apply the brakes as usual, but the peddle suddenly sinks about an inch and I feel ABS come on. It feels as if the brakes have no stopping power and are only working at about 10%. I let up on the brakes and tried again, and was able to stop before hitting the car in front of me. This has also happened once before, on some metal drawbridge grating. It seems as if the ABS comes on in times when it should not, which causes the brakes to practically not work. If a car had been closer in front of me, I would have hit it.

Filed Oct 7, 2004 · Brakes · 39,000 miles · NH · crash

I was driving my 02 subaru wrx on the highway. I need to stop suddenly and the brakes failed. The brake pedal went to the floor, but the car didn't slow down. This cause me to rear end a ford explorer. This cause approximately $3800 in damages.