NHTSA recalls, safety ratings, and consumer complaints for the 2001 Subaru Legacy.
| Overall Rating | Not Rated |
| Frontal Crash | Not Rated |
| Side Crash | Not Rated |
| Rollover | Not Rated |
| Overall Rating | Not Rated |
| Frontal Crash | Not Rated |
| Side Crash | Not Rated |
| Rollover | Not Rated |
Component: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP
Airtex Products LP (Airtex) is recalling certain model E8598M, E8518M, E8600M, E8596M, and E8597M fuel pumps manufactured July 26, 2013, and July 29, 2013 and used as aftermarket replacements on Subaru Baja's, Outback's and Legacy's. The affected fuel pumps were sold or installed into the aftermarket applications on or after July 26, 2013, and may may leak fuel from the base of a fuel line connection when the gas tank is full.
Consequence: A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source increases the risk of a fire.
Remedy: Airtex will notify owners, and will replace the fuel pump, free of charge. Recall is expected to begin on January 2, 2014. Customers may contact Airtex at 1-800-880-3056. The recall is expected to begin during January 2014. This recall is being conducted by Airtex, not by Subaru.
Component: SEATS
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH MANUALLY-ADJUSTABLE (NON-POWERED) SEATS. CERTAIN INNER FRONT SLIDE RAIL LATCH MECHANISMS MAY HAVE BEEN IMPROPERLY WELDED.
Consequence: IF AN INNER SLIDE RAIL LATCH MECHANISM BREAKS DUE TO IMPROPER WELDING, FORWARD AND REARWARD SEAT ADJUSTMENT WILL NO LONGER BE POSSIBLE. IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH, THE SLIDE RAILS COULD BREAK, EXPOSING THE OCCUPANT TO A RISK OF INJURY.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE ONE OR BOTH FRONT SEAT INNER SLIDE RAILS. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN MARCH 30, 2001. 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.
Headed home from a vet appointment in mountain home. Was driving on the freeway at 80mph when the tire blew at the Wendell exit. Checked the tire to find that the inside wall had failed and had a blowout. The tire was installed June 8th 2025 and had less than 1,000 miles on it. I have never in 26 years of being around vehicles had a brand new tire fail in less than 1,000 miles. Tire was a good year reliant all season 195/65/R15. That tire blowout could have killed me and my family. I stopped at the Walmart that I bought the tire from with the receipt and was told "oh that sucks. We can replace it for you if you want to buy a new one a full price." How can a company sell a tire from a brand like good year that isn't even covered for a 1,000 miles? That's absolutely mind blowing. Had anyone gotten injured from the accident I would filling charges against Walmart for selling me a faulty tire
The contact owns a 2001 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that while his son was driving at highway speeds, the vehicle would wobble without warning. After the contact test drove the vehicle and experienced the failure himself, he took the vehicle to an independent mechanic and discovered that the rear control arm had rotted out due to severe corrosion. Upon investigation, the contact discovered that the vehicle had been placed under NHTSA Campaign Number: 03V153000 (Suspension). The manufacturer was then notified of the failure and confirmed the prior recall on the vehicle; however, they could not offer any further assistance. The contact also took the vehicle to the dealer where they informed him that the entire subframe had rotted out due to corrosion. The vehicle was not repaired and remained in their possession. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.
The 2001 Subaru Legacy has 8 NHTSA recalls and 81 consumer complaints on file. It received an overall safety rating of Not Rated out of 5 stars in NHTSA crash testing. The high number of complaints suggests potential reliability concerns — review the complaint details above before purchasing. For the most detailed information about a specific vehicle, decode its VIN using our free decoder above.
Enter a specific VIN to get the full report — specs, recalls, safety ratings, complaints, investigations, and technical service bulletins.
Component: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES. POSSIBLE FUEL LEAKAGE OF UNDER-HOOD FUEL HOSES AT LOW AMBIENT TEMPERATURES (-40 DEGREES C) ONCE THE FUEL HOSES AGE AND BECOME LESS FLEXIBLE.
Consequence: FUEL LEAKAGE IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE COULD RESULT IN A FIRE.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT FOR UNDER-HOOD FUEL HOSES WITH LOT NUMBERS 0804 AND 0806 AND ALL FUEL HOSES WITH THOSE NUMBERS WILL BE REPLACED.
Component: SEAT BELTS:REAR/OTHER
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES. INCORRECT BEIGE REAR CENTER SEAT BELT WEBBING WAS INSTALLED. THE BELT LENGTH IS TOO SHORT.
Consequence: THE SEAT OCCUPANT WOULD NOT BE PROPERLY RESTRAINED IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE ALL BEIGE COLORED REAR CENTER LAP/SHOULDER BELTS WITH LOT NUMBER 0171.
Component: STEERING:LINKAGES
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES. A CASTING FLAW IN THE RIGHT FRONT BEARING HOUSING COULD RESULT IN LOSS OF STEERING IF THE CASTING FLAW SHOULD EXIST IN THE TIE-ROD ARM.
Consequence: THIS CASTING FLAW COULD CAUSE GREASE LEAKAGE, FRONT WHEEL BEARING FAILURE DUE TO LOSS OF GREASE, OR LOSS OF STEERING DUE TO TIE-ROD END SEPARATION.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE ALL FRONT BEARING HOUSINGS WITH A LOT NUMBER OF OF15.
Component: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:CABLES
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: IF THIS OCCURS DURING VEHICLE OPERATION, THE DRIVER COULD LOSE CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE, WHICH COULD RESULT IN A CRASH.
Remedy: 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.
Component: SUSPENSION:REAR
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: IF SUCH BREAKAGE OCCURS WHILE THE VEHICLE IS BEING OPERATED, CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE COULD BE AFFECTED, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy: 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.
Component: POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
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: THE VEHICLE COULD THEN MOVE/ROLL WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy: 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.
ALWAYS, WHEN THE CIRCULATION FRESH AIR BUTTON IS PRESSED TO ALLOW OUTSIDE AIR TO ENTER THE CABIN, THERE IS THE NOXIOUS ODOR OF GASOLINE. I REPLACED THE ENGINE BECAUSE OF A TIMING BELT RELATED PROBLEM AT 160,000 MILES AND THE PROBLEM OF GAS ODOR STOPPED FOR A FEW MONTHS BUT IT IS BACK, BAD AS EVER. WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN? YEARS AND YEARS
I WAS PULLING OUT OF THE PARKING LOT ONTO A MAIN STREET AND WHEN I STARTED TO STEP ON THE GAS THE CAR DIDN'T WANT TO GO SO WELL AND THE RPMS WHAT ARE GETTING PRETTY HIGH AND THE CLUTCH WAS SLIPPING THE FLUID WAS A LITTLE BIT LOW SO WE ADDED THE RECOMMENDED FLUID THE DEXTRON 111.. WE WERE ABLE TO DRIVE ABOUT 5 MILES ON THE FREEWAY ABOUT 60 MILES AN HOUR BACK TO OUR HOUSE THE NEXT MORNING WE GOT UP TO LEAVE THE CAR WOULD BARELY MOVE FORWARD THE CLUTCH SLIPPING REALLY BAD AND ALSO IS DOING THE SAME IN REVERSE.. I HAVE OWNED BY SUBARUS AND I WAS ALSO THE SALES AND FINANCE MANAGER FOR NADER SUBARU IN EUREKA CALIFORNIA IN 2005 TO 2010
SUDDEN ACCELERATION CAUSING AN ACCIDENT. THE SUBARU WAS AT REST IN DRIVE.
IN COLDER WEATHER I HAVE FUEL LEAKING FROM FUEL LINES UNDER THE HOOD WHICH CREATES A STRONG GAS SMELL INSIDE THE VEHICLE. I WENT ONLINE AND FOUND NHSTA RECALL # 00V393000 . I AM NOT SURE IF THIS IS FOR MY VEHICLE OR NOT. SINCE THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE, COULD IT BE REPAIRED AT AT SUBARU DEALER NEAR ME ?
GAS FUEL LINES IN ENGINE COMPARTMENT LEAKING IN COLD WEATHER. GAS POOLING ON ENGINE CREATING FIRE HAZARD. SAME ISSUE AS OTHER SUBARU. STRONG FUEL SMELL INSIDE CABIN AND OUT. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS 2001 SUBARU LEGACY OUTBACK. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER 03V153000 (SUSPENSION). HOWEVER, THE REMEDY FAILED TO CORRECT THE FAILURE. THE SUB FRAME WAS FOUND CORRODED AND FRACTURED. THE CONTACT WAS ADVISED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS UNSAFE TO DRIVE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 108,131.
WHEN STARTING CAR IN COLD WEATHER THERE IS A VERY STRONG GAS ODOR IN CABIN. SUBSEQUENT RESEARCH HAS INDICATED THAT OTHER 2001 LEGACY WAGONS HAVE BEEN RECALLED DUE TO EXACT SAME PROBLEM. MY CAR WAS NOT RECALLED, WHICH IS CONFUSING GIVEN THAT THE EXACT SAME RISKS ARE ASSOCIATED. *TR
COLD WEATHER BELOW 32 DEGREES NO BRAKE PEDAL ON COLD START- DIFFICULT TO STOP CAR MOVING UNDER 5MPH. AFTER WARM UP FOR 5-10 MINUTES- DEPENDING ON HOW COLD THE TEMP. PEDAL COMES BACK AND BRAKES SEEM TO OPERATE NORMALLY. *TR
PURCHASED VEHICLE IN SOUTH CAROLINA AND DROVE IT BACK TO NORTHERN KENTUCKY. IT PRODUCED APPROXIMATELY 380 MILES ON ONE TANK OF FUEL. NOTE: IT WAS WELL INTO THE 50-60 F RANGE OUTSIDE WHILE DRIVING DURING THAT TIME. SUBSEQUENT FILL-UPS IN NORTHERN KENTUCKY (WITH OUTSIDE TEMPERATURES RANGING FROM 10-30 F) PRODUCED 160-225 MILES IN-TOWN. I EXPERIENCED A VERY STRONG, RAW FUEL ODOR IN THE PASSENGER CABIN. IT WAS TAKEN TO A MECHANIC AND THEY FOUND "NOTHING WRONG." THIS OF COURSE, DOES NOT MEAN THERE IS NOTHING WRONG. THE FUEL LINES WERE CHECKED AND TIGHTENED EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE NEITHER LOOSE NOR WORN. AFTER READING THE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS PROBLEM FROM OTHER OWNERS, IT SEEMS THAT SUBARU OWES ME AND MANY OTHERS A RECALL. TODAY IS ABOUT 14 F OUTSIDE AND I DROVE THE SUBARU 16 MILES. THE FUMES WERE SO UNBEARABLE I HAD TO PULL OVER AND WAIT FOR THEM TO SUBSIDE. THIS SEEMS LIKE NOT ONLY AN EMISSIONS VIOLATION, BUT ALSO A FIRE AND HEALTH HAZARD. *TR
FAILED FRONT WHEEL BEARINGS. *TR
THIS CAR WAS "INSPECTED" ON JULY 25, 2011 AT AFFORDABLE AUTO GLASS, 806 ELM STREET, WEST SPRINGFIELD, MA (MASSACHUSETTS INSPECTION STATION PB 024377). UPON PURCHASING THIS CAR IN OCTOBER, 2011, I ATTEMPTED TO GET A RI INSPECTION STICKER FOR IT WHEN REGISTERING IT IN RI. IT FAILED ON SEVERAL COUNTS (BALD TIRES, BAD REAR BRAKES, 2 BAD FRONT AXLES). I WOULD LIKE THIS STATION INVESTIGATED TO FIND OUT HOW THIS CAR COULD HAVE PASSED A MASS INSPECTION ONLY 3 MONTHS BEFORE I BOUGHT IT. IN ADDITION TO THE FAILED ITEMS, ONE FRONT BRAKE CALIPER WAS FROZEN AND THE BRACKET HOLDING THE OTHER FRONT BRAKE CALIPER WAS BROKEN.
WHEN I PUT ON THE BRAKES TO STOP THE CAR THE ENGINE STALLS OUT.. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 SUBARU LEGACY GT. THE CONTACT STARTED THE IGNITION AND SMELLED A STRONG ODOR OF FUEL INSIDE OF THE CABIN. THE FAILURE OCCURRED ONLY IN FREEZING WEATHER TEMPERATURES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSIS AND REMAINED THERE FOR SEVEN DAYS TO FURTHER INVESTIGATE THE PROBLEM. THERE WAS A RECALL ASSOCIATED WITH NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 00V393000 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS). THE CONTACT EXPERIENCED THE IDENTICAL FAILURE AS MENTIONED IN THE RECALL. THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 100,000. UPDATED 03/29/11*LJ THE CONSUMER STATED THE DEALER REPLACED THE HOSES UNDER RECALL 00V393000, ALTHOUGH HIS VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. THE CONSUMER STATED SHE WILL HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL THE WINTER TO SEE IF THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN RECTIFIED. UPDATED 08/19/11
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