2004 Outback Sudden Acceleration

I had this same problem a couple weeks ago. When I first noticed it I wasn't paying attention to the tach and actually thought the person behind me had rear ended me. I got out and accused the person of bumping me and asking what the deal is. She denied it!

Then the wife commented on the reving and lurching.

I took it to the mechanic and he noted that a spark plug wire was loose and was only occasionally making contact. Thus, causing the lurching etc.

I was suspicious of this cure but he fixed it for free.

Wanderer wrote:

experiencing

returns to

problems are

I've often thought that the cruise control mechanism was the cuplrit behind legitamite "sudden acceleration" episodes.

On Tue, 1 Feb 2005 10:47:25 -0500, Danny Russell wrote (in message ):

Apparently, there has been a recall of Subarus for a sudden acceleration defect related to Cruise Control -- so you are right on the money. Subaru seems to be claiming that the problem affected only 6-cylinder vehicles, but mine is a 4-cylinder Outback that apparently has the exact same problem. Thanks for your reply.

Wanderer

Did you take it in for the cruise control cable recall? This is the symptom it fixes. 15 minute job. Free.

On Tue, 1 Feb 2005 11:26:41 -0500, Alan wrote (in message ):

We're taking it in tomorrow. The dealer made it sound as if we were not eligible for the cruise control cable recall because ours is a 4-cylinder Outback, not a 6-cylinder. (Apparently the recall was for 6-cylinder models and WRX models.) We'll see... thanks for your post.

Wanderer

Was the MY01 WRX affected by this?

Not a cable tie and not for rubbing or wearing.

It's a purpose-made metal clip that retains the Cruise Control cable-end in the throttle body positioner track. It keeps the CC cable from hanging up or shifting in it's track, and preventing the TB return spring from doing it's job when you lift off the accelerator pedal. According to Subaru, this version of a "stuck accelerator" could occur with or without use of the CC itself.

The fix is free, and takes 15 minutes. Do it.

On Tue, 1 Feb 2005 22:06:39 -0500, Sponge wrote (in message ):

I believe so, but I am not certain. I suggest contacting your dealer.

Wanderer

On Wed, 2 Feb 2005 6:52:50 -0500, CompUser wrote (in message ):

Thanks for your explanation of the underlying issue. We are taking it in this morning. As I mentioned earlier, the dealer made it sound as if our

4-cylinder model was not eligible for the recall. (We were never notified of it either.) We'll see.

Wanderer

Or just check yourself at

On Wed, 2 Feb 2005 10:47:52 -0500, CompUser wrote (in message ):

Thanks again, but I already checked with NHTSA. There is a discrepancy between the way the recall reads on their site, and the way the dealer understands it. If you search online, you will find that there are other sudden acceleration issues with Subarus, unrelated to this recall. The purpose of my posting is to find out if other Subaru owners have experienced the problem I originally described, and to find out how their problems were (or weren't) resolved.

Wanderer

The pedals are close together.

Chances are good you are hitting the gas with the side of your shoe.

I'm constantly hitting both pedals with my 91 Legacy, truing to train myselef to actually move my foot instead of simply swiveling on my heel.

On Sun, 6 Feb 2005 18:50:00 -0500, Mac Townsend wrote (in message ):

Nope. My foot was on the brake. In fact, I purposely moved my foot to the far left side of the brake, then threw the car into Neutral. The engine continued to race wildly. It continued to race wildly even in park, with my foot off the brake. If you search online, you will find many instances of this with Subarus. But thanks for your input.

I recently had my 1982 gas pedal stick down. Was going up a slight hill and had it floored. Crested the hill and the pedal stayed down and the speed started quickly building up (70+). Was in the left lane on I-78 with lots of traffic around me. Tapped the pedal several times but still stayed stuck down. Put the clutch in and the RPMs climbed rapidly so shut the key off (be careful to not turn it too far) and put it in neutral and was finally able to get over to coast over to the breakdown lane. Was real scary. Even after stopping, the pedal was still jammed down and would not release. Fortunately my brother who was a former Subaru shop foreman was along and knew right where to look for the problem. I had some oil in a container under the hood and he took some of that and applied it to some linkage on the right side of the carb - problem fixed. I now make sure I periodically apply a little oil to that area.

On Mon, 7 Feb 2005 10:52:52 -0500, Edward Hayes wrote (in message ):

Thanks, Ed. What is weird about this -- and the reason I know it was not a mechanical case of the gas pedal somehow being depressed -- is that I was stopped in traffic for at least 60 seconds, with everything completely normal, before the engine began to rev. I had not moved my foot, or done anything else in that interval. Was sitting in traffic, foot on the brake, typical low idle... when all of a sudden, with no change whatsoever in what I was doing, the engine began to rev wildly. Subaru is sending out a trouble shooter from the local office, should meet with him tomorrow. Will report back after we meet with him.

Wanderer

And now for the rest of the story. Subaru sent an engineer out to interview us and sit in the car with a computer plugged in while we drove around. The sudden acceleration issue was not duplicated (it has only happened twice since we owned the car). After the case was reviewed back at headquarters, we got a call from a very pleasant woman informing us that they were sufficiently concerned about our safety that they wanted to take back the car, and provide us with a new one (a 2005). The car was on a lease, so essentially, they gave us the same lease terms we had had on our 2004, and simply transferred the lease to the new 2005 Outback. My wife and I felt we were treated with professionalism and courtesy by everyone at Subaru, from the dealer to the customer care people who handled the case. This is the third Subaru we have owned, and as a result of the company's high ethical standards, we will in all likelihood purchase an additional Subaru (WRX) next year. Thanks to everyone who posted suggestions and information. Your assistance is most appreciated.

Wanderer