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Subaru recalling 32K Imprezas for potential airbag fault

Following a preliminary evaluation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in April 2015, Subaru is recalling 32,400 examples of the 2012 Impreza sedan and hatchback to repair the Occupant Detection System. The affected vehicles have production dates between April 21, 2011, and February 16, 2012. However, the WRX and STI are excluded from this campaign because they use a different part. The Impreza's problem concerns the front passenger seat's Occupant Detection System. In these models, the part uses capacitance to determine if someone is present and activates the airbag. According to the documents submitted to NHTSA (as a PDF), if the person sitting there uses a device plugged into the accessory outlet or touches an electrically grounded part like the metal seat adjuster, the ODS recognizes an increase in capacitance. It can then deactivate the airbag. Obviously, this could be a hazard in a crash, but there would be a warning light showing the safety device as off. To solve the problem, dealers will install a modified Occupant Control Unit. The initial investigation was prompted after 26 complaints to NHTSA about the ODS not working properly. In 2012, Subaru also issued a technical service bulletin that attempted to repair the issue. Related Video: RECALL Subject : Front Passenger Air Bag may not Deploy Report Receipt Date: JUL 01, 2015 NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V419000 Component(s): AIR BAGS Potential Number of Units Affected: 32,400 All Products Associated with this Recall Vehicle Make Model Model Year(s) SUBARU IMPREZA 2012 Details Manufacturer: Subaru of America, Inc. SUMMARY: Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2012 model year Subaru Impreza 4-Door and Station Wagon vehicles (except WRX/STI models) manufactured April 21, 2011, to February 16, 2012. In the affected vehicles, the Occupant Detection System (ODS) may deactivate if a front seat passenger operates a device that is plugged into the power outlet such as a music player or cell phone, or touches a metal part of the vehicle such as the forward/rearward seat adjuster lever. CONSEQUENCE: If the ODS deactivates, the front passenger air bag will be turned off and the front passenger air bag will not deploy in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the seat occupant. REMEDY: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the Occupant Control Unit with a modified one, free of charge. The manufacturer has not yet provided a notification schedule.

2015 Subaru BRZ tS First Drive [w/video]

The Subaru BRZ is a brilliant driver's car: lightweight, rear-wheel-drive, tactile, nimble and fluid at speed. In terms of qualities that allow for dazzling point-to-point performance, it lacks only power and intense mechanical grip. In the US, options for tuning the BRZ to amplify its strengths or diminish its weaknesses are mostly found in the aftermarket. In Japan, meanwhile, driving enthusiasts can start with the factory-tuned model you see above: the BRZ tS. Designed and built with the engineering prowess of Subaru Tecnica International, the limited-edition tS is tuned for track competence over and above that of the base model. The intent of the tS wasn't lost on me as I stared over the front fender towards Turn 1 at Japan's Suzuka Circuit. Not just a proper place to test STI's claims of increased handling brilliance for its BRZ tune, but a perfect one. Suzuka is challenging – fast and technical in equal measure – and a playground for sorting out the margin of improvement from the standard that BRZ I know so well. Wait, Why Am I Here? Of course, Subaru didn't invite me and a half-dozen other motoring journalists to Japan for an academic exercise in JDM hotness. We were there at the behest of STI, as a first step in what will undoubtedly be a deliciously drawn-out expansion of the performance brand in North America. STI started life as the motorsports division for Subaru-parent Fuji Heavy Industries. But chances are good that you, like me, first encountered the three-letter-logo as a Cherry Blossom Red punctuation mark at the end of a WRX road or rally car. The world came to know STI through Subaru's 1990s WRC dominance and prominence in the Gran Turismo franchise. But outside of Japan the significance of the initials was known more as the designation of the top-dog Impreza, rather than a motorsport and performance engineering unit. The company is set on changing that and building STI into a performance brand that's as easily recognizable in America as M and AMG are today. That message was delivered a body in the STI Concept car at the New York Auto Show earlier this week, but as I mentioned then, we don't expect Subaru to turn up with a production-ready BRZ STI next year. First STI will deploy its parts catalog to the US, removing the half-hearted Subaru Performance Tuning parts business in the process. Next, according to a vague timeline presented in Japan, Subaru will offer a car like the tS to US customers in approximately 18 months.

Subaru boxers offer a different type of flat-four thrum

If there's one number you'd associate with the Subaru Impreza, surely it'd be Four. Four generations, four doors, four-wheel drive, four cylinders in a boxer configuration. But in this Japanese market promo clip, Subaru has brought in another kind of boxer: the beat boxer.
Bringing in performers Kouteisennin and Time Machine, along with beat boxers Tatsuya and Rinka, the three-minute video clip below reinterprets the spirit of the Impreza through a mix of interpretive dance and human-generated beats that's rather hard to describe and needs to be seen - and heard. So pump up the volume and click on down below to see this clever and funky video for yourself.