The long running thread about Subaru clutch stutter problems fell off the board when we swithed hosts I think. At last check (June '03) there had been 163 mostly angry postings about this problem. The thread had been read by almost 5,000 people.
I still have the problem and I'm still mad and I think this issue should be kept in front of potential Subaru buyers.
I've had a very bad clutch stutter for over 2 years. they replaced the original clutch. Same problem occurred in about 4K miles. I took it back and they said SOA said there was nothing they could do.
I have been banging on this ever since with no luck.
When the list of replacement parts was finally released by SOA, I called my dealer again. They acknowledged that there was indeed a fix available now, but I wasn't elegible. The service manager at my dealer said that I have done EVERYTHING right, but then can do NOTHING for me because of SOA. This is really ignorant customer care.
I complained when the replacement clutch went bad with the same symptoms as the original faulty clutch. I kept a continuous paper trail at the dealership, noting this specific problem, which the dealer acknowledges is accurate and in place and that I did everything right.
However, the dealer says that SOA will not replace the faulty clutch because I now have too many miles on the car, and that I should have purchased an extended warranty.... WHAT BS! I was put off and put off until they could try to sweep this away.
This clutch stutter is not just an inconvenience. It stalled our car in a busy intersection recently and we were almost hurt badly, or worse.
I'm glad others have had their clutches replaced. I must have the worst dealer, or the worst SOA regional rep... maybe both.
My recommendation is to avoid Subaru until they learn to give a damn their customers.
Bannergraphics