Back in February 2020 when U.S. citizens were bracing for stay-at-home orders, Hitachi Metals America started using an out-of-specification cutting tool in the manufacturing process of tie rod housings for the Subaru Ascent. The subject parts feature incorrectly cut holes, which may lead to the separation of tie rod ends over time according to Subaru.
The Japanese automaker isn’t aware of warranty claims or technical reports concerning this condition, but nevertheless, the safety experts decided to recall certain vehicles out of an abundance of caution. The affected population involved 1,305 examples of the Ascent manufactured from February 22nd, 2020 to March 5th, 2020 at the Lafayette, Indiana plant. According to Subaru, dealerships will replace the left and right housings at no cost to the customer, along with the tie rod ends and all related hardware. Owners that have already replaced any of these parts from their hard-earned money will be reimbursed. The remedy components are said to have the proper hole taper angle in the housing because Hitachi Metals America has corrected the condition in the manufacturing process last year in March. Somewhat curious for an issue that may lead to a serious crash if the tie rod ends happen to separate, the planned owner notification date is listed as February 7th in the Part 573 safety recall report. That’s more than two months from here on in, which is pretty long overdue by all accounts. But wait, there’s more! “If the remedy parts are not available within 60 days, an interim notification letter will be issued.” This line absolves the Japanese automaker of any supply constraints, and it further indicates that Subaru may have trouble sourcing the parts needed to fix the three-row Ascent.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s database, this recall is the third callback for the 2020 model year Ascent.
Keyword: Tie Rod Separation Issue Prompts 2020 Subaru Ascent Recall