The sock on my fuel pump apparently needs replacing, according to the dealer, but they say that the gas I've been using caused the problem, so it's not a "manufacturer's defect" and it's not covered under warranty. A fuel pump isn't a normal wear-and-tear item is it? The service tech also told me that mine was their 4th or 5th case in a month with exactly the same problem. Oh yeah, and they quoted me $700 to replace the pump (parts and labor), so something's a bit fishy...

What kind of fuel have you been using that would "cause" this?

go to another dealer. Its covered, they are just trying to get rid of you. EVEN IF they are telling you its wear and tear, =-the subaru warranty (unlike most manuf.) even covers wear and tear items. Like wiper blades and brakes, clutch are all covered. Its like saying we aren't going to change your wiper blades for you because it was the rains fault. Or we're not going to change your battery because its too cold. I used those examples specifically because I've had them replaced under subaru's warranty. Sounds like a crappy dealer, maybe you can go in there and tell them to fix it or you are never servicing your car there again.

how many miles are on your car?

I use premium gas, but I don't keep track of where I buy it. My car's currently got 29,873 miles or something like that.

Actually it's possible it was caused by bad gas. Last spring(?) there was some bad gas in the SE states which caused a lot of fuel pump failures. So maybe this is another case of that problem. I think the oil companies were paying for repairs.

Eh it should be covered under warranty. It doesn't matter what kind of gas you use, that's the point of the filter being there... What kind of problems were you having? It really sounds like they are just trying to fleece you.

The pump brand new is about $200, it takes about 20 minutes to install.

It has hesitation problems under heavy acceleration, which according to the tech, is caused when the fuel pump tries to engage the "high stage" of the three stage fuel pump found on the 03 WRX. He says that there was other crap in my gas that clogged the sock, which is the gas's fault, so subaru won't pay. I think they're feeding me a load of bologna myself.