2005 Legacy GT LTD

0-2500 miles

Car not out of service just an inconvience.

Cause unknown

No mods

brought to dealer

not denied warranty,not enough complaints yet

I took my car in for the stinky clutch problem,they duplicated the problem and took the clutch apart.There was no indication of a burning clutch,and clutch does not slip.
They called technical assist and they had no other complaints of this problem and as of now there are no fixes.They also contacted SAS zone rep and he has not seen this problem either. He suggests the car be driven further and he said Subaru will warranty the clutch if further problem occurs.So at least if my clutch has a problem down the road they will warranty it.

It would be my suggestion that if you are concerned with this problem which may need a recall for that you bring your car to the dealer to document this and they will open a case#.The problem as of now is they DO NOT have enough complaints to investigate this problem.The more people that inform the dealers of this problem the more attention it will get.This is what the dealer informed me of.He was straight forward about this all they need is enough complaints.They have a case# opened for my car and if anything goes wrong it will be covered. BRING YOUR CAR TO THE DEALER AND HOPEFULLY THEY WILL SEE THE PROBLEM!! I would not try to fix this with aftermarket parts as it will void your warranty. They are going to have an enginier look at it as sson as possible,will update

Not to sound cynical or anything, but get that promise in writing! There... I feel better now. :D

My car also stinks. I think I have like 6 ro 7K miles on it. Mostly when backing out of snow or backing up a slight incline.

Next time I bring it in I will mention it. I just hope this smell isn't wearing the clutch out. Or at least not before I turn it in in 3 years.

Not to sound cynical or anything, but get that promise in writing! There... I feel better now. :Dits in writing on the service sheet

My car also stinks. I think I have like 6 ro 7K miles on it. Mostly when backing out of snow or backing up a slight incline.

Next time I bring it in I will mention it. I just hope this smell isn't wearing the clutch out. Or at least not before I turn it in in 3 years.
I would bring it in asap, there may be a recall and this way you have it doccumented

Why in the world would you think that there "may be a recall" for a smelly clutch? If the clutch is failed, the warranty pays to fix it. Not being nasty, but a mountain out of a mole hill? How do you know it's the clutch that stinks?

Why in the world would you think that there "may be a recall" for a smelly clutch? If the clutch is failed, the warranty pays to fix it. Not being nasty, but a mountain out of a mole hill? How do you know it's the clutch that stinks?because the clutch may be defective.second if not a recall it would not be covered under warranty because it is a wearable item that is not covered under warranty,just like brake pads.but if they were defective then they will warranty it.i have smelled a clutch burn before and that is when someone was heavy on the gas pedal and slow to let the clutch out,you cant forget the smell.the dealer even confirmed the smell and the subaru engeniers want to look at it.this is not just a couple of people with this problem,look at this info http://www.legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6052

Okay - I read the posts and.....???? Some stink, some stop stinking, etc. You may want to read your warranty booklet. Wear items like the clutch disc, brake pads, etc. are covered for 3 years or 36K miles. Recalls are for safety issues, not smelly issues. The warranty covers defects - all defects for the period indicated earlier.

my STi does the same thing - smelly clutch when backing up steep inclines is when you notice it most. I would assume this is because there is some sort of "differential bind", or parking brake drag in reverse not present when moving forward, causing you to slip the clutch a little more than would otherwise be necessary, generating heat and SMELL.

Remember that the 2.5L turbo cars have a decent amount of low-end torque, and the clutch is really the sacrificial link in the driveline, so whatever Subaru makes the clutch out of to meet their performance specs just happens to smell like a turd wrapped in burnt hair when it gets hot.

Okay - I read the posts and.....???? Some stink, some stop stinking, etc. You may want to read your warranty booklet. Wear items like the clutch disc, brake pads, etc. are covered for 3 years or 36K miles. Recalls are for safety issues, not smelly issues. The warranty covers defects - all defects for the period indicated earlier.
OK here it is in the 2005 Warranty and Maintenance booklet (on page 31 in my book) WHAT IS NOT COVERED (3) the performance of any normal maintenance services or replacement of any normal maintenance or wear items, except brake shoe/pad linings, clutch disc linings and wiper blades,which are covered for a period of 90 days regardless of mileage.

When you pay $30,000 for a car you dont want a car that at times smells worse than a cat converter heated up.This problem has been there since day 1 and its not too much fun when you are out with your girl and all of a sudden there is this nasty smell and you have to tell her "its the car,not me". Sure its the car she replies :mad: .I also am a real estate salesman and the same thing when you are taking customers out to show them a house.New clutches should not stink under normal driving conditions.If it is a defective clutch that stinks now what happens a year down the road when the clutch fails and your car stalls in the middle of a busy intersection or lets say over railroad tracks with a train coming,would that be a safety issue? Also the fact that the engeniers want to look at it would hint there may be problems with this. Also this is a totally redesigned clutch for all Legacy models, and the GT has a dual-mass flywheel clutch which is the first year this type of clutch is in the car. I do not want to have to dump out cash down the road for a new clutch when it may be defective. IMO it is a driver concern and a safety issue.

my STi does the same thing - smelly clutch when backing up steep inclines is when you notice it most. I would assume this is because there is some sort of "differential bind", or parking brake drag in reverse not present when moving forward, causing you to slip the clutch a little more than would otherwise be necessary, generating heat and SMELL.

Remember that the 2.5L turbo cars have a decent amount of low-end torque, and the clutch is really the sacrificial link in the driveline, so whatever Subaru makes the clutch out of to meet their performance specs just happens to smell like a turd wrapped in burnt hair when it gets hot.How bad is the SMELL? If it is as bad as mine is and the other people that are having this problem would you verify how bad it stinks.It smells horrible,and $30k+ cars should not STINK.Did you bring you car in to have it checked out? 1 other thing is when going forward this smell is left behind the car but when in reverse you are backing into it.I also notice this smell going forward in stop and go traffic.

Dude - chill out a bit. 1st - the warranty info. that you are quoting is in under the "Parts Warranty" section - not the manuf. warranty coverage section.

2nd - Smell will not cause your clutch to fail going over RR tracks. Didn't you say the dealer checked it and there were no defects in the parts?

3rd - tell us about the engineer appointment after it happens. What would be more likely is that they would have a field person check out the car - not fly in an engineer from Japan

4th - I'm sure your g/f knows it's not you. Afterall, wouldn't she notice it outside the car?

5th - if you even read the posts from the site your referenced before, you'll see that in each situation, the "smell" goes away. How is that indicative of a "doomed" clutch assembly?

6th - some folks there even say that it may be the way they were adjusting to driving this type of car. Ask the service manager to write on the repair order that they can smell it too and they can't fix it. That way, any future smelly issues will be addressed I would think.

Dude - chill out a bit. 1st - the warranty info. that you are quoting is in under the "Parts Warranty" section - not the manuf. warranty coverage section.


exactly


here:

http://filebox.vt.edu/m/mmatheos/warranty.JPG

Thanks WRXVT. I appreciate the back up. Nice screen shot too!

Over at www.legacygt.com, there has been an ongoing thread about the clutch smell. What we do know is that some stink, and some don't. Some stink more than others. It's clearly a materials thing, as related to the amount of slippage, and possibly the clutch valve that prevents transmission-breaking clutch dumps.

My clutch, for example, smelled a bit when slipped when the car was new, but it's gone now. Some of that is a function of me learning the car's clutch takeup points, etc. Others say that their clutch smells just as bad as it did when it was new.

Kevin

anyone who has this problem knows that it shouldnt be taken as lightly as many make it ot. when this guy talks about his smelly clutch, this isnt just a moderately bad smell, it smells absoulutley repulsive. (like you dont want to be in the car because it smells like someone dumped in the backseat bad). its not just legacys either, o2-03 wrxs are known for the smelly clutch, i have been told that shifting above 4000 may cause this problem (thats only when i notice it).

Yeah - I agree that if it's a problem, they should try to fix it. It's just when people start screaming "recall" over something like this - it kinda causes me to cringe. I mean, recalls are for serious safety problems, not someone trying to make a big deal over something that, while annoying, should be easily addressed. If it's not fixed under warranty, the owners manual has information in it on the steps to take to get some attention to a problem vs. "rallying the troops" on the internet to get a recall started. If we scream recall every time our car burps (or the other way based on the smell description) we all are a bit less credible in our gripes.

I have reason to believe that there was a mid-production run change in the clutch material or clutch vendor. Cars built after a certain date don't have the stink problem!

Could you please check your cars build date an edit your complaint in this forum and ADD the build date. It is printed on a white tag on the backside of the driver's door. You will need a flashlight and have to kneel down.

If we can demonstrate that cars built after/before a certain date don't/do have the problem we can catch them with their pants down and SOA will have to replace the clutches to avoid bad publicity before their new flagship SUV (B-9 something) is introduced to the media and the public.

My car was built 6-4-04. Took delivery on 12-15-04. It must have sat in storage for 6 months. Remember, build date and delivery date have no relation.

Please don't let us down guys. Love the car. Hate the stink.

car built 07/2004 took delivery 01/12/2005,assemled at subaru in indiana.
it may not be the clutch http://www.legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8938