Subaru says suspends shipment of some models over engine sensor malfunction

TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan’s Subaru Corp has suspended shipment of some of its three main automobile models over an engine sensor malfunction and also plans to temporarily halt production of the models, the company said on Friday.

The automaker discovered the problem with the sensor in the CB18 engine used in its Forester, Outback and Levorg models, a spokesperson said, adding that production of models with that engine would be halted in due course, without giving further details.

About 54,000 cars with the engine have been sold in Japan since October 2020 and are for the market only, the spokesperson said, declining to comment on the number of cars affected by the shipment suspension.

Subaru has not decided whether to recall the cars and it would likely take 2-1/2 months before shipment is resumed, the spokesperson said. The company will continue to produce and ship models that do not use the CB18 engine, the spokesperson said.

The malfunction with the sensor causes the engine to fail to start and a warning sign to flash on the dashboard, the spokesperson said.

Subaru’s shares fell 3% in morning trade in Tokyo, after being deluged by sell orders at the open.

(Reporting by Satoshi Sugiyama; Editing by David Dolan & Shri Navaratnam)