The U.S. arm of Subaru Corp. will recall 293 Ascent SUVs over a safety issue, according to an announcement on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website.

Subject to the recall are 2019 Ascent SUVs produced between July 16 and July 25 that may have some spot welds missing around the B-pillar. This may reduce the strength of the vehicle's body and increase the risk of injury in the event of a crash, the Japanese automaker said.

Subaru said the spot welds were missed because of "improper software programming for the welding robots."

The company said the defect can no longer be fixed, so owners of affected vehicles will receive a new vehicle. The recalled SUVs with missing welds will be destroyed, it added.

Subaru plans to notify owners of affected vehicles by the end of August.