Unofficial - CEL/SL/Idle Issue List for FR-S/BRZ Owners

[DaJo]

Originally Posted by Goodguy889

I'm also leaving the ft-86 scene. After going threw this again for the second time and Toyota saying that have to look into to see how to fix it I believe they don't know the true fix and not gonna be a genie pig for them to determine the problem. I traded the frs for a Hyundai geniuses turbo r spec edition. More hp, heavier but hey no problems. Ill keep it until they figure there crap out. What's the fun when I'm driving a rental. Anyways the car had 5k miles on it.

Originally Posted by soconfoozed

Well, it looks like I'll be leaving the '86 scene. I received my options today. I will be pursuing a repurchase. Should be complete in +30 days. Which is itself a huge pain, because to me that's just 30 days for a meteor to fall out of the sky and crush the car. Can't help but feel they do that on purpose. I can't believe that in 2012, it takes 30 days to return a car and do a bank transfer.

Anyway, too bad I never got to enjoy a well-running, reliable BRZ.

Later, all. Hope you get to enjoy your cars.

"We lost a great comrade, but gained new ones. Thank you, all of you. You honor us with your bravery."

http://www.hark.com/clips/hjvdvjxpcn...uldnt-save-him

[jduffy]

The trouble ain't that there is too many fools, but that the lightning ain't distributed right.

[Sean K.]

Originally Posted by Cade01

So what fun thing neither Toyota or Subaru are you getting?

When I find the one I want, I'll post a pic.

[Sean K.]

Originally Posted by jduffy

The trouble ain't that there is too many fools, but that the lightning ain't distributed right.

And......a fool and his money are soon parted.

[Accurate Race Shop]

I know someone already trading his in for a truck and there is a few used ones for sale in my area this car is not for everyone and some people bought it and just don't like it so more power to them to go out and get what they really want

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

[Sean K.]

Originally Posted by Sean K.

And......a fool and his money are soon parted.

JFYI....so there's no confusion....I'm talking about me. Just realized that jduffy's little jab and my response could be taken the wrong way.

To clarify:

What I'm planning to buy is extremely foolish and impractical. But hey, it'll be our 6th vehicle for 2 drivers. No real need for it.

[Craig]

I drive an AT, wanted to get your input without creating a separate thread on it.

Sometimes when I first turn my car on, when slowing to a stop I can feel something weird. If I drop it into manual mode, the car will actually shudder as I slow to a stop. If I'm sitting at a traffic light and roll up a bit, then slow down, it feels as if the engine kicks off. I haven't noticed a large dip in my RPM when it happens which is strange, but it sure feels that way.

Also this only happens when the car is cold, and not every single time I turn it on. I don't want to drop my car off at a dealership for an undisclosed amount of time for them to play with it because I don't trust them to actually look for a problem, and not just drive it around for fun. I'd like to be sure there's a problem that's been addressed so I can walk in with enough knowledge to describe the problem, and the solution.

~Thanks

[jduffy]

I always stick with the classics, Mark Twain.

[Rob_g]

Originally Posted by Craig

I drive an AT, wanted to get your input without creating a separate thread on it.

Sometimes when I first turn my car on, when slowing to a stop I can feel something weird. If I drop it into manual mode, the car will actually shudder as I slow to a stop. If I'm sitting at a traffic light and roll up a bit, then slow down, it feels as if the engine kicks off. I haven't noticed a large dip in my RPM when it happens which is strange, but it sure feels that way.

~Thanks

What do you mean 'kicks off'? The AT FR-S I used to have once exhibited a weird behavior when I was stopped behind a truck. Every time I creeped up, there was a 'bump' in the drivetrain. The car was plagued with idle dip and inconsistent idle. The ECU replacement made it better, but the car was slowly getting worse again. I got rid of it and have a 4Runner now.

My FR-S was early production, I bought it May 31st. It was one of the first ones available in Canada.

Rob

[BCooke]

Originally Posted by BCooke

Dropped my BRZ off at the dealership last Saturday, 11/10, and my service rep said that he would get back to me with an update today.
A few hours ago I got a call saying that the car won't be ready until the first week of December.

Is that the typical wait time for a new ECU?

Alright, update.

Two days ago I called Subaru Customer Service and talked to a very nice lady named Elizabeth. She said she would try to get the ball rolling for me.

Today I got a call from my dealership saying that my car was ready for pickup. A call to Subaru shortened my wait time from 3 weeks to 5 days.
I just hope its fixed for good.

[Craig]

Originally Posted by Rob_g

What do you mean 'kicks off'? The AT FR-S I used to have once exhibited a weird behavior when I was stopped behind a truck. Every time I creeped up, there was a 'bump' in the drivetrain. The car was plagued with idle dip and inconsistent idle. The ECU replacement made it better, but the car was slowly getting worse again. I got rid of it and have a 4Runner now.

My FR-S was early production, I bought it May 31st. It was one of the first ones available in Canada.

Rob

That really scares me because the 'bump' in the drivetrain is what I'm talking about. It happens very infrequently and is impossible to recreate. I'm thinking the next time it creeps up to pull directly into the closest Toyota dealership and show them what I'm talking about.

As far as Idle dip, all I notice is when I first turn the car on it idles at 1500rpm, then after it settles it drops to ~600 and floats around there until I start going. Never really goes up or down more than 50rpms when idle (going on torque app data).

Did yours happen all the time or randomly like mine?

[DaJo]

Originally Posted by Craig

That really scares me because the 'bump' in the drivetrain is what I'm talking about. It happens very infrequently and is impossible to recreate. I'm thinking the next time it creeps up to pull directly into the closest Toyota dealership and show them what I'm talking about.

As far as Idle dip, all I notice is when I first turn the car on it idles at 1500rpm, then after it settles it drops to ~600 and floats around there until I start going. Never really goes up or down more than 50rpms when idle (going on torque app data).

Did yours happen all the time or randomly like mine?

That's the fast idle from start-ups. Very normal, so nothing to worry about.

[3MI Racing]

Originally Posted by mhigham

So I get to look at the cars on the lot but not enjoy the one just like it that I own.

I agree. For a car that had such hype, its launch I think will go down as a failure or at least forgettable. I cannot/will not believe that three years of testing did not reveal this problem; this had to be known about over a year ago.

That is necessarily true, for various reasons. One, the development of this engine actually started as an EJ20 with direct injection added. I have one set of the prototype heads, as Subaru has been known to let things like this 'slip' out of the door.
Secondly, having spent years as an OEM engine calibration and performance engineer (still do it as a consultant), their are numerous production gate levels in which both hardware, software and components are changing from prototype to production-like to production-level parts and all along the way, you'll find little bug and tweaks to get sorted out in the test cell and chassis.

I am not taking away from the fact that there is an obvious issue but it could have been something as simple as going to production level GDI injectors that are causing the issues. So now they had the calibration engineers go back, hunt down the root-cause and make a patch to flash. It's actually quite common place, although usually bugs don't show up this soon unless the project was behind schedule and the marketing/$$ guys had already set a deadline and now engineering got screwed...I've NEVER heard/seen that happen

-Micah

[rapidcars]

Originally Posted by xomp

After another ~1300 (~4000 total miles now) miles on the new ECU of fairly stable though slightly misfire-y idle, I just noticed a slight idle dip on a warm engine with no A/C when coming to a stop. Will the dealership fun return soon? Oh this car is so exciting whether or not you want it to be.

I get the same idle drop after my reflash. Drops to about 500, vibrates a bit and then picks back up to 600-700. Oddly, I filled up with Shell 93 yesterday and the problem seems to have gone away. I've read of others experiencing the same so maybe try changing gas stations.