Valve Adjustment @ 22miles
 

Hey everyone, first off sorry if this isn't in the right place I apologize, but this is my first time posting here. I recently purchased a 2018 BRZ and within two days of driving off the lot I had a CEL. When I first purchased the Car the CEL was on and I was told that it was just the gas cap not being tightened and they took it over to service and the light was off when they brought it back. Fast forward a week when I go in to see what this "new" CEL is about and they let me know the car needs a valve adjustment and they gave me a loaner. I figured I would make this post to first let people know of the issues I'm having since I know others are having the same with their 2018 BRZs. My second reason for making this post is to see if you guys believe the dealership "Bamboozled" me and lied about the original CEL. I'm not too knowledgeable with engine stuff and am a first time buyer. I just want to make sure I'm not getting played by the dealership and am rightfully taken care of.

If the dealer keeps records of who comes in for what, you would hope that they have recorded what the CELs were. It won't hurt to ask what was the code for the first CEL and what was the code of the 2nd CEL and provide evidence...

Not sure if they would keep details like that thought. from a business/dealerships standpoint, in my opinion it's important to keep a database of information like that.. worth a shot. good luck, sorry to hear your new brz is doing this.

I don't exactly know if you've been bamboozled but suspicious to me that the dealer would sell you a 2018 car with a CEL on. I'd recommend buying a handheld scanner, they are so cheap and easy to use now. Then you could have known right off the bat if they lied about what the CEL was. I personally wouldn't have someone else scan CELs and just take their word for it.

good point.. these things are on amazon if you get the bluetooth one even and get the Torque App on your phone...

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_s...ue+pro+elm+327

20 bucks can go a long way. otherwise, it may be a tad more for a hardwired one.

They didn't sell him a car with the CEL on. It came on after two days. The scanner would be a good idea. That way he could tell us the codes and we would have at least a clue if the dealer fibbed.
The valve adjustment is a known item with the 18s.

It had a cel during purchase and they cleared the code before he took delivery.

Unfortunately they probably just cleared the code with a scanner and sent it out the door. I doubt anyone wrote a ticket, salesguy just probably asked a tech to clear the code.

Good luck OP. Sounds like the beginning of some fun.

DAMNIT I missed a whole sentence!


https://thumbs.gfycat.com/VastDiffic...restricted.gif

Figured I'd post a quick update, I've been on and off the phone with the dealership for the past 2 days. They did not take data on what the first CEL code was. They let me know that the car will be ready for pick up tommorow (I'll believe it when I'm in the car). Lastly, they will be paying for my first months payment as a reconciliation for all this BS.

That's very nice of them. But still, why would they sell a new car with a CEL on?

Yes the dealership tried to pull a fast one on you. 99% of the time the CEL is on because "the gas cap isn't tight enough" is grasping at straws. Especially this car, where the gas cap doesn't click but just springs back once fully tightened.



There have been other reported cases of new 2017/2018s getting a CEL and requiring a valve adjustment. Hopefully your car is okay now, because other users are still having problems and are not protected by lemon laws...

Agree with the above. Sounds like a shady dealer. Hopefully they fixed it. Post an update in a few months!

I had the same issue with my 2017 brz. CEL illuminated with less than 500 miles. I went to the dealership to see whats wrong with the car but before going there I checked my gas cap multiple times because I know they’re going to give me that “its the gas cap” crap. Once I got to the dealership, I told the service guy I have the CEL on and I made sure that the gas cap was tightly secured. Then he had one of his tech “check” on the car, which I highly doubt, and reseted the ECU. They told me that is probably just a sensor error which I found strange but I’m not in the mood to argue. . After a month, CEL came back and service tech performed a vavle adjustment. I thought everything was fixed but after 8 months and 5000 miles, CEL illuminates again for the 3rd time due to the same 2 codes. As of the moment, my car is still in the dealership for a month now.

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showt...=125938&page=2 - OP discusses the same issue with his vehicle.