(Very Important) Brz Valve Spring Recall Information
 

I know there is probably a thread out there with this information but I am new to the forum and I need answers

Back in December my timing belt went

When I took my car to the dealer they fixed the timing belt and also preformed a valve spring recall

couple weeks later I started leaking oil so I took the car to the dealer and they resealed the engine free of charge

couple weeks after that I was still leaking oil so I once a again, took my car to the dealer where they resealed the engine free of charge

My car has been running fine up until a week a go when my car started to feel slower. Fast forward to last weekend I was driving on the highway and my car started sounding like a helicopter so I pulled over and got my car towed to the dealership.

They called me today saying I have and cylinder 3 misfire and a rod knock and quoted me 15k for a new engine.

I don't have much knowledge on engines but is it possible that the first two times I took my car to the dealer they did not use enough sealant (which caused the oil leaks) and the second time they applied too much sealant which caused the missfire and the rod knock?

If anyone can give me more information I would greatly appreciate it, going to meet with the manager tomorrow hopping they will take the blame.

That’s exactly what happened. There is a whole thread on J02 recall failures.

also important to note, these vehicles have a timing chain, not a timing belt. timing chains do not need to be replaced.

Welcome to the j02 club. We should make t shirts

very sad news to hear, haven't heard much more buzz on this but i have a 2012 and i'll be damned if i let anyone touch mine for this heinous recall.

been running boost for over 5 years and no issue so i see no reason to do anything on my end. here's hoping and i do hope you find a resolve that doesn't stick you with the entire bill.

Lawyer up. They screwed up the sealing and caused a blockage in the oil passages. This failure is on them but they will fight it every step of the way.

https://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=133095
https://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=133306

Sad reading, my car went through valve recall fix-> New bottom end a year before i bought it. I just wish Toyota would have made the engine instead..

Nothing to do with who made the engine. The other cars in the recall that didn't have the FA 20 didn't suffer the same fate.
Who knows it could have been worse if it was a one off Toyota engine just as it is a one off Subaru one.

you are right, it was not my timing belt, it was the serpentine belt. from what I remember one of the pulleys was not working properly and it burnt a hole through the belt

To my understanding, this has nothing to do with the engine, this was caused by Subaru technicians not doing their job right.

I spoke with the manager and he said he is seeing what they can do... almost like he knows they fu**ed up and trying to cover their tracks.

Im a 18 yr in high school, a lawyer isn't really something I can afford so I'm hopping we can resolve this without one.

Maybe apply leverage through SOA?

You may be able to. There were many dealers that did indeed acknowledge that they screwed up and ate the cost of the repair. The fact that they quoted you a replacement price is not a good indicator that they will do this though I am afraid. Before you agree to paying any repairs check around for a lawyer that will at least talk to you. Many will not charge for the first consultation. Will give you a better idea of your chances in a fight and could be way cheaper than the $15K replacement cost.

Did you authorize them to do the recall work or did they just do it on their own?

They wont help. At least they never did with anybody else where the dealer wouldn't accept responsibility. Remember the dealerships are privately owned not run by SOA.

I did authorize the recall work since they did tell me it was mandatory.

And I think the dealership knows this is their fault, it's just a matter of if they're paying for it or not.

Well if they know it is their fault...

Subaru of America won't do anything for an 18 year old living in Toronto Canada!
Nick, contact Subaru Canada's customer service. Tell them that your car has suffered a known engine failure related to the valve recall repair. You want to find out if the dealer has been paid for the recall repair. Most important is that SoC knows that it resulted in an engine failure that is not your fault. Make sure that they know that the dealer MUST come good for this. If SoC Customer Service or the dealership doesn't get back to you with the answer you want (in a timely fashion) than contact Pat Foran at CTV News or another TV news consumer advocate.
Good Luck!

SOC won't help either. It is not their issue that a dealer screwed up. They have said so many times.

I'm just damn sorry, OP. I die a little bit inside every time I read about this shit show.

definitely talk to a lawyer. worked with one once that said he sometimes writes a very strongly worded letters on company letterhead to encourage the other party to come to the desired conclusion, and has had good success with the approach many times. might be able to have a lawyer write up the letter for a minimal fee as a second step-- after the first step of the dealer deciding to not own up to it doesn't go anywhere.

Is there any kind of public legal services in your area or through your high school? Maybe talk to a school counselor. Good luck.

He may actually have a case under the Consumer Protection Act since the last repair was one week before the failure.
The problem would be proving the repair was the cuase.

https://www.ontario.ca/page/filing-consumer-complaint

Last engine repair was in December, but I did not put more than 2000km on it since then.

All of my receipts are sitting in the glove box in my car so I can not currently access them so my time line is slightly off. From looking back at old photos I believe the first repair was preformed in October, with my last engine repair being preformed in December.

Thanks for the help anyways, still going back and forth with the dealer before I pursue legal action.

Oh certainly go as far as possible with the dealer first. If in December then you are outside of the 90 day window. I misread your timing in your first post.

Perhaps that is so (SoC not helping). However, its part of the due diligence that the OP must perform before legal action can be taken. He has to show that he attempted to resolve the issue by all means before starting said legal action.
Furthermore, Subaru, (like all manufactures) requires that in order for a dealership to keep its franchise it must maintain the standards as laid out in their agreement. Dealerships that fail to maintain standards may be penalized. For example; charged higher prices for parts, not allowed participation in bonus programs or other similar punitive measures.

Agreed but we already have a firm history in both Canada and the US of corporate Subaru saying “not our problem”.
Looks like he is doing all the right steps if it has to go further though.

Update***

After a few weeks of going back and forth with the dealership they agreed to giving me a brand new engine free of charge.

For anyone else going through the same issue as me, the best advice I can give you is to threaten to report the dealership to OMVIC and Subaru Canada since they must hold a certain standard with their customers to sell vehicles in Canada.

Thank you to everyone that replied to this thread

What year 86’s/BRZ’s were affected by this recall?

https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls?nhtsaId=18V772

https://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=21868

Great outcome and the one I hoped you'd get.