Subaru Crew Problems & Solutions

smokeybaer2 · June 2003

At 35,000 mi my front rotors warped. Others sem to have gotten them replaced but factory rep here in Salem, OR wouldonly authorize a turning. Had it done but now at about 52,000 miles they are shaking again. When cool there is no problem but after many hours on the freeway the steering wheel really shakes badly. Have requested dealer get the rotors replaced this time as I do have the Gold plus extended warranty. They are going to contact Subaru rep again to see if he will OK it. I am very easy on the brakes. Still have lots of pad left at 52,000 miles on original pads. Any suggestions on how to convince them to replace the rotors instead of just turning them again?

Warren

francophile · June 2003

I've had mine cut twice so far, once under warranty and once on my own. The brakes still work fine.

Regards,
-wdb

bluesubie · June 2003

Unless SoA has changed their stance in the past year or so, they do not recommend turning the rotors. The rep should ok new rotors, but call SoA to see what they say.

-Dennis

hondafriek · June 2003

The line that broke was copper, but I had been careful to wind anti vibration coils on it when I installed it.

  Needless to say it is disconnected until I find a safer way to install it again.

  And yeah Craig just goes to show what can happen even when you think you are doing the right thing.

  Cheers Pat.

snowbelter · June 2003

I posted in Subaru Problems and Solutions, #1509, about Subaru turning my rotors at 17k on my 02 VDC. They gave me written policy from SOA that said up to two turnings ok before any rotor replacment and not to turn rotors if just replacing pads. I have Gold Plus Extended warranty and it excludes rotor coverage (I believe). Let us all know if your Gold Plus warranty covers rotors. Subaru seems to think rotors are a maintenance item after 3/36 and that numbers of Subie owners reporting warping is not excessive. I suggested that since Subaru is adding wear to my rotors when they turn then, they ought to extend the warranty to cover the excess wear they caused by turning.

ateixeira · June 2003

Wow Pat, good thing you caught it. I've heard of brake lines breaking on Jeeps going off road, but that's about it.

-juice

fibber2 · June 2003

Lucky for you it broke on the engine side of the firewall, rather than under the dash. You would have known it earlier, but imagine the mess!

Think of it as additional chassis rust proofing.... ;-)

Steve

john284 · June 2003

I called 1800subaru3 for a problem with the dealer while the car was at the dealership for a cold clutch shudder problem. After paying $45 for a road test, I found my car shaking and shifter is really loose. Do you think they were mad enough to mess my car up(how do they do it)? It definitely feels different now. I have second thought now about leaving the car with manual transmission to anyone with a pontential abusiveness. By the way, Juice, can you tell me how to adjust the shifter (tighten)?

I dont have to mention the name of the dealership, but if the matter got worse, I would let everyone know so you wont get screwed.

nygreg · June 2003

is there another dealer you can bring your car to? There are big differences between dealers. You did the right thing about calling Subaru.

Greg

nygreg · June 2003

My point being, here in NY we have a hands free law. I agree with the law, you need your "hands free" to operate the car. However, I also feel that even with the hands free kits people do not concentrate on driving. They are too caught up in their conversations to notice the brake lights in front of them. This can also be said for other distractions such a fixing hair, giving the baby sitting behind them their bottle, spilling coffee, etc.

Greg

nygreg · June 2003

I was told Subaru will turn if first (once?) and then replace if still a problem. Recently, they wouldn't cover my warped rotors now that I have 42K on the car. The dealer tried to work with me saying they would give me new rotors in the back and turn the front if just pay for the turning. I politely turned it down and decided I will go with aftermarket. I plan on calling Subaru to let them know.

Greg

erics6 · June 2003

Warren,

I've had my front & rear rotors turned. No shaking while braking but I still get shaking in the steering wheel while driving at highway + speeds. Tires have been balanced numerous times and two alignments have been done.

Do you feel the shaking only while you are braking, or all of the time? When my front rotors warped you could feel it through the brakes. The shaking occurs while you are in motion. No connection to being on the brakes or gas.

-Eric
Portland, OR

smokeybaer2 · June 2003

My vibration is really noticeable when running gear is HOT after many hours of freeway running.The faster I am going the more violent the shake. Feels like a shimmy in the front end and the steering wheel rocks or vibrates. This only happens when pushing brake pedal. At slow speed or when rotors are cool its not noticable. This occured awile back and when front rotors were turned the shake went away. Even more noticable when weather is hot too.

Warren

bat1161 · June 2003

Question for all:

My dealer is doing a "special" on an oil flush. It's all part of an oil change, and they say it extends the life of the engine as well as improves mileage. Has anyone ever heard of this, and is it worth while or os it just a method of their making $$ on an oil change?

Mark

kens · June 2003

I wouldn't get the rotors turned also. It almost always results in warpage again, but sooner. I've always wondered if there are some other factors other than driving style and lug-nut torque that affect rotor warpage. It just seems like some folks just tend to warp rotors more often.

The oil flush sounds like an opportunity for the dealer to fatten their margin. If you have been changing your oil on a regular schedule, I'd skip it.

Ken

erics6 · June 2003

Sounds like replacement rotors might be the solution.

bluesubie · June 2003

My limited knowledge would lead me to believe that it would an oil flush would be beneficial for a high mileage engine with a lot of sludge.

A while back I spoke with Ed Barry (shop foreman) about synthetic oil. He said that boxer engines don't develop sludge as bad as other engines.

I'm going in Saturday. Do you have an appointment soon (assuming this is Flemington)?

-Dennis

bat1161 · June 2003

Dennis,

Actually I am dropping it off tonight. I'm having them check out a couple of things that they want to keep it over night. Since I repalced the battery almost 3 weeks ago, the engine keeps revving at around 2500-3000 RPMs when I start up after it sits for several hours. Also, the blower some times doesn't switch from vent to defroster, or to floor. Just little things that would take too long on a Sat.

Maybe they'll have an XT for a test drive?

Mark

locke2c · June 2003

Warren--

what are the highways like in your neck of the woods? (you've got nothing in your profile, so I have to ask.)

around here in Kansas, brakes actually are stone cold on highway trips because they're never ever used. if you have anything at all similar, then I suspect you've got something else going on AND warped rotors. tire balance & runout would be the first thing I'd check, followed by wheel bearings --which should be making a lot of noise, kind of a roar, if they're failing.

-Colin

jay_24 · June 2003

I'll agree with Colin. I just replaced a rear wheel bearing in our mini-van. I thought it was brakes. It made a roar noise that was a bit worse when turning (shifting the weight to that wheel). It was also worse and shaked a bit when braking.

--jay

bluesubie · June 2003

Just to correct my post about SoA and rotors. They do recommend resurfacing, but there is a minimum thickness.

I recalled more details of an SoA conversation I had after reading a letter in Road & Track about rotors.

-Dennis

francophile · June 2003

If you feel a shake or shimmy only at certain speeds or under certain conditions, whether the brakes are being applied or not, that is a wheel/tire balance/out-of-round issue.

If you feel it ONLY when the brakes are being applied, it is rotors (assuming a car with 4-wheel disk brakes).

I used to fix cars for a living; I see no reason whatsoever not to cut rotors, in fact it has been being done ever since disk brakes have been put on cars. There is a minimum thickness beyond which the rotors should not be cut, and that too has been in place ever since the beginning. This is old, old, well-known technology. There is nothing whatsoever wrong with cutting rotors, so long as the limits are followed.

rgds,
-wdb

ateixeira · June 2003

I can't imagine a dealer would intentionally make a problem worse, it would only earn them complaints.

Start at the arm rest, I think there are 2-3 screws, lift it up, then work your way forward towards the shifter. Things basically snap in/out. Unscrew the shift knob before lifting the surround.

On my Forester, which is probably similar, there's a nut and bolt that holds the shifter in place, sort of a fulcrum. The one on my STi short shifter rattled loose after a while (my fault, I installed it). Tightening it stopped the shaking I was feeling on the shifter itself.

-juice

ateixeira · June 2003

The front left bearing failed on our 626, all I can say it the sound went "chunk-chunk-chunk..." and it was speed dependent.

I must have the 1 in a million brakes, because I just rotated my tires today and did a brake inspection. They're perfect, no big grooves on the rotors, and the pads are not even half worn, at 52k miles!

-juice

c_hunter · June 2003

One of my previous Hondas made it out to 90,000+ miles before I had to replace the brake pads. Not that uncommon for a car with manual transmission and a sensible driver. The way my wife brakes, on the other hand, I expect her auto-trans Forester to need new pads by 30,000 miles!

Craig

nygreg · June 2003

Actually, it is possible to get a shimmy at highway speeds with a warped rotor without applying the brakes (mine does). Applying the brakes, of course, magnifies this quite a bit. If the brakes seem fine when cold and get worse as they heat up, this could be hot spots on the rotors which gives you similar shake. Subaru rotors, as many others I suspect, are surface hardened. Depending on how deep the hardened area extends, cutting could lead to earlier warpage than a new one. Now, anyone have suggestions for aftermarket rotors/pads?? EBC? Hawk? Brembo?

Greg

paisan · June 2003

Actually I think that flushing the oil is probably better on lower milage cars, on higher milage cars, flushing can cause the seals to fail IIRC.

-mike

paisan · June 2003

I've had good luck with the Axxis Metalmasters and Ultimates. Others on my raceteam use Hawk HP+s.

Don't get crossdrilled or dimple drilled. I recently had them crack on the SVX after a hot track day. Solid Brembo Blanks should work well IMHO.

-mike

bat1161 · June 2003

Oh well, I still have time to think it over. I tried getting out to flemington yesterday. Left the office at 3:20 - at 5:20 I was still what would normally be another half hour ride, so I cancelled saying I will reschedule. If I was lucky it would have been another hour to get out there. This is one time I wished SI Subaru service was good (-:

It's funny. My car must have known it was going in about the rough idling- for the last day and a half everything has been normal. Figures.

Mark

john284 · June 2003

I did open up the shifter yesterday, the nut and bolt that hold the shifter with the linkage was very tight, the loosened part is the linkage (the part that goes from the shifter down to the transmission housing) itself, I could move the shifter side by side when the shifter is in gear, I had an impression that (especially in 5th gear), the shifter shouldn't wobble so much....
Well, the whole thing started when the dealer called about $1500 worth of repair work, but I said everything is fine except the cold clutch shudder, then I contact the Subaru, Pat called the dealer the same day, she told me the dealer said the transmission is fine (?????).

bluesubie · June 2003

My wife's OB had a shimmy about a year ago. It turned out to be the front axle out of spec. It was replaced under warranty.

Mark, try to get the rough idling on video. I did that for a clutch problem I had. :-)

-Dennis

bat1161 · June 2003

Dennis-

Good point, I never thought to put it on tape! I just wanted to have it documented, just in case anything ever happened. Diane and Ed at Flemington tohught it was just the ECU settling down after the new battery, but I thought 2.5 - 3 weeks was way too long for the learning process.

Mark

celica115 · June 2003

Some dealers don't like we call SOA about any case. Everytime I call SOA while my car is repairing in the dealer, the service manager always shows me his angry face when I pick up my car. He also said:"Next time your car has a problem, there is no need to call SUBARU, we will take care of your car. Call us first."
You paid $45.00 for a road test is cheap, one time my dealer asked for $86.00.

Luke

perezc1 · June 2003

I'm thinking about replacing my two-piece AM/FM Cass. head unit + one disc CD player with a 6-disc double din unit. I assume that the stock changer from a 2003 WRX will fit in my 1999 Forester. Correct?

BTW: I'm swapping out the unit because the OEM CD player died. It was one year and three months old - bought new from the dealer when I purchased the used 1999 in early-2002. My dealer wouldn't fix/replace it under warranty (one year parts and labor only). They wanted $280 (and four weeks) to fix! The '02-'03 WRX units are going for under $150 on Ebay/I-Club.

Does anyone think I should pursue Subaru to get it fixed? I could probably file a claim with AMEX under their extended warranty program, but is it worth it?

crashton6 · June 2003

I put one of the WRX changer radios in my 2000 Forester. It is a very direct plug & play swap. I just love it, sounds better than the oem radio. No I don't think you should bother fixing the single disc unit. Take a look at nasioc.

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=9

chazalu · June 2003

I have a Legacy L sedan, 2002. I would like to replace the tires with Continentals Conti ExtremePatch's. These do not come in 205/60-15's, the original tire size. Can I put 205/65-15's or 225/60-15's on the original rims? New wheels maybe.

francophile · June 2003

It's a really good idea to use a tire that has nearly the same circumference as the original; doing this will keep speedometer readings in the right ballpark, maintain ground clearance, etcetera. As for width, putting a wider tire on a rim meant for a narrower bead will result in the tire sidewalls not being supported directly, thereby causing a bit of squishiness and squirm. If you don't ever drive aggressively you may never notice it; on the other hand it might compromise handling in emergency maneuvers.

The Tire Rack is a fantastic resource, not only for the wide range of tires and wheels they offer but also for technical specifications such as tire circumference and recommended wheel width.

rgds,
-wdb

axp696 · June 2003

Why did you call SoA when your car was being repaired? Was their service not meeting your needs or was there some other problem that your dealer wasn't addressing?

celica115 · June 2003

It was because my WRX had oil leaks problem since the first day. I went to the same dealer for repair for 5 times. It has never been fixed completely. I had to bring back my car for every 4 months. So last time I went to different SUBARU dealer for repair for the same problem. They charged me $86.00 for check up fee, and they could not find any leaks. They just cleaned and wiped all the leaks showing me everything OK. One month after, I saw the oil leaks again. I send my car back to the another dealer, and they fixed it. Now I have no more oil leaks. It was a very bad experience.

Luke

jimmyp1 · June 2003

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

suggests that the closest fit would be 225/55/15's at within .2% of original. However, I've heard that 215's are about the widest Subarus will handle to virtually "guarantee" no rubbing.

Jim

ateixeira · June 2003

You should call 800-SUBARU3 and ask to be reimbursed. There was a leak, very clearly, and you now have the paperwork to prove it.

John: I'm in MD, too. If you're interested, I have a complete STi shift kit linkage. I'm not sure if it fits the Forester (it was made for the Impreza), but if you feel adventurous and want to try e-mail me...

There are rubber bushings and there will always be some play in the system, but yours sounds like more than that. Maybe yours hit a rock or something and was damaged physically?

-juice

ateixeira · June 2003

The WRX 6CD fits in my 98 Forester and our 2002 Legacy also. Did these myself. The Legacy was so-so, the Forester was easy.

-juice

peterson10 · June 2003

I'm back. I haven't been on the board for about a year (pressures of life, marathon training, flyfishing...you get the picture). Well, in an effort to get back up to speed I've been skimming recent posts and now need your collective wisdom.

1) I'm ashamed to say that I'm happy to hear that others are now experiencing the exhaust "pop" that I've had since day one (2002 Forester, 5 spd). My dealer has been NO HELP WHATSOEVER (..."yeah, all manual trannies do that...")! Is anyone getting close to solving the "why" of this mystery?

2) Someone posted something about an upgraded clutch. Both my Forester and OB have a tendancy to chatter, but I've learned to work with it (and now only swear uncontrollably when my daughter is out of earshot). Lately, its been a bit more problematic with my OB (perhaps because it is a bit older, 2000 MY). Is Subaru finally offering a remedy?

Thanks in advance for your help, I'll try not to go missing again.
YetAnotherDave

ateixeira · June 2003

Someone had posted a PDF file with the TSB on the clutch, I think it would help to show it to the dealer.

The backfire might be unburned fuel? Anyone?

-juice

nippononly · June 2003

backfire, or just a quiet 'pop' when you let up all the way suddenly?

If it is the latter, my OBS did that all six years I had it.

If it is an honest-to-goodness backfire, there has to be something wrong there, all manuals do NOT do that.

sidious6688 · June 2003

Recently, my forester has developed a ticking sound that speeds up or down porportionally with the engine speed. The Forester is a 2001 Forester S 5 speed manual with about 40,000 miles. I bought the car new, no other problems, all dealer serviced, etc. The car still operates normally. A/c on or off has no relationship to the noice. It simply relates to the engine speed. Doesn't matter whether in gear or just in idle. If you give it gas, the tick increases. Fluids, oil, etc are all normal. Could not see any loose wires or anything under the hood. Any ideas? Have not yet gone to dealer. Thanks.

misty12 · June 2003

For about a month, my 03 Forester with 15,600 miles, manual transmission, has been jerky on shifting. AND there is a shaking or shuddering at times when shifting. I especially notice it when lifting up the clutch going from first to second gear and less so from second to third gear. But not EVERY time.
TOok it to the dealer. THey said they found a bad Hold Valve related to the Hill Holder and would order the part. In again a few days later for the repair. NO HELP WHATSOVER. I still have the jerky drive, and shudder mmost notably in first gear shifting. I do not think it is limited to cold weather, as I have noticed it later in the day and not just morning. So back to the same dealer now? OR try another Subaru place? Anyone else had this problem . I told them both times I went in I thought it was the clutch.

fibber2 · June 2003

The most obvious source for continuous ticking would be a valve clearance issue. As discussed here in the past, EJ25 series II SOHC engines use mechanical lash adjusters. Many engines last forever without ever needing a touchup, but some might wear a bit unevenly and require service. I have adjusted valves on a number of inline engines and it is no big deal. H-opposed engines might present more of a challenge due to the head nestled down against the wheelwells. Another strong possibility includes a bad fuel injector. Had that once - bad solenoid - repetitive ticking.

Lower on the list: Timing belt tensioner (some have had them replaced), although that has been reported as usually a cold startup noise. Even bad bearings in the drive (fan) belt tensioners can give a repetitive tick noise. Also on the list might be actual rod knock or piston slap.

Each has a telltale sound, so all I can do is throw out possibilities. Hope this helps,

Steve

john284 · June 2003

I took the car to the dealership again, they did a road test again, and saying it was normal, and lifted the car up and showed to me no damage to the linkage, I talked about the shifter being loose, they dont have a clue. (I am thinking is it the temperature outside? the warmer it gets, the hotter the fluid will get, and thus the shifter loose). I remembered that you are not supposed to put pressure on the shifter like resting your hand on it while not shifting, I followed that rule), but the shifter is loose now, I wonder if any short term abuse will lead to a damge to the linkage...

ateixeira · June 2003

The standard systems has some play because the bushings are rubber, and the shaft itself is rubber-insulated. I have a photo that shows the OE shaft and the STi next to each other, if you want I'll e-mail it to you.

It may just take getting used to. Let us know if it ever becomes a problem though.

-juice

Subaru Crew Problems & Solutions

Comments

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles