FA20 issues - again

"MUSASHI66" (musashi66) 01/29/2019 at 17:42 • Filed to: None

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So, my wife’s ‘17 WRX is in the shop....again. Check engine light at 18k miles, throwing code P0016 - camshaft position sensor. While it was there, techs noticed that the left axle seal is leaking as well.

At first, they thought the code was just a loose sensor. Then they had to replace the sensor. It threw the code again after a test drive, so now they are tearing into the engine and going after cam sprockets.

This is on top of throw-out bearing going bad at 12k miles on both mine and hers, and my ga s cap going bad at 1k miles.

I am not super happy.

HammerheadFistpunch > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 18:18

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Subaru reliability isn’t what it used to be and hasn’t been for a little while now...which is a bummer.

Jarrett - [BRZ Boi] > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 18:24

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I am now officially terrified.

MUSASHI66 > HammerheadFistpunch 01/29/2019 at 18:28

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I’m learning that the hard way.

2001 Legacy, transmission was going bad under 100k miles, and window motor died

Mom had a 2010 Outback, and CVT started dying at 63k miles. We traded it, and we got a recall notice 6 months later.

These issues with our WRXs are annoying - all under warranty, but I’m daily driving my 2000 Tundra which doesn’t fit in the garage and is frozen daily.

We had 6 more Subaru models which did well, but all had low miles when we traded them.

Captain of the Enterprise > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 18:28

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Sorry to hear, but thanks for sharing. I really want one but am super wary of them and probably won’t buy a WRX or any Subaru due to all the horror stories.

DAWRX - The Herb Strikes Back > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 18:33

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Found this thread on NASIOC after some googling. Looks like y’all aren’t alone in your issue. Looks like the sprocket going bad can also ruin the ECU so watch out for that.  

https://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2873410

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 18:47

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and I thought the WRX was the “good one” in the line up...

Oh well, until they get their shit together, no more subaru for me. My Outback has been a pain in the ass...

MUSASHI66 > DAWRX - The Herb Strikes Back 01/29/2019 at 19:06

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Yup, that’s the article I found as well, and my tech did say they are going after mechanical issues under the intake manifold, and he confirmed it is cam sprockets.

MUSASHI66 > Captain of the Enterprise 01/29/2019 at 19:07

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Both of ours are leases, so they go back 36 months later. But I didn’t expect mechanical failures at 12k and 18k miles. 

MUSASHI66 > Jarrett - [BRZ Boi] 01/29/2019 at 19:09

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I’d stay away from these when used. We have a lease on both, and they are hard to ignore as best performance to dollar ratio on the market, but these issues are definitely not good. 

MUSASHI66 > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 01/29/2019 at 19:11

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I thought that as well, and I wasn’t aware that FA20 had many issues. But, after having these issues and checking the forums....

ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 19:17

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Wtf are these shenanigans!

Even my 15yrs old German car ain't that bad.

DAWRX - The Herb Strikes Back > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 19:44

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Does the FA20 have many common problems? I’m not really aware as I’m at 60k miles and haven’t had any mechanical faults...I was hoping your issue was nt that common...

MUSASHI66 > DAWRX - The Herb Strikes Back 01/29/2019 at 20:26

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Apparently both issues we had - p0016 and cam sprockets, and clutch throw out bearing - are fairly common on forums. I didn’t even research the axle leak yet. 

DipodomysDeserti > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 20:28

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On the plus side, at least it’s happening under warranty. In the past WRXs waited until you were out of warranty before they ate a transmission, a headgasket or a piston.

Satoshi "Zipang" Katsura > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 21:47

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... I'm glad I got a 2017 Sport. FB20 with no issues thus far, with the only repair being me and being stupid.

MUSASHI66 > DipodomysDeserti 01/29/2019 at 21:57

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That’s why leasing is good. 

MUSASHI66 > Satoshi "Zipang" Katsura 01/29/2019 at 21:58

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2017 Sport what? I’m not aware of anything “sport” in Subaru lineup with a turbo engine. 

wafflesnfalafel > MUSASHI66 01/29/2019 at 21:58

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poop... I’m at 18k.

MUSASHI66 > wafflesnfalafel 01/29/2019 at 23:00

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Good luck. Thank god for warranty. 

Satoshi "Zipang" Katsura > MUSASHI66 01/30/2019 at 00:23

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.... One of these days, I’m destroying my phone.

Subaru Impreza Sport (hatch, not a turbo, but hey .)

boxrocket > MUSASHI66 01/30/2019 at 14:00

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Sooo... Shopping for a Mazda then?

boxrocket > HammerheadFistpunch 01/30/2019 at 14:10

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They’re plagued with the same issues as Nissan and other brands: Ramping up quantity but not keeping quality’s integrity intact or improving it. Too much in too little time. People laugh at Toyota for selling things past their seeming “Best By” dates, but that’s how they keep their reliability perception and stats so damn high.

MUSASHI66 > boxrocket 01/30/2019 at 23:00

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If mazda had a new, awd manual vehicle with 250+ hp.... in a year, we might be loooking into cx-5 with the new 2.5l turbo for the missus. 

boxrocket > MUSASHI66 02/04/2019 at 12:35

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My missus is on her 2nd CX-5. She/we had a 2016 and she liked the look and some of the additions on the newer model, so we got a new one in December.

I campaigned for the turbo but she was happy with the NA 2.5 we had before and kept with it.

She’s also content with thr automatic, which I get. The shift-it-yourself mode on it does a pretty good job, and there have only been one or two occasions when I’ve felt it was more necessary to use it instead of trusting the auto or just doing it for fun. Both times were when doing some light off-roading in the Smoky Mountains.

MUSASHI66 > boxrocket 02/04/2019 at 17:28

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At this point, we have two choices for her - CX-5 Turbo or Jeep Cherokee TrailHawk. They have some spectacular lease offers on the TrailHawk, like $250 per month with zero down. We’ll see who has the  most tempting offers in a year.