Our Subaru seems worse after some major repairs?
September 9, 2024 11:32 AM Subscribe
What specifically could be causing new heavy "clunk" in transmission, trouble with dashboard notifiers, and other problems after we paid for major repairs?
Attention auto mechanics!
In the past we have used "John's Electric" repair shop and have been pleased with the quality and prices. John runs a one man-shop, specializes in electrical repairs but does others as well. He has a thick Greek accent, along with a very bluff manner, and is sometimes hard to understand.
Recently our 2008 Subaru Outback wagon developed a serious problem with a spark plug, causing it to run extremely erratically. Normally my husband replaces plugs in our cars, but in the Subaru they are more difficult to reach, so we carefully and slowly drove it to John's repair shop. I need to add here that where we live, in the mountain West, Subarus are common and reliable, and most people drive them for many years. We've had ours for a long time without major problems or repairs. So what seems "old" in many parts of the country, is not considered old for Subarus in our part.
John told us that all our six plugs needed repair, as well as the coils. This was somewhat surprising, but we told him to go ahead with the repairs. He replaced the O2 sensor, replaced the wiper motor which wasn't pumping, replaced the air and oil filters. He called us then to say the ECM---car computer--had failed, and would need to be replaced. He would put another one in, and have it programmed.
His bill was $2442, including the computer, for which he charged us $400. I looked it up and this is less than the around $600 charge for a new computer for our model year, so I supposed that he put in a used one.
We paid him, but on driving the car home, we noticed some major problems. What bothers me the most, although my husband says he doesn't notice it, is a new and disturbing "clunk" in our four wheel drive transmission, which occurs when changing gears. Also what bothers me is that the engine seems to shake, in any gear, even in neutral or park. There are also other problems; the cruise control dashboard light comes blinking on, showing up on the dashboard after about three minutes of driving. We can use "S" or S#" mode, but not "I". We thought, oh well, maybe the new computer just needs some time to adjust, but after two weeks of driving and over 200 miles, the problems remain.
We were planning to drive 800 miles to Colorado for a family wedding in two weeks, but I am hesitant to attempt it. Unfortunately, John closed his shop for a month, about a week ago, probably for a trip to Greece.
What could be causing the transmission to clunk and the engine to shake? Any and all responses welcome, thanks in advance!
Attention auto mechanics!
In the past we have used "John's Electric" repair shop and have been pleased with the quality and prices. John runs a one man-shop, specializes in electrical repairs but does others as well. He has a thick Greek accent, along with a very bluff manner, and is sometimes hard to understand.
Recently our 2008 Subaru Outback wagon developed a serious problem with a spark plug, causing it to run extremely erratically. Normally my husband replaces plugs in our cars, but in the Subaru they are more difficult to reach, so we carefully and slowly drove it to John's repair shop. I need to add here that where we live, in the mountain West, Subarus are common and reliable, and most people drive them for many years. We've had ours for a long time without major problems or repairs. So what seems "old" in many parts of the country, is not considered old for Subarus in our part.
John told us that all our six plugs needed repair, as well as the coils. This was somewhat surprising, but we told him to go ahead with the repairs. He replaced the O2 sensor, replaced the wiper motor which wasn't pumping, replaced the air and oil filters. He called us then to say the ECM---car computer--had failed, and would need to be replaced. He would put another one in, and have it programmed.
His bill was $2442, including the computer, for which he charged us $400. I looked it up and this is less than the around $600 charge for a new computer for our model year, so I supposed that he put in a used one.
We paid him, but on driving the car home, we noticed some major problems. What bothers me the most, although my husband says he doesn't notice it, is a new and disturbing "clunk" in our four wheel drive transmission, which occurs when changing gears. Also what bothers me is that the engine seems to shake, in any gear, even in neutral or park. There are also other problems; the cruise control dashboard light comes blinking on, showing up on the dashboard after about three minutes of driving. We can use "S" or S#" mode, but not "I". We thought, oh well, maybe the new computer just needs some time to adjust, but after two weeks of driving and over 200 miles, the problems remain.
We were planning to drive 800 miles to Colorado for a family wedding in two weeks, but I am hesitant to attempt it. Unfortunately, John closed his shop for a month, about a week ago, probably for a trip to Greece.
What could be causing the transmission to clunk and the engine to shake? Any and all responses welcome, thanks in advance!
I have had the experience (with a Honda Jazz/Fit) of having transmission issues, taking it to a dealership that was very big and shiny, being told the ECM needed replacing, paying for that and taking it home, still having transmission issues, then taking it to a smaller, rural dealership with a very good rep for mechanics, and having them look at it, discover a part that was fitted incorrectly and literally needed to be turned 90 degrees, after which all the problems were fixed. I'd go looking for a real mechanic with a good proper greasemonkey rep.
posted by Rhedyn at 12:38 PM on September 9
posted by Rhedyn at 12:38 PM on September 9
Is the check engine light on? If so, solid or blinking? If not, does it come on (as normal) when you turn the key to the on position but do not start the car?
The vibration could be due to a misfire. Is it also down on power? (sluggish) Replacing spark plugs, coil packs and an ECM sounds like someone was trying to chase a misfire.
Your mechanic might have misdiagnosed the original problem or introduced a new problem by failing to reseat a connector, leaving a vacuum hose disconnected, etc. Or perhaps one of the new coil packs is bad, he might have used cheap aftermarket parts. He might have mis-flashed the new ECM. There are a million possibilities.
At any rate, no one can diagnose the car properly without inspecting it in person, scanning it for codes and test driving it, so the long and short of it is that you're going to need to bring it to a competent mechanic.
posted by Larry David Syndrome at 4:28 PM on September 9
The vibration could be due to a misfire. Is it also down on power? (sluggish) Replacing spark plugs, coil packs and an ECM sounds like someone was trying to chase a misfire.
Your mechanic might have misdiagnosed the original problem or introduced a new problem by failing to reseat a connector, leaving a vacuum hose disconnected, etc. Or perhaps one of the new coil packs is bad, he might have used cheap aftermarket parts. He might have mis-flashed the new ECM. There are a million possibilities.
At any rate, no one can diagnose the car properly without inspecting it in person, scanning it for codes and test driving it, so the long and short of it is that you're going to need to bring it to a competent mechanic.
posted by Larry David Syndrome at 4:28 PM on September 9
Even if he did properly replace all the plugs etc. by the book, when replacing the ECM if he didn't correctly initialize and program it, run it in properly, so many things are going to be a little off. Especially if it was a used module. I'm not up on Subarus of that era, but with many modern cars, the ECM can control everything from fuel mixture to ignition timing to transmission shift points and more. If everything isn't properly dialed in, it may run, but it won't be running properly.
Also, seems rather weird for the ECM to just fail like that, especially if you weren't having related problems that prompted you to bring it in for service. How likely is it that he damaged it himself, and then was unable to properly reprogram the replacement module?
posted by xedrik at 4:33 PM on September 9 [3 favorites]
Also, seems rather weird for the ECM to just fail like that, especially if you weren't having related problems that prompted you to bring it in for service. How likely is it that he damaged it himself, and then was unable to properly reprogram the replacement module?
posted by xedrik at 4:33 PM on September 9 [3 favorites]
The one time I had a big "clunk" in my (nearly new) car, they couldn't find it for 18 months of trying. Finally I threatened legal action, and that's when they found that two of the three motor mounts had shattered. The motor was literally not properly bolted to the car, and was twisting around in the engine bay every time I did an accel / decal transition. JFC, guys.
posted by intermod at 8:00 PM on September 9 [2 favorites]
posted by intermod at 8:00 PM on September 9 [2 favorites]
I wonder if this is an ECU configuration issue? The ECU, on many cars, manages literally everything in the car, in conjunction with sub-modules and being configured wrongly (eg configured for a different engine/transmission combination) could possibly cause all of these issues. If all these issues are new, it's almost certain that something done during the recent repair is causing them. The only thing on your list of repairs that could impact multiple systems is the ECU.
I'm also suspicious of the ECU mysteriously failing while it was being repaired. I suggest taking it to a Subaru specialist for diagnosis.
posted by dg at 5:18 PM on September 10
I'm also suspicious of the ECU mysteriously failing while it was being repaired. I suggest taking it to a Subaru specialist for diagnosis.
posted by dg at 5:18 PM on September 10
Is there a Subaru dealer near you? I would take it there, tell them everything that (supposedly?) was done and what the issues are, and ask them to diagnose and repair it.
posted by TimHare at 10:27 PM on September 10
posted by TimHare at 10:27 PM on September 10
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Probably need to find another shop you can trust, in any case.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 12:16 PM on September 9