15 wrx 70k miles. Dealer lied to us about warranty while car was still stock

garjones · 11-16-2020, 12:44 AM

So We acquired my 15 wrx about 3 years ago with 30k miles on it, at around 50k miles on it we got a p0018 which is intake cam 2 out of timing. So we took it in to get it checked out, and the tech told us there was some oil in the wire, and that it just needed to be cleaned out. So he "Cleaned it out" and the code came back on the next morning. We were told that because it was wiring it wouldn't be covered under warranty, and it wasn't a big deal, it would just have to be cleared every so often (every other time i start the car, so i just reset the ECU before i turn it off). I bought the car from my father about 6 months ago with 62000 miles, and im currently at just over 70, and i decided to try and fix this because as a daily driver it is very annoying. I didn't think it was the wiring, so i switched around the intake cam sensors to see if the code followed, it didn't. SO i switched around the ocvs to see if it followed, it didn't. So i asked online and everyone was telling me it was the cam sprocket, and that it was a common issue in the first year. I took it to a shop near my house (not a Subaru specialty shop) and after telling them the code, they said the same thing ( they did not look at the car, just went off the code), and quoted about 1500$. Since I've owned the car, I've put a catback on it, intake, and a ron Watson e tune. Do you guys think it could actually just be a wiring issue? and shouldn't that have been fixed under the warranty (while it was 100% stock)? if it is actually the cam sprocket would i have a case against the dealer because it should have been under warranty? or am I SOA because its no longer stock? I've been stressing about this for a long time, Ive wanted a wrx since i was young, and finally turning 20 i can afford one just to have a dealer screw me over. I love the car, hate the dealer.

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DrD · 11-16-2020, 01:50 PM

Have you called SoA to see what they say? I would call them and see what they say - technically, no one has confirmed it's the sprocket on your car yet, correct? They will probably want you to bring it in to a dealership for diagnosis, though. The exhaust isn't a concern - not sure what they would say about the intake, but the tune is going to be a red flag for them.

You are out of warranty, but if the problem manifested itself while you were in warranty for the powertrain, and was definitely a hardware issue, I would think SoA would help you out. You need to call them, though.

11-16-2020, 12:44 AM	#1
garjones Scooby Newbie Member#: 520312 Join Date: Nov 2020	15 wrx 70k miles. Dealer lied to us about warranty while car was still stock So We acquired my 15 wrx about 3 years ago with 30k miles on it, at around 50k miles on it we got a p0018 which is intake cam 2 out of timing. So we took it in to get it checked out, and the tech told us there was some oil in the wire, and that it just needed to be cleaned out. So he "Cleaned it out" and the code came back on the next morning. We were told that because it was wiring it wouldn't be covered under warranty, and it wasn't a big deal, it would just have to be cleared every so often (every other time i start the car, so i just reset the ECU before i turn it off). I bought the car from my father about 6 months ago with 62000 miles, and im currently at just over 70, and i decided to try and fix this because as a daily driver it is very annoying. I didn't think it was the wiring, so i switched around the intake cam sensors to see if the code followed, it didn't. SO i switched around the ocvs to see if it followed, it didn't. So i asked online and everyone was telling me it was the cam sprocket, and that it was a common issue in the first year. I took it to a shop near my house (not a Subaru specialty shop) and after telling them the code, they said the same thing ( they did not look at the car, just went off the code), and quoted about 1500$. Since I've owned the car, I've put a catback on it, intake, and a ron Watson e tune. Do you guys think it could actually just be a wiring issue? and shouldn't that have been fixed under the warranty (while it was 100% stock)? if it is actually the cam sprocket would i have a case against the dealer because it should have been under warranty? or am I SOA because its no longer stock? I've been stressing about this for a long time, Ive wanted a wrx since i was young, and finally turning 20 i can afford one just to have a dealer screw me over. I love the car, hate the dealer. * Registered users of the site do not see these ads.

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11-16-2020, 01:50 PM	#2
DrD Scooby Guru Member#: 22412 Join Date: Aug 2002 Chapter/Region: SWIC Location: Albuquerque, NM Vehicle: 2012 Legacy 2.5GT Ice Silver Metallic	Have you called SoA to see what they say? I would call them and see what they say - technically, no one has confirmed it's the sprocket on your car yet, correct? They will probably want you to bring it in to a dealership for diagnosis, though. The exhaust isn't a concern - not sure what they would say about the intake, but the tune is going to be a red flag for them. You are out of warranty, but if the problem manifested itself while you were in warranty for the powertrain, and was definitely a hardware issue, I would think SoA would help you out. You need to call them, though.