DIY: Rough idle in cold start/cold temps LGT 07-09

knowing how you drive thats all i would give you if i was a dealer

 

knowing how you drive thats all i would give you if i was a dealer

 

hey it has 148hp, and I can turn the traction control off in this snow/ice business. so the curbs bettar watch out now! but damn the CVT is weird, and I don't really like it.

 

OT, the dealer has confirmed it's the intake manifold gaskets and will take four hours to do. now I just need to convince them it is somehow a powertrain issue (seems like it would be, but gaskets are a wear item?) and should be covered under my warranty.

hey it has 148hp, and I can turn the traction control off in this snow/ice business. so the curbs bettar watch out now! but damn the CVT is weird, and I don't really like it.

 

OT, the dealer has confirmed it's the intake manifold gaskets and will take four hours to do. now I just need to convince them it is somehow a powertrain issue (seems like it would be, but gaskets are a wear item?) and should be covered under my warranty.

 

They really shouldn't give you a hard time since its a well documented issue. You can mention to them that the gaskets were smaller till 08 then they actually changed the part number to reflect the new thicker gasket. You can also ask them to contact SOA to confirm if it comes to that point.

They really shouldn't give you a hard time since its a well documented issue. You can mention to them that the gaskets were smaller till 08 then they actually changed the part number to reflect the new thicker gasket. You can also ask them to contact SOA to confirm if it comes to that point.

 

Just brought in and told them what was wrong, they told me otherwise. Told me it was a fault in the o2 sensor. I call bs, I'll probably wait til it gets warmer to do it. Or have someone do it for me, f**k the dealer.

Just brought in and told them what was wrong, they told me otherwise. Told me it was a fault in the o2 sensor. I call bs, I'll probably wait til it gets warmer to do it. Or have someone do it for me, f**k the dealer.

 

That sucks man sorry to hear that

yeahh man, I need the CT08Spec.b hook up!

yeahh man, I need the CT08Spec.b hook up!

 

I would argue with them and show them this thread that really helped me out. If they keep pushing back maybe have them call SOA to verify. Kinda stupid they blamed a rough idle and studder on an O2 sensor but it goes away when the car is up to operating temp.

I couldn't really argue, I was working at the time, while my gf brought it in. I told her what to say to them and all, they told her o2. I was like BS! yeah, not sure what to do now, but to fix it outside of the dealership.

dude that sucks! if they said something with the O2 sensor I'd have to think the code they read was something to do with that.

 

the codes I had were the 'too lean' and misfires. mine is actually all set now, they replaced the four IM gaskets and covered it under my extended warranty... now I think it's all down to who you talk to. the guy I spoke with @ the dealer said no way gaskets are covered under SoA Powertrain warranty, and they'd try to call it in on whatever else I had. I think CT08 got his covered under SoA.

 

the only positive is that the issue is pretty well documented, and other than it being a PITA to remove the intake manifold and get the job done it's a pretty definite fix.

 

I will have a nice cold ride home to make sure that it really has been solved.

^ Glad you got everything taken care of Jon I am sure it will fix the issue. My job from the dealer was covered under a one time good faith or TSB I think they call it at the dealer. They didnt diagnose the car but I emailed them (the guy I know) this thread which they (a technician) looked at and did the job and thats it. They didnt want to chase down any other issue and I was 99% sure it was the IM gaskets. At the end of the day it was covered and my car is fixed. Edited January 29, 2013 by BigBlack-V

Well I'm 75% of the way through this job on my '08 Spec B. As most people have found, passenger side was (relatively) cake, driver side is not so much. I've got all but the rear driver's side seals done and will tackle that tomorrow after work. I was getting the P0171 code and a rough idle at below freezing temperatures, typical symptoms.

 

It's quite obvious that the old gaskets weren't sealing well though. When I had the manifold lifted off the TGVs I couldn't even feel the lip of the gasket, it was like a continuous smooth plastic surface. The old ones were hard, and even have little creases and depressions that could have been leak paths. The new gaskets should make a world of difference.

between garaged car, warm up procedure and very low temps that are few and far between the problem never really manifested itself in terms of codes. Once, after long highway drive in 10F I felt the car was idling rough. One way or another picking up o rings today will report back how it went.

can't really report back that this it's all fixed on my spec. temps in the 50s last two days, we need winter back!

 

sent from my xt907

stuck with 2 problems. First, one of the bolts in IM came out with metal between treads. Other bolts were looking like new when out, this one had some weird oxidation and took little extra effort to take it out. Not sure if new bolt will even screw in fine. Need to get some spares from stealership first before I try good bolts and mess them up. So, worst case scenario if I can't get that single bolt in or tight enough - what are my options?

2nd issue, fuel hard lines are pretty much sitting on top of the IM. There is maybe 1/8 space left if that. How much play is there in those lines and can I try to gently bent them upwards. That little bracket that screws to IM holds everything down but it can be bent out of the way easily so I am not worrying about that.

6ft-lb of torque should still be possible. atleast confirm the bolt is actually pulling the manifold onto the tgv's.

that's the plan, although won't have new bolt until Wednesday

May have found and alternate fix for this.... my cars in limp mode and now it doesnt seem to idle rough anymore... haha

stuck with 2 problems. First, one of the bolts in IM came out with metal between treads. Other bolts were looking like new when out, this one had some weird oxidation and took little extra effort to take it out. Not sure if new bolt will even screw in fine. Need to get some spares from stealership first before I try good bolts and mess them up. So, worst case scenario if I can't get that single bolt in or tight enough - what are my options?

 

I had the same thing happen to one bolt, the one closest to the brake master cylinder. Using the picks I was able to clean most of the aluminum out of the threads, but not enough that I felt comfortable re-using the bolt. Fortunately I've got piles of extra Subaru hardware lying around and found a suitable replacement. The ideal thing would be to run a tap through the hole in the TGV to clean and straighten the threads. The new bolt went in fine, but it was clear the threads in the hole weren't perfect.

got the tap from O'reillys and bolts courtesy of P&L, for free to boot I think I will rent chasing set from them too since that seems to be more suitable for cleaning the thread. Want to try the least invasive way first. The driver side is frickin impossible to raise so Fuel line are off tomorrow (need to get another tool - 5/16 I believe), the injector pipe and the whole god damn thing should go no problem after that.

thread issue fixed with free rental set of chasing bits from o'reilyes. Pass side gaskets done but I have no clue how to attack dr. side. 1/8" clearance maximum. On top feed it's impossible to loosen injector pipe bolts without getting rid of inj. pipe shield and that bitch it's just a story of it's own. With all plumbing removed, I mean all minus AC it should be possible to remove all 3 bolts and after disconnecting fuel lines bla bla bla ....I just don't have time for this. Ice trials tomorrow morning, need to have car running. Hopefully pass side gaskets will help although I didn't have neither big problems with idle nor codes to start with so dr. side gaskets will have to wait until tgv deletes I guess

I bought my LGT a month ago and it started throwing codes within the first 200 miles of owning the car. So I checked the codes and got system bank too lean, and cylinder misfire on all four. I did some research and found out this is a common problem so I decided to spend the $25 and do the replacement. I have driven about 15 miles and so far so good but I just cleared the codes so I think it's too soon to tell. The one thing I am worried about is if the previous owner just kept clearing the codes or never cleared them and the potential of engine damage.

Two things I found out to be very helpful:

1.) Have someone help pull up on the intake manifold.

2.) with such little clearance on the driver side i found it easier to try and align it in the groves with pliers and then pushed the manifold down to get the gasket to go in.

Okay, so this is the schematic for my 05 LGT. The code for the gaskets are 14035 and the are about 20 bucks. I gotta place an order and wait a couple of days. Hopefully I will starting working on the manifold next weekend.

 

So I finished up the work and took the car to work today. Car runs and drives perfectly, although the garage is heated so the real test will be leaving work after a day out in -15 temps. However, I seem to have a new issue: The turbo hot side is smoking like mad. So much so that I stopped the car almost on top of the door at work so I could run in to grab an extinguisher if needed. I'm still looking out the window to make sure all is well.

 

Any thoughts what could be dumping something on the turbo? It didn't smell like coolant. There was a bit of that (expected) when I first started the car, but this is almost like campfire with a bit of chemicals thrown in.

It definitely wasn't coolant. There was a little burned off when I started driving, but I know that smell and it vanished quickly. I'll check the boot when I go outside next.

Well the issue seems to have vanished. I drove the car home from work (brought like 4 bottles of water with me as fire extinguishers ) and caught a whiff of the same burning smell a few minutes into the drive, but nothing after that and no horrifying smoke show. :confused: Guess it was just something I spilled on the exhuast? Or maybe that I drove through and got splashed on the DP? The axle boot is fine and there are no signs of leaks or fluid loss. Nothing on the ground under the car, nothing on the turbo... *shrug*

 

Idle was perfect with the new gaskets installed! It was around -15 celcius this afternoon and the car ran like a champ.