Check a VIN

Scion FR-S loss of power problems

17 of the 202 owner complaints about the Scion FR-S describe sudden loss of power, most of them for the 2013 model year.

owner complaints
17
worst model year
2013
typical mileage
64,000
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall for this area of the car. See below

By model year

What owners say

Filed Oct 9, 2024 · Engine · NH

sometimes the car randomly stalls out during driving. usually off cold starts if i let it warm up for even 5 minutes it still will stall out sometimes. its not super common id say it does it once every 2 days maybe. the car is also misfiring and ive noticed a large loss of power from the car. it started back in june and i just havent really gotten it fixed yet. usually when im driving itll kind of just buffer and a check engine light is thrown on but it ends up going off after a couple drives.

Filed May 30, 2023 · Engine · NC

The engine suffered catastrophic failure 2,988 miles after the J02 Saftey recall was performed by Preston Toyota of New Castle, PA. I was travelling at highway speeds when the engine died and would not turn on. I lost all power brakes and could have wrecked and injured myself, others or worse, caused a fatality. The car was towed to a toyota dealership that confirmed the issue was due to the work performed during the recall on the car. The oil light flashed a few times then shut off and then a few seconds later the engine died.

Filed Aug 8, 2021 · Engine · NJ

I was driving 80 mph in the inner lane of a multi lane highway. Out of no where with no warning lights or sounds the car just lost all power, the steering felt like it locked and the car fell on it's face. I was almost hit by two different cars trying to get over to the shoulder and there was white smoke pouring out of the exhaust making cars behind me swerve because they couldn't see. Had it towed to the Toyota dealership and they told me that basically the engine blew and that they have seen this on other Scion model years and those are recalled but mine isn't recalled

Filed Jul 28, 2021 · Engine · TN

I was driving down the road and felt the car lose power. Shortly, after the traction control and check engine light came on. I pulled over and a I slowed the engine died on me. It took several tries and it finally started and I made it home going about 45. The next day I went to town and as I pulled into a parking lot the engine completely died again. I went to the parts store right next door and the code read can shaft sensor fault. I then slowly drove to a family members house and where we replaced those sensors. This didn't fix anything. I then took it too my mechanic who proceeded to tell me I needed a new engine. There were multiple codes showing with his code reader. I only remember low oil pressure but the oil was full. Tried to drive it back to family members (less than 2 miles)but it didn't make it and I had to have it towed home.i had the valve spring recall repaired in the summer of 2020. My car has 103,000 miles and has had every oil change and had a tune up when I took it to the dealership for the recall.

Filed Dec 20, 2019 · Engine · 134,569 miles · WA

After taking care of engine valve spring recall. Drove my car for a while everything seemed normal and at random my check engine light came on, with sudden loss of power to vehicle. Got it running, as it shook and was making a weird knocking I took my car to dealership immediately to figure out this problem and they claimed my scion frs 2013 needs a new motor at a cost of $10,630.59 because my warranty is now expired and I had nothing to show to them that it had anything to do with the recall. When this was the only thing that could cause this to happen.

Filed Jul 30, 2019 · Engine · 106,000 miles · NC

Tl* the contact owns a 2013 scion fr-s. The contact received a recall notification for the federal safety agency campaign number: 18v772000 (engine and engine cooling). The vehicle was taken to town and country toyota (9101 south blvd, charlotte, nc 28273, (704) 557-0586) where the valve springs were replaced. After the repairs, the vehicle jerked, lunged forward, and lost power. Also, there was an abnormal knocking noise coming from the engine and the check engine warning indicator illuminated. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case number was provided. The manufacturer informed the contact to take the vehicle back to the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 106,000.

Filed Jul 8, 2019 · Electrical, Engine · 49,800 miles · OR

Valve spring recall was done less than 2k miles ago on this vehicle. It currently has a little over 49,000 miles on it. It is now experiencing severe power loss. When taken into the dealership for evaluation they said it was caused due to sudden timing chain failure, including all the gears and coils related to timing chains, all the way down to a bad ecu. Toyota is refusing to take any responsibility.

Filed Jun 27, 2019 · Engine · 100,072 miles · AR

We have a 2013 scion and in feb had the valve spring recall repair, in june the car lost power driving down the hwy, started knocking. Had it towed to toyota dealership. Looking on the internet and discovering this happening to many 2013 scion owners after the recall repair. At this time toyota will not acknowledge responsibility to help me, the reason they gave is: I have high miles, 100,072, so it is out of warranty, which has nothing to do with what is happening after the recall repair and I didn't have my maintenance through them so they say they are unaware of service on it. There needs to be a recall on the recall. This is not a coincidence. Too many people having the same issue!!! They should have to cover the repair on these engine failures.

Filed Jun 1, 2019 · Engine · 62,057 miles · CA

On february13, 2019, I took my car to the toyota dealership to address a recent recall to fix a valve spring. March 5, my car lost power and made a knocking noise. My check engine and traction control light went on. I took my car back to the dealership on march 5, they reset the code and told me nothing was wrong. On the way home, it broke again. On march 6, they changed the exhaust vvt oil control. One week later, it broke again. Today, may 31st, the engine stalled, I've lost power and the check engine and traction control light came on again. I am the original owner, service the car regularly and have never had problems until toyota performed this recall. Doing research online has shown me I am not alone in this complaint. Attached is a link with 72 other owners all reporting the same problems. Https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1sel4x84cy_ynrkcws9gnoiyntwljdotgqzu1j4rlzow/edit#gid=0

Filed Apr 12, 2019 · Engine · 92,400 miles · CA

Tl* the contact owns a 2013 scion fr-s. After the vehicle was serviced per the federal safety agency campaign number: 18v772000 (engine), it immediately experienced loss of power and sputtering. The vehicle was taken back to hamer toyota (11041 sepulveda blvd, mission hills, ca) where it was diagnosed that the engine gasket and camshaft were faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred approximately two months later. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine rod bearing was faulty. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact indicated that the failures were not present prior to the recall repair. The failure mileage was 92,400.

Related recalls

Engine and engine cooling: engineReported November 1, 2018 · 165,534 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2012-2014 Subaru Impreza, 2012-2013 Impreza Stationwagon, 2013 Subaru BRZ, XV Crosstrek and Toyota Scion FR-S vehicles. The engine valve springs in these vehicles may fracture causing an engine malfunction or a possible engine stall.
Risk
An engine stall can increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Subaru will notify their owners. Toyota will notify the FR-S owners. Dealers will replace the valve springs, free of charge. The recall began December 26, 2018. Subaru owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑844‑373‑6614, Toyota owners may contact the Toyota Customer Experience Center at 1‑888‑270‑9371. Subaru's number for this recall is WTY-84.

Recall number 18V772000 · Recall details

Questions about the Scion FR-S loss of power

Which Scion FR-S years have sudden loss of power problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2013 (16 complaints) and 2015 (1 complaints).

VIN decoder

See the problems and recalls for an exact car

Buying a used Scion FR-S?

Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.

Check its history