When refueling, the gas pump nozzle shuts off almost immediately as if the tank is full, even when the tank is near empty. The only way to add fuel is to hold the nozzle at a specific angle and repeatedly squeeze the trigger at a very slow trickle. The problem has gotten progressively worse over time. This is a widely reported issue on early-production 2013 BRZ / Scion FR-S vehicles. Owners report that the rubber fuel filler hose between the metal filler pipe and the fuel tank collapses internally, restricting fuel flow so fuel backs up and trips the nozzle shutoff. The manufacturer later revised this hose with a new part number (reported as SU003-01093), but no recall has been issued for affected vehicles. Safety risk: Because the automatic nozzle shutoff no longer works normally, there is no reliable way to tell when the tank is actually full. The driver has to manually override normal fueling, which creates a risk of fuel overflowing and spilling at the pump, onto the vehicle and onto the person fueling. In New Jersey, where attendants must pump gas, attendants cannot fuel the vehicle normally, which puts them at the same risk. No warning lights or messages are associated with the problem. The vehicle is scheduled to be inspected at a Subaru dealer. The dealer has not yet confirmed the cause. The component will be available for inspection upon request.
The worst 2013 Subaru BRZ problems
Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.
Problems by type
Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.
- Engine49
- Fuel system6
- Visibility4
- Electrical3
- Body2
- Brakes2
- Lights2
- Transmission2
- Seats1
- Steering1
Specific symptoms reported on the 2013 Subaru BRZ
Stalling 19Engine failure 15Knocking 14Check engine light 12Loss of power 9
Recalls 2
Engine and engine cooling: engine
- 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
Equipment: other: owners/service/other manual
- What is wrong
- Subaru is recalling certain model year 2013 brz vehicles manufactured from november 25, 2011, through may 25, 2012. The owners manual contains an inaccurate description of the actual operation of the front passenger occupant classification system. Other portions of the owners manual, describing the air bag system, require clarification. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with federal motor vehicle safety standard (fmvss) no. 208, occupant crash protection.
- Risk
- Misinformation could lead to an increased risk of injury to front seat occupants during certain crash conditions.
- Remedy
- Subaru will notify owners, and will mail corrected owners manuals, free of charge. The safety recall began on june 19, 2012. Owners may contact subaru at 1‑800‑782‑2783.
Recall number 12V254000 · Recall details
Technical service bulletins for the 2013 Subaru BRZ 384
Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.
- This is an update announcement regarding the TechShare & NorthStar Integration
- This announcement provides information on the connected services platform for Subaru EVs.
- This bulletin provides a step-by-step diagnostic procedure for resolving Remote Engine Start (RES)...
- This Service Information Bulletin has been developed to outline the steps for gathering basic but...
- This announcement provides information on DCM replacememts due to a parasitic draw.
- This announcement provides information on an outage affecting the Subaru Select Monitor 5 application.
- This Service Information Bulletin announces the availability of ThreeBond 1216J (SOA868V9640) designed for...
- This announcement provides information on a new software update for the Midtronics Dss and DCA machines.
- This bulletin contains illustrations of exchange components and their manufacturer as well as a...
- This bulletin provides paint code information for 2027 model year vehicles.
2013 Subaru BRZ fuel economy
Official EPA estimates in miles per gallon (MPGe for electric). Ranges cover trims that share the same engine.
| Engine | Drive | City | Highway | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.0L 4‑cyl | RWD | 21-24 | 29-33 | 24-28 |
What 2013 Subaru BRZ owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Hello, My name is [XXX] and I have a Subaru BRZ 2013 which harbors a valve spring recall (the federal safety agency Campaign ID 18V‑772, Subaru Recall WTY-84). In seeking help to repair this, I had a customer experience that can be viewed as neglectful, deceitful and malicious in nature. Dealership Recall Refusals I called into two different dealerships to get this recall taken care of under the policies and procedures set forth by the federal safety agency and at Subaru’s direction (notice). One dealership, Lancaster County Motors Subaru of Lancaster, immediately declined the recall and Subaru Advocacy suggested I take it elsewhere, violating several safety mandates and franchise agreements set forth by Subaru. Steve Moyer Subaru Subsequently, I called Steve Moyer Subaru dealership in Leesport and was told that they could facilitate the fixing of my recall which was (initially) a sigh of relief based on my previous experiences. They scheduled me for the recall and instructed me to bring my car in on XXX asked to take it in as soon as possible due to the nature of this recall (XXX) and the agreed. They gave me a loaner vehicle and took it in to perform the recall. I signed for the loaner and gave them all applicable information. Escalation Shortly after submission of the vehicle (per Tanner Mohn), I was told that instead of working on the recall, they would like to ask for a new engine on behalf of Subaru (this is given the complex nature of the recall and resulting damage). Please note that I did not suggest this however, Tanner Mohn was vehement on moving forward in this manner. The following week, I got a call from Subaru Advocacy (entity) who apologized for the issues and hold up. Additionally, they stated that they would contact Steve Moyer Motor Subaru to see what the following steps were. Next, I received a text stating that they “examined” my vehicle and an advisor would be contacting me. I then received a call from Tanner Mohn stating Subaru declined a new engine. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U
The contact owns a 2013 Subaru BRZ. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with maintenance failure. The contact discovered the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 18V772000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 58,498.
From the very first day I had these brakes pads installed they performed terribly. At low speeds, under 25mph, they would shriek and slightly shake the vehicle; far worse response at higher speeds. I read somewhere online that the remedy for this problem was to "wed" the pads to the existing rotors. So, I performed that as best as I could in a safe and sound manner which resulted in a continuation of the same sounds and violent pitching during braking. I continued to use them for about 4K miles until one day I approached a red stop light and stood on the brakes to make my vehicle stop and it barely responded in time to not cause an accident. I took my car to a dealership mechanic to review and their finding was that the pads severely warped my rotors and they needed to be fully replaced, pads and rotors. Cost me an additional $200 in labor on top of what I paid for parts. My car is now performing as it had in the past. I specifically requested and kept the parts that the dealership mechanic replaced as the Brembo pads were highly suspect to start with and I wanted to provide them as support for my claim here. If they're needed please reply back with an address to ship them to. Never once in the time I've driven my vehicle had I experienced that type of safety hazard before ~ 90K miles from November of 2012. This brake product should not be deemed safe for public roads.
We took the car into the dealership due to an engine light being on and the recall was something they informed us about and we decided to take care of it all at the same time. We have never recieved safety recall information from Subaru. My Son owned the car prior to us and purchased from Subaru dealership. After several weeks of the car being at the dealership and a very large bill we picked up the car and drove 14 miles and the engine light went on again. We returned the car to dealership and they had it another week at least and we picked it up again with no further engine light coming back on. The engine light never turned back on even when the car stalled out and heard a banging sound. We had car towed to Subaru dealership. The car has been there for several weeks and now they are telling us we need to pay 8000.00 to fix. The car seemed to have lost power after we had recall and feel that the our safety was at risk and my Sons safety as well due to not receiving safety recall notification and service of the recall not resolving the issue with the motor in fact making it worse. Subaru of America has let us know they have no responsibility and will not assist us with any repairs even though our car is stuck in another state and clearly this has been an ongoing issue with this make, model, and year. I had experienced the pressing on the brake and feeling acceleration but I thought maybe my foot had slipped or something as it only happened once. I am thankful that we were only driving between 35 and 45mph when the car actually died while driving.
Took my 2013 BRZ Limited in for the Valve Spring recall. After work completed I was unable to get my car home before I had severe knocking, CEL, and power failure. Car was at dealership for over a month. After I got it back it's been driven 10k miles and has a rod bearing failure and all the same symptoms - power loss, grinding/knocking, and dash lights lit up.
Blown short block / cracked cylinder head, broken connecting rod, $7000+ estimates for engine rebuild. My brz stalled while traveling on the freeway.
The contact owns a 2013 Subaru BRZ. The contact stated while driving 70 mph, he heard an abnormal sound coming from the engine. The vehicle loss motive power and stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not drivable. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with the federal safety agency campaign number: 18V772000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the Vin was not included. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 81,000.
I had my brz recall repair in the spring of 2019. It took about 3 weeks for the subaru dealer to fix the spring valve. When I received it back, my engine felt a little rough and had a high idle and made some noise. Due to the pandemic I have not driven much since the repair, so I didn't notice too much of an issue, but was planning to go back to the dealer when covid was less of a risk. Today, I drove my car maybe 500 miles since the repair, and as I accelerated on to the highway my car started revving really high, check engine line flashed on and the car lose power and stopped. If I pressed on the gas, it started to decline in speed and ultimately stopped. I made my way to the right lane, hit the hazards and waited stressfully for a tow truck as cars sped by me on the highway. I understand that there are issues like I just experienced since the recall fix and wanted to advise you of my issue. Please let me know what I can do to get the car back up to safety standards.
My car was running with any issue until right after the recall repair. The recall (valve springs) repair was performed during the week of may 6th, 2019. I picked up the car on may 11, 2019 and the engine stalled a few times on the road on the same day when I drove the car back home. I called the dealer the same day I picked up the car and left them a message about the engine stall. Then, on monday, may 13th, I had my car towed to lou fusz subaru st. Louis. The dealer had my car for a week and they drove the car a few times but did nothing to fix the engine stall issue.
Compare the 2013 Subaru BRZ
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Questions about the 2013 Subaru BRZ
Is the 2013 Subaru BRZ reliable?
Owners have filed 65 complaints about the 2013 Subaru BRZ, 21.7 times a typical BRZ model year. It is one of the years we flag to avoid.
What is the most common problem with the 2013 Subaru BRZ?
Engine and cooling, with 49 complaints, typically around 60,000 miles. Next is fuel system (6).
How many recalls does the 2013 Subaru BRZ have?
2 recalls, covering engine and engine cooling and equipment.
Was there a recall on the 2013 Subaru BRZ engine?
Yes, 1 recall: 18V772000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
What gas mileage does the 2013 Subaru BRZ get?
Official estimates for the 2013 Subaru BRZ range from 24 to 28 mpg combined. The most efficient version (2.0L 4-cyl, RWD) gets 21-24 city and 29-33 highway.
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