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Subaru BRZ stalling problems

23 of the 102 owner complaints about the Subaru BRZ describe engine stalls while driving, most of them for the 2013 model year.

owner complaints
23
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

  • 2022
    1
  • 2017
    1
  • 2014
    2
  • 2013
    19

What owners say

Filed Apr 23, 2024 · Engine · 58,498 miles · CA

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.

Filed Feb 20, 2023 · Engine, Fuel system · FL

This is a new car. There’s was only 31 miles when I purchased. One day, there’s some sound when I driving the vehicle. Once I parked, all the warning lamps was on, then my car wasn’t able to move. When the incident happened, it was only 4 months of using it and only 5,498 miles. Then I bring my car back to retailer and they inform me I need to replace the whole engine because of lack of oil. Even though they Silas’s my car was lack of oil, but there’s no light on the dashboard lights up and told me I need to add more oil. The process of repairing took 5 months. After I read other owners post on social media, I believe I have the similar situation. It says “ RTV is a sealant used as a gasket for the Subaru FA24D engine in the car and is allegedly applied too liberally at the factory. When RTV is dislodged in the engine's oil, it can clog the pickup. That can cause oil starvation“ Roughly a month later of fixing it(5 months of repairs) , there’s a strong scent of gas when I open the door of my car. And I can’t turn it on the first time. Second time of trying turning it on, all the warning lamp went off again. And the car couldn’t drive again. I bring back to the retailer and this is their respond, “ the technician found fuel is pouring out of the pressure relief valve of the left side head due to a possible failing injector on cylinder #3. We must do a teardown to verify the initial diagnosis.” And the final diagnosis The technician found two injector o-rings that were defective, causing fuel to leak and flood the cylinder chamber, which in turn caused the vehicle to stall. Parts can fail for many reasons, in this case we can attribute it to the quality of the parts themselves.“

Filed Aug 9, 2022 · Engine · OR

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.

Filed Sep 27, 2021 · Engine · CA · fire

Blown short block / cracked cylinder head, broken connecting rod, $7000+ estimates for engine rebuild. My brz stalled while traveling on the freeway.

Filed Jul 15, 2021 · Engine · 81,000 miles · TX

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.

Filed Nov 28, 2020 · Engine · 52,400 miles · IL

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.

Filed Nov 18, 2020 · Engine · 105,233 miles · CA

Tl* the contact owns a 2013 subaru brz. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency campaign number: 18v772000 (engine and engine cooling). The vehicle was taken to subaru of el cajon (900 arnele ave, el cajon, ca 92020) to have the recall repair performed. Approximately 3,000 miles after the vehicle was repaired under the recall, the contact's son was driving at 40 MPH and heard an abnormal knocking sound coming from engine prior to the vehicle stalling without warning. The vehicle was restarted however, the vehicle stalled again without warning. Due to failure, the contact had the vehicle towed back to the same dealer to be diagnosed. The mechanic determined that the engine failed and needed to be repaired or replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but offered no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 105,233.

Filed Oct 17, 2020 · Fuel system · 39,867 miles · TX

I was driving on the freeway when the car stalled three times; the check engine light came on, then turned off. White, sweet smelling smoke began coming out of the engine. I pulled over safely. Upon inspection of the car, it was found that the valve spring cover came out of the right side (passenger) engine head. See attachment for a list of all parts affected.

Filed Jul 19, 2020 · Engine · 72,000 miles · CA

I took my 2013 subaru brz to the subaru dealership for the wty84 fa20 valve spring recall on december 24, 2019. The dealership kept my car for three months and I picked up my car on march 31, 2020 after the repairs were completed. Two and a half months later, and only 1,600 miles since the repairs, on june 19, 2020 my car started losing power while I was driving on the freeway and stalled. I pulled to the side of the road and was not able to restart the car. Stranded, I had no choice but to call a tow truck to tow my car to the dealership. The tow truck driver checked the battery, which was in good health, and tried to jump-start the engine but the engine would not turn over. He checked the oil level and immediately saw metal shavings in the oil adhering to the dipstick. He later tried to start the car again and this time the car started but the engine was making a loud horrible knocking noise. At the dealership, I was told that the engine had a rod knock, and possible broken rod bearing with signs of engine failure and that I would have to pay $1,450 for a tear down to determine the problem, and additional for any repairs. There have never been any metal shavings in the oil prior to the dealership repairs being done and I have never had these problems before. Regular oil changes have been completed every 5,000 to 7,500 miles by a licensed mechanic using only mobil 1 full synthetic motor oil and oil quality and levels have been excellent between changes. The car has 72,000 miles and has worked wonderfully up until now.

Filed Jul 6, 2020 · Engine · 36,000 miles · CA

There is an open recall for my vehicle's engine due to the valve springs, which can result in engine failure. I previously replaced the engine completely twice due to engine failure, and I provided the receipts where the original parts were replaced, and done so with higher quality components after the second failure. However, both the dealership and the manufacturer stopped responding to my communication requests via phone and email and despite following up in person as well, and were silent when I stated that they were denying me a path to register my vehicle despite the part having been replaced and the original motor no longer being in the vehicle, which they required in order to complete the service. The first time the motor failed, I was at a dead stop and started to make a left hand turn when the motor stalled out. The second time, the motor just started making a loud noise and vibrating strongly. Both times I brought it to a mechanic to fix the motor, the second time I had it rebuild with stronger components and I have not had a problem since. There have been many reports from owners that have had their recalls completed by dealership service centers, the only ones authorized to make the repairs, and that subsequently had their motors fail despite there being nothing wrong to begin with. I do not want my vehicle that had been repaired with stronger components to have recall work done that can yourself the same terrible results, replacing stronger components with inferior components, especially when I paid out of pocket to do so and do not have any issues. I'm currently unable to register the vehicle due to this impasse and block on my current registration due to the incomplete recall, suffering over a year worth of loss of use.

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 Subaru BRZ stalling

Which Subaru BRZ years have engine stalls while driving problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2013 (19 complaints), 2014 (2 complaints) and 2017 (1 complaints).

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