ive been getting a strong fuel smell too.. 02 wrx 74 k miles.. started about 2 k miles ago,when it started getting pretty cold.. temps have been dropping into the high20s low 30s over night .. is there a tsb for cars that are not in the extreme cold?

 

The TSB is the same regardless of temperature. It states a typical temperature (15F IIRC) at which the leak may occur. Some cars require colder weather than others to exhibit the problem.

The worst thing is that the leak is getting worse as the car ages. I suspect in the next year or so that mine will probably leak continuously.

Unfortunately, SOA managed to convince the NHTSA that this is not a safety issue, so there isn't even an open case for this anymore.

 

does this mean our cars cant get fixed under the TBS or just that it wont become a recall?

 

It won't become a recall.

 

so I went to the dealership today with TSB in hand and told the guy everything. Horrid raw fuel smell when cold starting. 2002 WRX. 54k miles with extended warranty and handed him the TSB. He looked at the TSB for 30 seconds with that "I'm going to stare at this so I look like I know what my job is" look and then said "well the earliest I can get you in is Thursday or Friday morning" so I took Thursday. Then he said "we'll start you off with the $90 diagnostics charge." I said "uh-huh" and walked out. I'll be on the phone with SOA tomorrow, and I'll stay on the phone with SOA for the next 2 days before I give that ******* (I know hes an ******* from previous encounters) $90 to diagnos something thats already been diagnosed. Did anyone else have to pay a diagnostics fee?

 

grr i have this problem too....and wondered how to go about having it taken care of. i also need to have the center diff looked at...its looking like Santa Cruz is the best option for me.

just dont wanna go over the mt. does anyone know if the provide rentals?

 

Yes, I was charged the diagnosis fee. They said that they couldn't replicate the problem in the TSB, so I lost the fee. I was pretty annoyed.

If you pay them the fee, you will only get it reimbursed if they can reproduce the problem - i.e. you need really cold weather on the day that they are going to look at the car. Furthermore, if the car has been running, the pipe usually stops leaking as it warms up, and the problem dissappears until the next cold morning.

So... you need to leave the car with them on the evening before a really cold day and hope that they can see it happening. Alternatively, you need a dealer that will do it on good faith.

 

We have fixed this problem for a few customers now. We usually charge one hour labor @$90. The problem is usually only occurs on cold days. I had a 02 WRX with the problem and was able to fix the problem in under an hour.

As Pete Soper commented, he tightened the clamps on his fuel lines, but it contiuned to leak. Most 02 WRX's don't have the mileage or the abuse that his car has been through.

So far, our success with resolving this issue has been 100% successful and low cost and low hassle.

-Kevin

 

:rotfl:

looks like I might be best off buying the parts and doing it myself. How much has the total charge been at LIC with parts and labor?

 

yes, they do

 

Kevin, would I need to provide you with the new fuel lines or do you have them? If you do, how much is it?

 

Yeah, I guess it was a naive statement

 

Are you carrying out the TSB or or re-tightening the clamps?

I had the existing clamps tightened and that helped for a while, but it has come back again. Maybe I should check to see if they have worked loose.

 

I just bought a 2002 and it has the warranty intact until April of next year. I'm also going to the snow this weekend, so I will probably find out if my car has this issue.

Should I experience this, since the car is under warranty, would it be easier to get it fixed? I don't know how well SOA supports their warranty.

 

We Have just tightened the clamps at this point. Which has worked so far.

Replacing the lines would require removing the intake manifold. When all is said and done, you would be looking at about 4 hours of work, give or take the setup of a particular car.
We can get the updated lines from subaru, as we like to use genuine Subaru parts.

-Kevin