New Owner. Have an issue. Help?

[Tomikaze]

Hello! A proud new owner a 2004 WRX. Problem is the car is already acting up on me. It only has 22,000 miles on it. But it's out of warranty. Here's the issue... I feel it most in 2nd gear. Right around 2,500 to 3,500 rpms. As the rpms increase along with the boost there is a skip or a studder. More noticeable from a cold start. It's not turbo lag. It's definitly something different. But I've driven other WRX's without this hicup. I personally thought it was turbo related. Brought it back to the dealer (not a Subaru dealer). They brought it to the local Subaru store. It was diagnosed with a bad clutch. They then brought it to a private repair shop that specializes in Subarus to get the clutch done for about half the price the dealer wanted and this shop said the clutch was fine. No codes. Every thing checked out fine.This private shop said to dump fuel system cleaner in it and drive it hard?? Did that and went through a few tanks of gas. The skip is still there. Anyone seen something similar?

[Tomikaze]

Poking around on this site and forgive me for being new. Let me add the car is 100% bone stock. -Tomikaze

Hello! A proud new owner a 2004 WRX. Problem is the car is already acting up on me. It only has 22,000 miles on it. But it's out of warranty. Here's the issue... I feel it most in 2nd gear. Right around 2,500 to 3,500 rpms. As the rpms increase along with the boost there is a skip or a studder. More noticeable from a cold start. It's not turbo lag. It's definitly something different. But I've driven other WRX's without this hicup. I personally thought it was turbo related. Brought it back to the dealer (not a Subaru dealer). They brought it to the local Subaru store. It was diagnosed with a bad clutch. They then brought it to a private repair shop that specializes in Subarus to get the clutch done for about half the price the dealer wanted and this shop said the clutch was fine. No codes. Every thing checked out fine.This private shop said to dump fuel system cleaner in it and drive it hard?? Did that and went through a few tanks of gas. The skip is still there. Anyone seen something similar?

[Bduane]

This is a common problem with many wrx/sti's it seems. I guess im lucky this is not happening to my wrx... not yet anyways...

[teflon_jones]

You 100% sure it's stock? No BOV on it?

Sounds like a bad MAF if it is stock. Buy some electronics cleaner at Radio Shack and try cleaning it. If that doesn't help, you could try replacing it. With no CEL light it's hard to tell exactly what's wrong so I would go the route of swapping off a few things for new parts to see if that fixes it. You can always return the parts if that's not the problem.

[krex]

Before you buy a new MAF, just ask another WRX owner if you could borrow their MAF for diagnostics. Get em a beer or two.

[Sasquatch]

A specialized MAF sensor cleaner:

http://www.crcindustries.com/auto/co...x?PN=05110&S=N

[Rogan]

A specialized MAF sensor cleaner:

http://www.crcindustries.com/auto/co...x?PN=05110&S=N

bwha! I was JUST about to post the exact same thing!

$5, a phillips screwdriver, and 2 minutes..


Im just curious, tough, that it's 4 yrs old, and 22k miles, but out of warranty?

[Sasquatch]

bwha! I was JUST about to post the exact same thing!

$5, a phillips screwdriver, and 2 minutes..

I clean the MAF sensor at every oil change.

[teflon_jones]

A specialized MAF sensor cleaner:

bwha! I was JUST about to post the exact same thing!

$5, a phillips screwdriver, and 2 minutes..

Ok is that stuff a joke or a serious product?

"The first product specifically developed to clean mass air flow sensors. Increases horsepower & improves air/fuel ratio and MPG. Plastic safe-dries in seconds!"
and on the label:
"PROVEN to gain 4-10 Horsepower at the Wheels!"

Um...... ok......... it's going to give you more HP? Does it have magic pixie dust in it?

All you need is electronics spray cleaner from Radio Shack. Same stuff.

Im just curious, tough, that it's 4 yrs old, and 22k miles, but out of warranty?

Factory warranty is only good for 3 years. What are you missing?

[apex32]

Ok is that stuff a joke or a serious product?

"The first product specifically developed to clean mass air flow sensors. Increases horsepower & improves air/fuel ratio and MPG. Plastic safe-dries in seconds!"
and on the label:
"PROVEN to gain 4-10 Horsepower at the Wheels!"

Um...... ok......... it's going to give you more HP? Does it have magic pixie dust in it?

All you need is electronics spray cleaner from Radio Shack. Same stuff.

Factory warranty is only good for 3 years. What are you missing?

Lol i read that too and i was like wtf?

and yup warranty is only good for over 3 years if you have the added security

[Tomikaze]

A specialized MAF sensor cleaner:

http://www.crcindustries.com/auto/co...x?PN=05110&S=N

Just ordered. I'll have it tomorrow. I'll let you guys know what happens.

[YBNormal07]

Is the stutter highly noticable as in a sudden plunge in power, or is it a true stutter in that you, the driver, fell it but a passenger may not sense it?

A "stutter" or "hesitation" in the power deliver on boosted Subarus is very common, and can be directly traced to the factory ECU programming. It is not very smooth. My WRX, STi and Legacy GT all did it and the only thing that made it go away was the use of a Cobb AP. Basically, any piggyback or standalone EMS will resolve this, and provide you with a boost in performance as a bonus.

Usueally the MAF getting dirty will increase over time and you would notice a fairly dramatic change in performance, up to and including the inability to start the car.

The only way to check if the ECU is the issue is to data log it. If you have a performance shop nearby, they usually don't charge much to peform this service. Heck, you can even get this done during a dyno run (if the shop has the software and laptop...which if they are good, is no question).

My bet is you are one of the "sensitive" footed individuals who can feel this. I could also, but I've had friends drive my cars and they couldn't. It has been well documented via data logging that this is a known issue, but nothing that would throw a CEL.

The MAF cleaner certainly wont hurt, so give it a shot.