Hey guys, i really need help. 04 WRX with almost 45k miles. Only engine mods are upipe and SPT catback.

Recently, i've noticed when the car is warmed up, sometimes after a long drive, or when the weather is hot, at idle, the radiator fan will kick on. When that happens, my steady 500RPM idle, will bounce up and down to 750, then drop below 500, and makes the car sound AND feel like its about to stall. i dont think this is normal since it's only started to do this in the last month or so and i've not had this happen before. The temp needle doesnt move, and stays steady in the middle. I've also tried resetting the ECU, thinking maybe the car needs to adapt to the warmer summer temps, to no avail. coolant levels are at normal.

please help me out, i'm either very paranoid and this is normal, or im making a bad problem worse by not getting it taken care of. thanks for your guyses help!

-Brandon

 

I get somewhat the same problem.. it almost seen like subaru has a weak electrical connection but grounding kits are known to not do that much to improve the problem..most of the time when i start my car, the rpm goes up then drops way below to almost a stall. I want to see if the Apexi Super Grounding kit will help?

 

thanks for the reply. i see how it would do that when the car is warming up, as in your case, but if my car is already at running temp, i would thing it shouldnt bog on the idle right? can someone tell me if a grounding kit would help? i'd jump on it right away if it did.

 

the ac isnt on right?

grounding kit helped my car alot

i just went to a stereo store and made my own

can you check your voltage when the fan kicks on and off?

 

nope, AC is not on, i make sure everytime, im not on the freeway to turn the AC off.

i dont even know how to check voltage when the fan is on or off, im not very electrically inclined.

part of me thinks my idle is too low? or is there something wrong with the cooling system? thanks for the help so far, but if anyone can help me not kill my car i'd be grateful.

 

Does anyone think it could it be a battery problem?

If that is the problem, I'd say to stop by a Kragen or Autozone, one of those places that does free battery testing and see if your battery needs to be replaced.

Also, my grounding kit made my car go easier into first gear at slow speeds. Before I would have to be stopped, but now I can rev match and it slides in nicely.

 

you think i need to replace the battery already? im not even at 45k miles yet. =/

 

I don't know if that's what's causing your problem. It wouldn't hurt to get it tested to see if your battery is in bad shape. Have you done things to decrease the life of your battery?

 

i dont think so, only thing is i have an amp and sub, but its not even that strong, and i've never noticed problems ever. doesnt seem normal.

 

SUBARUS are you know for crappy bateries

thats why i wanted him to check the voltage

you get the multi meeter out and hook it up

if you dont have one go to kregan

 

i own a 04WRX now but did owned a 02 at first, and i had to change out the OEM Battery at 30,000miles! (only had the oem underseat sub)

 

ooooh ok, so battery probs. i'll try to get that checked out this weekend. thanks you guys!

 

I HEAR that alot

mine lasted 60k miles and then i sold it hehehhehe

its still in the car

an 03

 

so heres some more info. i didnt get the battery checked, because i dont think its a batt problem.

yesterday, i parked my car in my driveway and let it sit there idling. and tried 2 things.
1) i had the hood open, and when the radiator fan kicked on, i noticed it idled fine. while the fan was still running, i closed the hood, and once the hood was closed, the bad idle started.
2) left hood closed, waited for radiator fan to kick on, got the bad idle, then quickly ran up front to open the hood. once the hood was open, bad idle went away.

so what gives guys? this is mighty wierd. are the times when im idleing low, and almost bogging, slowly killing my car?

 

this is the identical problem i had. remove the snorkel and guaranteed the problem is fixed