icehousewvu Posted January 17, 2006 Share Posted January 17, 2006 +1 I can attest that the surging that was present in my 05 is not present in my 06. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chipster Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Can anyone confirm if there is a definite fix for the cruise control surging on downhill with a 2005 Outback 2.5i 5MT? I had the ECU reflash for this and the cruise shutoff problems at the same time (06/13/05). The shutoff problem went away for awhile, but it has reappeared a few times. However the cruise control surging did not appear to change at all with the reflash. Has there been a newer fix since then that actually works? My warranty will be expiring in a couple of months so I would like to take one last stab at having this fixed. Though when I had the ECU reflashed last time it took them a week because they had to actually ship it somewhere. So I don't want to bother with it if they are just going to apply the same ECU reflash and not improve the problem. Thanks a bunch for the help, I have learned a ton by searching this site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langosta39 Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Yes, there is a flash out there that makes the cruise control WAY better. You will notice the car accelerates down hills more now becasue they increased the minimum throttle that the cruise control can apply, but this makes it more like every other car I've ever owned. Just make sure to cancel the cruise when going down a big hill, and you will never have another complaint about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chipster Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Thanks, I will go ahead and ask if they can try fixing this again. The surging is absurd especially with passengers. I have come to fear the unanticipated hill as passengers are suddenly awoken by the incessant stabbing of the throttle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langosta39 Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 I had the same feeling before my car was flashed. This particluar flash is related to a Techinical Service Bulletin that is specficially for surging cruise control, the TSB doesn't mention any other fixes (according to my dealer), and my dealer was able to do it at their shop unlike the previous flash that they had to send my ECU to the east coast for. I don't know if they upgraded their equipment or what, but that's what I know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
69800 Posted October 26, 2006 Share Posted October 26, 2006 Hey You did not tell me you got your cruise fixed!!!!!!!!! Did they do it in Moscow? Do you like it better accelerating down hills? It seems like either way you have to shut it off anyway. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urfsin Posted October 26, 2006 Share Posted October 26, 2006 05' OBXT 5MT, no probs w/cruise control here. Down, up or flat it's all good. Slide It Sideways Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
music.to.kill.yourself.by Posted October 26, 2006 Share Posted October 26, 2006 I don't have any surging issues (any more than any other car I've driven with cruise), but I do have the cruise shutting off issue, which just developed this past weekend. I also noticed that in general, the car started running like crap. Lots of hesistation, poor throttle repsonse, surging under acceleration, etc. Mileage hasn't suffered, tho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rimfaxe Posted November 1, 2006 Share Posted November 1, 2006 I've had the cruise control shutting off while I'm in 4th gear. This is clearly not how the cruise control is supposed to function- it is not only an inconvenience but a real safety issue. It is a little disconcerting having the cruise control suddenly shut off for no reason. I'm surprised there's not a recall, but I guess it depends on how widespread the problem is. This happens to me frequently when the engine is at 3K rpm or above- it takes less than a minute. It also happens in 4th gear when the engine is above 2500 rpm, although less frequently, sometime I can drive for five minutes or more. I have not really noticed this problem in 5th gear or any other gear for that matter. I spoke to the local Subie dealership and they said that there isn't really a TSB out for this per se, but they have seen the problem before and a reflash usually does the trick. I'll take it in on Thursday to have the reflash done. My question is that when the car goes out of warranty (soon) I would like to take the car to Stage II, so will the ECU reflash with Accessport cause the problem to return? Hopefully there are not issues with the reflash at the dealership that will limit me with future mods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rimfaxe Posted November 2, 2006 Share Posted November 2, 2006 As I mentioned above, the cruise control on my 05 LGT LTD was disengaging when I was in 4th gear on the manual transmission. I called the local Subie dealership and they said to bring it in today and they would re-flash the ECU. When I dropped off the car the Service Writer said that there would be an $85 charge for the reflash. He said that it was considered an 'adjustment' and it was not covered by my extended warranty. I didn't feel like an argument, so I signed the paperwork and went to the waiting room. I began to wonder what exactly was out of 'adjustment' with the hard-coded ECU? I called 800SUBARU3 from the waiting room and the guy said the following: The ECU reflash for the cruise control issue was covered as part of the 8/80 Emissions Warranty, therefore there should be no charge to the customer. I put the Service guy on the phone with him and the matter was all cleared up. Although there is no TSB for the cruise control shut off / disengage issue, I would still recommened the reflash under the 8/80 Emissions Warranty. It is not only an inconvenience, but also a safety issue. I'm surprised that there has not been a recall issued for this. I have benefited a lot from so much great information on this website, I hope this helps anyone in a similar situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongHiway Posted November 2, 2006 Share Posted November 2, 2006 it may be situational. There are some long sloping hills between Boston and Hartford CT on I-84. If, I'm in cruise control I can feel the car braking then, accelerating then braking, the "speed" sensor jumps back and forth. I usually flip it off here. I've got a '97 OBW as well, in the same area, this car drops into a real low gear (yeah, both automatics), and almost red lines trying to get back to speed quickly. My previous car as a 5 pd and, anything lower than 5'th and relatively level road would cause cruise to disengage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chipster Posted November 2, 2006 Share Posted November 2, 2006 I agree this forum is an incredible resource. There is a SOA document detailing ECU reflash for both Cruise surging on downhill as well as Cruise "shutting off". I just had this done yesterday and I now have a much better behaved cruise control and now I no longer fear hills! I have not experienced the shutting off much at all since the first ECU reflash I had about 16 months ago. However I would have expected the cause to be something mechanical instead of firmware. Either way at the moment it is not causing me any problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foerster Posted November 6, 2006 Share Posted November 6, 2006 Just had the dealer reflash my ECU today -- also had to replace the neutral sensor. Already, throttle seems smoother, even when not using cruise. It doesn't seem to just drop to nothing but rather more gradual (still quick, but not harsh). Hopefully this'll kick the CC shut off issue as well, but I may not have an opportunity to test that for a bit (it only tended to do this on longer trips)... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rimfaxe Posted November 7, 2006 Share Posted November 7, 2006 Hopefully you guys also had the reflashes covered under the 8/80 Emissions Warranty. It is a little far fetched to consider this an 'adjustment' when there was clearly something not right with the firmware as the cars came from the factory. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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