P2102

[T]

Hi All,

2006 Forrester

What kind of price do you guys think I am looking
at to fix a "P2102 Throttle Actuator Control Motor
Circuit Low" error? At a normal mechanic, not a
dealer.

Many thanks,
-T

[VanguardLH]

T wrote:

> 2006 Forrester
>
> What kind of price do you guys think I am looking at to fix a "P2102
> Throttle Actuator Control Motor Circuit Low" error? At a normal
> mechanic, not a dealer.

https://www.obd-codes.com/p2102

Depends on what is the cause of the error. The article mentions some
causes. Error codes are vague, and very often cover a range of
subsystems, so knowing what needs to be fixed is difficult.

For example, I had an error code that resolved to some "evaporator"
problem. I replaced the gas cap with a generic cheapie a year ago, the
code did not come back for a year (I have an ODB2 dongle with Android
app that lets me reset the codes), but it did come back. To find the
problem, the shop did some vacuum tests along with a smoke test. The
cost was $150 for just the testing. They found the leak at the gas cap.
This time I replaced it with a Subaru OEM fuel cap. Won't know if that
fixes the problem until about 100 miles put on the car, but this car
only gets about 1500 miles on it per year, so it'll be a few months
before I know for sure the cap was the problem. The cap cost $25 from a
Subaru dealer's parts shop. If the problem was with the canister, a
fuel line (likely a rubber hose to the tank), the filler neck to the gas
tank, or something else then the actual repair cost (for part and labor
to replace it) would be a lot more expensive.

You'll have to take your car to a shop to have them do further tests to
isolate the cause of the error code. Error codes are not one-to-one
with the source of the error code.

You could ask your shop how much they charge to do the OBD2 test, but
all that does is read the code. They may have specials for a free ODB
scan. Check with them on what test(s) they can perform using *other*
equipment to locate the source of the problem. Shops always want to
depreciate their test equipment over multiple use, plus there's the
labor charge. Have a couple hundred in your pocket just to cover the
extra testing needed to isolate the problem. Only then will you know
the part that needs replacement to know how much that will cost. Could
be you can't just buy the motor, but have to buy an entire assembly.

Parts and labor costs vary by area. In mine, all the parts to replace
the throttle body, labor, and taxes would be about $900; however, add
the cost for testing to determine what needs to be fixed. The article
says:

The PCM receives inputs to determine when and how long it needs to
operate the TA-A. These inputs are voltage signals received from
coolant temp, intake air temp, engine rpm and air conditioning system
pressure sensors. Once the PCM has received these inputs it can modify
the signal to the TA-A.

Well, could be any of those sensors that has failed. Replacing those
would be a lot cheaper than a motor that's part of the throttle body
assembly.

I've never gotten into deep use of the Android app with the OBD2 dongle.
I have the following apps:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=OCTech.Mobile.Applications.OBDLink
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.prowl.torque

About 2 years, I decided to pay the $5.32 to up to the Pro version of
the Torque app. I don't see that I paid for the OBDLink MX app
(probably was part of their $55 dongle product telling you to go their
site to get their app).

I have the OBDLink MX Bluetooth dongle. The MX model has red printing
while the MX+ model has yellow printing. I don't see the MX model is
sold anymore (https://www.obdlink.com/products/obdlink-mxp/). I got
mine probably about 4 ago at half the cost for the new MX+ model. It
doesn't do any diagnostics, because it can't. It just reads the error
codes from the car's ECM. One of the OBD apps can do logging to delve
further into the cause of an error code, like discovering which spark
plug has the wrong cable attached to it, but haven't yet needed to that
deep into using the apps. Other than to see the error code, and get
more info on it from their database, I've used it to reset the error
codes in the car's ECM after making a repair or change to see if and
when the error code(s) reappear.

Ask the shop how much to *diagnose* the error code. A scan is probably
free, but the labor to find the cause is not.

[1 Lucky Texan]

What city are you near?
You could post over at www.ultimatesubaru.org , or at the Forester Forum.

Sometimes, a bad battery will cause spurious codes, or, bad ground connections. With covid and business closures reducing travel, some people are finding rodent damage in cars that are unused for long periods of time.

A subaru-friendly independent shop would be my preference if I couldn't fix it myself.

[T]

I think you are on to something there. My battery
miserably failed its deep cycle test.

Do my subi back from the shop yesterday:

1,320 U$D: battery, injectors, spark plugs and wires,
air cleaner, timing belt, water pump, oil and filter;
flush power steering and brake fluid, tire rotate,
thermostat, oil cooler.

No more burning oil smell. And my subi is now rock
solid when I accelerate: no more spongy pedal.
It run like a new car now. I am very pleased.

[T]

On 1/29/22 16:52, T wrote:
> Do my

Got my

Stinkin' typos