An intriguing Auto Week story last week caught my attention involving a software problem in the new “GT-86” sports coupe that Toyota and Subaru jointly developed. According to the story, owners of the new 2013 Toyota Scion FR-S and its twin the Subaru BRZ have been complaining about rough idling and stalling conditions affecting their new cars. Both Toyota and Subaru say that the problems are not related to a mechanical defect but instead are related to a software “bug” related to the engine control unit (ECU).
Auto Week reports that a Toyota spokesperson told them that “when the engine control unit … is installed, it adapts to the car’s powertrain and owner’s driving patterns, a process known as adaptive learning. Within 160 kilometers, those settings are basically frozen in the ECU.”
via IEEE Spectrum
October 10, 2012
