2013 Hyundai Elantra - P2096 - ECM Reprogramming

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One of my friend's has a 2013 Hyundai Elantra w/79K that has an intermittent check engine light. Supposedly the light would come on for a few days and would stay off for a week or two. I do not normally work on Hyundai's but I decided to give this one a try since he purchased the car from a mutual friend.

I scanned the car with my Autel and found a history fault for P2096, which is Post Catalyst Fuel Trim System too lean (Bank1). After doing a quick internet search, this does not appear to be an uncommon problem and it isn't always an easy one to fix. I pressurized the exhaust system with shop air (don't have a smoke machine) and did not find any leaks at the flex-pipe or any areas around the downstream O2. Checked the downstream o2 wiring harness and the heater in the sensor and it was fine. The service manual said to also make sure that the upstream sensor switches a minimum of 3 times in 10 sec (it does, so that's ok) and the downstream sensor voltage should be >0.6v at idle; this one read .7-.8v most of the time.

I then found a TSB from late 2014 (#14-FL-006) advising that Hyundai had released an updated PCM calibration to address the P2096 diagnostic logic. The vehicle's current calibration ID and the model year fit the description in the bulletin. Unfortunately, I do not own a J2534 reprogramming interface and battery maintainer. Luckily one of my buddies has a Cardaq Plus 2 and a Snap-On EEBC500 at his shop and he graciously allowed me to use them.

So I setup my laptop, paid $75 for the calibration file from Hyundai, hooked up the battery maintainer and did the reflash. It was a scary 15 min process but luckily the update completed successfully; the Hyundai J2534 utility does not have a manual mode (only the dealer's GDS tool does), so if the reflash failed, I could have been on the hook for a new ECM.

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I then cleared the codes and the fuel adaptations, drove the car and immediately noticed that the transmission shifted smoother and the vibration at idle being gone. Weird - perhaps there were other changes with this update? Unfortunately I could not get all of the monitors to set during the test drive, so we will need to wait for the owner to put some miles on the car to find out if the problem is fixed. I was advised that sometimes, you will also need to replace the downstream o2 sensor even if the software is updated. We will see. If anyone has any experience with this fault code on this vehicle, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Moral of the story - do your diagnostics and check for all applicable service bulletins before replacing parts. Car repair is becoming more complex and software reprogramming is often part of the fix, if not the only fix; replacing parts is not always the fix.
 
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Luckily the problems that crop up seem to be common, and scouring the internet almost always results in finding others with the same issue that already have solved the problem.
 
It is why with a new Elantra I feel I am at the mercy of Hyundai and the dealership. I can change many parts with good instructions. Diagnostics has become too technical for my skill level.

Critic, it seems the dealership could have done the flash with less drama. It would be nice to know what they would charge compared to what you did. It seems like you liked the challenge.

My old school retired mechanic who used to race Mopars said he hated working on cars the last time I saw him. He was referring to all the computer stuff you have to deal with now.
 
I spoke with both of the area dealers and was advised that Hyundai will not pay for this software update under the emissions warranty; they will only pay for this update under the 5/60k. So, they wanted 1 hr of labor ($155) to update the car.

The impression I received was that Hyundai thinks this is not a emissions related condition, so they will only cover it under the 5/60K. This is very different than my experience with Toyota and Mazda- those two OEMs will cover just about any powertrain related reflash under the emissions warranty.
 
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$75 for a firmware update is a bit much but of course they have a monopoly and they probably only release this due to those "right to repair" laws so we should be thankfull I guess.

Would this work with those infamous J2534 ebay USB knockoff cables that sell for $25 or would one need a genuine $300 Mongoose?
 
Originally Posted By: eljefino
$75 for a firmware update is a bit much but of course they have a monopoly and they probably only release this due to those "right to repair" laws so we should be thankfull I guess.

Would this work with those infamous J2534 ebay USB knockoff cables that sell for $25 or would one need a genuine $300 Mongoose?


Not sure. Drewtech doesn't make a MongoosePro for Hyundai vehicles. The only approved interface from Drewtech $1600 CarDAQ Plus 2 that I used.
 
Originally Posted By: SHOZ
At 79k I don't know why that wasn't covered under the federal emissions warranty.

https://www.ncconsumer.org/news-articles/federal-extended-emissions-warranty.html


I went on the Hyundai website and read the fine print on their warranty terms. There are definitely some loopholes there. Basically the ECM (hardware) is covered under the 8/80K warranty, but there is no fine print on software calibrations. So, it is a gray area - and dealers have advised me that their attempts to get software updates covered by Hyundai (between 5/60 and 8/80) are usually declined. I think the fed's only require the hardware to be covered and do not make any stipulations on covering software, so this is definitely a gray area.

While I do see both sides - my opinion is that consumers should expect anything related to the ECM to be covered under the warranty, not just the hardware. This is probably why some OEM's such as Toyota and Mazda, have elected to cover most reflashes described in TSB's under the extended emissions warranty. Shame on Hyundai, I guess.
 
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I took my Accent in for a leaking axle seal just before the 5/60k warranty was up. They tried to intimidate me with the "we don't know if it will be covered and have to ask Corporate" line. The did cover the axle seal (under the 10/100k warranty) and I asked about a TSB that addressed a too rich fuel setting on a cold engine second start attempt. Basically if you started the car then immediately killed the engine it would flood the second time you tried to start it.

Originally they said it would cost $150 to hook the car to the computer to diagnose and then I declined the offer as it really was not big deal problem. They went ahead and did it anyway for no charge.

I have found out thought that they will not address TSBs unless you are under the 5/60k warranty for most items.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
I spoke with both of the area dealers and was advised that Hyundai will not pay for this software update under the emissions warranty; they will only pay for this update under the 5/60k. So, they wanted 1 hr of labor ($155) to update the car.

The impression I received was that Hyundai thinks this is not a emissions related condition, so they will only cover it under the 5/60K. This is very different than my experience with Toyota and Mazda- those two OEMs will cover just about any powertrain related reflash under the emissions warranty.


If you cannot pass an inspection because of the CEL and the reason is a manufacturer known issue - IT IS MANDATORY to be covered under the federal emmissions warranty. No parts were bad, not the vehicle owner's fault and an update to the software fixed the issue means I would be calling Hyundai and the government for reinbursement.
 
Interesting read. You're a good friend Critic. I would have never guessed a software update like this would take 15min. My luck I'd get a blue screen 14min into it. Uh OH! lol
 
Update: it has been 8,000 miles since the reflash was performed and the check engine light has not come back on. I was advised by some techs that the rear 02 sensor may need to be replaced anyway, but so far, the P2096 fault code has not reappeared.

I also just posted a UOA for this car - the oil was placed into service when the reflash was performed. There appears to be very minimal fuel dilution.

https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/4542410/13_Hyundai_Elantra_-_M1_EP_0w2
 
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