Subaru Service and Technical Support Line Newsletter
April 2 016
SPECIAL EDITION
The Subaru TechTIPS newsletter is intended for use by professional technicians ONLY. Articles
are written to inform those technicians of conditions that may occur in some vehicles, or to
provide information that could assist in the proper servicing of the vehicle. Properly trained
technicians have the equipment, tools, safety instructions, and know-how to do the job correctly
and safely. If a condition is described, DO NOT assume that your vehicle has or will have that
condition. Impreza, Legacy, Justy, Loyale, Outback, Forester, Subaru SVX, WRX, WRX STI,
L.L. Bean, Baja, Tribeca, BRZ, XV Crosstrek and “Quality Driven” are Registered Trademarks.
ISO 14001 is the international standard for
excellence in Environmental Management
Systems. Please recycle or dispose of
automotive products in a manner that is
friendly to our environment and in accordance
with all local, state and federal laws and
regulations.
CAUTION: VEHICLE SERVICING PERFORMED BY UNTRAINED PERSONS
COULD RESULT IN SERIOUS INJURY TO THOSE PERSONS OR TO OTHERS.
SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. IS
ISO 14001 COMPLIANT
We would like to take a few moments to address a concern which
has been discussed in every Service department, and with every
Technician over the past approximately 2 years. FSEs have most
likely had the conversations with you about this, as well as Techline
reps and the Tech Trainers have been providing reinforcement of it as
part of their instructor led training classes.
What we’re referring to is the electronic saving of data collected using the SDS Notebook. Some say,
“We never had to do this before”. As a technician performing a repair, we have ALWAYS had to keep, and
be able to provide on request, all notes and data required as part of making a repair, especially those
covered by Warranty. Refer to section 13.2 of the Claims Policy and Procedures Manual on Subarunet.
“It is the responsibility of the retailer to maintain documentation supporting all claims submitted by the
retailer to SOA for reimbursement. All documents should be retained and readily available for review and
verification by an SOA representative. SOA requires that documentation be retained for the time period
required by Federal, State and Local statutes or for a minimum of 2 years.”
Using the SDS Notebook to save this data is faster and more efficient than the old way of printing,
walking to the printer, and stapling it to the RO. With printed data, if the data was requested (or worse the
car returned), someone had to go to the customer file, retrieve the document, remove the staple, copy
the document, fax the document, then reattach all the paperwork and return it to the file. It’s easy to see
why saving the data electronically is a better use of everyone’s valuable time.
When printing Freeze Frame data as an example, the printed copy cuts off at least one, sometimes more
than one column of data and prevents access to the actual event data which FHI engineers absolutely
need to have. In fact, this information is so important, FHI will no longer accept a printed copy of any
collected data from SOA. So now, not only is printing environmentally wasteful and time consuming,
from a practical standpoint it’s a complete waste of everyone’s time.
If you print out your Freeze Frame data and your print out shows a file location such as shown below, you
can still navigate to it by searching that file location. This way, the electronic version can still be retrieved
and shared with anyone who requests it.
© 2016 Subaru of America, Inc. All rights reserved.
ARTICLES CONTAINED
IN THIS ISSUE
CODE ARTICLE ................................. PAGE
(01) Saving And Printing Freeze ......
Frame Data ........................ 1
(14) April 2016 SSM4 Changes ...... 3
SAVING AND PRINTING FREEZE FRAME DATA
01
CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE
April 2016 TechTIPS Special Edition Page 1
With all of this in mind, make sure you immediately start saving EVERYTHING ELECTRONICALLY!!
DTC and Freeze Frame Data should be saved EVERY time the SDS Notebook is connected to the
vehicle for diagnostic purposes.
Start by creating a new folder in “My Documents” on the notebook. (Folder name example—G3233396
<Trouble symptom or DTC>-RO 12345-<Retailer code>)
Then, collect Current & History codes module by module not just with an all system check. Each time
data is collected, it must be identified as to what they are. (File name example—G3233396-ECM Freeze
Frame <DTC>-<Retailer code>) saving those files to the folder you just created.
It is always recommended Technicians print the diagnostic trouble tree, fill in the results to each step as
they go through the diagnostic process, then attach their results to the RO, or if possible, scan and save
it in the same folder.
None of us had to do this before. However, technology has evolved, and whether we like it or not, we
must evolve in how we approach diagnosing and repairing utilizing this new technology. It only appears
difficult because we’re not used to doing it. Initially, it may take just a little longer because it’s new and
unfamiliar but, it will become second nature and quick after doing it a few times.
Remember, by supporting the process, you will limit any claim concerns that may come up later as a
result of incomplete documentation. Perhaps even more importantly, whenever a vehicle comes in, you
and the other Technicians in your retailer will have access to all the vehicle’s past data including prior
codes, FFD, and known good driving files for reference which could be valuable time savers.
Don’t forget to regularly back up the data you save in My Documents following your company’s data
retention policies and procedures. Remember, the SDS Notebooks are leased and will go away after a
time, plus any device can crash unexpectedly and data may be lost as a result. So, regular backups are
STRONGLY recommended. See your retailer internal IT liaison for details.
An excerpt from the February 2015 Tech Tips:
IMPORTANT REMINDER: It is imperative all collected Freeze Frame Data (FFD) be saved electronically. Faxing
or e-mailing scanned print-outs or screen captures of FFD is no benefit to anyone requesting the data. A recent
TSB, 01-172-14, was released on this and other Select Monitor III-related usage topics during August, 2014 which
included screen shots with step-by-step instructions outlining the necessary procedures to follow for saving and
e-mailing FFD and SSMIII data files. For those unfamiliar with TSB 01-172-14, please locate it on STIS at your
earliest opportunity and become familiar with this very important, time-saving information.”
CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE
Freeze Frame Data Display
Date Wednesday, December 09, 2015
Time 15:12 C:\Users\Subaru\Documents\JF2SJGPCXEH523163 P0171.ffd
System Engine Control System
SAVING AND PRINTING FREEZE FRAME DATA
01
April 2016 TechTIPS Special Edition Page 2
With the release of the April 2016 SSM4 software, you may notice some changes to the application and
the functions that it provides. In the following, you will find some of the key features added and how to
utilize them to your advantage as a Subaru Technician.
1. Screen lock Icon
Locking the screen on the SSM4 is now available with the release of the April 2016 software. This
feature will prevent inadvertently selecting an option on the screen which could interfere with the process
you are following. Below in figure 1, you can see the lock button in place of the option button.
To enable the screen lock function, press and hold the option button. Once the option button switches to
the lock symbol, the SSM4 screen is in the lock state. In order to unlock the screen, the same process
will need to be followed. This process can be seen below in figure 2.
CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE
APRIL 2016 SSM4 CHANGES
14
April 2016 TechTIPS Special Edition Page 3
2. Freeze Frame Data
When viewing the All System
Scan on the SSM4, you will
now be able to view the freeze
frame data on the same
screen. Another feature will
be that the freeze frame data
is automatically saved in the
project file along with the All
Systems Scan. Figure 3 shows
how the April 2016 SSM4 All
Systems Scan will be viewed
with this new feature. Note that
now you can select to view the
freeze frame data by clicking
on the icons in the FFD column
when viewing the All Systems
Scan.
3. Oscilloscope Changes
Oscilloscope data viewed in the current data display of the control module for which you are monitoring
can now be viewed at an asynchronous interval. Prior to the release of the April 2016 SSM4 version, the
oscilloscope data could only be viewed at the same interval (synchronous) of the control module current
data. Another change you will see under the Select Signal menu is the name of the measurement
category which has changed from “ANA” to “OSC”. Figure 4 shows a screenshot of the analog settings
menu in which you can now select a sampling interval of Synchronous, 2ms, 3ms, 6ms, and 15ms.
Figure 5 shows a screen shot from the Select Signal menu with the new name of the measurement
category.
CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE
APRIL 2016 SSM4 CHANGES
14
April 2016 TechTIPS Special Edition Page 4
CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE
4. Customized Setting Changes
You can now save the customized settings of the Body Integrated Unit as a setting file in the vehicle
project information. Accessing this file will allow you to change the current settings of the Body Integrated
Unit to match those in the setting file if, for example, the Body Integrated Unit has been replaced or the
customer has purchased a new Subaru and would like the settings adjusted to their previous vehicle.
Figure 6 shows the new function icons available with the new SSM4 software.
APRIL 2016 SSM4 CHANGES
14
April 2016 TechTIPS Special Edition Page 5
When viewing the customized settings function of the SSM4, you will now see three colors depicting the
status of each setting. Figure 7 shows this new feature, and shows how the color corresponds to the
status of each setting selection. The orange cell depicted below represents a selection from a saved
setting file, which was explained in figure 5.
CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE
APRIL 2016 SSM4 CHANGES
14
April 2016 TechTIPS Special Edition Page 6
5. Open Project Menu
You will now notice when viewing the Open Project menu, the “Brand” column will no longer be seen
with the project management data. Figure 8 shows you the difference between the April 2016 SSM4
version versus the previous version.
CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE
APRIL 2016 SSM4 CHANGES
14
April 2016 TechTIPS Special Edition Page 7
6. Search History
Previous search keywords in the Monitor Settings menu will now have the option to be deleted if they are
no longer needed. Figure 9 highlights the process to delete keywords from the search history log.
CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE
APRIL 2016 SSM4 CHANGES
14
April 2016 TechTIPS Special Edition Page 8
7. Target models for SSM4
Additional models will now be supported by the SSM4 with the release of the April 2016 version.
Targeting more vehicles with the SSM4, along with these new features, will help to enhance the
diagnostic process necessary in the field. Below is a list of additional models and the model years
applicable.
APRIL 2016 SSM4 CHANGES
14
Additional Models
Legacy/Outback 15MY
WRX/STI 15MY
Impreza 12MY - 15MY
Crosstrek 13MY - 15MY
Forester 14MY - 15MY
BRZ 13MY - 15MY
April 2016 TechTIPS Special Edition Page 9
