Tuning Company Cobb Removes Cool Features For Boring Reason

If you’ve heard an overtly loud Subaru WRX STI burble by your house at 3 a.m., it likely had some Cobb parts on it. The tuning company has been around for some time, and makes parts for myriad cars, like STI and Volkswagen GTI. Arguably, Cobb is the name in Subaru aftermarket parts. Now, the company says it’s removing parts of its software- and discontinuing support for some hardware- to ensure the brand is both CARB and EPA emissions compliant.

In a blog post, the tuning firm detailed changes to its Accesstuner software, saying changes were helping to “ensure that tunes or calibrations developed using our Accesstuner software address the new/evolving emissions requirements present in the market and could be CARB EO certified.” That means Cobb software will no longer run any software built to bypass emissions equipment installed by an OEM, like an exhaust gas recirculation valve.

The Drive spoke to one licensed Cobb dealer that highlighted issues and frustrations within the tuning community well. Cody Pincura, owner of Redline Tuning, said, “A lot of us knew this was coming (emissions regulations), we just didn’t know it was gonna happen like this.” The announcement from Cobb came suddenly, with little notice given to shops like Redline.

Pincura also pointed out that “old-fashioned” means of extracting big power, like deleting catalytic converters, aren’t really necessary anymore. Instead, he says most goals can be reached with simple “bolt-on” parts like emissions-legal ECU tunes. However, Cody does say that those who bought Cobb flex-fuel kits have been seriously affected.

Also part of the new emissions-friendly shift from Cobb was the stop-sale of flex-fuel kits. Customers who bought those as early as a month ago are understandably pretty upset. Cobb now considers those kits to be non-emissions compliant.

As a result, many have had the rug pulled out from under them at the last second. Pincura says he’s got customers waiting for installations of the kit – which allow cars to run a blend of gasoline and ethanol – as far out as 6 months. “There should’ve been better communication,” said Pincura.

Understandably, customers may now feel hesitant to go ahead with their plans for modifying their cars. That could affect Cobb dealers like Pincura, who many now face cancellations and returns as a result. The entire situation is tough, with shops like Redline now left to tend to upset customers. More emissions-friendly tuning is a sign of the times and something that brands like Cobb will have to work through with their customers, rather than simply putting out a notice stating things are now done differently.