HolyCrapItsFast
Drinks beer!
I agree with their explanation but I also feel the idle jumps are not normal... I was not aware of a stumble in your car till now but a tune can fix that.
My idle is shit, and stumbles for a second when I go from idle to the slightest of throttle input, and always has been that way. I thought a tune would fix it but after 3 different tunes, I've lost patience with that option. So I just bump up the idle with my Cobb AP and all is well. It'll stay set like that unless the battery is disconnected, in which case you need to input the idle setting changes again.
I'll try to remind myself to check and post what my idle is set at exactly when I get out of work, but I
think if I remember correctly, I'm set at about 1000-1100 RPMs. Food for thought, I guess...
EDIT: I don't want to screw with the idle on my car unless I absolutely have to, but I'm trying to remember what the idle was set at from the factory. I want to say about 750 RPMs, because I believe my AP is set at "+300 RPM IDLE (A/C OFF) and +350 RPM IDLE (A/C ON)" Anyone care to chime in?
It seems like I've always known 4-cylinders to idle in the 900-1100 range, which made me initially think to move the idle up with the AP.
Yes please let me know
Yes the idle is way to low on these car in particular. Not enough speed to maintain good oil pressure or flow IMO. I always bump them up to at least 850. 1000 if there are injectors and such.
My two cents here:
Don't stress about knock count - what you need to be looking at is FBKC and FLKC. Knock count is used as an input in the ecu's logic (amongst other parameters) to determine whether the ECU triggers FBKC or not. You will drive yourself crazy, for no reason, stressing about knock count. There is a reason why Cyl 4 also picks up more knock count - in most roms, the per cylinder timing is bumped up on this cylinder - the theory (amongst others) is that Subaru wants the cylinder that the knock sensor is closest to to pick up knock first, in case the other cylinders are not picked up.
On the idle - it is unusual to get the dip in idle for such a new car, but on the idle at 1100 RPMs... I don't know. I've got an 09 sti on 1200cc injectors (crap ones at that) idling steady as hell at 750 RPMS. There's a whole set of variables that feed into idle stability - including your base idle timing (timing is a highly effective, almost instantaneous way to balance RPMs low down), idle stability tables, idle throttle tables, and more. I do agree however that many compromises are made for emissions on these cars, including very low idle - so bumping it up slightly doesn't hurt.
It shouldn't be an issue on a stock 2013 though (unless I missed it, and you're tuned?).