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No start no crank 2003 subaru outback wilderness edition


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I have a subaru that i just bought that is having some sort of electrical issue and i'm a bit stumped on it right now.

It won't crank so i checked the starter.

I have 12.6 at the battery connection to the starter

when i turn the key i have 12.6 at the starter fuse under the dash

the problem is the little slide on connection at the starter.

When i turn the key there is no voltage present.

If i take a jumper wire and go directly from positive on the battery to that little ignition terminal it will start just fine so i know the starter and ground are good.  

My question is what is between the ignition fuse beneath the dash and the ignition terminal on the starter itself?

Is there a starter solenoid on this model and if so where is it located?

I did get a p1518 code saying that the starter solenoid had low voltage but when i researched this code most of the information given was that this code was just a biproduct of the no start situation.

Any help would be great.

thankyou

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Automatic or manual trans?

 

If its auto, try starting with the shifter in Nuetral.

 

If its manual there's an interlock relay that has to be grounded by the clutch safety switch. You should hear the relay click under the dash when turning the key to start.

 

If the car has an alarm make sure the alarm is disarmed.

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Thanks for the quick reply.

I forgot to mention that part too.  I did try starting it in both park and neutral to see whether it was the neutral safety switch.  It doesn't start in any range and the inhibitor seems to be working just fine.  I hear a click when the power is on and i go to take it out of park and i hear another click when i step on the brake.  I tried starting it while wiggling the shifter in all ranges to see if i could catch a sweet spot.  No luck yet.  I have now taken the bottom of the dash off so i could get to all of the harness pieces.  There seems to be wires spliced into the green connector.  Not sure if it was for a stereo or alarm system.   Also when i try to engage the starter from the key a little gold cylinder clicks (there are 2 of them right above/below one another beneath the steering wheel)  I would be more specific but i'm not really sure exactly what they are.  

Does anyone have the wiring diagram for the starting circuit?

Right now i'm leaning towards a harness problem / ecu problem but my fingers are crossed that it's something much more simple.

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the problem is the little slide on connection at the starter
Thats the starter solenoid connection.
 
Does the car have a remote door lock and alarm?  The same thing happened on my 95 a few times and it was caused by the add on remote door lock that some idiot installed.  But it can happen with the OEM remote lock too.
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Thanks for all of the suggestions guys.

I had thought the the starter solenoid was part of the starter on something this new, thanks for confirming that.

I just changed out the starter just for good measure; seems stupid now because it still doesn't work lol.

I have checked the fusible links and fuses, not just visually but with my dmm also.

I have tested the battery and tried a different one with higher cold cranking amps.  I have checked all of the battery connections.  

How would i find whether or not this car has a security system?  I bought it at an abandoned confiscated auction and it didn't come with keys or fobs.  I had a key made but it is just a standard metal key that they gave me.  Do the subaru's this late have a magnetic coded key?

Only wiring diagram i've come across so far for this gen is for an h6 and i have a 2.5.  Do you guys think the starter circuit would be the same in both? 

Does this starter circuit even pass through the ecu?  I was just assuming it did because of the code it threw.

Also; is there a cutoff switch of some sort.  This car was hit on one of the rear wheels.

Sorry for so many questions at once.  I'm fresh out of ideas for the easy stuff.  It's looking more and more like it's gonna be something hard.

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It does sound like it could be an anti theft problem.  Did you try calling the dealership and ask them for help.  Also someone here should also be able to help out.  I could tell you how to deactivate a anti theft lockout for a 97, but I doubt that it is the same for a 03.

 

You should work to get a service manual and operating manual either from the internet or on one of these forums.  You can read in the manual how to deactivate the anti theft device. 

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"with another remote if you have one or by turning the key ON LOCK 3 times in 5 seconds"

 

That's the disarm instructions from cars101.Com for an 03 outback.

 

But you could be chasing a ghost that is the cause of why it was where it was.......

Edited by lstevens76
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Well you guys were all right in the end.  It was a security issue, just not a subaru one.

It looks like an after market alarm was installed and then poorly uninstalled from this car. 

There was an entire mini harness tucked underneath the steering column and when i pulled it out i could see that it was all spliced into a little 4 wire blue connector directly below the ignition.  The white wire with a black trace coming from the blue connector had been cut for the splice and then never reconnected.  I pulled the entire added harness out and put everything back to factory.  A little bit of solder, some electrical tape, and five minutes and i was up and running.

Thanks for all the help and suggestions i was truly stumped on this one.

THE END!

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