bluegrasssboy

I couldn't get that link to work. It's a 97 Impreza Brighton coupe, 2.2 144k with an auto. I've had it for 2 years. It's been in the family since it was a year old. It got hit when new and the wife's sister bought it rebuilt in 98. About 3 years ago it got pelted by hail, and there's bondo cracking open on the driver's quarter, but hey- it's a work car! I've driven it every day for the last two years and for the last few months about 500-700 miles a week. One day it just started acting up. It almost felt like the tranny would make the car jerk hard every once in a while. I thought it was a tranny thing. Then when backing out of a parking space it died. It's NEVER died on me before. Drove about an hour towards home and it really started acting up. As long I as I could keep in the gas, it would buck and jerk a little but keep on running. If I let off the gas, as if coming to a light, it will die and be a bear to start. It's been intermittent. I can start it right now drive it a few miles maybe and it might be fine. Seems like it does it more when it's hot maybe. Hard to say. I haven't driven it much since it's started cause I don't want to get stranded and have to tow it. But that seems to be when it acts up. I've got 10 acres and I've started it and run it up to the barn and back several times and it's been fine. But I drove it into town the other day and it gave me all kinds of hell after I got about 8 miles from the house. It sat while I got a haircut, I drove it home without a problem. I'm leaning in the direction of maybe the fuel pump. Maybe once it gets warm or hot it's not working properly. But I've read about some fuel pump controller or maybe an air flow meter? Twice the AT TEMP light has came on and flashed for a few seconds then went out. But the second time it happened, the car had only been running a few minutes. So I think perhaps has nothing to do with it? Ok, now for my worry about the wiring harness/plug for the fuel pump. My father in law told me that there was once something wrong with the plug that plugs into the fuel pump that he couldn't find a new plug and that he "rigged" it. So, when I hear this I go looking expecting to find a ball of electrical tape and wires. But there's not. Nothing looks rigged He doesn't live close so he can't look and tell me what he did, and without seeing it he can't remember just exactly what it was he did do! When I unplugged it, the end of the plug -on the wire end, not the tank side,..one of the wire connectors looked "different" than the others. The plastic around it looked brown. Obviously it's not normal. But with the car in park and it idling, I pushed and pulled on the plug and wires a little bit hoping to get some reaction, but didn't. It idled fine. So it might be that, then it might not. Meanwhile I've got a car in my driveway that I can't drive! Since I drive so much for work, it might be time to start looking for a car.

Found this on ebay. The harness in my car that plugs into the white connector here...it has a "burnt" looking connector on the end of my plug. How does this plug come out of the tank? Pull the whole plate and it loosens from the bottom? Could this plug be causing my jerking, stalling and hard starting? Remember, it's intermittent. Thanks

Anyone have any recommendations for junk yards with Subarus????

Here's the problem with that... There's only wires on one side. That connector plugs into the top of what I assume is the fuel pump. There are no wires on the left side. And, the way it's turned, I can't see the in the female side of the of it to see what it looks like. I'm not exactly sure how that thing comes out.

The last time we spoke the little Brighton coupe was still acting badly off and on. And it still is. Will run fine for 1 minute, five minutes...whatever, then run bad for however long it decides to, then run fine. Remember, I bought it off the wife's sister a couple of years ago. She'd had it about 6 years I think. It's been a steller little beater until two weeks ago. I had a little conversation with the father-in-law and he remembered it had something about the wiring plug that connects to the fuel pump messing up a few years back and it was acting like it wasn't getting fuel and that he "rigged" it up. He figured that was what it was. The father in law is a decent mechanic albeit a hillbilly mechanic. So I clean out the trunk, pull the carpet and take the left cover near the seat loose and figure that down in there doesn't look like anything I'm looking for(this is all new to me) so I take the right cover off and this looks like the business end alright, but nothing looks "rigged". So I unplug the little white wiring connector and sure enough, on the end of the plug there's a connector that's all weird looking, the plastic's brown and it looks larger than the surrounding ones.... What he did to rig it I'm not sure. He didn't say exactly and I haven't talked to him since. I was expecting to find a little ball of wires all taped up, but apparently he did neat work. So, I unplug it. And start the car. It ran for about seconds and died. No surpise. Plug it back in and starts and idles fine. I walk around to the back and push around on the plug and the wires a bit. Hoping it would have cause something to happen, die, run rough or something so I could confirm the plug or not. It idled just fine. I drive it down the street, turned around and on the way back it's starts bucking it stalled. When I'm in the gas it'll run, it acts up but it'll run. When I let off it has a tendency to die and be hard to start. I don't suppose there's no where I could get one of these connectors besides cutting one off at a junk yard? Which would be like winning the lottery for me to find a subaru in the parts yard around here. Todd in KY

I and thought it was a thread on how to tone my stomach!!

How much would it cost me if I ended up replacing all three, the MAF, the O2 and temp sensors? I'm a bit of a dilema. Since I only paid 900 for it to start with, I've really gotten my money's worth out of it. With my new job(as of August) I drive 500-700 miles a week. I I need a dependable car. With the hail dings and cracked bondo, up close it's not the nicest looking car. 20ft though it looks fine. I work for an insurance co. and technically, I'm supposed to present somewhat of a professional appearance. Although it's eastern, KY and I travel to lots of trucking companies, logging companies, sawmills etc.. way back in the sticks, so it doesn't matter a whole lot. What's ironic is at a recent staff meeting one of my buddy's asked if I was still driving the Subaru and I said, "I'm gonna drive it until the wheels fall off or they tell me I have to drive something else!" Then it wasn't a week later it started acting up. Obviously, the car's paid for, so I get to pocket the majority of the mileage reimbursement. A car payment would take a big chunk of that. Do I spend a few hundred possibly on a rebuilt, hail dinged, cracked open plain jane little Subaru that I only paid $900 for to begin with? So if I do buy something, I don't want to spend a lot of money and have a big payment. I want to spend maybe 6-8k. Do I throw money at the little car or do I just go ahead and buy a newer car and get it over with? If I didn't have to drive so much it'd be different. But I drive a lot. I hate dilemas. Oh, I forgot to mention the oil leak. It's not bad, by not bad, I mean it never really hits the ground. It all seems to find the exhaust. When you get off the exit ramp and have to sit at the light, it comes wafting out from the hood and the grill. Looks much worse than it really is! The wife absolutely hates it. lol. It's not too bad with fresh oil, but once you get around 3k on it, it'll let you know when it's time for an oil change. The car's had a hard life, but it's been a great car. Goes like crazy in the snow. The last two winters we lived in the NE corner of Indiana and it went like crazy in the snow. When the time comes, if I can find a clean, decent mileage Subaru I'll buy it. But I'd like to squeeze a little more time out of this one.

I dunno, it seems more intermittent than that. When it's acting up good, it'll run fine one second and bad the next.

Newbie here. I've been driving a 97 Impreza for the past two years as my work car. Poor thing was wrecked when it was new, rebuilt, then about 4 years ago got pelted in a hail storm. So now it's got dings all over the hood, roof and truck and some bondo on the rear quarter has started to crack open. But I'm not worried about all that. It's got about 144k on it now. I've driven it every day and for the last few months about 500 miles a week. One day it just started acting up. It almost felt like the tranny was shifting hard every once in a while. I thought it was a tranny thing. Then when backing out of a parking space it died. It's NEVER died on me before. Drove about an hour towards home and it really started acting up. As long I as I could keep in the gas, it would buck and sputter but keep on running. If I let off the gas, as if coming to a light it would die and be a bear to start. It's been intermittent. I can start it right now drive it about 4 or 5 miles and it might be fine. Seems like it does it more when it's hot. I haven't driven it much since it's started cause I don't want to get stranded and have to tow it. But that seems to be when it acts up. I've got 10 acres and I've started it and run it up to the barn and back several times and it's been fine. But I drove it into town the other day and it gave me all kinds of hell after I got about 8 miles from the house. It sat while I got a haircut, I drove it home without a problem. I'm leaning in the direction of maybe the fuel pump. Maybe once it gets warm or hot it's not working properly. But I've read tonight about the fuel pump controller or maybe an air flow meter? When it runs right, it runs too well for there to be a major mechanical problem, so I'm thinking it's got to be the pump, maybe a clogged filter, or perhaps this controller or the air flow meter. I can't find a manual for a 97 anywhere on the net. The Subaru service site is $35 for 3 days. I'd thought I'd ask here for opinions and ask how I get to the fuel pump? Is it under the rear seat? And the controller in the trunk? Where's the air flow meter? I bought the car off the wife's sister. She bought it in 98 off the guy who rebuilt it and drove it until 03. Then I paid her $900 for it. Have driven it 2+ years and put 30k on it. Changing nothing but the oil and one set of tires. It can get as much as 31mpg on the highway, it's been a great car. I'd like to keep driving it. My wife doesn't want me to spend a lot of money on it cause we only paid 900 for it and she hates it. If I get another car, I'd like to get another Subie. Since it's a work car and work pays 45 cents a mile, I don't want to spend a lot, that way I get to pocket more of the reimbursement. Then that has me looking at cars not much newer than mine. I hate the thought of spending thousands of dollars for something that's not much difference than what I've got, rebuilt title, hail dings and cracked bondo notwhithstanding! Any ideas or tips? Thanks, Todd in KY