z28

Well, jumpers werent available, and I figured the battery was fine since it had a charge that was more than enough to start the car.

So I know that these are probably posted alot, but this one seems different than the ones I pulled in the searches. I'm trying to help my mom out here with her 94 Legacy Wagon. So shes driving down the road today and the radio starts fading in and out, shutting off and on...shortly after, the guagues started to die with the dieing of the radio. So the electronics died out, but the car still ran. She says that the "oil light" came on. So she asks me to check it out and I go to start it back up, and I have no start...I can hear what sounds like the starter click one time when I turn the key, but engine no turney over. It doesnt even try to crank, theres no "vwiirrr vwrir vwrirrr" sound, just that tick. I also get headlights, radio, power windows, etc working....to an extent. Headlights come on, radio comes on, but windsheild wipers go reaaaalllyyyy slow and windows go up and down reaaaalllyy slow. So I went to the battery, tested the voltage and it put out a solid 12 volts when the car was off, and 11.0-11.5 when the key was set to "accel". So, question is, where do I start? Any insight would help. I dont think it is the starter since the car started doing this while it was running.

Thanks man, I'll check it out, although, at 12 and 6 there is no play. Sorry I left that out, but I just didn't think about it. I'll do some of the other stuff you mentioned though.

Lol you bet, especially the internet. But I still think that the tons of torque (300ish ft/lbs) would help it power through the weight increase in a case of offroading. I see where you are coming from though, I just don't think that increase is that substantial. Here, try this, go offroading with a heavy-set friend and see if there is a difference :-p

Weight increase? You are only really talking 200-300lbs here. That is not nearly enough to negate out power when you are going from 70hp to upwards of 200hp for a stock motor, and 300-400hp if it's got heads and a cam with a decent carb and intake. There are so many varieties of 350's but not too many were under 200hp. In fact, I'm pretty sure the slowest production 350 had 170hp. So, even if it was a 170hp motor, you are going up 100hp and 300lbs...you will most definately gain substantial power...imagine a worked 350 with aluminum Trick Flow heads and a .500/.500 lift cam =) And if you havent guessed by now, I'm a Chevy guy Just my 2 cents.

Okay, the 1/4" of play: You are facing the driver's side tire, place one hand on the left side of the tire, and one hand on the right side of the tire (9 oclock and 3 oclock). When you wiggle it back and forth (towards the motor and away from the motor), there is a 1/4" of play. See, in my car, this would be an indication that the tie rods need replacing, but I wasn't sure if Subarus were the same. The coil/strut, and mounting bolt also rotate about the same amount relative to the tire's play. When the noise happens, its pretty much a grinding, and then a growl, and stops after the turn is completed. It doesn't happen every time either, just time to time, but is becoming more frequent. It comes from the very front of the car, and she says it started at the driver's side and has gotten worse, and now happens on the passenger side, but is subtle so far. The car is a 1994 Subaru Legacy wagon with 135,000 miles, and the 2.2L H4 engine. I'm not sure when the brakes were done, probably not for a while. My grandmother owned it before my mom, so I really don't know.

Hey guys, I'm just here to get some answers for my mom's car. Basically when she turns the wheel sharply, at low speeds, she gets a grinding noise when the wheels are turned all the way/nearly all the way. I checked the CV joints, they are good. I then raised the front of the car to wiggle the wheels to check for bad wheel bearings, or bad tie rods (Don't know if the Subaru's have them, but I know this from my Camaro). Both wheels had about a quarter inch, maybe more, of play in them when wiggling in the left to right direction. I also noticed her strut/spring rotating with the tire, and I checked the nut at the top of the mount, and that was rotating ever so slightly too. Is this an indication that the bearing in the mount could be shot? Could her tie rods be bad, if they even exist? Or are Subarus supposed to do this? I'm kind of clueless on the specifics of these cars, as the suspension is different than my Camaro's. Any other ideas? Thanks _Clark