outback_97

FWIW my '97 OB does something similar. Sitting in "D" at a stop light, it will vibrate and shake quite a bit... shift into "N" and it goes away. Shift back into "D" and it will shake again, but not as bad. Sometimes it shakes badly enough that the front window will rattle if it's not cranked fully up or down. Other than this, the cars idles and runs just fine. I have not had axles replaced. Mine has >160K miles and it has done this for years. I have heard this problem described on forums other times over the years and just have resigned myself to it being one of those Subie quirks.

EDIT: Got it fixed thanks to a helpful member here! My rear power window in the '97 OB has come off the track... meaning I can raise and lower it but have to lift the front of it by hand or it'll raise up crooked and get jammed. I took the interior of the door off, and found that the little "roller" or bushing that keeps part of the regulator in its track had broken. I fished the half that was left in there out to take some photos: Can I find something like this as a discrete part? I'd rather not have to replace the whole assembly for a 99 cent broken part. Thanks for any help you can provide.

Thanks for the tips guys! I ended up ordering one from here since the rating was a little higher and they're closer to me. I'll have to let you know how it goes after I get it next week. The car is actually running fine. I would love for the mileage to improve when I get this installed though.

Thanks 86, that's good to know. I think I'll order one up and see if that fixes my CEL.

Hey guys, I have gotten a few instances of CEL and when I read it it's a P0325 code. The car has almost 160K miles and I'm sure the knock sensor is original, so I was going to replace it. The stealership wants >$100 for one, in searching online I saw this one for 1/2 of that price on ebay. Anyone here try one of these? Any good, or stay far away? Thanks!

Well, that was it I just ran an extra ground wire to the misbehaving tail light, and all is well. The trailer made her maiden voyage to Lowe's to get some siding today, worked great. We have named her "Clanky". Thanks for all the suggestions guys.

From this thread. I think I understand that, and if I'm reading it correctly, it explains why mine are doing this.

Great idea on the working trailer check, I had thought of that too but so far I haven't found one that has the same kind of connector (4 wire flat). I got the trailer wiring tester from HF for $4, and according to that, everything is wired up correctly on the car side. It's just LED's though, so I guess it wouldn't indicate if the power is a little low. I took the passenger side light off the trailer and both bulbs seem to work fine. I'll try to work on it some more this weekend and check all the connections and grounds. And maybe the converter is bad, I could try another one of those. Just found this in a thread about trailer wiring problems: http://www.skyroadster.com/forums/484514-post11.html The poster mentions running a dedicated ground wire from the problem tail light back to the white trailer ground wire. That's an easy one to try. And yes, a beer or several will help the process along!

Thanks guys. I'm pretty sure the wires are mated up correctly, I have double checked but I'll triple check. It was late last night when I was checking this out. It's just so odd to me (who doesn't understand how this works) that it would work fine with running lights off, then not work only on one side with running lights on. I did not notice anything dimmer on the right side but I'll check that out too. I think a ground problem is the most likely culprit. I could also switch sides with the tail lights on the trailer and see if the problem moves with them. Last night I had hit the troubleshooting wall so I just need to take a fresh look at it and try some new things, thanks for the suggestions!

EDIT: Fixed it by running another ground wire from a tail light to the wiring harness. Hey guys, I'm trying to wire up a small utility trailer to tow with my '97. Here's what I have so far: A wiring converter spliced into the vehicles trailer wiring harness. A Harbor Freight utility trailer. I have the trailer wired up per the instructions, and when I connect the vehicle wiring to the trailer this is what I get. With key on and/or engine running and vehicle running lights off: All trailer lights function as they should. Brake lights work, turn signals work. With key on and/or engine running and vehicle running lights or headlights on: Trailer brake light and turn signal light works on the drivers side only. Passenger side does not function at all. In either of the above examples, the vehicle lights function fully, that is my brake lights and turn signals are functioning normally on the car itself whether or not the trailer is connected. What should I try? This is my first trailer wiring experience and I'm not sure how to troubleshoot this problem. Thanks!

My wife claims it's noticeably quieter now, I don't notice a lot of difference but yeah, it does seem quieter and smoother running. Or it could be the placebo effect of having just spent a lot of money and wanting it to be quieter

Indeed it was the water pump, my mechanic put a new one in and fixed some seals on the oil pump as well as some timing belt idle pulleys that were starting to make some noise. So, if you get a small coolant leak in this area, definitely consider the water pump as a culprit. Thanks for the feedback guys

Sorry, should have provided more details... 138,000 miles or so, original water pump. It doesn't sound bad, I was under the car with my head 6 inches from the engine while it was running, didn't notice any howling or screeching or that sort of noise. It's a 10+ year old Subie, so it's not like it's a quiet smooth engine , between the heat shield rattles, tapping valve noise, etc. My local mechanic is probably gonna look at it on Friday, I do some work on the car but don't feel up to the task of water pump replacement, just trying to get a feel for what it might be, in case it's something easy I could try out. Thanks for the feedback.

EDIT: Yup, it was the water pump going bad, all fixed now. I have a slight coolant leak (drip, drip, drip, very small puddle when the car is idling for a few minutes in one place). It's coming from the thermostat / water pump area as far as I can tell. Is this usually where the weep hole of the water pump will drip when that's going out, or is it likely something else? Here's a photo: Thanks in advance... haven't been on the USMB for a while, I missed this place

Sorry to leave you hanging, Gene! The mechanic wired a relay into the system to switch power to the starter. I asked him, "Isn't that fixing the symptom rather than the disease?". He agreed, yes, sort of, but that he had done this numerous times, had done it on his own car, no problems. He seems confident it will continue to work for a long time. I paid $96, which is less than the cost an inhibit switch from the local dealership. As long as it keeps working I'm OK with it. I will continue to carry my cable in the car if I ever need that. If I have further problems in the future at least I know a lot more about how the car works, that's one nice thing to come of this. As for the CEL? The mechanic didn't get any codes, at least that's what he told me. So, I have no idea what was causing that. Steve

Thanks for all the help, Cougar. I called the mechanic this afternoon to discuss my concerns after thinking about it for a while and seeing your response which confirmed them. He said, "I fixed your car, gotta go now, have an emergency to attend to, you can pick it up tomorrow a.m. but not this evening". I've had him do some work in the past, really nice guy, and he's highly recommended by other people in the local Subaru community. I'd like to think he's done the right thing, so we'll see what tomorrow brings I guess. I don't even know what he's done to fix it at this time, nor do I know what the CEL was. Thanks. Steve

I tried wiggling the gear selector, placing it in park, neutral, back to park, but I had also tried this when the problem initially happened and during my fixing attempts over the weekend, it has never made any difference for me. Here's the latest, dropped the car off at the mechanic this morning. First he thought it was the starter, when I talked to him in the a.m. I called this afternoon, and he said there's 11.9V at the lead going to the starter (good) but there's not enough amps (bad) and thus not enough power to crank the starter. He feels it is the neutral position switch (I'm assuming that's AKA the inhibit switch Cougar mentioned). His planned solution is to install a relay that will be actuated by the + starter lead when one turns the key, and switching power from the + of the battery, more elegantly doing what I've been doing with a piece of wire. He took the starter out of the box earlier, but now feels the starter wasn't the problem, I'm hoping the parts dept at the dealer will allow me to return it... he assures me they'll take it back though. I'm a little concerned... wouldn't it be better to solve the disease rather than the symptom? Is the neutral position switch that difficult or expensive to replace that it's smarter to just rig up a relay as he's planning to do? What I don't get is this, why would the mode of failure be: works fine -> sends voltage but low amps? Anyone have any thoughts on this proposed fix? Thanks. :-\ Steve

Worked great Saturday, Sunday, Monday morning... and then nothing again when I went to go home from work this evening. Fortunately I still had my little cable to "hotwire" it. Started it up again at home just now, with the same method... and now it has a CEL. I think I'm gonna give in and take it to a mechanic tomorrow, hopefully he can figure it out. Tempting to go get an OBDII reader and play around with it, but it's 9:30, dark outside, not in the mood to mess around with it. I'll update when I know more, thanks. Gene: Maybe I need a new battery, don't think that's what it is, but who knows? The OEM one lasted 8 years, the one I have now is only 2.5 years and is a decent Sears one. Steve

WOOT! Car now functioning great, alarmectomy complete. Not sure if one thing or a combination of them fixed it, but I put in the new ignition switch, cleaned off the battery terminals and cables really well, cleaned off the starter lead, and removed the hated alarm system. It would always go off any time I disconnected the battery and reconnected it, so I had snipped the siren leads long ago and never used the thing. They're useless anyway IMO. Now it starts right up, thanks for the help everyone

OK, I have the steering column trim removed and new ignition switch wired in to the wiring harness, no improvement though. Powers on the accessories as normal but no start. New switch is physically identical but has five leads and terminals in the wiring connector versus the original's four. I hooked a multimeter to the lead coming through the firewall (that goes to the starter) and to the battery. When I turn the ignition switch, it jumps to over 10V (couldn't tell exactly) and stays there if I hold the switch in the middle of its range from ON to START. If I twist the switch to its limit, the voltage drops back to 0. The trick from before still works, direct from + to starter, key ON, the car starts right up. While it was running I twisted the switch to START, the car almost died, didn't do the normal grindy "I'm already started idiot" noise one would expect if things were working normally. Cougar: Yes, it's a 4EAT, sorry I didn't clarify. I tried jostling the gear shift, also tried putting it in neutral (did this last night as well), no difference, it could still be the inhibit switch but that behavior suggests it may not be, correct? There's an alarm / door unlock system that is rather poorly wired in I'm discovering, I might try to cut that out of the car but I'm apprehensive about jumping into the CF of wires that is in there. OlnicK: Thanks for the encouragement! I may just do that. Steve

UPDATE: Got it started, woo hoo! Using this info: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showpost.php?p=561895&postcount=10 and other posts like it, I connected the + terminal of the starter to the + of the battery while the key was in the on position, and it cranked over and started up. Drove to the dealership, bought an ignition switch and starter, I'm leaning towards ignition switch being bad, cause when the starter got power it worked just fine. If it's the ignition switch only, I'll return the starter. If it's not just the ignition switch, I'll take the old starter off and try to get that to work. If that doesn't do it, new starter. Sound reasonable? Thanks! Steve

Thanks guys, haven't been on the USMB for a long time, almost forgot how awesome people here are! OK, I'm heading over there after a shower and some breakfast. Wish I had gotten more sleep though. No one mentioned the ignition switch, sounds like I won't try that first. Starter / solenoid it is. The car is lifted 2" via springs, do you think I'll need a jack stand to prop that corner up or will the bottom of the starter be accessible w/o jacking it up? I'll bring a set of wrenches, screwdrivers, multimeter, some fine sandpaper and wire brush, SFH (not BFH), Haynes manual, and a nearly complete lack of experience and knowledge at troubleshooting and repair of this type! I do have some backup plans though... there's an auto shop conveniently in the same parking lot, downhill from where it's parked, just have to get a passerby or employee of that shop to help do some pushing to get it turned in the right direction and coast on in. Thanks for the good wishes, I'll check this once more in 30 minutes or so before I leave. Steve

Seemed fixed for the weekend, now a case of the Mondays ******************************* My 97 Legacy OB is sitting across town tonight because I couldn't get it to start after we went out to dinner this evening. Battery is good AFAIK, all normal interior and dash lights come on, seems to have plenty of voltage. I have had no hard time starting or any electrical problems in the past, it starts right up. In hind sight, I have had a couple instances recently where there was the slightest hesitation upon turning the key to start... like a 1/2 to 1 second pause, then it fired right up. Tonight, when I turn the key to start, there's nothing, no cranking or even clicking, there is a click from a relay over by the glove box, I think that's the door lock timer? I also tried starting from neutral, didn't see any blown fuses or fusible link, didn't really know what else to try at that point, so we called a friend and caught a ride home. I read through many threads over the past two hours and it sounds like the things to try include checking the starter and solenoid, and possibly the ignition switch (the electrical one in the column as opposed to the key cylinder itself). I'm going to go back to the restaurant tomorrow morning, if there are any night owls reading this, in what order do you suggest I proceed? Am I way off in assuming it's either ignition switch, solenoid or starter? I have done some minor replacements and repairs of parts, but haven't ever torn into the steering column or starter before. Thanks for any advice you can give. Steve

Thanks for all the info, I'm going to look into the HF one a little further, I really don't want to spend a lot of $$$ for this... saving that for other more important stuff, like new tires for the wife's care come spring. I'll check to make sure I can return it before buying though, just in case. If anyone else happens to find this thread and knows for sure that the HF one I posted (not the older creader) or other inexpensive readers will work for our cars, post up. Thanks. Steve

Thanks for all the helpful replies! Conflicting info on the HF code reader: Doesn't work for Subarus: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showpost.php?p=275967&postcount=11 Works for Subarus: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showpost.php?p=535324&postcount=8 Steve