My 99 Legacy Outback (113k miles) is having sporadic starting issues that it will not replicate for my mechanic. Sometimes it will start right up, and other times it makes a delightful variety of noises but eventually starts. Here’s a sampling:

• The rrr rrr rrr, followed by silence
• Total silence
• A single click
• Sounding like it’s going to start and then cutting out before it does

During any/all of these,the radio works. Sometimes I just get one of these, sometimes I will get all of them. Today I got all of them in the 7 tries it took me to get it started, which is the most it's ever taken. It used to only happen at the first start, if it was going to happen at all, but now it’s been happening on subsequent attempts later in the day. Temperature doesn’t seem to play a factor. It doesn't matter whether it's in gear or neutral.

 

Thoughts?

 

bad battery, .................or dirty battery cables?? Clean the battery cables, then re-attach to battery, see if it starts better.

Yep, check the voltage drop at the Starter.  

 

Load Pro leads will help you out!

 

http://brighterideas.com/portfolio/starter-voltage-drop/

Edited October 14, 201411 yr by lmdew

Sounds like the ignition switch. Mine had issues like that, had to turn the key about thirty times to get it to turn over. The rrr rrr doesn't sound like ignition switch though.

I would start with the simple. check and clean both battery cables at both ends.

And look at the starter contacts

1.  battery

2.  battery terminal/posts are corroded or loose

3.  battery cables are corroded or compromised

 

starter and ignition come to mind as said as well.

All checked by a voltage drop check.

symptoms seem to point to 2 or more problems but, def. start with the electrical system. A 99 could have corroded cables and need starter contacts.

 

If the car is an auto-trans, shifting to neutral would be a good test. If the car starts after whacking the starter with a chunk of 2x4 - that would sorta be 'diagnostic' for starter contacts.