I've got a 98 Brighton wagon with 2.2L, 5 speed, and 208K miles. I've had the car since 66K miles and it has been well maintained. Recently it has developed an intermittent starting problem. About 98% of the time it starts and runs normally.  The other 2%, it will start normally, run for about 5 seconds and die. Then I can crank and crank and it will not fire. If I leave it sit for a few hours, it starts and runs fine. It seems like it loses spark or fuel or both, although I can't confirm either one. I thought perhaps it was flooding so I tried depressing the accelerator while starting but had the same results. There is no CEL and my reader does not show any codes. It has happened 3 times in the last 3 weeks. The common denominator has been sub-zero cold on all 3 occasions. The first time I thought maybe I had some water in the fuel, but the symptoms are too similar I think for that to be the case all 3 times.  Obviously, I don't feel like I can trust the car to not leave me stranded in extreme conditions. Does anyone have any ideas on where to start looking? Thanks for any help you can offer.

YellowstoneYeti,

 

Extreme cold has a shrinking effect on many materials. Put that together with a bad electrical connection, like an ignition wire connector, spark plug wire, etc., and they may be related. The wire/connector makes a good contact in hat, warm and cold weather, but extreme cold shrinks the metal to create a gap that voltage can't leap?

 

Just a thought. Good Luck!

I agree with the previous poster. Make sure power is getting to the ignition while the problem is occurring. If power is okay then I would suspect the igniter.

I agree that it well could be an electrical connection.  Of course that doesn't help much.  One area that these old 2.2 subarus are vulnerable is the MAF. They fail erratically without a code and then they start working for a long period of time.  They prevent starting for hours and then they magically don't.  So if it were me, I would just go to a you-pull-it and put another one in for $20.

When applying the accelerator, all the way too the floor?

Ya, I agree with mikec03 about the MAF.  They are known to do this very thing . Buy one at the wrecking yard .. if it solves the problem, then buy another and keep it with you. Simple enough to change out if necessary.

What years would maf be the same?