Bushwick Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 '95 Legacy just started doing this while driving. First time it happened I was definitely puzzled and looked for warning bulbs or something as it'd never done that before. Eventually realized it was the same warning chime as if the headlights are on with key-on but not running. Has happened a few times now, but unsure what might be causing it as it won't stay chiming long enough. Jiggling the ignition key doesn't affect it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 Maybe it thinks the door is open? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 could it perhaps be a seat belt chime, not headlights? I have never had a Subaru chime at me for headlights being on. Ever. Not in any of the Subarus I have ever owned - from the '89 GL, to the '90 LS Legacy, to the '95 Legacy, to the 2002 Forester - and a few the other half has had as well from around the same age ranges, up to & including his 2006 Outback.. In fact, it is one of the things I love about Subarus - the lights go on & off with the key. I don't have to worry about leaving the lights on accidentally - because they turn off when the key is off, or even in the Acc position. The ONLY lights that will ever turn on with the key off are the ones run by the "virgin switch" - the one on top of the steering column. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 Seatbelt or door open with key in. Subies don't have headlight chime. They go off with the Ig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwick Posted April 3, 2018 Author Share Posted April 3, 2018 I'll double check later today what's exactly causing it to chime as I could have sworn it chimed with acc. ON, engine OFF, headlights ON, door shut. The door/hatch light works on the dash, and was OFF when it chimed while driving. I always wear the seat belt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 can still pretty much guarantee you it has nothing to do with the headlights being on. I typically turn mine on and leave them on all the time - never once has any of my cars chimed at me for that. I did have at least one instance on my 95 where it chimed while driving, and it turned out the seat belt buckle was not fully engaged. Unbuckle and re-buckle and the chiming stopped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwick Posted April 3, 2018 Author Share Posted April 3, 2018 Yeah, dunno why I thought headlights were involved. Guess my auto-filter is set to aggressively block grey noise and wasn't paying close enough attention.... It's the key ON, no start, it'll chime. That's the chiming that it's doing. But it won't go through the entire chime sequence. It'll chime once, or a couple times, then completely stop. My seatbelt doesn't seem to affect it, though I wonder if it might be sticking or possibly inop this whole time. More investigating! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 If you pull the lower dash panel below the column, you can access the 2 wire, black "T" shaped connector that is for the "key in" switch. Disconnect that connector, and you will never get any chimes again. Doesn't affect anything else. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwick Posted April 3, 2018 Author Share Posted April 3, 2018 If you pull the lower dash panel below the column, you can access the 2 wire, black "T" shaped connector that is for the "key in" switch. Disconnect that connector, and you will never get any chimes again. Doesn't affect anything else. Thanks Gloyale. I might actually look into that if it becomes unsolvable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forester2002s Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 (edited) Does the passenger-seat have a sensor that could be activating the chime? If that sensor is faulty, it might think that your non-existent passenger hasn't buckled their seat-belt. Edited April 3, 2018 by forester2002s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 Does the passenger-seat have a sensor that could be activating the chime? If that sensor is faulty, it might think that your non-existent passenger hasn't buckled their seat-belt. nah, not in a 95 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwick Posted April 16, 2018 Author Share Posted April 16, 2018 If you pull the lower dash panel below the column, you can access the 2 wire, black "T" shaped connector that is for the "key in" switch. Disconnect that connector, and you will never get any chimes again. Doesn't affect anything else. Is the connector under the actual column cover? Or is it behind the knee panel? After some time, it started happening again, only now it'll play half a chime in a continuous loop for long stretches, cut in and out, or go full blast chime to a dying weak chime, etc. -basically obnoxious. Was able to use this to test what the problem might be, and it seems to be the actual key-in detection switch (whatever it's actually called) is faulty or sticking. Was able to insert/remove key a bunch of times (engine off) while it was acting up during a recent drive, and it's seemingly the problem as it would immediately respond to key in or out, and I could get it to break the chime sequence with a long, continuous note, etc. like it was doing while driving. Wiggling the key while inserted had no effect, nor did hitting the dash or column, etc. What made this a little weirder though was it'd be perfectly quiet, I'd hit the brakes for a stop, and it'd start chiming. After doing that numerous times, was thinking there might be a short somewhere, etc. Guessing the key-in switch chime whatever might have been reacting to the weight shift during braking, though wiggling had no effect. If you have a warning chime problem in the future, hopefully that helps pinpoint the cause. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted April 16, 2018 Share Posted April 16, 2018 Is the connector under the actual column cover? Or is it behind the knee panel? After some time, it started happening again, only now it'll play half a chime in a continuous loop for long stretches, cut in and out, or go full blast chime to a dying weak chime, etc. -basically obnoxious. Was able to use this to test what the problem might be, and it seems to be the actual key-in detection switch (whatever it's actually called) is faulty or sticking. Was able to insert/remove key a bunch of times (engine off) while it was acting up during a recent drive, and it's seemingly the problem as it would immediately respond to key in or out, and I could get it to break the chime sequence with a long, continuous note, etc. like it was doing while driving. Wiggling the key while inserted had no effect, nor did hitting the dash or column, etc. What made this a little weirder though was it'd be perfectly quiet, I'd hit the brakes for a stop, and it'd start chiming. After doing that numerous times, was thinking there might be a short somewhere, etc. Guessing the key-in switch chime whatever might have been reacting to the weight shift during braking, though wiggling had no effect. If you have a warning chime problem in the future, hopefully that helps pinpoint the cause. The switch itself is right on the barrel of the ignition cylinder. But the 2 pole black "T" connector should be accessible by just removing the knee panel. It's the only 2 wire bundle with a black 2 pole coming from the column. unhook it and you'll never hear any chimes again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwick Posted April 16, 2018 Author Share Posted April 16, 2018 Ah, thank you soooooooo much! Got it disconnected and the silence is bliss. Was starting to act like it was possessed. Slow down, it start chiming. Speed up, and it'd change tempo like one of those movie bombs on a timer i.e. beep.. beep.. beep.. beepbeepbeep BEEEP. Swear the thing was messing with me. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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