First post, new to Subarus. I've found some useful info here already, thanks!

I'm resurrecting a 1996 Legacy 2.2L that was sitting for most of the last decade in my wife's grandma's garage. I've got it running and driving seemingly as it should, with only two known issues at the moment. 

1) rodent chewed vacuum hose (I think), what is it? It hissed with vacuum when running. see pic

2) AC not working. The dash button doesn't light up when pressed. I don't have a full grasp of the system yet, most of my knowledge is from this thread. Here's what I've learned:

• Fuses:
  • 10A Fuse in engine compartment good. 12V is delivered to AC relay
  • can’t find second fuse that is supposedly in the interior fuse box, don't see anything related to heat or AC
• AC relay functions
• AC compressor spins when the relay is jumped
  • Air does not get cold.
  • I ran the compressor for longer than I should have if there’s no refrigerant, something I subsequently learned. oops
• dual pressure sensor switch on the drier is open circuit 
  • conclusion Faulty dual pressure sensor switch or refrigerant quantity insufficient”
  • Makes sense that refrigerant is low because it didn’t blow cold when i ran the compressor for a while
     

but since the light on the dash doesn't turn on, is there another problem also? or is there a string of sensors/switches in series, which must all be closed in order to power that dash light?

Thanks for the help!

Those 3 lines are fuel lines.  Replace them.

If it's been sitting that long, most likely no ac refrigerant in the system.  

The orings on the compressor and condenser are common leak points.

You can get a cheap charge kit and put it in.  You might get lucky!

The hose is the vapor line for the fuel system.

Go here for fsm for car: Index of /Auto/Japan/Subaru

 

O.

10 hours ago, lmdew said:

 

Those 3 lines are fuel lines.  Replace them.

 

Fuel related yes. Two are fuel lines, the chewed one is the vapour from the tank to the purge control solenoid/carbon canister. Unsure which one it is exactly, definitely vapour line though. 

Cheers 

Bennie

While you're at it, it would be a good idea to replace the fuel-filter (the black canister that one of the fuel-lines is connected to).

Thanks for all the responses. I'll track down this vapor hose and replace it. Good idea to do the fuel filter. I guess I should do the air filter as well. Last summer I changed oil+filter and transmission fluid, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that the torque bind was gone after sitting with new fluid in the transmission for the winter.

For the AC, would it be worth replacing O rings before charging the system? Or is that only safe to do after getting it fully evacuated? 

Are there other things I should proactively do? This car sits at a summer cabin and we'll use it for a couple months each year. It has ~165k miles and got reasonably maintained until about 2016 when it was essentially abandoned (outside in the PNW unfortunately). I just put it in the garage until next year, but could plan work and buy parts before returning next year. 

Thanks!

One other, often overlooked, maintenance item: Change oil in rear-differential. 

First, check for oil leaking from the differential, especially from around the input-shaft, and from around the left and right output shafts.  Ideally, the differential case should appear dry and not oily. If there is evidence of oil leakage, then the oil-level should be checked, and it's not much extra work to drain and replace the oil. However, if the diff-case is dry, with no apparent oil-leakage, you might be tempted to leave well-alone; but it's really not difficult to drain and change the oil.

There should be 2 plugs on the the rear face of the diff. Use a 1/2"-square male driver to release the plugs. Always remove the top (filler) plug first, in case the plug is seized. On most Subarus, the rear diff takes about 1L of 75W-90 gear oil.  The trick to filling the fresh oil, is to buy a cheap 'turkey baster' (squeezy-bulb type), and use that to get the fresh oil in through the upper fill-plug; fill until the oil reaches the bottom of the fill-plug. And you're done.

Edited August 31, 2025Aug 31 by forester2002s